Thankful Hearts

Monday's winter snow storm had the potential for great fun and also for great disaster. Let me tell you about our day:

Time for school, time for school. We woke to very few snow flakes, hardly enough to even think about not going to school. My poor boys were so disappointed that they would not be getting a day off. They had been convinced there would be a field of white when they awoke in the morning. But alas, buses arrived and whisked them away for their day of work.

However, the snow did start to fall. It was so beautiful and inspiring. I spent my morning in a nice warm kitchen, preparing a roast for that nights dinner, and working on getting my "Dinners with Trish" recipes organized. As the snow flakes got bigger and stronger, I waited for the phone to ring with news of early release. No such call was made.

Around 3:00, Jonas got home on time as scheduled. Within five minutes he had his ski gear on and was back outside playing in the snow. The trampoline was full of snow, but being the wonderful big brother that he is, Jonas decided to wait for Isaac and Elliot before jumping.

 For the elementary school, the district decided to put all buses on snow route drop off schedule. That meant our guys would be dropped off at the top of our street. Mark decided to drive up in the van since it was so cold and windy. The plan was to get them, play in the snow, and have a little hot chocolate with steamed milk. Or so we thought.

Here's how the timeline really went:

4:15 Mark drives to the top of the hill expecting a 4:25 bus
5:00 still no sign of any kids
5:30 I call the transportation office to see if there's any word (like going into a ditch or something). No answer.
5:45 I got a call from school saying they were still on their way. No one is exactly sure where they are because bus radios are down, but we hadn't missed them yet- sit tight
6:00 the power goes out

Jonas had been dying for his brothers to get home so he could play with them, now though, we both just wanted everyone together. Remember, they had gotten out of school at 3:30. So far, that's 2 1/2 hour on the bus with no one knowing precisely what was happening.

With the power out, Jo and I had a job to do. We focused on lighting candles and pooling flashlights. As we were working, Jonas got a call on his cell phone from a friend saying her parents were at Safeway with the elementary bus kids. Apparently the bus had pulled into their parking lot at 5:00 to put on chains. Finding the chains broken, the bus driver had called another worker to come assist. The kids were in the break room at Safeway drinking hot chocolate and eating pizza. I used Jonas' phone to call Mark and let him know where they were (my cell and the house phone were both down). Mark decided to leave his post and go get them. He also called his parents to meet him there with their suburban. FINALLY, my kids were accounted for. Three and half hours after getting out of school they were coming home!

Feeling quite a bit of relief, Jonas and I kept a post at the kitchen window waiting for headlights. All of a sudden, we heard a terrible ripping sound and saw our massive cedar tree fall across the driveway. I can't explain how shaken we were. It was completely blocking our parking area as well as the neighbors who we share the driveway with. We had been right next to it at the window. I backed us away and into the middle of the house. Still alone and now scared. I sat Jonas down while I went out with a flashlight to see how bad it was. There was still 1/4 left standing, swaying. I quickly made my way back in.

Ten minutes later, Mark, his parents, and my two little boys showed up. What a sight to see! We gathered in our candle lit living room to figure out a plan. Jonas (or I) didn't feel comfortable staying the night here. Mark's parents still had power and my parents had a gas fireplace. It was decided that Mark, Jonas, and I would stay the night at my parents down the road so we could be close to home for tree clean up, and Ice and El would go to the other grandparents house.



From the carport

 Before we left, Mark went outside to see if any power lines had been taken out by the tree. None were, but as he was looking at the remaining tree sway, he decided standing in the driveway might not be the best place for him. As he was turning to head back in, the rest of the tree cracked. That was it- he broke out in a full run until his foot hit the bottom of the porch stair, then slid the way up and ran into the door. BOOM, the rest of the tree fell.

This was a mess, but amazingly no person, animal, or any property was hurt or damaged. Let me tell you what could have happened:

 Mark could have taken the jeep to pick up the boys at school, leaving the van in the parking area and it would have been toast.
If we had gotten word of where the bus was a half hour earlier, the van could have been pulling in when the tree went down.
Mark could have not seen the rest of the tree blowing in time....I really, really don't want to talk about that.

And so, today I am grateful!

I am grateful to a God who knows me, loves me, and doesn't worry, even when I do.
I am grateful for my family. They delight me every day with their wonderful, wacky personalities.
I am grateful that Jonas' cell phone died a couple days earlier therefore forcing him to have it fully charged.
I am grateful that my husband literally slid into home.
I am grateful for the bus driver and Safeway employees who took care of a group of elementary kids.
I am grateful to just be here and able to share a slice of my story.

Our California Adventure - Part 3 - Disneyland

Before I go into the Disneyland day, I must reminisce on the one day we spent shopping and sight seeing. Mark has spent many overnights in Santa Barbara during his travels with work. Most of these outings are short, or if he does find something interesting, there usually isn't anyone to share it with. On Sunday, he got the chance to show us around a little bit. The most notable "sight" was the skate park. We probably could have stayed there all day...

But, alas, Elliot had his heart on shopping. What he was shopping for, no one knew exactly, but shopping was our next stop. There were lots of fun stores to look at like Restoration Hardware, Cost Plus World Market, and Antique Alley. However, I was traveling with BOYS so we went to the toy store.

Side note: While walking to the toy store we saw Josh Holloway aka "Sawyer" from LOST. Mark and I were both a little star struck but tried to play it cool. We only backtracked once to nonchalantly watch him come out of a store he was shopping in. Then we continued our excursion to the toy store. As we walked, a woman ran from the other side of the street to brag to her friends who were walking behind us. "I SHOOK HIS HAND. I SHOOK HIS HAND!!!" My thoughts on that for another blog posting.

At the store El found this unique little pen. A "Tattoo" pen. Just what he's been looking for. "To remove, use washcloth with soap and water. WARNING: Ink lasts several days. Do Not use on face. Will stain fabrics." Who's brilliant idea was it to allow him to buy the pen??? (Oh yes, it was me- I even found it and showed it to him.)

We walked home from the shopping trip with our new found treasures. We played with Jo's bouncy ball, broke open the Rock Geodes, and yes, drew tattoos on arms and tummys.

Later that night I thought Elliot was brushing his teeth. All the adults were sitting in the living room unwinding and talking. In bursts El (as is his only way to enter the room), "Look Mom, I'm a cat!" On his sweet little radiant face were now four blue "tattoo" lines on each side of his mouth in the place of whiskers. If I had been level headed, I would have grabbed the camera. Instead I grabbed a washcloth and began scrubbing. I tried to not crush his enthusiasm, but also wanted to make the point that we don't draw on faces. "How about my neck?" Always the optimist.

Monday: DISNEYLAND DAY!!!Can you tell I was excited to visit the "Happiest Place on Earth"?

What should have been a 2 hour drive, was really a 3 hour drive. That's okay though because we were going to DISNEYLAND! (okay, still a little excited) We also had 3 DS players in the backseat.

The DS games gave Mark and I a chance to play Slug Bug. We've become a little obsessed, and I will try to stop mentioning it.

We got to the park and it was a little drizzly, but we're Washingtonians- we can handle it. Our first stop: Tomorrowland and the Buzz Lightyear ride. This obviously wasn't here when I was a kid. It was so much fun to shoot the Evil Emperor Zurg (and Mark who was riding in the car behind us). I loved experiencing this with all the boys for the first time. Growing up, my family made a few trips to Disneyland- enough for me to have some very solid memories. This trip, for me, was revisiting my favorite rides and sharing them with those I love the most. Some had changed (the submarine ride) and some were exactly how I remembered them (the Tiki Room).

The day went fairly smoothly with a few meltdowns. At one point while waiting in line for our second ride, an exasperated Jonas said, "I don't know if it's even WORTH it anymore!" But, then the line was moving again.

No trip to Disneyland would be complete without a visit to "It's a Small World"!!!! About 25 years ago, I made my parents go on this ride again and again. I love it. It's so happy and everyone is singing. It made me giddy to just be in line. If I didn't know it before, the boys proved how much they love me. Not a one of them complained, and they all said they liked it- although they didn't want to turn around and ride it again for some reason. Mark even leaned back one time and told me that he could understand why I liked it so much. It really is a happy place to be. And, don't we all need a little more happiness?



Look at him humor me.



Here we go!

  

Dancing and singing animatronics everwhere!



We packed in as much fun as we could in the 7 hours that we were there. We were all very tired by that night. Thankfully, we "camped" at Rachels house in LA instead of driving the 2-3 hours back to Santa Barbara. All in all, a wonderful vacation.

 

Our California Adventure - Part 2 - Relaxation

When we last left our heroes, Mark and Jonas were wandering the airport trying to hitch a ride to Southern California, while Tricia, Isaac, and Elliot were settling into their lovely new vacation home.

Though tired from a day of traveling, I
still have enough energy to hold the
fridge up and chat with Rachel...

...as she slaves away preparing
chicken for the next night's dinner.

Mark and Jonas finally made it in at midnight after flying to Burbank, renting a car, and driving another 2 hours. Jonas had fallen asleep, as you can imagine, on the drive in and didn't realize that he didn't have a bed to sleep in. The room the boys shared had 2 twin beds, so Mamie Rocks and I laid out some bench cushions in their closet. With a fitted sheet and some comfy blankets, Jonas had an instant bed and a little space away from his brothers.

The next morning (Sat Oct 2) we got up and began our vacation.  

  (Here's where our photo album portion of the storytelling starts.)

What else are you supposed to do
on a Saturday morning...

 

...if not watch Saturday morning cartoons?

While the boys were busy not doing anything, I took  time to walk around the house and snap some pictures. This house had many little details I love: picture mouldings, a large porch, and built-ins all throughout were among just a few.

 Oh! I forgot to mention the claw-foot soaker tub in our bathroom.

Isaac saw this tub and said, "Mom's going to like this!"

It was a beautiful day- it turns out the nicest we were going to have- and we decided to head to the beach.

 

What fun there is in chasing after waves and building sandcastles right next to the tide line. They all rolled around in the sand, tried digging for water, and did a little body surfing. By the time we were done, I could see that showers were not going to suffice in getting them clean. We probably brought home a cup of sand in Isaac's hair alone. When we got home, I went straight into Mommy Mode cleaning and restoring. I knew I could trust Jonas to take a shower and actually get clean, so he headed off to one bathroom while I escorted El into our bathroom and the wonderful soaker tub! In he went with enough water to float in and plenty of room for the sand to sink to the bottom. Oh what a mess, but the bath worked, and Elliot emerged clean and fresh faced again.

 Now time for Isaac. I called Ice into the bathroom and turned to give him a little privacy getting into the tub. "Uh oh." I looked back and on the floor where he took off his swimsuit was a large pile of rocks and pebbles that were hiding in his suit. "Did you know those were there?" I asked. "Nope." I guess we weren't done with the beach quite yet.

 It took some time and work, but finally all are clean- even the bathrooms make a full recovery. This is our last night with Rachel, who headed back to work the next day, so we get to have a little birthday celebration. And lots of pictures!

Elliot had a store in the opening
between the kitchen and dining room.

Jonas hiding from El in the orange tree.

A little porch time.
This was one of the most comfortable areas of the house!

Sparkling Cider is oh so good!

A toast to Poppy!

Now, THIS is how vacation should be!

(Many photos courtesy of Rachel and Mamie Rocks via Facebook.)

Our California Adventure - Part 1 - Getting There

Cast of characters (and boy are they quite the characters):

Poppy Rocks - Grandpa B, Birthday Boy

Mamie Rocks - Grandma B, playmate to all children

Rachel - sister of Mark, amazing and patient Auntie

Mark - husband/pilot/child coraller extraordinaire

Jo - Jonas, 1st born, keeper of the rules

Ice - Isaac, 2nd born, hugger of anyone who makes eye contact

El - Elliot, 3rd born, lover of life

Our journey begins at 4:30 Friday morning with the boys dressed, brushed, and sitting in the car ready to go while Mom is still getting dressed and rechecking everything one more time. Actually, lets back up and start from the night before- Packing Night.   



The excitement in the air almost pushed off the roof. Try and  picture three little boys running up and down the stairs, stuffing bags and backpacks with all the necessary items for a California experience. Down the stairs they bounded with clothes, flip flops, and toys. El had 2 backpacks he was trying to fill along with the roll aboard he and I were sharing. Mark and I were also flitting around getting the final laundry loads switched and our stuff ready. As a result, we weren't supervising the boys' packing process. We walked into the living room and saw laid out Jo's big feather pillow and blanket, Isaac's blanket, books, and all of Elliot's toys, along with Cheetah. You remember Cheetah right? He came to the drive in with us. He's not small, he's not flexible, and he WILL NOT fit in the limited space we have for our journey.



Cheetah at the drive in.

It is at this point that our first tears flow. "But I can't sleep without Cheetah!!!" wails El. Oh boy, this could be a long night. As he slowly comes to grips with reality, Elliot kneels on the ground forehead to forehead with Cheetah, "I'm going to miss you!" Seeing this exchange, the other boys start in. "What about my pillow?" Jonas, "I need my blanket to be comfortable" Isaac. In the end we compromised with a stuffed dog for El, a small feather pillow for Jo, and Isaac was able to fit his desired blanket in with his clothes. First crisis averted and we were off to bed.

Because of Mark's travel benefits, we can fly "space available". It's great that we fly virtually free, but it doesn't guarantee any seats, thus making this an Adventure! We arrive at the airport and muddle our way through security with still high hopes of all flying together. Our first attempt is flying to LA. At the last minute, we are told that there are 3 seats available (we need 4 with Mark in the jump seat). It's still early enough that we pass on that to wait for the next plane.

While we wait we watch airplanes...

We play with our food...

We ride the escalator...

 

















(I actually made them ride it again so I could take another picture. The first try, Elliot was too fast in running down the stairs.)

The second attempt to fly out of Sea-Tac also ends in disappointment. No problem, Mark and I have a plan. When distraction and entertainment fail- feed the children!!!

Also, a little game of Go Fish always helps morale...



A little tangent here: while watching airplanes, Isaac spots a FedEx plane. "If it fits, it ships!" he blurts out with great enthusiasm. Um...wrong company but right idea. For the rest of the trip to entertain ourselves Mark or I would randomly yell out "If it fits, it ships". Yeah, I know- we're dorks!

Well, the Go Fish must have worked because we have seats on the next flight to San Francisco. It's not our final destination, but it IS California and a big step forward. Even better, we have seats grouped together. I choose to ride with Isaac and Elliot. Mark and Jonas sit two rows behind and we are on our way.

Look at those happy faces- and puppy too!

We land in San Francisco around noon. Do you remember that we started at 4:30 AM??? I do! After a quick lunch we start trying to find a flight to Santa Barbara. Down the terminal we walk. No luck, back up the terminal to another gate we go. Hmm, another no. Maybe try going to LA would be better. Nope! To give Mark a moment to think, I take the boys into the bookstore and read a couple books. Let's pretend we're at Barnes and Noble or the library without a care in the world. Let's pretend that we're not tired, cranky, and ready to be done at the airport. Let's pretend!

It works, until we leave the bookstore and El collapses with disappointment because he couldn't buy something- anything!!! "All I want is that puzzle" he says over and over and over again. With each repeated statement I hear his voice working it's way deeper into an exhausted tantrum. This is where the fine art of distraction comes in- literally. Elliot had brought a notebook so he "could sketch". I open it up and start drawing a blue cat (because cats, flowers and trees are the only things I can draw). I ask him who he thinks this cat is, and he gets involved in an elaborate story of a cat spilling blue paint all over herself, but blaming it on the dog. (Those dogs are always the troublemakers.) Phew, voices are back to normal speaking levels and the eyes are mostly dried of tears. Because Mark is in uniform, we felt it imperative to keep a higher standard that included no wrestling, no yelling, and all around good behavior. This is a high criteria for adults let alone tired 11, 9, and 6 year olds. We were surprised again and again how our children kept positive attitudes and listened very well with only a couple exceptions.

During our cat/dog story time, Mark left to check a flight to Burbank. Still not Santa Barbara, but close enough that we could rent a car and drive if needed. He came rushing back with 5 seat assignments! Hallelujah, we were moving again!!!!! It is 4:00 when we board, 4 hours in San Fran, almost 12 hours into our trek. There are 4 seats together for Mark and the boys, and 1 seat in the back- ME. Ahhh, I sink into my seat. Up front I hear my wonderful children talking with each other. This won't be so bad. Except-

The gate agent boards the plane. "There seems to be a mix up. Our computers were down earlier today, and we don't have a crew for this plane." Noooooooooo!

Everyone gets off the plane. Mark has decided to check the crew computer and see what info he can find. I am left standing, laughing. My poor children lay at my feet and ask what I'm laughing about. "It's been so ridiculous that it's almost funny."

"It's not funny Mom."

Mark comes back from the crew lounge and we are walking again, this time to a flight to Santa Barbara. The gate agent has found 4 seats and we are handed yet another group of seat tickets. We have to be the last to board because of our "non-rev" status. As we board, she tells me that she has to take one ticket back. Okay. We choose Jonas to stay behind with Mark while Ice, El and I board our last plane of the day.

On the plane we are served complimentary juice. Elliot turns to me, "We're so spoiled today" says the boy who only 3 hours earlier was crying over the unbought puzzle/book.

The plane lands and we are met by Rachel and Mamie Rocks. I see their wonderful, smiling faces and feel like I can take a deep breath. The weather is beautiful and they tell me spaghetti is at the house simmering. What a day!



Our new home for the next couple of days.
What a wonderful sight after a long day of traveling.