The Plank Three

Day 13, Last Chance Workout

2012-01-30T15:46:00.000-08:00

I’ve been watching The Biggest Loser on Netflix streaming. Iwatch the first and last episodes of a season. (‘Cause who really has the timeto watch ALL of those episodes?) It is surprisingly motivating to see thosepeople transform their lives in six months. They talk a lot about the LASTCHANCE WORKOUT, or the workout before their weigh-in. Today I had my versionwith my trainer, J.C. Here he is, ladies! And yes, you can train with him, too, just ask me how! :)

He worked me SO hard today I thought I would die. In fact,it is hard for me to even type this, my arms are so tired. But I’m happy thathe pushes me and he does it in a really non-Jillian way. He cheers me on butdoesn’t let me get away with doing anything half-way. In fact, if I do a rephalf-way, he makes me do it over, so I usually do if right the first time.

On Saturday we had a team workout with all the people J.C. trainsthat are doing the contest. It was fun to see all my different teammates, alldifferent ages, shapes, sizes and levels of fitness. All I have to say is thatI’m glad there is no camera following me around for these workouts.

I have one more workout on my own tomorrow before the firstweigh-in. I’m excited to see my results.

What a Difference a Day Makes!

2012-01-25T08:03:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was one of those days I hope to duplicate through this process. My trainer was tough, but I got through the session really strong and didn't feel like I wanted to throw up once! (Well, maybe at the very end...) I got on the scale and saw that I had lost 6 pounds. I was pleasantly surprised. I want to lose 10-12 for the first two week weigh-in so that puts me right on target.

I also volunteered in Wyatt's classroom which is always a boost to the mood. His teacher is so positive and energetic it is just contagious. And she had me do a fun science experiment with the kids involving ice and blubber...so fun!

My sister-in-law gave me a tip about occasionally adding some things to my shakes to have a little variety. After such a great day, I decided my dinner treat would be a chocolate YOLI shake with 1 T Adam's peanut butter blended in. The result was so yummy I could not stop talking about it. Paul and Wyatt think I'm a little kooky but I don't care.

I'm so motivated for week TWO!

Week One

2012-01-23T22:41:00.000-08:00

Week One: Challenges and Successes

The view from our bedroom window on Snow Day One

As most of you probably experienced Snowmageddon 2012 last week I don't have to tell you that getting out of the house was a bit of a challenge. I was very motivated to exercise and met my goals in that department using what we have in the house, some trips to the sledding hill, and finally to the gym when the roads cleared up. I enjoy exercise for the most part so I am usually pretty motivated to get it done.

The diet has proven more of a challenge. I am currently eating & drinking a high-protein, low carb plan from Yoli called the Better Body System. The first week is the fast track plan and is really heavy on the meal replacement shakes and healthy protein snacks. I like the shakes and was never hungry, but found some difficulty with severe nausea I was not expecting. It is frustrating to be doing this and to feel sick. I read some things online and realized that it would likely pass and today I felt great all day. I have followed the plan for almost a week and am expecting to see some weight loss at the gym tomorrow. (We "officially" weigh in every two weeks, but I will check in with my trainer tomorrow.) It does help me to stick to the plan knowing it has an end date and knowing I'll be writing about it.:) I'm trying not to obsess about the scale.

I've also been having some issues with my eyes this week...pain and headaches. This is often, but not always a precursor to a flare-up of the scleritis, but I'm hoping I'm wrong. I see my specialist next week so we'll see how that goes. It's out of my control!
Today was fairly easy as it was a regular work/gym/family day and I was happily busy all day. I would be grateful if the snow incidents were a thing of the past for 2012 and I could remain on schedule.

I truly appreciate the wonderful emails and comments from you. I read and re-read them when I am feeling discouraged and it gives me such a lift. Thank you.

8 days until weigh-in #1.

Day One, Biggest Loser

2012-01-18T14:40:00.000-08:00

Background,the short version:

I startedgaining a lot of weight after college and had a hard time keeping it off foralmost 20 years. I’ve been up and down thanks in part to Jenny Craig, fertilityissues & surgery, Weight Watchers, having a baby & gestational diabetes,battling depression and anxiety, migraines, chronic scleritis in both eyes(basically inflammation and agonizing pain in my eyes) and a bout of opticneuritis, and IgA deficiency (which basically means I get more sick than otherpeople) and lots of lots of eating and sitting on the couch. I was my own worstenemy.

About 18 months ago, we figured out the eye thing somewhat and I got onmeds to help with that and I found out about the IgA which helps me be morediligent about washing hands, surfaces, and keeping away from sick people (and,yes, I am a preschool teacher).

Also, aroundthat time I got a not great blood sugar test which put me in a pre-diabeticstage. That was the last straw! That next week I visited my parents and read anarticle in Good Housekeeping by Dr. Oz about losing 10 pounds in a month.

http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-plans/dr-oz-one-day-diet

I figured Icould do it for a week and I ended up doing it for the month and felt reallygreat. We had plans to visit Europe in spring of 2011 so I worked hard on myeating, walking, and using the recumbent bike regularly and lost 40 pounds. I kept it off through the spring andlost 5 more before our trip to Croatia in July.

In September2011, I decided to take the leap and join a spinning class at the localcommunity center. I’ve always wanted to try it, but felt too embarrassed to goto a gym, so the 30 minute beginner class was just what I needed. I loved it somuch (even though it was hard at first) I moved up to the 55 minute class afterabout a month, and now I take spinning classes 2 times a week. It has been arevolution!

In NovemberI heard about a local gym, Vision Quest in Canyon Park, and decided to check itout. As those things usually go, they enticed me with freebies and such and Ijoined. I met with a trainer, J.C., who helped me get a program going. Theresistance training is really hard, really, really hard…I’m not going to lie.While J.C. does not yell at me, he does push me to exhaustion. I alsodiscovered the elliptical machine…WOW! I love the feeling of jogging withoutthe impact on the knees. It is a fun workout for me! Soooooo much better thanthe treadmill…boring! J

In December,J.C. talked to me about the Biggest Loser contest they were starting in Jan andI declined politely, never thinking I would be able to be so public. Then, Istarted to think about it. 1) This gym is super friendly and not intimidating.There are old, young, fat, skinny…all types and levels; 2) I’m kind of at aplateau and need some motivation; 3) I like to win.

The BiggestLoser:

That bringsme to last night. We had the big weigh-in, state-your-goal, before pictures,rah-rah-rah thing and it was pretty fun, not as embarrassing as I’d oncethought. One thing they encouraged us to do is share our goals with as manypeople as possible so here they are:

1) Lose 50pounds in 91 days

2) Use theYoli Better Body System daily for 91 days www.yoli.comI will be talking about this more in future days!

3) Take Yoliand dotFit supplements for 91 days

4) Trainwith J.C. once a week and do resistance one more time each week on my own orwith a partner and 2 boot camps twice a month...YIKES!

5) Do 180minutes of cardio per week

6) Stretchand meditate daily for 91 days

The rewardfor winning the club-wide contest (1,000+ participants) is $5,000. The rewardfor my local club (100ish participants) is $500. My reward to myself would be afabulousfinale dress and a sassy new haircut! Plus, I’d need to go shopping, right?J

The rewards would honestly be much more than the material things...I want to be healthy, more consistently confident and happy, have more energy for my family, friends and career, and enjoy life more fully.
How can you help? Just cheer me on! Ask me how it's going or comment on the blog. Stay away from me if you're sick...I know that sounds harsh, but look up IgA deficiency if you need info:) Don't bring me treats or ask me to go out...for 91 days, at least! Consider coming with me to the finale on the evening of April 17th (or watching Wy so Paul can go.) It's super loud and annoyingly crowded, but it would be awesome to have some peeps with me! Most of all, just think happy thoughts my way...I need all the help I can get!

Today is DayOne. I just worked out and had a Y.E.S. Shake. I feel awesome. I know every daywill be different, but I am taking them as they come. As the CEO of VisionQuest said last night, “Anyone can do anything for 90 days…” Here I go!

School Pic

2011-12-12T16:19:00.000-08:00

Wyatt

First grade school photo...6 1/2 years old. We had to do retakes so we just got them back. The first time one of the volunteers told me that he insisted on combing his bangs straight down right before the pic...not a good look. My level of control is slipping in this area, but we gave it a shot and got a good retake. Whew!

Montenegro, Kotor

2011-10-20T11:47:00.000-07:00

Kotor has one of the best preserved medieval old towns in the Adriatic. We spent most of our time in the old town area and took in the beautiful sights. We had a local guide who took us on a short introductory tour of the town. I enjoyed seeing the apartments of people who actually live and work here. Lots of laundry hanging on the lines!

This beautiful Cathedral of Saint Tryphon was begun in 809 and rededicated in 2009, hence the numbers on the towers. It is amazing to be in something that old and touch the stone. It was built in honor of the patron and protector of the city.

It contains a rich collection of artifacts. Older than many famous churches and cathedrals in Europe, the Cathedral of St. Tryphon has a treasury of immense value. In its interior there are frescoes from the 14th century, a stone ornament above the main altar in which the life of St. Tryphon is depicted, as well as a relief of saints in gold and silver. The most representative works of Kotor's masters and craftsmen are kept in this Cathedral, making its collection quite unique. I enjoyed all of the ironwork and beautiful stonework.

Kotor is surrounded by an impressive city wall built by the Republic of Venice and Venetian influence remains predominant in the city's architecture.

A tiny old Orthodox church sits in the the St. Luke's Square. It is dwarfed by the buildings around it, and especially by the newer Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas nearby. It's so old it seems as if the old town sprung up around it, as if once upon a time it stood here surrounded only by grass and water, and not by thick stone walls. And this is quite possible, given that it was built in the 12th century, long before the Venetians arrived and turned the town into a fortress.

Some of our group hiked up the hill to the Church of Our Lady of Health (fittingly named) and the fortress which was even higher up the hill. I heard the views were amazing from up there!

Yummy pizza lunch at Sara. Our waiter didn't speak English but was friendly and helpful with the finger pointing and smiling!

After our lunch we all headed to the bay town of Perast and boarded a small boat to Our Lady of the Rock Island. Supposedly Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones have a vacation home near Perast. It's easy to see why!

These are photos of St. George Island which is closed to tourists. The island contains Saint George Benedictine monastery from the 12th century and the old graveyard for the old nobility from Perast and further from the whole Bay of Kotor.

According to legend, Our Lady of the Rock Island was made over the centuries by the seamen who kept an ancient oath after finding the icon of the Madonna on the rock in the sea on July 22, 1452. Upon returning from each successful voyage, they laid a rock in the Bay. Over time, the islet gradually emerged from the sea. The custom of throwing rocks into the sea is alive even nowadays. Every year on the sunset of July 22, an event called fašinada, when local residents take their boats and throw rocks into the sea, widening the surface of the island, takes place

The church contains 68 paintings by Tripo Kokolja, a famous 17th-century baroque artist from Perast. His most important painting, ten meters long, is The Death of the Virgin. There are also paintings by Italian artists, and an icon (circa 1452) of Our Lady of the Rocks.

The church also houses a famous tapestry embroidered by Jacinta Kunić-Mijović from Perast. It took her 25 years to finish it while waiting her darling to come from a long journey, and eventually, she became blind. She used golden and silver fibres but what makes this tapestry so famous is the fact that she also embroidered her own hair in it.

This wall piece contains tokens left by brides who have been married here. Supposedly if they leave a token from their ceremony, their married lives will be happy.

Outside the church looking at St George island.

After an uneventful dinner at the hotel, we enjoyed another spectacular sunset from our hotel balcony.

Croatia, Dubrovnik

2011-10-19T19:42:00.000-07:00

July 2011, Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia
When I heard that our Egypt trip had been replaced with Croatia, I admit I needed to look up exactly where we would be headed. Croatia is the yellow Adriatic country and Dubrovnik, at the southern tip, was our first stop.

The Jewel of the Adriatic

Dubrovnik is a gorgeous place. The water is turquoise blue due to the rocky sea beds. Our hotel was amazing and we enjoyed the pools, both a traditional chlorinated pool and a sea water filled pool just off the rocky shore. The weather was amazing and we were so delighted with this view from our room.

I'd heard that the food in Croatia was excellent, so I was prepared to try some new seafood and other delicacies. At Restaurant Eden the muscles were really nice and the tuna was a bit overcooked. I enjoyed the greens we had throughout the trip and every meal we had was served with vegetables which was nice. Dessert was gelato....We ate our weight in gelato this trip. Excellent!

The sunset from our hotel room...gorgeous!

The next day we visited the heart of the city. This is Stradun, Dubrovnik's main street.

We had a group lunch which consisted of a delightful soup and some fairly standard chicken and fries. The Europeans love serving fries! The grilled zucchini and eggplant was a nice addition.

Dubrovnik is probably most famous for it's 7th century stone walls. They have been considered to be amongst the great fortification systems of the Middle Ages. They are of the largest and most complete wall structures in all of Europe. We walked the entire 6,360 ft and I had to fight my extreme fear of heights for most of the walk.

The Minčeta Tower was built in 1463 and is the highest point on the wall. Paul took the camera up there as I stayed below, held on and got my nerves back.

Our tour guide recommended eating dinner at Moby Dick so how could we pass that up? We had a nice meal, but the thing I want to remember from that night were the people. A delightful couple to one side ordered a large order of tiny fried fish (which I read is one of the favorite things among locals) and offered us some. They were yummy! The family to our other side was from South Africa and we had a great conversation about our travels and lives. It was a really relaxing, nice time!

Paul enjoyed his calamari as you can see!

We also enjoyed a few other famous Dubrovnik sights. A medical service was introduced in 1301, with the first pharmacy still operating to this day, being opened in 1317. This is a picture outside of the pharmacy gardens where special plants and herbs are grown.

Dubrovnik's most beloved church is St Blaise's church, built in the 18th century in honour of Dubrovnik's patron saint. Dubrovnik's baroque Cathedral was built in the 18th century and houses an impressive Treasury with relics of Saint Blaise. We only got a glimpse because there was a wedding mass going on as we entered. Here is a long shot of the bride and groom outside afterwards. I love that!

This is Onofrio's fountain. It was constructed in 1438 as the end point in a water supply system that began in a well 12km away. Five and a half centuries later it was still working so well that it supplied Dubrovnik residents with drinking water during the bombings of 1991.

The Rectors Palace is a Gothic-Renaissance structure that displays finely carved capitals and an ornate staircase.

We were excited about the upcoming places on the itinerary, but this jewel of a city was hard to leave. The next morning we were on our way to Kotor, Montenegro and we stopped for one last look. Just amazing!

I hope to share a bit more about the history and culture of Croatia, Montenegro, and Bosnia as I go along in the next few posts. One note if you are planning a trip: Croatia depends on tourism for about 80% of it's industry. They cater nicely to the tourists, especially those from other European countries. We felt very welcome and most people speak English or help you get by on a few words and phrases.

dobar dan = hello, good day

hvala = thank you

kupaonicu=bathroom

Central Europe Trip, Days Nine & Ten

2011-07-17T12:18:00.000-07:00

While day eight was the day of palaces, day nine was a day of museums. After breakfast, we headed to the Belvedere.

In 1714 the Austrian general Prince Eugene of Savoy commissioned the architect Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt to build the Lower Belvedere. The palace was completed just two years later in 1716. Today, the former living quarters and staterooms of this Baroque summer residence are still an impressive sight. Attractions include the Marble Hall, adorned with frescos by Martino Altomonte (1659-1745), the state bedroom, Hall of Grotesques and the Marble Gallery.

The Lower Belvedere also incorporates the orangery and palace stables, formerly used for the prince's horses.

Paul and some of the students decided to stop at the Freud Museum during a free period.

This house in the Alsergrund district, at Berggasse 19, was newly built when Freud moved here in 1891. In 1938 Freud was forced to leave German-annexed Austria due to his Jewish ancestry, and fled to London. His old rooms, where he lived for 47 years and produced the majority of his writings, now house a documentary centre to his life and works. The influence of psychoanalysis on art and society is displayed through a program of special exhibitions and a modern art collection.

The museum consists of Freud's former practice and a part of his old private quarters. Attached to the museum are Europe's largest psychoanalytic research library with 35,000 volumes and the research institute of the Sigmund Freud Foundation.
The display includes original items owned by Freud, the practice's waiting room, and parts of Freud's extensive antique collection. However his famous couch is now in the Freud Museum in London, along with most of the original furnishings, as Freud was able to take his furniture with him when he emigrated.

For the majority of the afternoon, we toured the grand Kunsthistorisches Museum. It was opened in 1891 at the same time as the Naturhistorisches Museum, by Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria-Hungary. The two museums have identical exteriors and face each other across Maria-Theresien-Platz.

The two Ringstraße museums were commissioned by the Emperor in order to find a suitable shelter for the Habsburgs' formidable art collection and to make it accessible to the general public. The façade was built of sandstone. The building is rectangular in shape, and topped with a dome that is 60 meters high. The inside of the building is lavishly decorated with marble, stucco ornamentations, gold-leaf, and paintings. I thoroughly enjoyed the Pieter Brueghel collection. I could look at these paintings for hours and still find new insights and intricacies.

The students finally talked Mr. Plank into Planking in the Museum courtyard.

Following an early dinner, we slept for a few hours and headed out for day ten...to the airport in the wee hours to catch our long flight home. We had bonded with Nadia and snuck a picture at the last minute. She was an amazing guide and really inspired me to want to travel more and learn as much as I can about Europe and beyond...perhaps a little French might be in my future!

It was an amazing, unforgettable trip. I hope to share many of these places with Wyatt someday.

Central Europe Trip, Day Eight

2011-07-17T11:30:00.000-07:00

Day eight was a day of palaces and performances...

The amazing Schloss Schönbrunn ("beautiful spring") is a former imperial summer residence of the House of Habsburg. When you think of what an authentic palace might look like, this has to be it. Not a great deal of the inside is available for tour, but we did see some of the amazing apartments, including rooms where the royal family slept, dressed, dined and sat for hours reading or playing cards.

The gardens here are amazing. The sculpted garden space between the palace and the Sun Fountain is called the Great Parterre. The French garden, a big part of the area, was planned by Jean Trehet in 1695. It contains, among other things, a maze, the world's oldest existing zoo (founded in 1752), an orangerie, a palm house, an arboretum, and glass houses.

In the background you can see the Roman Ruins structure. It was constructed in 1778 as a garden feature. The fashion for picturesque ruins that became widespread with the rise of the Romantic movement soon after the middle of the 18th century symbolize both the decline of once great powers and the preservation of the remains of a heroic past.

Following the palace tour, we headed back down to the old town square and St. Stephen's Cathedral. As the most important religious building in Austria's capital, the cathedral has borne witness to many important events in that nation's history and has, with its multi-colored tile roof, become one of the city's most recognizable symbols. Above the choir on the south side of the building the tiles form a mosaic of the double-headed eagle that is symbolic of the empire ruled from Vienna by the Habsburg dynasty. On the north side the coats of arms of the City of Vienna and of the Republic of Austria are depicted. In 1945, fire caused by World War II damage to nearby buildings leapt to the north tower of the cathedral and went on to destroy the wooden framework of the roof. Replicating the original bracing for so large a roof would have required an entire square kilometre of forest, so over 600 metric tons of steel bracing were used instead.

I was surprised and amazed by the interior of the cathedral. The stained glass windows cast light upon the internal features, creating this heavenly glow throughout the structure. It is an inspiring sight to behold!

Paul read about a street in his guidebook called Grünangergasse that he wanted to see so during our free time we went to find it. It turned out to be a quiet, beautiful area with nice apartments and quiet city gardens. It also led us to Domgasse, the street where Mozart lived from the end of September 1784 until the end of April 1787. In these two and a half years he composed a number of major works including Le Nozze di Figaro, one of my favorites. It was interesting to see where he lived, he some sheet music, furnishings, clothing and listen to selections while we toured the apartment.

Finding the museum was serendipitous for us because while inside, a rain storm came through. After our tour, the beautiful streets were wet and glistening!

Vienna is an interesting mixture of old and new. These beautiful buildings surrounded by McDonalds, H&M and upscale shopping. It is a very touristy place but I suppose I'd rather shop in this setting than Bellevue Square!

After lunch and free time we toured the Sisi Museum located inside Habsburg Palace. Elisabeth of Austria (24 December 1837 – 10 September 1898) was Empress of Austria and Queen consort of Hungary as the spouse of Franz Joseph I. From an early age, she was called “Sisi” by family and friends.
While Elisabeth had limited influence on Austro-Hungarian politics, she has become a historical icon. Elisabeth is considered to have been a non-conformist who abhorred conventional court protocol and at the same time a tragic figure; she has inspired filmmakers and theatrical producers alike.
Married at sixteen years old, Elisabeth had difficulty adapting to the strict etiquette practiced at the Habsburg court. She bore the emperor three children in quick succession, but her firstborn's death would haunt Elisabeth for the rest of her life and cause a permanent rift between her and her husband. Elisabeth embarked on a life of travel, and saw little of her offspring. She visited such locations as Madeira, Hungary, England and Corfu.
She became known not only for her beauty. Newspapers published articles on her fashion sense, diet and exercise regimens, passion for riding sports, and a series of reputed lovers, although there is no verifiable evidence of her having an affair. She paid extreme attention to her appearance and spent much time preserving her beauty.

On 10 September 1898, in Geneva, Switzerland, Elisabeth, aged 60, was stabbed in the heart with a sharpened file by a young mentally ill anarchist named Luigi Lucheni. When attacked, she had been walking along the promenade of Lake Geneva about to board the steamship. She boarded the ship, unaware of the severity of her condition. Bleeding to death from a puncture wound to the heart, Elisabeth said, "What happened to me?" The strong pressure from her corset had contained the bleeding until the garment was removed. Reportedly, her assassin had hoped to kill a prince from the House of Orléans and, failing to find him, turned on Elisabeth instead. Lucheni afterwards said, "I wanted to kill a royal. It did not matter which one."

The empress was buried in the Imperial Crypt in Vienna's city centre. For centuries it has served as the Imperial burial place. After learning of his wife's death, the Emperor reportedly whispered to himself, "She will never know how much I loved her."

Heeresgeschichtliches Museum is a military history museum, the oldest and largest purpose-built military history museum in the world. Its collection includes one of the world's largest collections of bronze cannons and focuses on Austrian military history from the 16th century to 1945.

The concert was fun and entertaining and included famous Mozart and Strauss pieces. The opera singers were interactive with the audience and the ballet performers were delightful. The students had so much fun and told our tour guide how much they enjoyed it. She was impressed with their engagement and enjoyment of a classical concert.

Off to bed and our last full day of Vienna ahead!

Happy Birthday, USA!

2011-07-08T10:15:00.000-07:00

Our family tradition is to brave the weather and crowds and attend the huge Family Fourth Celebration at Gasworks Park in Seattle. This year it was hot and sunny and we had lots of fun enjoying the activities and food, playing with the football, playing card games, reading, and trying to pass the hours until it got dark.

Paul took these cool pictures of the sun going down and reflecting on the city.

Our friends, the Peay's joined us for the big show. We didn't get as good of video of the dancing as last year, but still fun! The band the Dusty 45s played before and after the fireworks. The coolest part was when the lead singer lit his trumpet on fire!

Central Europe Trip, Days Six (cont) & Seven

2011-07-02T09:21:00.001-07:00

After visiting Auschwitz and Birkenau we asked if we could drive by the former Jewish Ghetto in Krakow.

Krakow's Podgorze district was the site of the former Jewish Ghetto, and while part of the ghetto wall still remains, until December 2005 there was no monument commemorating the heroes and victims of the ghetto. This memorial was designed by Krakow architects Piotr Lewicki and Kazimierz Latak and funded by Polish film director Roman Polanski. It features 33 large illuminated chairs in the square and 37 smaller chairs standing on the edge of the square and at the tram stops. The chairs represent the furniture and other remnants that were discarded on that very spot by the ghetto's Jews as they were herded into the trains that would often take them to their deaths in Auschwitz and other concentration camps.

Nearby is the site of Oscar Schindler's factory. Oscar Schindler was a German industrialist born in Moravia. He is credited with saving almost 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust by employing them in his enamelware and ammunitions factories, which were located in what is now Poland and the Czech Republic respectively.
No one knows what Schindler's motives were. He was quoted as saying "I knew the people who worked for me... When you know people, you have to behave towards them like human beings."

We came back to the hotel for dinner and our final sunset view of Krakow from the hotel window! I hope to return someday with Wyatt.

Day seven was a travel day. We traveled by bus from Krakow to Vienna. It was supposed to take 6-7 hours, but because of road closures we spent at least 8, maybe even 9 hours on the road. Not our favorite day, but at least some of the kids caught up on their sleep!

Our bus driver Emi is Hungarian. He was a good driver and did not like when other driver's were reckless or daring. One tried to pass the bus on a windy road and almost ended up in a head-on collision. We learned many choice Hungarian words on the long bus trip.

In the late afternoon we arrived in Vienna, or Wien as it is known in Europe. Vienna is very majestic and by far the largest city in Austria. Nadia oriented us with downtown Vienna on a short walking tour before dinner.

Vienna City Park is a beautiful gathering place for Austrian-natives and tourists and was blooming with roses and other beautiful signs of summer.

We walked to the Vienna Parliment Building designed in Greek revival style. One of the building's most famous features is the later added Athena fountain in front of the main entrance, which is a notable Viennese tourist attraction. Following heavy damage and destruction during the Second World War, most of the interior has been restored to its original splendor.
Many of the other buildings we saw on this walking tour were ones we would see or visit on days 8-10, so I will describe those later.
We walked through the touristy streets to dinner at Weinerwald. The students thought the wiener schnitzel was the best dinner we'd had yet!

On our way back to meet the bus and head to our last hotel we saw these street performers and had to stop to watch. It was a fun way to end the introduction to Vienna!
http://youtu.be/aF8MEhts27c
http://youtu.be/aCwTISV9-Hg

Central Europe Trip, Day Six

2011-06-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

Day 6 proved to be a physically and emotionally exhausting day. It started with a local guide, Gregory, who showed us to Wawel (pronounced Vavel, of course) Hill. It was so cool that we could walk there from our hotel even if was all uphill. People have lived on Wawel Hill at the site of the Castle as early as fifty thousand years ago, in the Paleolithic Age. It’s amazing to me!

The castle itself dates back to the 14th century with many updates, fires, wars and revisions.

The Wawel Cathedral has been the main burial site for Polish monarchs since the 14th century.

A popular version of the Wawel-dragon tale takes place in Kraków during the reign of King Krak, the city's legendary founder. Each day the evil dragon would beat a path of destruction across the countryside, killing the civilians, pillaging their homes and devouring their livestock. In many versions of the story, the dragon especially enjoyed eating young maidens, and could only be appeased if the townsfolk left a young girl in front of its cave once a month. The King certainly wanted to put a stop to the dragon, but his bravest knights fell to its fiery breath. In the versions involving the sacrifice of young girls, every girl in the city was eventually sacrificed except one, the King's daughter Wanda. In desperation, the King promised his beautiful daughter's hand in marriage to anyone who could defeat the dragon.

Great warriors from near and far fought for the prize and failed. One day a poor cobbler's apprentice named Skuba accepted the challenge. He stuffed a lamb with sulphur and set it outside the dragon's cave. The dragon ate it and soon became incredibly thirsty. He turned to the Vistula River for relief and drank and drank. But no amount of water could quench his aching stomach, and after swelling up from drinking half the Vistula river, he exploded. Skuba married the King's daughter as promised, and they lived happily ever after. I like a good “happily-ever-after story”! Oh, and here are the actual bones of the dragon hanging by the entrance to the castle...wink, wink!

Pope John Paul II is beloved to the Polish people, as he was born and raised there. There are many, many statues and memorials to him around Krakow.

Our tour guide pointed out these sculptures above the doorways on the Krakow street. Instead of addresses, people would use these kind of decorations as their landmarks. "I'll meet you at the rhino house at five!" I love that!

After lunch in the square, Paul had traditional Polish sausage and I had the most delicious cheese grilled on a skillet and served with cranberry sauce, we had some fun with the various sites in the square including a Polish school class on a field trip.

Then we met our bus driver and left for Auschwitz-Birkenau about an hour away. This was the largest German concentration camp between 1940 and 1945 and is now a Polish-run museum which has welcomed 22 million visitors thus far. It was a somber, horrifying tour, but also quiet and reflective. There is no talking as you walk through the tour, only a tour guide with a microphone and visitors wearing headsets to keep the noise-level minimal. I only share only a few photos from that experience.

The sign reads "Arbeit Macht Frei" or "Work Makes You Free"

I decided not to take photos inside. I felt it was a very sacred place and I was there for my own experience. I would encourage others to take that opportunity if it should ever arise. It was difficult, but important and I am glad I did it. Ironically, it was a beautiful day, with sun and a slight breeze.

I am grateful for my freedom.

Plaques along the memorial (former gas chamber site) in dozens of languages all carry the same message:
"Forever let this place be a cry of despair and a warning to humanity, where the Nazis murdered about one and a half million men, women, and children, mainly Jews from various countries of Europe.

Auschwitz-Birkenau 1940-1945"

Central Europe Trip, Day Five

2011-06-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

We woke up ready for Day 5, starting with a bus ride to Krakow, Poland. We were excited to find out we were staying in the heart of Old Town Krakow. It's much nicer to stay in town and be able to walk around after dinner and not have to be bussed back and forth.

Krakow dates back to the 7th century and has traditionally been one of the leading centers of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life. It was the capital of Poland from 1038 to 1596. After checking in to our hotel we went for a walk to the Main Market Square (the largest Medieval square in Europe), got our bearings, and set out to explore.

The tower in the center of the square is the Town Hall Tower. The Tower is the only remaining part of the old Town Hall demolished in 1820 as part of the city plan to open up the Main Square. Its cellars once housed a city prison with a Medieval torture chamber. The students were super interested in THAT fact.

Mr. Plank and a few of the kids went up the tower while I went shopping.

I enjoyed browsing in the Renaissance Sukiennice or old cloth hall where there are local merchants selling their wares. One of the things Poland is famous for is their amber, so it was fun to look at all the amber jewelry. This was a nice way to shop...in the shade with seemingly authentic shop-keepers.

By this point, I was really missing Wyatt, so I enjoyed seeing all the children in Krakow. Wyatt would have loved scaring the pigeons!

One of the main attractions in the square is St. Mary's Basilica It is a brick Gothic church re-built in the 14th century. It is particularly famous for its wooden altarpiece carved by Veit Stoss.
On every hour, a trumpet signal—called the Hejnał mariacki—is played from the top of the taller of St. Mary's two towers. The tune breaks off in mid-stream, to commemorate the famous 13th century trumpeter, who was shot in the throat while sounding the alarm before the Mongol attack on the city.

Paul and I walked around looking into the many churches and building we thought looked interesting. This one is St. Florian's Church. Here is a short video clip I took outside just for the ambiance. I enjoyed hearing the clock bells.

http://youtu.be/TSFl-CKTNLA

We stumbled upon the Collegium Witkowski, a Jagiellonian University building erected in 1908-11. The building's style mixes elements of Gothic-revival, Romanesque-revival and Art Nouveau architecture. We walked through this cool tunnel into the Philosopher's garden. A nice spot.

Medieval Kraków was surrounded by a 1.9 mile defensive wall complete with 46 towers and seven main entrances leading through them. Of course, only parts of the wall are still standing, but it is a really cool walk to go around the old town on the path and see parts of the wall and the beautiful garden, statues, and fountains that are there now.

The Kraków barbican is a fortified outpost once connected to the city walls. It is a historic gateway leading into the Old Town. The barbican is one of the few remaining relics of the complex network of fortifications and defensive barriers that once encircled the royal city.

After a long day of travel and taking in the sights we went back to the hotel for dinner and saw this sight from our room. Here is a short video of that sight as well.

http://youtu.be/69VyB7Vo5k0

Central Europe Trip, Day Four

2011-06-18T15:10:00.000-07:00

We awoke early on day 4 to leave Prague and head to Dresden, Germany, about 2.5 hours away.

This proved to be our least painful bus ride of the trip.

Allied aerial bombing towards the end of World War II killed thousands of civilians and destroyed most of city. We only had one day in Dresden, so we spent it in the historic inner city which has been almost entirely rebuilt. It is like walking into a fairy tale since everything looks so picture-perfect and new.

Dresden Frauenkirche is a beautiful Lutheran church originally built in the 11th century and destroyed in 1945 by Allied forces.

As far as possible, the church – except for its dome – was rebuilt using original material and plans, with the help of modern technology. The heap of rubble was documented and carried off stone by stone. The approximate original position of each stone could be determined from its position in the heap. Every usable piece was measured and catalogued. A computer imaging program that could move the stones three-dimensionally around the screen in various configurations was used to help architects find where the original stones sat and how they fit together.
Of the millions of stones used in the rebuilding, more than 8,500 original stones were salvaged from the original church and approximately 3,800 reused in the reconstruction. Reconstruction was completed in 2005.

Paul and some of the students paid to go to the top of the dome. This is a gorgeous picture of the Elbe river and some of the historic city. We also ate lunch along the banks of the river. It was a beautiful day.

My 4 Euro bottle of water during lunch. In Europe it means something different when you say, "I'll just have water," in a restaurant!

I enjoyed the sculptural trees throughout the city.

The production of porcelain at Meissen, near Dresden, started in 1710 and attracted artists and artisans to establish one of the most famous porcelain manufacturers, still in business today. It was fun to window shop in Dresden, even if things were way too expensive for me. The students managed to find H&M, of course!
The Fürstenzug (German for "Procession of Princes") in Dresden, Germany, is a large mural of a mounted procession of the princes of Saxony, made out of 25,000 Meissen porcelain tiles. Somehow, the picture was only minimally damaged in World War II.

The Semperoper or opera house is an amazing sight! The building style itself is debated among many, as it has features that appear in the Early Renaissance style, Baroque and even features Corinthian style pillars typical of classical Greece…definitely eclectic!

As a group we visited the Historic and New Green Vault. It was a girl’s (who used to fantasize of becoming a princess) dream come true.
The Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vault) is a museum that contains the largest collection of treasures in Europe. It is a part of the Dresden castle. It was founded by August der Starke (Augustus II the Strong) in 1723. It is often referred to as a walk-in treasure chest. It contains nine rooms, each with its own exhibition theme. Of course, we were not allowed to take pictures, but this link will take you to their website and a cool slideshow of the rooms. My favorite, not surprisingly, was the “jewel room”. Ahhhh, the jewels!

http://www.skd.museum/en/museums-institutions/residenzschloss/gruenes-gewoelbe/historisches-gruenes-gewoelbe/index.html

This is a picture from the pamphlet:

We had a nice dinner at the Hotel Novalis in Dresden and slept well in anticipation of heading out to Krakow, Poland in the morning

Cenral Europe Trip, Day Three

2011-06-17T13:03:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention that we also visited the Mucha Museum briefly on Day 2. On the way we saw some great examples of Art Nouveau including the Municipal House. Here is an example of a Mucha, one of Paul's favorites:

Day 3, Last day in Prague
I thought Day 2 was busy, but this day proves to be the longest day of all so far. First we visited the Jewish Quarter, including a few synagogues and the Old Jewish Cemetery. It was interesting to visit the practicing Synagogue and Paul wore a paper Yarmulke for the occasion. These pictures are of the outside of the buildings as we were not able to take pictures inside and of the cemetery.It was in use from the early 15th century until 1787. The numbers of grave stones and numbers of people buried there are uncertain, because there are layers of tombs. However, it has been estimated that there are approximately 12,000 tombstones presently visible, and there may be as many as 100,000 burials in all. The most important personalities buried in the Old Jewish Cemetery are Yehuda ben Bezalel known as the Maharal Rabbi Löw (d. 1609), Mordechai Maisel (d. 1601), David Gans (d. 1613) and David Oppenheim (d. 1736).
After a lunch of Czech street food in the Old Town and some free time to sight-see and shop we visited the Franz Kafka Museum. This fountain art was created by David Cerny and installed in 2004. The artist explains, "The project is a sculpture of two bronze naked men. They have swivel hips and, facing each other, they urinate into a pool shaped like the Czech map, writing famous Czech sayings in the water. One is by Kafka: ‘Prague is beautiful but it has claws.’

“There’s a Czech idiom about ‘peeing over somebody,’ which I guess translated into English would be to ‘get one over on somebody.’ That’s what the peeing men mean. It’s the way our country behaves,” he said.

Needless to say, the students enjoyed the Kodak moment...:) I'm glad Mr. Plank kept his photo decent.

The Kafka Museum was very interesting and different from any other museum I've been to. I have not personally read any Kafka, but Paul is an avid reader so he really enjoyed the museum and thought it was well-done, though perhaps some of the installations done by modern artists interpreting Kafka were misleading, according to Paul. Paul wrote about it on his blog... http://apieceofwork2.blogspot.com/
Our tour guide recognized that we were all tired, jet-lagged and hot, so we stopped in a park and took a rest. While there, some of us decided to go on an impromptu boat tour down the Vltava.
This is one of my favorite scenic shots, taken from the boat.

Paul with the Charles Bridge in the background.

I put this link here because it is one of my favorite pieces of music and was inspired by the River Vltava. The best-known of the classical Czech composer Bedřich Smetana's set of six symphonic poems Má vlast ("My Motherland") is called Vltava (or The Moldau), and is a musical depiction of the river's course through Bohemia.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdtLuyWuPDs

We saw a lot of street musicians in Prague and many street artists. They played everything from Smetana to Jazz and it was fun to stop and listen. The artists were mainly doing caricature portraits and watercolors or drawings.
The Bridge Band sounded like they were playing in New Orleans!

Nadia then took us on another walk to see the Memorial to the victims of Communism. It is a series of statues in Prague commemorating the victims of the Communist era between 1948-1989. It shows seven bronze figures descending a flight of stairs. The statues appear more "decayed" the further away they are from you - losing limbs and their bodies breaking open. It is supposed to symbolise how political prisoners were affected by Communism.

On our way out of town to have dinner at the hotel, we glimpsed The Dancing House by Frank Gehry and Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Milunić. It is also nicknamed the Fred and Ginger House as it shows two buildings almost dancing. It's formal name is the Nationale-Nederlanden building and it currently houses a French restaurant and multinational firms. Kind of a startk contrast to the rest of Prague!

Central Europe Trip, Day Two

2011-06-16T14:10:00.000-07:00

Day 2
My good friend, Tamsyn Carter, and her family moved to Germany almost 2 years ago. I had the pleasure of meeting her in Prague for Day 2. She was able to stay at the same hotel and we met at breakfast to catch up. So great to see her! She was able to come on our guided tour with the local Czech guide, Felix. He was a crack-up as you can see in this video clip (click the link below). He taught us a Czech tongue twister that is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest phrase without any vowels... Can you say it five times fast?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX_VeWb8jQs
We went first to the beautiful Strahov Monastery. This pic is outside the entrance and some others of the outside and us waiting with the students.

Robert enjoyed taking pictures of Paul taking pictures so he returned the favor. He even got one of Mr. Plank "planking" later in the trip.

I thoroughly enjoyed talking with and getting to know Paul's students. They were friendly and fun. Kirsty was in my group and well-traveled, so she taught me a lot about local currencies and shopping at H&M in every city. I have to admit I bought something there...a wrap because we had an unexpected rain storm and it was COLD...only 10 Euros, too! The kids laughed at me because I fully wrapped it around my head and looked like the Madonna.

In 1670 Jeroným Hirnheim, a philosopher and theologist became the abbot of Strahov. His greatest work, which has survived to the present days, was the building of the new library, the present Theological Hall completed in 1679. This picture taken with my phone doesn't do it justice, but here it is.

In 1779 Václav Mayer occupied the abbot's throne and was the last to carry out great building activities. His most outstanding work was the building of the new library, now in Classical style. Today it is called the Philosophical Hall and is amazing to see.

After the monastery and a run-in will some pushy French tourists (Our Explorica guide spoke French, too, and had some very interesting-sounding words with them!) we walked to the Prague Castle complex which is really a compilation of many buildings and virtually every architectural style from the last millennium!

Tamsyn and I in the Prague Castle Square.

Saint Vitus' Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Prague, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. The full name of the cathedral is St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral. Located within Prague Castle and containing the tombs of many Bohemian kings and Holy Roman Emperors, this cathedral is an excellent example of Gothic architecture and is the biggest and most important church in the country.

Perhaps the most outstanding place in the cathedral is the Chapel of St. Wenceslas, where the relics of the saint are kept. The room was built by Peter Parler between 1344 and 1364 and has a ribbed vault. The lower part of the walls are wonderfully decorated with over 1300 semi-precious stones and paintings about the Passion of Christ dating from the original decoration of the chapel in 1372-1373. It's hard to capture the effect of the stained-glass in photographs, but these are two favorites.

We also visited the Old Royal Palace. I enjoyed the beautiful simplicity of this palace with the amazingly intricate ceiling and could imagine the court having some fun times in this place.

From the corner window of the Vladislav Hall two Catholic Governors and their secretary were thrown out of the window. They survived thanks to a dung heap, even though some Catholics thought that it was angel’s intervention. This event started Thirty Years’ War.

The view from a balcony in the Old Royal Palace. I can see why they lived there.

And that was all before lunch...a late lunch, but still! We walked back down across Charles Bridge to Old Town and enjoyed a lazy lunch, then spent some time visiting churches, buying souvenirs, and walking, walking, walking. Nadia, our Explorica guide who was with us the entire trip, was an amazing wealth of information.

In the early evening we walked to Wenceslas Square. It is the place Prague residents gather to unite or protest politically. We saw several sign holders and a plaque acknowledging the place where two men have set themselves on fire in protest to communism and anti-democratic Czech policies.

Finally, back to the hotel for dinner, deal with some blisters, sleep, and get ready for our last Prague day...

Central Europe Trip, Day One

2011-06-15T20:56:00.000-07:00

Central Europe June 2011 Day One

Paul and I took a group of students on a tour of four major European cities in 10 days. It was exhausting and thrilling. I am going to attempt a few highlights on my blog so I can remember things about the trip and share a few pictures. The first city (after a full day and ½ night of flying) was Prague, Czech Republic.

Prague is beautiful. It was not destroyed in WWII as many European cities were because of a pact with the Germans, so the old buildings are still largely untouched and so amazing. The streets are cobblestone which can be quite tricky for the feet, but also so beautiful. One of the first things we saw was Charles Bridge. Its construction started in 1357 and finished in the beginning of the 15th century. As the only means of crossing the river Vltava until 1841, the Charles Bridge was the most important connection between Prague Castle and the city's Old Town and adjacent areas. This "solid-land" connection made Prague important as a trade route between Eastern and Western Europe.
View of Charles Bridge from the Bank and the entrance tower. Interestingly, Prague (and all European cities) have a lot of graffiti. Our tour guide said it was young people imitating Americans.

John of Nepomuk was a priest under King Wenceslas IV who received the confessions of the Queen. Unfortunately for John of Nepomuk the King was a very suspicious man. He wanted to know the Queen’s confessions which Nepomuk would not reveal, not even to the King, because it would be against his commitment of confidentiality. Nepomuk was therefore executed by being thrown into the Vltava River from the bridge and drown. Czechs say if you touch St. John of Nepomuk's plaque to the right of his statue with your left hand, you will return to Prague someday. So Paul and I both touched it for fun and in hopes to be back someday, of course!

This link is to a panoramic view of our next stop...Old Town Square.

http://vizerra.com/en/locations/prague

Old Town includes the historic Astronomical Clock. The medieval clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the only one still working. It was fun to see it work at each hour and listen to the trumpet players at the very top. I also had fun looking at the crowd! It was quite a crowd. Prague was VERY crowded with tourists, especially groups of older retired people.

Old Town also has beautiful churches. My two favorites were the gothic Tyn Cathedral from the outside and the baroque St. Nicholas Church from the inside.

Outside of Tyn Cathedral and St. Nicholas' Church

Inside St. Nicholas' Church and a look at the dome.

We made a short vsiit to Kinsky Palace to see some art and had some interesting run-ins with the older generation guards (left-overs from the communist era?). Mr. Plank had fun imitating this statue.

After an early dinner at the Grand Café Praha (an old hang-out of Franz Kafka to Mr. Plank's pleasure) and being up all night (Pacific Time) we crashed at the Hotel Duo outside of town and were ready for day 2 at the Prague Castle… Here's a look at the view we saw from the top of the Prague Castle hill...breathtaking!

I Beg to Differ...

2011-02-11T15:22:00.000-08:00

So everyone always tells me how much Wyatt looks like Paul...and he does. They have many of the same mannerisms, they run the same, and they do look alike in many ways. Yesterday I came across this photo of myself from kindergarten-age. C'mon! We have the SAME FACE! And Wyatt even has the gap in his teeth. Minus the dark hair and eyes, I think he is the spitting image. What do you think?

The REAL Santa

2010-12-12T11:16:00.000-08:00

We've been fielding a lot of questions about Santa this year. "How old is he?", "What if he dies?", "How come Santa is not as fat sometimes?" and usually I turn it around and ask Wyatt what he thinks to save us from outright lies. I'm feeling like this may be one of the last years that he truly believes. We talked as we drove to the mall about how Santa sometimes uses helpers to visit with children since he can't be everywhere at once. Even so, I was so happy that as Santa came into view at a local mall, he looked like this:

Isn't he cute? Real beard and all. He chatted with Wyatt for a full five minutes, pulled out a wallet with some sort of Santa ID and a picture of himself on a WWII jet waving to the crowd (in full Santa gear). Wyatt exclaimed as we walked away, "That was the REAL Santa"!

Dress-up

2010-11-09T08:34:00.000-08:00

I like to play dress up, mostly to wear more make-up than any one person should wear...and the fake eyelashes! Luckily, there is Halloween each year to fulfill this need in me. Several people commented that my vampiress was strangely Marie Osmond-ish. Hmmmm, the big, white teeth perhaps? I laughed harder than I have all year seeing Paul in his nerdy English teacher victim costume. And Wyatt...is a pure Power Ranger, don't ya think?

Hallo-Mania!

2010-10-06T21:44:00.000-07:00

Wyatt is really excited for Halloween as I'm sure most 5-year-olds are at this time of year. The weather is sufficiently getting cold and the decorations have made their way in the house. Now, deciding on a costume...that's tricky. So far, he's deciding between a robot (box collection since mid-March), a Jedi, Captain Rex (some kind of Storm Trooper guy from StarWars) and a ghost. He's leaning toward Captain Rex and since he already has the costume from his birthday, I suppose that's the easy one, but I sure do miss making his costume. Here are some highlights from Halloweens past...

2005, Age 7 months, Jaguar

2006, Age 1-1/2, Charlie Brown-homemade

2007, Age 2-1/2, The Man in the Yellow Hat from Curious George-homemade except for the George doll.

2008, Age 3-1/2, Super Why!-homemade

2009, Age 4-1/2, Boba Fett-homemade belt & wristbands

Growing Up

2010-09-14T20:30:00.000-07:00

Wyatt lost his first tooth last night, just weeks after starting Kinder-
garten. For some reason, this just seems to cap off the end-of-preschool phase perfectly. He's no longer "little". The other day I was watching Regis & Kelly and after he asked me a million questions about the guest Sylvester Stallone (who happened to be a high school crush of mine, but that is another story) and the things they were talking about, I switched it over to PBS. After about a minute of the show (something about dinosaurs) he declared it was a "baby show" and we must go back to the one with the muscle guy. Sigh...

The tooth fairy visited bearing a $2 bill...only to be followed by more questions with shifty answers...:)

Kindergarten...already???

2010-09-02T20:51:00.000-07:00

Yes, today was Wyatt's first day. We handled it extremely well if I do say so myself. No tears shed at all. Of course, I was super-busy and so was Wyatt so who has time for tears? It's only when I have those quiet reflective moments that I think too much and realize this is my first & last day to do this particular special thing. Now, inch by inch he starts to gain his independence and I start to loosen those strings. He did hold my hand all the way home...

Wyatt's sweet teacher, Mrs. Perman, has won us over already!

Wyatt and Anna walking to the school. She's a first-grader and has been showing us the ropes!

Wy and his buddy, Isaac are in the same class at John Muir Elementary!

All smiles waiting in line for school to start.

This is how I left him, doing his morning work!

Summer Park Fun

2010-08-04T20:31:00.000-07:00

Wyatt had fun today playing at the Spray Park in Bellevue. I realized this might be the last summer he really wants to go there since most of the features are for small kids. He does love climbing up that whale and sliding down it's nose.

A few weeks ago we enjoyed a day at Volunteer Park in Seattle. I thought he might be bored of the knee-deep wading pool, but he spent hours spraying, splashing and playing catch with his friends.

Has it really been 20 years?

2010-08-04T19:38:00.000-07:00

Well, I did it. I went to my 20 year class reunion. I really wasn't all that interested until I got into facebook this summer and realized a lot of people I'd like to see were going. It turned out to be a really great time. I had fun seeing old friends and letting them peer-pressure me into dancing and singing karaoke. Some things never change!

Two of my very best friends: Amy and Julie

My prom date, Jayson, and my oldest friend, Kim

Prom Queen and King, David, re-enacting our "Forever Young" dance minus the crowns and fuscia gown, (thank goodness)!

"We got the beat!"

My favorite teacher, Mme Baird. Sorry I didn't keep up the French!

Patriotism at its Best

2010-07-07T16:00:00.000-07:00

We ventured over to Gas Works Park this year for the big Seattle fireworks show over Lake Union. We've been there several times, but this is the first year Wyatt really knew what was happening and had been talking about it for a few weeks ahead. We arrived to a drizzle which continued for 2 hours.

Now a drizzle is not a pouring rain, but 2 hours of it is enough to soak us through. I was almost ready to pack it in when it stopped, the balloon man showed up to make Wyatt an alien and we got our kettle corn. Then The Presidents of the United States of America began their live show. Wyatt loves rock music and we were up on the top of the hill with a good view. He danced, played air guitar, and pumped his arms..."Mom, this means I really like it!" It was super fun for him and his first real concert.

His friend, Dylan and his family arrived and they had fun playing football until about 30 minutes before the fireworks show. Luckily, there was recorded music of songs, such as Neil Diamond and Simon & Garfunkel in the videos below, to keep the boys happily entertained and awake for the show. The fireworks were AMAZING and well worth the incessant drizzle, cold, and chain smokers. I'm still recovering from the walk UP to the car...Hooray for the U.S.A.!

Pre-K Graduation

2010-06-17T14:32:00.000-07:00

OK, my first thought (and maybe yours)...is this really necessary? Pre-K Graduation? But it was very cute and his last day as a preschooler, so I suppose it can do no harm. Each child got to come up and share something special. Wyatt shared his state quarter collection and his Hot Wheel collection. Then Teacher Debbie read a paragraph about each child and tried not to cry. I copied Wyatt's below. Now on to KINDERGARTEN!!

"Wyatt is a very quick learner and always has good ideas to add to our class discussions. He loves to entertain his friends and make them laugh, and is excited to participate in every activity. He's very sensitive and likes everyone to get along. When it's free play time, he's at the center of the action and loves coming up with new ideas for having fun. Good job, Wyatt!"

~Teacher Debbie June 14, 2010

Conquering 5-year-old Anxieties

2010-03-10T18:53:00.000-08:00

Wyatt has a lot of fears...His biggest are food related, mosquitoes (incl. bees and other flying insects), and lately going to bed on his own. He's always been a great sleeper, but during the summer we fell into the habit of lying down with him until he fell asleep. His 5 year birthday was the cut-off and we've been sticking to it for one week. He's been creating lots of ways to try to entice us back in...including, but not limited to, bugs crawling up through the crack between his bed and his wall, the fact that he's crying and we need to help him not cry, aliens, and the most frightening, robbers coming in to cut off his head. I was a bit shocked by this one and had to hold back the laughter. Tonight he came up with his own solution and

taped it to the front door himself...I guess that is one way for him to work out his own fears!

Oh, and he also recently rode a carousel (on the actual moving horse, not just on the bench for older people) and willingly held this worm. Maybe he's not a lost cause?

If only I could get him to eat more of a variety...

The "Weezers" Biggest Fan

2010-03-01T22:45:00.000-08:00

Wyatt gets easily obsessed with things, then he lives, breathes, and thinks about this thing until it has run it's course. It happened with ABCs, puzzles, Curious George and Little Einsteins, The United States & capitals, I Spy books, etc...

A few weeks ago I played the song Island in the Sun by Weezer in the car and Wyatt fell in love. (hip hip) We've now completed listening to each of the six albums we own plus a few of the songs from the new album we found online--with a few edits from Mom. Hash Pipe is not one I want to explain at this point. Thanks to search engines and websites we know more than we ever wanted to know about Weezer, or as Wyatt calls them, The Weezers. I tried to explain the band name concept but he will not accept the singular if there are 4 band members. "Mom, the Beatles...get it?" I've let it go...

Now my days are full of all sorts of interesting Weezer questions.

"Mom, how old are the Weezers? Do they live together in the same house? Are the Weezers cousins, friends, or brothers? Do they have kids?"

If I say I don't know, he makes up the answers: "I think some of them are cousins and some are friends and they all live in their house together so they can all play whenever they want. They are probably 25 and don't have any kids 'cause their too busy playing music."

He's taken to calling himself Brian Bell and playing the air guitar. In the car he wears sunglasses and combs his hair into his eyes in a certain way before playing said air guitar. We've created a monster...

How young is too young for guitar lessons?

A Giving Heart

2010-01-30T23:49:00.000-08:00

I’ve been learning a lot from my almost 5-year-old lately. This year his birthday party choices are either to do a small home birthday party with 3-4 friends or a huge jumping party at the local inflatable gym. It seems that my busy schedule has helped our decision be the latter, since if you pay someone enough, they will do the party for you. Not that Wyatt is complaining. The only caveat is that since he’s inviting close to 20 friends and cousins, we are asking for no gifts, but for a donation to a charitable organization. I wish I would have taped the look of horror that crossed Wyatt’s face when we first discussed it. My feelings tipped back and forth from, “Are we forcing this on him? Is that OK? Is he too young to understand why we’re doing this?” to, “Wouldn’t he have so much fun opening gifts? Should I just clean out his room and let him have a boat-load of gifts?”

Wyatt answered the questions himself. He’s been really interested in Haiti. In fact, geography is his current obsession, so we regularly discuss current events at his level and look for places on the map. He’s really concerned about the people of Haiti. He helped me look up the website to donate some funds and wanted to make sure that we were not going to hand deliver it ourselves. I talked to him about some possible uses for the money and that there are children there who don’t have parents and need all the things parents can provide. After a few minutes he came to me and said that he thought it would be OK to share his room and his toys with a boy (not a girl) from Haiti. Specifically, he said, “He can have my Lightnin’ McQueen blow up bed and then when Jesus makes his parents alive again, he can go back to live with them.”

He might not understand the intricacies yet, but his little heart is in the right place. I think his birthday party will be just fine...

Early Riser

2009-12-17T21:31:00.001-08:00

We're blessed to have a child that sleeps usually through the night for about 10-12 hours so I am REALLY not allowed to complain. BUT, occassionally he wakes up at the crack of dawn. He comes in to my side of the bed and stares at me, sighs, breathes loudly (while I pretend I don't notice) and finally sticks his face on mine. Even if it's early, it is quite adorable. I love that it's been cold lately, too, because he will often want to "snuggle" in bed for a while. He's such a lovey, huggy, kissy guy...He still blows me kisses as I drop him off at preschool and runs up to hug me when I pick him up...I just hope it lasts!

Our very own "ghost" friend

2009-12-08T14:18:00.000-08:00

As an educator and someone relatively informed in childhood development, I've always thought imaginary friends to be healthy and somewhat cute. Now that Wyatt has one, it is a little more difficult to grasp. I understand the concept, but seeing him actually talk to his friend...full-on conversations...is a little unnerving to me. He calls her his "ghost friend" and her name is Isabella.

Here's what one of the Doctors from that TV show The Drs. had to say recently:

“In terms of imaginary friends, they’re actually a good thing,” Dr. Jim says. “It’s a sign of a good imagination and it’s a sign of intelligence. But I recommend to parents, get to know your child’s imaginary friend.”

Dr. Jim explains that by getting to know the made-up playmate, parents can gain insight into their child’s feelings. To do so, he recommends asking questions such as what he or she looks and acts like.

Dr. Jim also advises holding the child accountable if he or she does something wrong and blames the invented sidekick by explaining that they are still responsible for the friend’s actions.

Wyatt has yet to try to blame anything on Isabella. If he does...I'll be ready!

This is currently Wyatt's favorite picture of himself. Looks like he's seen a ghost, perhaps?

Our Little Poser

2009-10-27T12:21:00.001-07:00

I asked Wyatt to pose for a few fall pictures at St. Edward State Park a couple weeks back (before the rain) and he really did! OK, so I bribed him with lunch at a certain fast food restaurant, but I was still very happy with him. The best pic will be our Christmas card, but here are a few others and a few that are uniquely Wyatt. He makes the silliest faces!

Party Suit

2009-08-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

(Warning: I apologize that the following story may fleetingly conjure in your minds an image of me (Paul) in the buff.) A few weeks ago Wyatt and his friend were changing from their wet swimsuits back into dry clothes. Wyatt has recently developed a bit of shyness in the naked department--his days of running up and down the hallway completely naked and screaming may be over. So while changing on this particular day, he tried (unsuccessfully) to hide underneath his towel. After a few minutes, he peeked surreptitiously to see where his friend was in his undressing. Seeing his friend sans clothes, Wy said, "Naked!" and then laughed. I then said that he was wearing his birthday suit, which prompted Wy to go into unending question mode. ("Why?" is Wyatt's current favorite word.) I tried to explain why it was called a birthday suit, saying something about the fact that we are naked on the day we are born and it's just a silly thing to say. Later that day, Wyatt walked in the bedroom after I had just emerged from the shower. Wyatt smiled and sheepishly exclaimed, "Dad, I see your party suit!" He now says it all the time when he is naked or he sees one of us naked. We've never corrected him because it's so dang funny.

I just hope he doesn't grow up to be one of those people on that episode of This American Life who ridiculously believe something that just isn't true. You know, like the girl who went to college not knowing whether unicorns are endangered or extinct.

My Boys

2009-06-21T21:25:00.000-07:00

Father's day was fun this year because Wyatt really understood that he was doing everything for Daddy. He woke me up early with a loud whisper in my ear, "Mommy...special breakfast!!" We made cinnamon rolls and fruit salad and brought it to Paul in bed. Wyatt made his a special acrylic painting with DAD letters on the top. I gave him a John Updike short story collection.

At church, Wyatt sang with the primary kids, I'm so Glad When Daddy Comes Home. He knew every word and blew the cutest double hand kiss. Paul whispered, "I wish we could've videotaped that." It was very precious.

Wy's Wind Chime

2009-05-27T17:59:00.000-07:00

One of our preschool moms came in and did this great craft with the students last week. I brought a kit home to do with Wyatt. He was very proud of himself. It has been very breezy the past few days and I can often hear the wind chime outside working away.

Start saving those metal lids!

On the Farm

2009-05-22T14:46:00.000-07:00

Wyatt and I went on a school field trip to Farrel-McWhirter Farm in Redmond today. In usual Wyatt fashion, he was terrified of the animals. (I promise this is not a conditioned response. While I would not prefer to have animals in my house, I thoroughly enjoy them and think they are cool to pet and feed.) Anyway, he said, "Mom I like to look at the animals, but I do not like them to touch or lick me." I suppose the farm gene skipped a generation...Sorry, Grandpa Plank!

The piglets were soooo cute, but didn't want to be held.

The sheep got a little too close for comfort. Actually, it did knock one of his classmates over, so Wyatt was extra cautious!

Miss Debbie worked her magic and helped Wyatt feed the cow.

There's no mistaking THAT animal sound!

Mom's Day 2009

2009-05-10T23:06:00.000-07:00

I love my boys. They made my day very special. I slept in and stayed out of the kitchen. Wyatt kept coming in and asking me if I wanted to see the surprise...whipsper, "You know, the flowers..." Then he would disappear and come back and ask me if I wanted syrup, etc. Very cute. I got the works...French toast, eggs, bacon, and fresh fruit salad. I didn't have to lift a finger except to carry the food to my mouth...

Then there were presents and cards and flowers...Nice job, Paul! I felt very special today and I don't think a washed a single dish.

Now, to plan Paul's birthday tomorrow...

Here's a pic of the Plank cousins from our Saturday at Tumwater Historical Park. Great weather, great fun!

Learning to Pump

2009-05-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

Wyatt has been dying to learn how to swing. He loves to swing and doesn't like to wait for Mommy to stop talking and give him a push. Here is a video of his first time really pumping on his own a few days ago at Anderson Park in Redmond. Go, Wyatt!

My Little Brainiac

2009-05-10T22:59:00.000-07:00

Blogs are for bragging, right? Wyatt is reading! He just moved on to the second set of Bob books and tries to read every sign and message in sight. Too bad English has such wacky rules, or he could read just about anything phonetically. He's also obsessed with adding. All day long he wants to add and count to 200. That's one way to pass the time in the car. We're working on handwriting, which he is less interested in, but doing well. He writes his name and most of the capital letters in his own way. Just look at that pencil grip. He makes two teachers proud! Oxford here we come...

Super Wy's Party

2009-04-10T22:49:00.000-07:00

Wyatt wanted a super hero party this year so we decided to invite cousins and friends and let them dress as their favorite hero or heroine. Wyatt enjoyed being the center of attention and playing the games. Most of all, he loved having his friends in the same place. It was only hard when they had to leave. Of course, Super Wy didn't want to be Super Why (his costume from Halloween) but Spiderman instead.

My New Band

2009-03-18T20:20:00.000-07:00

I have a new band, Palikirus Cosmetus, and here is our album cover for Shadow of the Reality our debut CD. Who knew it would be so easy? To create your band's first album cover, follow the steps below. No cheating!!

1. Go to Wikipedia. Click “random”or go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2. Go to Quotations Page and select "random quotations" or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3 The last four or five words of the very last quote on the page is the title of your first album.

3. Go to Flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4. Use Photoshop or similar to put it all together and post it.

Wyatt Turns Four!

2009-03-11T16:48:00.000-07:00

Wow. What happened to February? On that note, what happened to the last four years? We can't believe our baby is growing up so fast. He had a wonderful birthday and party with lots of superhero friends--more on that later.

Wyatt is a delightful four-year-old boy. He loves to play board games. Favorites right now are Yahtzee Jr., Memory, Dominoes, Sequence Jr., and others. Wyatt is learning how to read. He likes a book called Fox in a Box a lot because he can read the CVC words (consonant-short vowel-consonant). He loves the book Sammy the Seal and has it pretty much memorized.

Wyatt loves to go to Jump Planet (an indoor inflatable arena), any and all parks (especially St. Edward's castle park), and his preschool, Debbie's Place. He also loves running with his friends. He plays a game he made up called criss-cross-applesauce where each kid starts on the opposite side of a room and runs toward each other then criss-crosses and touches the other side. He could honestly do this for hours!

Wyatt is expanding his menu just a bit lately. He enjoys chicken (orange chicken from Trader Joe's is a favorite) and nuggets, meatloaf and pork, but he also recently tried and liked trout. I was so floored I almost cried at the dinner table. Alas, he does not like pasta. I try and try, but this kid just doesn't like it. Vegetables are still his issue and he will take one bite of almost everything, but continues to only like carrots and an occasional bit of peas or corn. He loves fruit so we have a variety of fruits every day. Mango is his favorite.

We are having so much fun these days. I will try to update a bit more regularly and give some info about his superhero party soon.

Preschool Fun

2009-01-30T15:54:00.000-08:00

Wyatt came to Happy Day! Pre-K with Mommy today and had lots of fun exploding "volcanoes" and drawing with oil pastels.

Before school this morning we were having fun with the camera. Wyatt took a picture of me and I took one of both of us being silly. It's fun when we are not so rushed in the morning and can spend time laughing together.

Dreams come true...

2009-01-27T20:50:00.001-08:00

This morning Wyatt came in rubbing his eyes and asked if I knew that Wall-E was older than Eve? He went on to tell me about an elaborate dream involving Wall-E and some other characters from recent books and shows. He wanted to know if Wall-E 2 would be coming out soon and I told him he might have to make it himself.

Enter Wall-E 2...

This is Wyatt's own version of the "older" Wall-E. He may not have a future in design, but it's a pretty darn cute idea.

Jelly Wy

2009-01-26T20:00:00.000-08:00

Today Wyatt and Paul went on a preschool field trip to the Seattle Aqaurium. They learned some cool things and saw plenty of close-up ocean life. Wyatt came home talking about the octopus eating her lunch and the shark (which was actually a not so impressive dwarf variety).

Everett Children's Museum

2009-01-14T19:27:00.000-08:00

I wanted to give a shout out to the best children's museum in the area. Everett (about 30 min north of Seattle) has the greatest children's museum we've been to. It's large and has at least 10 different areas to play, as well as art downstairs and an amazing outdoor play area on the roof during decent weather. We just love it and try to get there every few months. We'd love to have tag-alongs if anyone nearby is interested!

Wyatt in the airplane. He wanted to go to London that day. This is probably as close as he will get for a few more years!

Camera Ready

2008-12-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

Every time I take out the camera lately, Wyatt is ready with some silly face. His favorite is the "thumbs up", but other faces also make an appearance occassionally. He's a silly guy!

Kissin' Cousins, Falter-Style

2008-12-27T19:47:00.000-08:00

The Falter cousins had lots of fun exchanging gifts this year. Each child is assigned one cousin and gets to pick a fun gift just for him or her. I think we all had a good time!

A Very Plank Christmas

2008-12-26T19:00:00.000-08:00

Some of the Plank cousins were camera shy this Christmas.

December Snow

2008-12-20T16:16:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm finally determined to get our family blog going. Here are some pictures from the recent "storm of the century" in Kirkland. We had 4 inches of snow by Thursday morning. School was closed in anticipation of the huge storm on Wednesday morning, which came late, so we had a free snow day. Paul was not pleased, but Wyatt was extrememly joyful about having a snowball fight and building baby snowman. (Mom ran out of steam on that one!) Now we are waiting for round two, which may include "blizzard conditions" according to local news. We've stocked up on canned goods, duct tape and bottled water, just in case, although every store was out of "D" batteries today.

Wyatt and his friend, Anna made snow children.

Wyatt had fun playing on the snowy playground equipment.

Santa Train

2008-12-19T16:39:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday, we rode the Northwest Train Museum's Santa Train from North Bend to Snoqualmie and saw the man himself. Wyatt was particulalry impressed with the red chocolate chip cookies we had. It was fun to ride with our friends, the Stewarts. Wyatt got a wooden toy train from Santa and told him that he wanted "Eve" for Christmas, although I believe that Santa might bring "Wall-e" instead...just a hunch.

Halloween 2008

2008-12-18T22:15:00.000-08:00

I'm going back in time now, but I have to share some things about Halloween. Wyatt and I decided that he should be Super Why! from the popular PBS show and, of course, I had to make the costume. It turned out to be a bit of work, but in the end he loved it and minus a few mishaps, it worked.

I decided to be Cleopatra so I could have an excuse to wear lots of makeup. It's fun to slather it on.

Paul decided about 20 minutes before the party to be Dracula, so he threw on his suit, a cape, and slicked back his hair. It was an unusually warm evening, so we were able to attend our church Halloween party and go trick-or-treating around the neighborhood without coats.