New (school) year, New you

Before school started, Mariah made the goal to get her ears pierced.  For years she's been waffling back and forth between the desire to have pierced ears and the fear of the pain.  Poor girl.  She's really never suffered anything truly painful in her life.  As such, the anxiety of self-inflicted pain has weighed upon her mind for quite some time.

We decided to make it a fun girls' day together with Grandma, Mariah, Karina, and me.  Mariah had a hair appointment in the morning to get a cute, fresh haircut.  She was brave and went with a short cut that looks fabulous on her!

After picking up Grandma, we headed to the mall to obtain the dreaded holes in the ears.  We ate a yummy lunch at Panera Bread (Mariah didn't eat much because of a nervous stomach) and then headed towards Claire's.  As we approached the store, Mariah slowed down a bit and began to look very serious.  Grandma asked her if she was okay, and Mariah started to wonder if she really wanted to follow through.

Mind you, during a previous discussion of ear piercing several weeks earlier, Mariah told me, "Mom, you're going to have to make me do it.  I'm too scared to do it on my own."  Her prophetic statement was indeed coming true.

We prodded her into the store and I took a gentle approach, trying to ease her anxiety.  I told her to look around the store at the earrings she liked, hoping the desire to wear such earrings would override her fear.  No such luck.  While she found many pairs she liked, she still was too afraid to seal the deal.

Over the next couple of hours, we visited every ear-piercing store in the mall, each time leaving with naked ears.  With no more stores to visit, she finally agreed to go back to Claire's and have the piercing done there.  This time as we approached the store, her eyes welled up with tears and the dread truly set in.  She practically refused.

Luckily, there was a young man getting his ears pierced just as we approached and Mariah was able to watch him.  He didn't even flinch as each ear was pierced and even smiled when it was done.  This gave Mariah an ounce of confidence.  The store attendants agreed to do both ears at the same time, which gave her another ounce of confidence.  They told her she could hold someone's hand while she did it, which added one more ounce of confidence.  So, with three ounces of confidence and ninety-seven ounces of "making her do it" from her mother, the deed was done.

And guess what?

She lived.

And she has sparkly ears to show for it!

Flower girls

Mariah and Karina had the honor of being flower girls for my nephew's wedding.  

It took some prodding during the rehearsal to get Karina to comply with the requirements of her new job position.  But with some encouragement and the accompaniment of her big sister, she didn't even hesitate on the big day.  Whew! 

But, at the end of the day, even flower girls have to step out of their role and just play.

A night on the town

He did it again.  Surprised me.  Spoiled me.  Took me out on the town.  I love my husband.

We arranged to have the kids stay with my mom.  

Then Jason took me into Portland on a secret date night.

We saw this lady in concert.  It was the best. concert. ever. ever. ever.  No joke.

We checked into this hotel.  It was a very nice hotel, with very nice service, and very nice slippers.

We spent the next day touring beautiful places in Portland.

The Chinese Garden.

The Pittock Mansion.

One of my most favorite Portland historical sites.

When Jason walked into the closet in the master suite for Mr. Pittock, he said, 

"Now THIS is what I'm talking about!"  

Mr. Pittock and Jason have some common ground with the walk-in closet.

I can see this becoming a ritual for us every so often.  

It's wonderful to get away and just be lovers instead of "Mom" and "Dad."

These Girls

These girls are the cutest girls on the planet.

These girls can be silly and serious at the same time.

These girls love to serve others.

These girls have taught me patience, unconditional love, and forgiveness.

These girls know how to have fun.

These girls are beautiful, both collectively and individually.

These girls have taught me to loosen up and laugh.

These girls show compassion towards others.

These girls are daughters of God and they know it.

These girls are mine and I love them.

And I guess they love me too.

Trading trucks

Enroute to the race in Washington, our truck overheated on the freeway and we discovered we were low on coolant.  Unfortunately, the problem didn't subside with additional coolant, and by the time we reached our destination the truck was intermittently spitting white smoke.  By that evening, after several more miles driven around the city, smoke was boiling out the exhaust pipe and we were certain the truck wouldn't start in the morning.

Frustration and concern set in as we debated how to solve the problem.

Should we try to limp it home?  Probably not a wise option since the truck was hauling a very heavy, very long, and very loaded racing trailer plus five kids and a wife.  Being stranded in the middle of the eastern Washington wheat and windmill fields didn't sound like something we wanted to face.

Should we have the truck and trailer towed home so we could fix the truck at the shop?  An expensive option, but conceivable since we have the capabilities to fix it on our own with little overhead.  But how to get the whole family home?

Should we trade it in and purchase something brand new?  A brand new vehicle offers no worries, no problems, a new warranty, and low financing.  But it also offers a nice fat purchase price. 

Should we trade it in and purchase something used?  Buying something used could present it's own problems, if the truck doesn't live up to what is promised by the dealership.  But, if the price is right, this option could be the least painful.

After a pow-wow with the other people in our party over dinner, some quick research on smart phones, and a few calls to local dealerships, by morning we had a plan.  While the other guys got started racing at the track, Jason spent the morning test driving a used truck brought over by a dealership.  When all was said and done, they offered a reasonable trade-in value for our damaged truck, towed it away, and took our money for the new one.  So, we said good-bye to one white truck and hello to another.

A sigh of relief was breathed by all and we were able to focus on the real reason we came to Spokane--to race!

Racing

A few weekends ago we accompanied Jason to Spokane, Washington to watch him race in his latest venture--Chump Car Racing.  It's an event where you're allowed a very limited budget to purchase a vehicle ($500) and make modest upgrades to it.  It must be fully equipped with safety gear and protection, but other than that, it should basically be a junker.

Most of the races are 24-hour endurance races, and Spokane was no exception.  So, with four drivers on the team, they rotated through 2-hour driving segments until the end.



I entertained the kids with computer games, coloring books, and lots of pop and chips.  When he wasn't driving, Jason was busy purchasing a new truck to get us home (more on that later).  But once he was in the car, we were all entertained by our awesome hubby/daddy racing on the track!

GOING.......

GOING.....

GONE!!!!

Once night fell, I took the kids to the hotel to play in the pool and order pizza for dinner.  We snuggled up in our cozy beds while Jason and the guys continued their laps around the track.  Around 7am, I heard a knock at the door and found Jason standing there.  The car engine had given out in the early morning hours and they had to call it quits.  It was a bit of an anti-climactic ending to the race, but overall they were satisfied with their efforts and partial success.  Every race is a learning experience and they learned plenty this time around to improve for the next race in a few months.  

Karina the Princess

Karina's 4th birthday started out with anticipation and excitement.  The boys started fawning over Karina--letting her choose what to do, where to go, and who to play with since "it's your birthday, Karina."  Karina thought this arrangement was quite convenient.  But....

...sometimes when we receive a lot of attention, it goes to our head.  By the end of the day, Karina had turned into quite the princess with quite the amount of demands.  And, we're still feeling the effects three days later.

It was, however, fun to see Karina enjoy her special day.  She chose to have ladybug cakes and ice cream.  She loved her gifts of tutus, pillow pets, and sunglasses.  She reveled in the attention given.  She was Karina, through and through.

In Hiding

When your in trouble and your mom makes you sit in the corner, this is what you can do to hide from everyone and be alone.  Just in case you were wondering....