Vacation: New Mexico

The day after Disneyland we boarded a plane to Albuquerque, New Mexico where we met Auntie Barbara who had arrived 8 hours earlier. Flying in, the pilot called our attention to a huge wildfire burning at the Arizona/New Mexico boarder. The billows of smoke was amazing to see, the smoke filling Albuquerque was even more shocking, you couldn't see more than 70 yards ahead of you and the intense smell of smoke permeated the car and restaurant where we stopped to eat. By the time we arrived in Taos, three plus hours from the airport, it was 11:00pm and the night sky was dark and filled with stars.

When I awoke the next morning I got my first relatively clear look of the area and really loved the beauty of it all. Taos is situated in the high desert, with mountains, mesas, hills and the Rio Grande forging its way through the gorge just four miles from Barbara's vacation house.

View from the driveway

Rio Grande Gorge

View of Taos from Blueberry Hill

Michael and Barbara spent a few days cleaning up and cleaning out the house and storage sheds so Harrison and I explored the neighborhood. We took several walks up the road to a neighbor's property to gaze upon the awesome scrap metal sculptures. It might be difficult to tell from the photo below, but there is a windmill, a bull and a man... if you know your literature it is Don Quixote! Harrison loved these, especially the windmill and now excitedly points out all windmills big and small.

An evening walk

Barbara's neighbor Judy was very sweet to Harrison and had him visit her greenhouse several times to pick the smallest, sweetest strawberries almost everyday. We got to know Judy pretty well since we saw her daily and also made friends with another neighbor up the street, Alberto. Between them we learned a lot about the local history, culture and people and got a great feel what it might be like to be "Taosanian."

One day we took a lovely drive to the Rio Grande to swim and relax in the 85* sun. Harrison had a lot of fun splashing mom and dad with the cold water; only dad was brave enough to actually swim in the water! A little live entertainment was provided by a few daring young men who climbed the nearby bridge and jumped 50 feet into the river, which is evidently deeper than it looks.

Harrison has picked up interest in using the potty again and sometimes when we change his diaper it triggers his urge to go. When we changed him at the river he asked to use a potty and dad decided it was time to teach him to do it standing up in the bushes! I got one photo and managed to keep it tasteful:

After a picnic lunch, we packed up and headed back into town, stopping at a store to shop and check out the tee pees out front.

Barbara took us to meet her close friends, Rick and Jerry, and tour their amazing home. It has been featured in magazines because it is full more artwork than you can imagine and has a beautiful garden filled with sculptures as well as old rusted farm equipment that make an oasis in the desert. Since this "art gallery" is their home, I didn't take many photos but at one point, Harrison was standing at the top of the stairs leading up to the garden, raised his arms to the sky and yelled "Look at me, mommy!!" several times.

Sunday night, Barbara and Judy watched Harrison while Michael and I went out for dinner at Doc Martins. I was feeling especially adventurous that evening and ate rabbit and rattlesnake sausage and an elk burger and would definitely do it again, everything was delicious.

Our last night in Taos, we invited Judy and her friend over for dinner on the patio finished off with a fire and Smores and another lovely Taos sunset.

Our last day in new Mexico, we breakfasted at the Taos Diner then drove to Sante Fe before heading to Albuquerque for our flight. Strolling Sante Fe's streets we saw the cathedral Basilica of St. Francis, checked out the nicest jewelery shop in town (so posh!), bought some silver earrings from a local artisan, perused a photo gallery and ate lunch at Cafe Pasqual's.

Hanging around the park

Lunch at Pasqual's

Thank you Auntie Barbara for a wonder trip. Los Angeles, Taos and Sante Fe were wonderful and we enjoyed spending so much time with you, your family and friends!

Vacation: Disneyland!

Before you get all the great photos of Harrison's first visit to Disneyland, you should know what Disneyland means to us.

Raina grew up in Las Vegas, a mere four hours from the Magic Kingdom. My parents used to put my brother and me in the car at 4am, drive to Anaheim, go-go-go all day long hitting as many rides as we could, watch the fireworks and then drive home again the same night. I probably visited Disneyland 12 times by the time I was 18 and I thought this was the norm for most families. I am still shocked when I chat with friends and find out, growing up in Seattle, they have only been to Disneyland once.

Michael's father's family is primarily in L.A. and his mother's family is primarily in the Bay Area, so a trip to California to visit family was often a trip to Disneyland as well. His mom actually went to Disneyland the first week it was open as a little girl and she has loved visiting ever since. Michael also talked about doing Disneyland "commando style," hitting as many rides as they could, preplanning the route and staying until they were practically the last people leaving the park.

As  you may imagine, we were really excited to take Harrison to Disneyland. I had already decided I wanted a mouse-ears hat with my name embroidered in curlicue letters since I was never allowed one when I was little. We walked through the gates and couldn't help but feel a rush of emotion and the next thing I knew I was actually crying a little, I was so happy to be in a place I loved, with my little boy and my husband who I was sure felt the same way. It was totally cool.

Then we went into commando mode for the first and only time that day. We pushed Harrison past the characters on Main Street USA even though we knew he would love to stop and see them. Michael hooked right into Tomorrowland to get fast passes for the newly updated Star Tours which had reopened only two days earlier while I pushed Harrison past the statue of Mickey and Walt in front of the castle where people were stopping to take the quintessential Disneyland photos. The line to Peter Pan is often the longest so I whipped Harrison out of his seat in the stroller and I accidentally cut the line in my haste (to be fair, the people were way back and I didn't know they were in line!). Dad rejoined us 20 minutes later after waiting 15 minutes just to get a fast pass ticket (!).

From the Peter Pan line, Harrison saw Dumbo and insisted we go over there next and we gladly complied; while dad stood in line mom and son took a ride on King Arthur's carouse. After a midmorning break we jumped into the tea cups and let Harrison spin us around.

Later in the day we started taking time to visit characters for autographs and photos. When I was six or so, I got my own autograph book which I remember taking to Sneezy the Dwarf and he signed his name and drew a little picture of himself. That was the only autograph I got but I managed to hold on to that book for the past 25 years. While I had intended to use the blank pages for scrap paper, I dug it out and brought it with us for Harrison to use. At 2 years and 4 months old, he doesn't get the concept of autographs so I told him that each character wanted to "draw a picture" in his book which really excited him. 

The highlight of Harrison's day was his visit to Mickey and Minnie Mouse. If you ask him about Disneyland he will say "yeah, Mickey, Minnie!" The door man to Mickey's room only lets in about 10 people at once so a lot of anticipation built within all of us. When we were allowed in, we were second in line and I had to hold Harrison back from going straight to the mouse. Once I let him go, he walked straight over to Mickey and gave him the sweetest, longest, most sincere hug you can imagine... people in the room all uttered an "AWE!" at the same time. I really wish I had videoed that moment!

 Since we had to wait 30 minutes to visit Minnie, I gave Harrison some gummy bunnies for a snack. As we neared Minnie, Harrison asked me if he could give Minnie one of his bunnies, which is a pretty big compliment to her because he loves those treats, and sure enough he walks up and immediately hands her the treat. Although dad helped to make it disappear, Minnie pretended to eat it and through hand motions indicated that it was yummy in her tummy and Harrison was just thrilled.

 During nap time in the stroller, dad and I took turns taking a ride on Star Tours (lots of fun). The real fun was just watching Harrison sleep, slightly sun kissed, mouse eared and gently snoring.

We enjoyed the Soundsational Parade and Harrison loved seeing so many characters he recognized. Dad encouraged him to wave and he didn't stop until the parade stopped ten minutes later. Happily Harrison was a trooper and came with us to the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean and he even insisted we take him on the Astro Orbitor rocket ships.

Although he was a little crabby after nap time, we all had lots of fun and didn't leave until around 9pm; we missed the fireworks but Harrison did get a glimpse of them as we drove away from the happiest place on earth.

Vacation: Los Angeles

On June 5th we flew to New Mexico via a two day layover in Los Angeles so that we could enjoy time with Michael's extended family. We stayed at Auntie Barbara's house in Alhambra and she invited everyone over for a casual BBQ in the back yard. Auntie Barbara is Michael's father's (Earl Fein) sister. Barbara's has two daughters (Michael's cousins); Missy has two boys, Spencer and Owen while Ryann has two girls, Paige (PJ) and Charlotte (Charlie)... so if you can follow the genealogy Harrison got to hang out with his second cousins. There were many other relatives too numerous to list here but we had a great time catching up with everyone.

Charlie, PJ, Harrison and Zachery

Missy, Charlie, Ryann, PJ

Charlie & PJ

PJ and Harrison working on blowing bubbles

  

The next day we visited the local Kid's Museum and let Harrison explore, including getting soaking wet after falling into a small pond he was wading in.

Ryann and Brad has us over to their house to enjoy dinner with their sweet girls, as well as Owen and Spencer, their dad Rich and his wife Susan and their son Dash - it was a full house! A+ to Ryann for some killer tacos. We didn't stay too late since it was a Monday night and the rest of the world had to work, however Team Fein wanted to get home to sleep because Tuesday morning we were on our way to Disneyland!

Last Day of Day Care

The last day of Day Care was a non-event for Harrison.  Leading up to this day, I had tried to tell him that he would not go to school anymore but he would get to stay home with mommy instead. He was very enthused by the idea of being with mommy ALL the time; in fact I don't he gave school a second thought. 

His dear old mom is a bit more sentimental than he is so I baked cupcakes (besprinkled by Harrison) and made small gift bags for his teachers. I got little photo stands and and some little pearl-esque stickers and Harrison "decorated" them with my help. Lastly, I took a photo of him and included it in each card:

 

Writing this on 6/21, I can say he hasn't been to school in two and a half weeks and he has never once asked about going to school. I am starting to look at preschools and it makes me wonder how he will feel about going to school again.

Raina's Last Day of Work

June 1st was my last day at WF Bank after 13 years of continuous employment. I was hired in 1998 as a teller at the Campus branch next to the University of Washington which was so convenient since my dorm was two blocks away. The next 4 years were spent as a personal banker and then 3.5 years as a Service Manager. These last 5.5 years I have been an administrative assistant and worked with some amazing people, making my decision to leave that much harder.

Leading up to June 1st, my coworkers were exceedingly kind to me. I was taken out for a lovely lunch, given an annual zoo pass for Harrison and me to enjoy as well as a gift card to a salon to spoil myself. I had lunch dates with friends as well as coffee dates when I couldn't fit in anymore lunch dates. Many lovely phone conversations, cards and hugs. Since I gave 8 weeks notice, all the goodbyes were pretty much taken care of by the end of May so on June 1st, it was actually pretty uneventful. I was super busy trying to tie up loose ends and worked 45 minutes later than I intended and before I knew it I was riding the elevator down 47th floors for the last time and when I watched the city glide by as I rode the bus home I knew it would be awhile before I would be in downtown Seattle again.

I loved working but know that staying home is the right thing for our family. Down the road I am sure I will be working again but for now I am so thankful to have the means to not work and care for Harrison.

For Nancy

For my dear friend Nancy. I told you I try to do four posts a month. You dared say I had waited four weeks between my last set of posts and that it couldn't be done in time. To you I say, "Don't mess with Team Fein!" Also, this post makes five  posts. So thank you for helping me beat the average.

Weekend This and That

Dad has been busy with a project the last couple weekends (which will get it's own special post). So on a Friday night while he was at the Depot Home, mom and son went to the local coffee shop that makes it's own ice cream and enjoyed a mango sorbet together. As an added bonus, there was "live music" which was really two 17 year old playing guitars, but they weren't half bad and more importantly Harrison really enjoyed them. When a song ended and the crowd applauded, Harrison enthusiastically joined in with a gleeful "yea!" and then asked me "more, more, mama!"

The next morning, Harrison got ready to run some errand with mom. I think he was prepared. Adventurer Hat? Check. Buzz Sunglasses? Check. Toy Story books? check. Elephant lovey named "Loo"? Check. He was ready to take on the world. And Costco.

Husky Spring Game Fun

Each spring our beloved Huskies play a spring game where all the fans are invited, the team is split in half and the "Huskies" play the "Dawgs"... essentially it gets the fans excited for the upcoming football season several  months away. The Fein family, along with the Tutrows and the Kinks schlepped the kids from Mill Creek to the U District in semi-sunny weather to enjoy the fun.

Put me in Coach!

Pregame, Harrison on top of the giant Husky football helmet car that drives 

around the field with the cheerleaders after a touchdown.

We almost got a really good family picture. I need to learn how to photoshop

to meld the photo above and below to achieve perfection.

Harrison trying out Jared's binoculars

Dad in heaven

Mommy's Little Helper

Harrison has finally started to embrace being a "big boy" and is eager to help with bigger tasks. This manifests in different ways, all positive and moving him ahead to becoming more self sufficient.

Recently I started making pizza at home and asked him to help me sprinkle on the cheese (instead of picking it off and eating it as I sprinkle it on myself) which led to helping add the pineapple he loves so much. Since he did such a swell job I asked him to help with mushrooms, proscuitto, sun dried tomatoes and other items that are reserved for mommy and daddy's side of the pizza. To our surprise, he sampled all these items en route to the dough... and enjoyed eating them. For the last several weeks he has helped me more and more in making dinner resulting in a kid that is pretty interested to eat everything and he proudly says "daddy, I cook, I cook it!" This break through has him suddenly eating, and loving, eggs, tacos, fajitas, meatball sandwiches... in short he will try almost anything and loves most of it. Except for veggies, these are still a challenge (not counting the pureed stuff he can suck out of pouch); he'll try 'em, chew 'em for awhile and then spit 'em out.

With warmer weather making appearances more often, we started planting flowers and herbs in late April and Harrison was eager to get help. We got him his very own spade which he used to move around dirt while mom dug holes and we examined the earthworms wriggling in their disturbed homes. Last summer he was a great helper water plants and he reprised the role again this year with renewed gusto watering everything he could reach.

Today, I had the vacuum cleaner out in the living room (it spent the last 2 days standing there, waiting for me to use it!) and he asked me for the little vacuum we use to clean the kitchen floors. We proceeded to simultaneously vacuum the kitchen and living room floors. Here is a video of his handy work on a different day:

Harrison has also taken to telling us what to do with much force and conviction. The scary part is that you know he imitates us... yikes, we must come across as stern. While eating dinner one night, he suddenly points to me and say sternly, almost yelling, "no, mommy, NO EAT!" And when daddy snickered and tried to take a bite of his food he received "Daddy, no eat, NO EAT!" While this doesn't sound helpful, it works well in other ways, such as when we are walking downstairs with Winston.Winston will walk down 5 steps and then stop, look back up at us and then wait. The problem is he is almost as big as a stair so we can't walk by him in which case I must say "Down, Winston." Not only will Harrison repeat this when I say it, he started saying it himself before I can do it.

Speaking of the stairs, Harrison also likes to place his blankies and jackets on the banister at the top of the stairs and let the item slide down to the bottom... just like his daddy showed him. I suppose that is helpful if your hands are full.

Easter 2011

Although April 2011 was the rainiest April in the history books and the La Nina winter dragged on and on and on, the Saturday before Easter was absolutely beautiful, sunny and even warm enough for short sleeves! Mom took Harrison to the community Easter Egg Hunt held at the local high school about a half mile from our home. By the time we parked and walked for what seemed like forever to the fields, we arrived about 2 minutes after the egg hunt for toddler started and there was not an egg left in the field, try as we might to look for one. Luckily a guy asked if my little dud had found and egg and when I shook my head, he pulled one out of his pocket and dropped it behind Harrison's feet so he got to "find" it. When he found the chocolate kiss inside he knew this plastic egg business was definitely his style!

Our friends the Smiths lagged a little further behind since they had a toddler and newborn and completely missed out. We waited around another 20 minutes for the "older" kid hunt, with Amelie and Harrison pressed right up against the thin plastic ribbon the cordoning off the field. We watched as teenage volunteers from a local church distributed 6 giant black garbage bags worth of eggs throughout the field and I explained to Harrison that they were the Easter Bunny's helpers. Harrison, along with a couple of kids, jumped the lines here and there and tried to grab eggs nearby, but his joy-kill-mother made him put it back and pleaded with him to wait, wait, wait.

Since our kids missed out during round one, Brigitte and I stood with our legs set a little wider than usual, our toddlers poised  in between and when the count down to the hunt reached zero, instead of letting them get the egg nearest to them (and risk death-by-egg-hunter-trampling), we grabbed them under the armpits and ran straight to the center of the field, dropped them and yelled (nicely but firmly) "eggs, eggs!!" They each managed to get about 4 or 5 before the swarms descended and suddenly the field was barren again. I think that earned us our "Easter Egg Hunt" merit badges for Motherhood.

After nap time, dad wanted a hair cut so we drove to Kirkland. Harrison and mom grabbed some "special milk" (2% milk with a half pump of sugar free vanilla syrup) and strolled down to the beach. Mom sipped her iced latte while Harrison threw rocks into the bay with the other kids.

 

The next morning we put on our Sunday best to meet Michael's family at church. Harrison got a new linen khaki colored suit with a spring green striped button down shirt. Dad pulled out a sport coat and mom slipped on a skirt and heels.Yep, we pulled out all the stops. 

If you visit my blog to get your Harrison photo fix then you may have noticed that there is not a physical photo of the family scene described above. That would be because Harrison puked in the car 5 minutes from church. Twice. Right at the freeway interchange so there was nowhere to pull off. Happily he was not sick, he just had a mean cough and a weak stomach. After marinating in his vomit for 5 minutes, he wasn't really in the best shape to go to church but we thought we should stop in and at least show our faces so I reached into the diaper bag for the spare set of clothes we always keep handy. Evidently I was too quick to pack the bag that morning because I grabbed an orange pair of cargo pants and an orange and gray dinosaur shirt which separately are cute but together we would basically be hauling an odoriferous prison convict into a church stuffed with 500 people. We elected not to go.

Instead we went to grandmama's house, watched some cartoons and washed his clothes while the rest of the family communed with god. Upon their return we enjoyed an Easter brunch followed by an Easter egg hunt. All the plastic eggs were filled with M & Ms and jelly beans and while Harrison had never eaten these things he instantly knew they were his friends. When asked to share he kindly distributed one little candy to each family member, on person at a time. This was a ploy on mom's part because he wouldn't eat one himself until everyone else was served, slowing down the sugarization of my child.

After returning home for a nap, we went to Aunt Shivonne and Uncle John's house for Easter dinner with the family where we had, wait for it, another Easter egg hunt. These eggs were supplied by mom and were filled with organic graham bunny crackers and organic bunny fruit snacks as well as Toy Story stickers, because I like to think I still have some modicum of control over what my kid eats.

Easter Bunny Mommy stuffed his basket with new books and a bunny themed Mr. Potato Head. My cousin Terra and her kids US Mailed two plastic eggs filled with goodies for Harrison which you can see in the left basket (notice the stamps and labels on them, pretty cool!). Popo also sent over some toys and clothes in the basket to the left. What a spoiled kiddo!