For Tulips and Jelly Beans

To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.

Buddha

How true is THAT statement?  My health has been...unpleasant for the last several months and while I understand the duty of maintaining my good health I don't always feel as though I have as much control over that duty as I would like.  I am not complaining, just making observations.

The strong and clear mind is really the first thing that slips away from me when I'm not feeling well.  As I've been gaining more sleep I've also been gaining more energy as well as the clarity and strength of mind that has been sorely lacking in my life.  Regaining what has felt lost is helping me to pull together life now and, as best as possible, life in the future.  Andrew and I discuss frequently how our plans have to be incredibly flexible because we recognize the mercurial ways of life.  At the moment, one of the things on my goal list is to jump back into writing.  Writing, for me, has always been cathartic however actually sitting down and making it happen can be quite taxing.  BUT...I'm doing it anyway, dammit, because I'm finished with feeling like I let little things like being tired or uncomfortable beat me down.  So there, life! 

There!  That's all out.  My thought is to sum up what the family does on the weekend.  Let's face it, the week is pretty dull.  The guys head off in the morning for work and school and I do the house wife thing at home.  The guys come home, we all hang out, then we all go to bed.  Normal, family life.  The weekends are what I look forward to the most.  I try to find something for us to do, either free or super cheap, each weekend.  This weekend was the Tulip festival in Mount Vernon.  

On a previous outing with the family we had stopped at Cafe Ladro, a little coffee shop that purchases beans from Andrew's place of employment.  We, naturally, wanted to try out the coffee.  Quite satisfactory, as were the little bakery treats we each chose.  On the way out the door there happened to be a local paper open to a story about the Tulip Festival.  I had just been reading a book that had mentioned something about this area being particularly good for growing bulb flowers and I figured we maybe needed to check this out.  

Sunday morning we woke up early, I made brownies, packed us a picnic and fixed fried egg sandwiches for all of us for breakfast.  Once we had our travel mugs and water bottles filled, the dogs leashed and everyone packed down with the days necessities, we were on our way out the door.  

This dog loves being in the car.

She also loves hanging out with her boy :) 

Driving by fields of daffodils. 

I had no idea tulips could look like peonies...

Rosie's turn to snuggle. 

Reminders of friends everywhere we go. Maggie Miller :) 

We felt like we really didn't get a chance to stretch our legs quite as much as we had hoped while at the festival.  At least, I didn't think so.  And I wasn't ready to head home just yet.  We found a sign for a state park and beach and I said lets go.  Thankfully I travel with two guys that are, more often than not, open to exploring new places as well.  

Summer plans, anyone?  I still haven't rented a cabin at any of the parks I've ever been to but I'd really like to someday.  

Of course he wanted to try to find a way to climb up there.  Thankfully, he realized there were few strong grips for him to be able to make a safe climb.  I love that the men in my family want to climb all over everything they see but the worried mom comes out over some of their choices.  This was one of them. 

Another reminder of friends we love!  Star Trek will ALWAYS and forever make me think of Megan...along with about a million, trillion other things I see or do daily.  And the green outback brings to mind our dear friend John Tod.  The people we have left behind are never really far from us and are missed deeply by each of us. 

Tulips from my husband as a tribute to our weekend plans and a bowl full of candy to commemorate the commercialism and sugary goodness of the holiday...not to mention my pregnant weakness to say yes to my son who felt Easter was incomplete without jelly beans.  I had to have the black jelly beans as my holiday tribute to my father who would and could finish off an entire bag on his own.  I don't know how old I was when I realized why he loved the bizarre sweet and spicy taste of those little candies but I do remember the shared moments of jelly bean love between me and my father.  It's the little things that are so very precious. Like tulips and jelly beans. 

So that was Sunday of this past weekend.  Saturday was a day of errand running for Andrew and me.  Nothing super exciting although our run to goodwill was pretty darn awesome.  I love when we leave with four things and spend less on all of them than we would have for any one of them had we bought each item new.  I got a new dress for $3! And it looks new and I can mix it up in about 20 different ways which is KEY for me and the clothes I wear.  We were also able to find a few of the other things that I keep holding off on buying when we are on a Target or Fred Meyer run.  I have a really hard time buying anything new until I've had a chance to look at it second hand first and I must say I am grateful for this frugal tendency.  And I have fun going on the hunt for that just right item :)  Makes my day...or week.  Whatever.  

I don't really know what we have planned for this weekend.  Saturday Andrew is attending a specialty coffee event where he will be preparing coffee and representing Atlas Coffee Roasters.  I know he's super looking forward to it and maybe I'll see if I can get him to write something about it.  Aydan and I have been discussing watching horror movies together and eating popcorn.  As for Sunday...don't know yet.  There are a few places I have on my list to check out and I'm really feeling like I want a hike someplace...I guess we shall see :)  Have a great rest of the week and weekend everyone! 

 

Baby Kolberg revealed and our anniversary weekend

I frequently forget that the main purpose of this blog is to allow our family and friends a way to keep up with everything that we are up to.  On the other hand I feel that I should be sending out these updates way more than what I do. But thankfully, on a phone call with Aunt Linda this morning, I was reminded how much people like the pictures and stories.  This revelation coincides nicely with my increased feeling of well being each day.  Our blog has been pretty quiet since we arrived in Washington and with good reason.  As Andrew pointed out the other day I have been pregnant pretty much the entire time we have lived here.  Much to my frustration this pregnancy has been the opposite of glowing and wonderful.  Undoubtedly, I am thrilled that Andrew, Aydan and I are going to be welcoming a new little one to our family this year however I frequently have to wonder at the timing.  That's life though and the only thing that can be done is the best we can do.  

We are in the middle of the pregnancy right now, 20 weeks, and ready for the checking-it-all-out/gender reveal ultra sound visit.  The timing for the appointment was worked out in such a way that Nora could join us at the appointment and Aydan was on Spring Break so we were able to have him with us as well.  Quite a room full of people to find out about this 12 oz baby growing in my tummy.  The initial images showed a tightly curled up little one and the question I wanted answered the most, apart from is the baby healthy: is it a boy or a girl? seemed like it may elude us on this visit.  Gosh darn it.  The tech suggested I head out and empty out my bladder which her machine was showing to be quite full.  The pressure of a full bladder can give the baby less room to move around and we still had a lot of images to take. 

(Image above is the baby's spine and back of the skull) 

Bladder emptied and belly gooped up for round two we were able to get through many of the required images: brain, heart, bladder, stomach, etc.  At that time the ultrasound tech, Nadia, asked us if we had a guess on whether we were going to have a boy or girl and we all said girl.  That's been the thought for the past several months.  Response from the tech, "Are you sure?" Well, no but...definitely not as the images revealed a "loud and proud" boy.  She did check two or three more times during the imaging process just to be sure but as far as she was concerned there is no doubt as to the physical markers we were able to see. Andrew and I had easily found a girls name but a boys name had really thrown us for a loop.  The day before the ultra sound the suggestion of Arthur Jerald Kolberg was made and the longer we were kicking it around the more we all loved it.  The middle name, Jerald, is for my father, and while we didn't know it at the time, Arthur is Andrew's Grandfather Kolberg's brother's name.  Whew.  That's a lot to get out.  But how fun to have family connections to our son's name? 

Side profile of little Arthur Jerald. 

Skeletor Arthur?  :) Andrew plans to take this image in to work and hang it up in the Skull Room...which is a weird but cool Atlas thing.  What a place he found for himself! 

Feet!!! Little, TINY, feet.  Of our baby!  

This was my favorite image that we were able to get during this last visit.  His mouth is WIDE open and I'm trying to decide if he's saying "HELLO!" or just laughing at us in joyous anticipation.  It is DEFINITELY not a cry of any kind.  Much too early for that :) 

I do have to share that it's been about a week or two since this little guy started making his presence felt in a more physical way.  At first it was the fluttery little movements I remembered from my pregnancy with Aydan but now there is a definite forcible kick happening more and more frequently.  My eyes always go a little wide with surprise.  How can we be half way through and it's still sinking in?  I am SO excited about this little one!!! A new life to share and enjoy and mold!  

As I mentioned, I am feeling better all the time so I've been trying to get us out and about on the weekends more. It seems tragic that we have been here for nearly six months and really have not had the ability to enjoy our new surroundings more. In an effort to make up for lost time I've been seeking out places for us to check out as a family.  I usually try to make sure that at least one of our weekend activities lets the boys get some time in on their long boards which usually means a nice long walk for me and the dogs.  I have been spending less time taking photos while we are out, usually I'm too busy holding dogs' leashes or Andrew's hand or simply enjoying what I'm seeing.  But one weekend that I thought I should share is from our anniversary.  I will try to get in the other photos soon too. 

Happy Anniversary to the Henning-Kolberg family!  March 29, 2014 and Andrew and I have been married a year.  We decided that since part of our wedding gift request had been for funds to help us make this move, a trip to someplace where we could see Seattle would be a fun tribute to the fact that we are here now. Thank you everyone! 

Just a bit overcast, right?  But the steely grays and blues are my comfort tones.  I love days like this one. 

Family in the little gondola before the ride started. 

Aydan is having fun and is also mildly terrified simultaneously. This was a good decision. 

View as we started going up. 

Andrew

Me holding Aydan's hand :) 

More comfortable and enjoying the view. 

Seattle

Through to the other side of the Wheel. 

He looks so pensive...

It's been 365 days since we said yes to a life joined together in a way neither one of us ever expected.  And here we are.  Living in Washington state with a teenage son and another one on the way.  What a life! There are great things happening for this little family and we only become stronger and better together each day.  Being married DOES change things.  It makes things better.  At least that's the way it's been for Andrew and I.  One year down and the rest of our lives to go. 

I LOVE THIS KID!!! 

Those clouds...

And now we are plenty brave enough to mock fight in the gondola.  Oh, boys...

After the ride we wandered around until we were all too hungry to think properly.  Thankfully, being down by the pier there were plenty of options for greasy fried fish and chips and that was exactly what I had been craving...with LOTS of tarter sauce, please!  We each got a full plate and ate until we could barely move...and then got ice cream cones for the walk back to the car.  Lots of walking, eating, laughing and drizzly bits of rain.  Perfect way to celebrate :)