Beatin' the Heat

It's HOT in the city! We escaped our stuffy house and headed to the backyard (nice and close) to cool off. The girls had a great time splashing at their water table, playing hoops and having a picnic lunch.

We are having so much fun with them, and are in awe of all they learn each day. Just this weekend Mia started singing "Row, row, row your boat" (the "row, row, row" part anyway) and Emma has mastered wrestling with Daddy. Both of them picked up basketball quickly - so much so, that we might need a second ball.

Enjoy this video from our day!

My First Movie!

I got a Flip Video camera for my birthday last month, and had fun shooting clips of the girls while we were at Lake Chelan. Last night I played around with iMovie to make a short film. :-) Enjoy!

Now that I can upload video easily, look for more video posts in the future!

Em & M's Beach House (Stories from Chelan)

With the girls not loving the water, the playground or the grass, we let them guide us as to what they'd like to do. Turns out all they needed were some beach blankets on the deck, a bubble machine, toys, and some yummy snacks to munch on. Welcome to Em & M's Beach House!

Bubbles! The girls LOVE bubbles. That's Mia on the left behind the bubbles, and Emma on the right.

Do you have the same snack I do? The girls only wanted to eat their snack of Pops out of the box, so we had to empty the boxes and add in a few Pops. Emma got an old Ritz Bits box so they could each have their own.

Hey, no adults allowed!

Mia may be the next spokesperson for Pops. She loved them! And "pop" is one of her favorite words to say!

The full set-up, with the fort for shade.

The bubble party machine - perhaps the greatest invention ever. This little octopus cranked out more bubbles than we ever could have. And we didn't have to lose our breath!

Gone Swimmin' (Stories from Chelan)

Our little bathing beauties. This was the closest Mia (right) ever came to swimming - wearing her bathing suit.

We looked forward to playing with the girls in the pool all week. We weren't sure what Mia would think, since she wasn't too fond of the pool in San Diego. Sure enough, the first time we stopped by the pool, she wanted nothing to do with it. We tried taking her a few more times, but it was clear she was traumatized by the thought of going near the water. She wanted nothing to do with the lake or even the the jucuzzi bath tub in the condo. We predict that next year when we're back, she'll love the water so much she won't want to get out. Time will tell...

Emma, on the other hand, was a bit more adventurous. She was hesitant at first, but warmed up quickly to cruising around the pool with Mom and Dad, and floating in her ladybug raft. We had the pool to ourselves, so that made it less intimidating for her. She had a great time splashing and even let me throw her in the air. We were probably in for an hour and her hands were like prunes when we got out. After such a fun time we were sure she'd want to go again the next day. She did, but was much more timid with all the people around. The third time we took her we had the pool to ourselves again, but she wanted nothing to do with it. As with Mia, we predict that wil change by next year.

Getting the hang of floating in her ladybug raft.


Splash, splash, splash! Kick, kick, kick!

Playing catch with Daddy.

The good news is now that we're home, they're both happy with their own bathtub so we can get them cleaned up!

Parents' Playdate (Stories from Chelan)

Matt and I were able to escape on our own several times, while Grandma and Grandpa helped with the parenting duties.

One day we went into Chelan for lunch and an ice cream cone, and walked around town a bit. One evening we hit up the Mill Bay Casino and played Pai Gow poker. We took several walks around Wapato Point, where we stayed, and into Manson, the little town. We were regulars at the Coffee Legend. (Shhh...don't tell Starbucks!)


But our favorite thing to do was rent kayaks and paddle around the lake, soaking up as much sun as possible. It was so peaceful and quiet on the lake, which was very relaxing. Next year we want to do that every day if we can.

Matt managed to snap a photo of both of us.

Matt, looking relaxed and dare I say, outdoorsy.

Self-portrait.

Waterfront homes in Manson.

Paddle faster! This kayak isn't going to row itself while I take pictures.

Chillin' on the lake before heading back in.

Ladies Who Lunch (Stories from Chelan)

The beautiful vineyards of the Vin de Lac winery.

Donna and I escaped one day into Chelan for lunch and window shopping. We ate at Campbell's, the resort in town, and cruised the shops. We also stopped at a beautiful little winery on a hillside in Chelan called Vin de Lac. The vineyards were beautiful, and they had a little boutique and restaurant with an amazing view. There are so many wineries in town; I'll have to check out some more next year.

Below are photos of the vineyard and the wonderful view of the lake from the cute outdoor restaurant and tasting area.

Chow Time (Stories from Chelan)

Grandma and Grandpa made all kinds of yummy meals for us. They also taught the girls about the four basic food groups: Doritos, Corn Pops, pie and French toast. That's what grandparents are for. It's just too bad those foods are only available in Lake Chelan. Sorry, girls!

The girls enjoy French toast with syrup with Daddy and Uncle Pete.

Mia prefers drinking out of Grandma's glass.

Spaghetti night! Mia digs around to find a meatball.

Emma goes for more noodles.

"Uh oh" says Mia with a shrug, as she drops (i.e. throws) food on the floor.

Emma signs "all done." The girls are great at communicating at meal time. They know sign language for "more," "all done," "milk," "drink" and "please." It's very helpful!

Hey! I'm trying to read... (Stories from Chelan)

We've started noticing some sibling rivalry among the girls. They really don't like sharing their parents, toys or books with each other. The classic case is when Mia is trying to read a book in peace, and Emma stampedes her to join in or just flat out takes the book. Typically this situation involves a fighting over a parent, as well, and doesn't have the happy ending pictured below.

Mia: "Ahhh. What a relaxing vacation. I'm just going to sit in this chair and read Ten Little Ladybugs." (Apparently it's even better upside down.)

Emma: "Peekaboo! What's that you're reading, Mia? Looks like a good book!"

Mia: "Hey, Emma, you surprised me! I thought I'd escaped you."

Emma: "Oh, you'll never escape me, sis."

Mia: "Go find your own book to read and leave me alone!"

A Walk by the Lake (Stories from Chelan)

Grandma, Matt and I took the girls for a walk to down to the lake, and to check out all the playgrounds on site. We must have a couple city girls on our hands because they weren't too fond of the sand in the playground (too many rocks and gravel), the grass (higher and thicker than they're used to), or the water (bigger than their bathtub). We were hopeful they'd adapt as the week went on, though.

Emma walks on the beach, staying close to Grandma and Daddy. Mia wasn't feeling too adventurous that day and the water made her very nervous, so she hung out in Mama's arms instead.

Grandma & Mia, Daddy and Emma walk by the pond.

Emma and Daddy look for trout in the pond. Nearby, kids were fishing.

Mia was having a rough day. Her teeth hurt and she didn't like the sand, grass, or water.

Emma had fun running in the grass, even though it was talk and thick and a little hard to walk through.

Niether of the girls has ever liked swings much, but Emma had fun for a few minutes before wanting to get out. We also tried the merry-go-round which they both liked.

Family Fourth at Lake Chelan

We spent the 4th of July - and the week that followed - at beautiful Lake Chelan with Grandma and Grandpa Lund. Uncle Pete joined us too for a couple days, before he tackled the STP (Seattle to Portland) bike race.

Mia had a case of insomnia the first night we arrived, so she got to stay up and watch the fireworks with us. We had a perfect view of the fireworks over Manson Bay from our deck. They put on a great show! Mia "ooohed" over the bright lights in the sky, while periodically taking breaks to run around the deck in circles.

Both girls were siffering from teething pain and/or an illness and/or the heat the first few days of our trip, and didn't sleep, eat or drink very well. Fortunately they were both in better spirits by Tuesday to enjoy the rest of the trip.

All American girl Emma welcomes us to Lake Chelan!

"I Want You!" Mia spots Mama from the balcony.

Emma and Mia set up camp on the deck with their toys.

Going after the same toy. Hmm...that never happens...

Contiue reading the blog for more stories from Lake Chelan...