Final Post

Well, this officially brings an end to the Party in Tukwila. Tomorrow is moving day. We are all packed (mostly) and the new house is ready for us (pretty much). We have so many good memories of this house. As I packed up tonight I was thinking about Nov 1 2003 when my mom and Anton's mom unpacked the kitchen for us while 9-month-old Monica played with the empty boxes. We've had parties, movie nights, backyard volleyball games, bridal showers, thanksgiving dinners, and much more in this house. I hope another family enjoys it as much as we have.

August 12

Today, Jack's real birthday, we played with a new water toy, ate ice cream sandwiches, and had a pajama dance party.

We seem to do a lot of major things on the twelfth of August. Four years ago Jack was born. Last year on this day I had abdominal surgery. And this year I attempted to pack our entire house by myself while 8 1/2 months pregnant. I didn't quite finish the whole house, but got through all but two rooms (basically). I hate to think what we'll be up to next year on this date!

Jack's 4th Birthday Party

Saturday we hosted Jack's 4th birthday party at View Ridge Park. The weather had been sunny all week, then along came the rain just in time for the party. Thankfully we had a large shelter at the park, plus lots of Seattle-born kids who don't mind getting wet!

Happy birthday, little man!

Friday at Camp

Friday we gathered up our kids plus Kyle and Tyler for a day trip to Parsons. We had an awesome time... the perfect break from painting and other such activities.

Julie and her daughter Sara brought out one of their goats and chickens for the kids to hold:

We played on Pier Beach after lunch to stay out of the way of the Patrol Competition.

Sticks, rocks, logs to climb on. What more do boys need to be happy?

We took a two-mile hike up the dump road to the nature trail and had awesome views. In my state-of-excessive-growth I wasn't much faster than the toddlers, but hey-- at least I made it without going into labor. "Dr. McNellis, please report to the clearcut..."

We headed home right after campfire. All four kids were asleep by the Hood Canal Bridge.

Pt. Defiance Zoo and Jefferson Spray Pool

Tuesday we took a much needed break from working on the new house and joined our friends the Rutherfords at Pt. Defiance Zoo. Here are a few highlights from the trip.

These two monkeys were hilarious. The black one was swinging all over the place like he was performing for us. Meanwhile the older white one just looked at him like he was crazy.

We were at the zoo right when it opened and got to see several of the animals get fed. The walrus dude talked to the visitors for a long time about this 330-pound wonder named "ET." I learned more than I ever needed to about walrus care! (But no, I will not be adopting one.)
At the aquarium part, everyone in our group crowded in to watch the sharks get fed. But I was literally so tired that I dozed off on a nearby bench. Pregnancy + moving houses = exhaustion!

We ended the zoo portion of the day with a ride on the carousel.

We next headed to Jefferson Park for a picnic lunch and a romp through the spray pool. Monica, Jack, and Hayden had a blast. Alex was content just to watch the chaos around him.