Cooties and Cookies

Last weekend I got to spend with my Seattle girls.  Oh what fun!  We did lots of reading with new books from the bookstore.  We added lights to the fairy garden.  Then, of course, we made cookies.  We always make cookies:  This time decorated sugar cookies with "punch" frosting.  There was a chemistry lab to create glitter body gel and lots of princess games.  We went to Lake Washington in search of a beach with sand but all we found were smooth small rocks.  While we were there we watched a kayaker practicing flips in the Lake.  The mountains behind the lake are the Cascades.....beautiful today.
 It was lots of fun playing with Reina and Gabriela and of course just being with Brad and Amber.   But the most fun was playing Cooties.  Remember that game?  You have to roll a "1" on the die to get the cootie bug head, a 2 for the body and six "6"s for the legs.  I had to explain to these young girls that the word cootie used to mean germs and if someone sneezed on you you would shout "Don't get your cooties on me!"

"Don't get your cooties on me"

Lake Washington with kayaker, Gabriela and Reina

maple tree in 3 colors, Seattle

Cookie time

Seahawk green and blue crown - a perfect expression of my Seattle Granddaughters

mushrooms under the cedar

Japanese maple

on the swings, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

In the garden TeePee, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Trip to Seattle

Gabriela and Reina, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Oh Boy! Another trip to Seattle to see my granddaughters: Gabriela and Reina. All have moved across town to a new home with a little more space for children to play. G, R and I took off for the park in their new neighborhood and stopped a few places along the way. We passed the Puma School with a cool sundial, played in the park and then found the community garden, the P-Patch on the way home. Just 2 blocks from their new home.

Gabriela, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

help with the beater, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

art work, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Happy 1st birthday, Gabriela

Gabriela and birthday cupcake, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Was it a whole year ago that this precious little girl was born? 1/11/11 marked Gabriela's "1" birthday. She celebrated in her frilly pink dress with friends and family and yummy cupcakes with pink cream cheese frosting. Although she has no interest in walking she scoots around fast with her classic crawl.

Gabriela, Amber, balloons

Gabriela, Amber, balloons, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Gabriela loved her cupcake but the balloons made her giggle walking along the ceiling

1st portrait sketch, Gabriela

This is my first portrait sketch, pencil, done on the airplane home from Seattle. Taken from this photo. on my iTouch.
sketch, Gabriela, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Oh what fun!

Thanksgiving in Seattle, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Last weekend I went to Seattle for an early Thanksgiving: something I've done since Reina was born. We all really like to celebrate together the weekend before because #1 it isn't as crazy as the real weekend, #2 the stores are less crowded, the fares are cheaper and #3 it allows us all to do a dress rehearsal for the following Thursday.....sometimes with an alternative flare. I do love alternative flares.
But most of the visit is spent playing with my Seattle girls: Reina is 3 and her baby sister, Gabriela is 10 months. Both are absolutely adorable.
I hope all of you have as much fun, good food and love this Thanksgiving as I did.

We had lots of good food

dinner was good, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Visit to Seattle

Gabriela and me, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Joy to the world! My entire family was together in Seattle this past weekend. It has been two years+ since we all assembled last in California and now Gabriela (age 7 months) has joined our family. We had 4 days to travel and play searching for adventures around every corner. The girls really had fun playing together and the baby took it all in stride. The kitchen was busy non-stop. Brad made too many trips to the market to keep us fed. It was a great trip!!

Reina's swing goes up

Reina's swing goes up, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Gabriela and I watch as Brad and Ryan put Reina's new swing up on the tree

Planes, trains, and ferries

girls on the monorail, Seattle, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

One of our goals was to ride everything possible. In Denver we took the CAR to the airport; rode the BUS from the parking lot; ESCALATORS to the TRAINS that took us to the AIRPLANE. The next day we took the MONORAIL to the space needle and ELEVATORS to and from. Sunday we drove to the FERRY to Bainbridge island and did some park hopping. Gabriela had her own ride in the BABY BJORN. Is there anything we missed? Maybe next time we'll take a ride on a seaplane or a hang glider.

Sisters

IMG_0454, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

This weekend I was in Seattle to visit Brad, Amber and their girls. Sunday the girls wanted to dress the same....down to their purple pants. Isn't that one of the best things about being sisters?

Sisters

IMG_0455, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Gabriela, 14 days old

IMG_0141.JPG, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Sweet little Gabriela is growing...just like she should. She sleeps a lot, eats a lot and yes...poops a lot. She looks like she is Reina's sister but she has her own beautiful face. I haven't seen her in 10 days and it is killing me already.

Here she is!

Gabriela Skye West! born Monday January 11, 7 lb 2 oz.

I haven't seen a pic with her eyes open but this one is a beauty. Amber and Gabriela come home today. Big sister, Reina, is excited to have this real baby to help take care of. I, too, am excited to visit this family next week. Waiting is so hard! Welcome to our world, Gabriela. Nana is sure you will make it a better place.