chris.reese.girls1.2.3.4

In mid-February my parents, siblings and our spouses enjoyed an extended weekend in Phoenix all together without our kids. This was the first vacation of its kind and I hope we can repeat it again. While we love being all together with our families and our kids relishing in cousin time, it was a nice reprieve from our regular parenting duties to be without the kiddos and have endless hours for chatting and relaxing. Our greatest joys come from our family and I love that we are all close friends as adults. We really love being together! Not to mention soaking in three full days of 80-degree sunshine. It felt amazing to get away from the rain for a bit! Here is the whole family crew: The weekend included some of my favorite things... sunbathing with a soda and a book, (It is unfair that two of my sisters were coming off Hawaiian vacations...they fit right in with their bronzed skin!)  Shopping and more shopping. Our hotel was next door to Nordstrom Rack...yay! ...

Mid-winter break is a weird anomaly out in our neck of the woods. I wouldn't say I'm a fan of taking a full week off of school six weeks after returning from winter break and two months before spring break, but I digress. Chris and I were headed to Arizona the latter half of the week (more on that soon), so for the days prior, we packed in the fun with our kids as best we could. The Saturday after Valentine's day we took the older girls up skiing. Paige had her second lesson and made amazing progress. Brynn (and cousin Graham) both had their first lessons, but learned more with mom/dad afterwards than during their actual 3-hour lesson. We will do it differently for her next time, but she enjoyed it nonetheless and was all smiles.  We didn't have the best conditions...snowing and a bit breezy, but still better than icy. The kids didn't seem to mind.  Paige is ready for the big ski lift, but is absolutely terrified. We had a neighbor friend pass ou...

A noteworthy day in February. Brynn claims it as her favorite day ever. The girl loves pink to no end, and candy is a close second, so of course she loves this holiday. All girls appreciate the candy overload, and the exchanging of valentine's with friends, family, and schoolmates. I left them treats and love notes in the morning and Chris had a small bouquet of roses for each of them.  They were still sleepy-eyed when he left for work, but very happy. I made them cinnamon rolls for breakfast and decided that was maybe not the best idea considering the sugar and sweets they would have for the rest of the day, but oh well. :) After whisking Paige off to the bus, I found the valentine she made for Brynn and it made my heart swell. She is always so thoughtful. I love my girls writing each other love notes. It's so fun. Later that afternoon my awesome friend, Julie, hosted a chocolate fountain party for our kiddos. It was so fun! This was before they started...they wer...

We were swept up in Seahawks mania this past NFL season. If you know my husband, you know he's always been a Hawks fan...and this year it reached a whole new level. We became masters of DVR-ing the game and avoiding social media before we could watch on Sunday evenings. The excitement swept through our house...the girls became super fans too! During the playoffs and the Super Bowl, I got really good at making "game" food. After the Super Bowl win we knew we wanted to join our city for the celebration parade. Wednesday morning after the Super Bowl I drove the girls into the heart of Seattle where we picked up Chris and hung out with 700,000+ super fans. It was an incredible experience. Something about being in the city, crammed with people, all sharing the same excitement and fan craziness. So tangible and memorable! We had a hard time getting further north on the parade route, and had anticipated as much. Below we are waiting for a train, which we never got on becaus...