SNAP HAPPY

sound the alarms!
alert the media!
my boys can snap!
snap camp has been deemed obsolete.
today is a red letter day in their lives, i tell you.
the joy was contagious, as usual.
hudson shouts, "we have snappers in our family now!"
boon exclaims, "i'm so happy i can snap!"
congratulations, boys!
let's celebrate tonight at our weekly snap party, shall we?

SINCE WE LIVE "ON THE COAST"...

...we might as well go there for a visit!

my grandma always used to talk about her "kids that lived on the coast."
(my uncle lived in bremerton, and now port orchard)
my mom says this, too.
she refers to her kids that live on the coast,
and i always laugh.
"but you do live on the coast!" she says.
yes, compared to you folks in the "inland northwest," we do.
but i don't think anyone who lives in my corner of suburbia would consider themselves coastal dwellers.

anyhoo...when my folks came for a visit,
we took them to the water.
seriously fun to spend some time on a sunny september day at the beach.
followed by dinner overlooking the ferry dock.
a fun day on the coast.

WHAT MAKES A FANCY SNACK?

take cougar gold cheese (delicious!)
add crackers.
not something dull like saltines or wheat thins.
mix it up with one of those fancy pepperidge farm assortments, ok?
place on a platter.
glass or ceramic.
no plastic.
garnish with grapes.
figs would be fancier, but yuckier.
watch your family devour the fancy snack.
but leave the grapes.
obviously too healthy for them to bother with.

SCENES FROM THE WEEKEND

a few carrots from our meager garden

roofing on our shed

painting and installing shed components including the window...

and door

spray painting thrift store finds galore

we spent most of the weekend outside. the boys playing. the parents working. what's up with that?

A DREAM COME TRUE

hudson realized a dream the other night.
he wore his clothes under his pajamas to bed.
to make things go quicker in the morning.
just like twist in the show fresh beat band.

when it was time to get dressed the following morning,
his excitement was contagious.
"time to get dressed!"
"well, i'm already dressed!"
and he stripped off those pj's to reveal his "dressed."
clark kent style.
it was awesome.

OVERHEARD DURING PRESCHOOL CARPOOL

"do you know how to snap?"

"no, it's really tricky for me. REALLY tricky. maybe i should go to SNAP CAMP."

"yea. and it can be a food camp, too. we snap, and then we get really hungry from all that snapping and we need to eat."

STAR WARS & PJS

so first, you stay in your pjs for most of a saturday.
then you put on a cool darth vader helmet (thanks, colleen!) and a cool clone trooper helmet.
and to top off the fun, you run around outside and draw the eyes of each passerby.
all i can say is,
my. boys. are. so. awesome.

ONE OF THESE THINGS IS NOT LIKE THE OTHER...

can you tell me which one?
coconut cream pudding?
corn chowder?
imagine my husband's surprise when he heated up a big bowl of hot pipin' puddin' for his lunch at work.
what a bummer, dude.

TODAY IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE LETTERS J & K

the
TRAIL OF TEARS
FROM A TO Z
continues!

J

JACKSON LAKE






we camped next to jackson lake in grand teton national park. amazingly breathtaking. beautiful. inspiring. and quite frankly, the one and only lake on this trip that was even remotely "warm" enough to dip into.

JIFFY CORN


remember jiffy pop? we have officially made this our camping treat of choice. boon calls it jiffy corn, and we think it's jiffyrific.

JUNIOR RANGERS

the national park junior ranger programs are amazing. really. we all learned something new about each area. the boys became junior rangers in all four parks we visited and the process goes a little something like this:
1. following directions for your age group, complete junior ranger booklet.
2. visit park ranger at visitor center.
3. answer a few questions about what you did and what your liked and learned.
4. raise your right hand and swear to help protect the national parks and the natural areas near your own home.
5. sign your oath.
6. receive your official button/pin/patch.
7. soak in the adoring eyes of your parents and the celebratory claps from the other visitors around you.
7. feel really super cool and full of pride.

K

KAYAKING




jackson lake in grand teton was where we took our first family kayak outing. and what a perfectly beautiful place for such an outing. wow. awe-inspiring. really and truly. and the kayaking? that was great, too. we just may be looking to trade in our canoe on a couple of double kayaks. pretty sweet stuff and definately one of the highlights of the trip.

KITES




our first stop on our big trip was thompson falls, montana. we stayed at grandma jacquie and grandpa frank's river cabin which also happens to be a perfect setting for kite flying.

FIRST DAY OF SECOND

at pick-up yesterday, boon ran to hudson and i, gave us a big hug and said, "i had a really great day!" he then proceeded to highlight the most important aspects of the day. on the top of his list was the supreme treat of getting to put his feet up on the desks during reader's workshop. what else do you need in life? really? what else?

HE'S STILL GOT IT

chubby cheeks?
check

rosebud lips?
check

peach fuzz?
check

uber-long eyelashes?
check

plump little nose?
check

sweet disposition?
check...check...check!

THE ART OF THE LETTER IS ALIVE AND WELL

dear carolyn,

i hope you had a great day.

i hope there's not any crows in your yard.

i hope your brothers are going good.

i hope your mom is doing good.

i hope your house is clean.

hello,
hudson