weekend review

last saturday was amazing- in kent the temperature got to 76! awwwwww- hopefully it was enough to hold me over until the next sunny day. we had a great day. we started out at the pacific science center. they had free pony rides, and we couldn't resist. on the way there lucy told us she wanted to ride on the purple unicorn one... when we got there, fortunatly, she was just as pleased with the gray and white one. jett watched with awe from the sidelines.

we also got to see a butterfly release in the butterfly house- cousin abby and lucy were both enraptured. i've never seen so many butterfly's there before.

lucy discovered her inner photographer and took some great pictures. i had to watch out though because she liked to get a little too close to the butterfly's. some of the science center workers where watching her a bit nervously...

papa posing for lucy.

there was also a kinkajou to amaze at, a baby alligator blinking its double eyelid, hairy armadillos to laugh at, goats to feed, llamas to hug, and alpacas to pet (they are amazingly soft!). we loved it all.

we then strolled around the seattle center- the girls took a run through the fountain... luckily i had packed a spare set of clothes for little lucy jane. she fearlessly would stand right in a shower of water.

not ready to end our day just yet, we then let the kids take a nap in the car while john and i ate dick's hamburgers and did some more people watching. dick's was hopping and always brings out an interesting crowd. when the kids woke we drove over to gasworks park and tried some kite flying... the wind wasn't out though, but the crowds sure were.

famous at last!

our local newspaper, the kent reporter, recently featured a picture of some very lovely people. a reporter approached us in the library last week, flattered me greatly with complements on the cuteness of my kids, and then asked if she could take a picture of us for the newspaper. how could i refuse? i just wish she had mentioned how messy my hair was before snapping the pics.

(wednesday, april 9th edition, pg. 19- for the locals)

secret notes and "sope-sirs"

last night lucy brought this artwork to john and said it was a "sope-sir". i said "soap" something? she said no, and that's about as close as we could get to figuring out what she was saying. this morning it dawned on me: sculpture! when she woke i asked her if it was a sculpture and she very excitedly confirmed my guess. i am very proud of her for her abstract artwork. she was getting frustrated with me trying to guess "what" her artwork was, it's just artwork. i should have known. i'm choosing to take the credit for her artistic endeavors. though i have a sneaky suspicion that even though we've talked about sculptures a bit, it may have been a focus on sesame street yesterday...

the secret letters she's been "writing" to us are definatly cartoon spawn however. 'super why' is one of her favorite pbs cartoons; where the superheros have amazing abilities such as spelling power, rhyming power, and the power to read. a couple weeks ago on the show there was a kid writing secret notes, and lucy jumped on this idea with all her 3 year old gusto. she now is constantly hiding secret notes for us all over the house. she then hides and waits for us to find them and her. (i hate to say that sometimes i draw out this "finding" period to get a couple of things done... and since her hiding places are getting more and more tricky, she expects it). we write notes to her too. here's a sample of one of the many notes she has created.

yeah sure- i was at the eye doctor

yikes! i guess this is freaky/gross pictures of our family week- i went to the eye doctor yesterday and the nurse kind of messed up administering dilation drops... at least i could drive home by closing one eye- check out john's happenin' shades!

sad state of affairs at the humphrey house

perhaps the late winter weather bombarding us lately, literally, can account for the colds that have taken over our family.

hail! seriously!?!

but though i can excuse the mess of a house i have, neither the colds or the weather can excuse me for turning around this morning and finding my adorable son looking like this! i had to take a picture because i don't think i've ever seen this much snot running from a nose.

happy 100 grandmother!

my grandmother, katherine taylor lewis, turned 100 on march 19th- i couldn't be there to help celebrate, but sandy, my sister, was and i stole this picture from her blog. i second everything that sandy says about my wonderful grandmother, even down to the particular flavor of those delicious scrambled eggs. i have a file of letters that my grandmother has written to me through the years. these letters are filled with love, encouragement, approval, all the things that helped me, and still help me to be a better person. here is a quote from a letter she sent me in college. (i share this not to show what a great person i am, but to share how much her love and support have meant to me):

"...you are a remarkable granddaughter- i know wonderful, happy things are going to happen to you. college years are wonderful and also difficult. you want to do so much and yet are limited in time and energy. hope you have exciting, happy moments along with all the hours of study. if you have any doubts- try to think of what your mom would do and you will have it made. i know she admires you as much as i admire her... love you- grandmother"

she really thought highly of me to assume that i had trouble finding time to have fun because of my dedication to study. i miss the person she was already, but still look forward to the time i get to spend with her when i visit my parents. if i am in any way remarkable it is because of the example, support, and love that i have gotten from her, my mother, and my father.

easter parade

this is supposed to be a short post to make up for the last few really long ones, but i couldn't decide on just one or two pictures to show...

easter morning lucy woke up to a surprise from the easter bunny consisting of a few pieces of candy, a little princess doll, some lip gloss, and a sheep shaped pez dispenser. it was all very exciting for her, and then we rushed off to church. only when we opened the door there was a surprise for all of us! the easter bunny had left eggs filled with candy all over our front yard. we quickly gathered them in the sprinkling rain, threw a few pieces in our diaper bag, and rushed off to church.

(lucy picked out her shoes herself- not that i'm complaining...)

the easter bunny truly spoiled us, because after church when we got to grandmother and papa's he had left eggs for us to find there too! lucy and cousin abby were very pleased to find some of the eggs here filled with nickels and dimes for their piggy banks. mom was pleased that the chocolate was dark, jett was pleased with himself for taking steps on his own, and daddy johnny just wanted good food and a nap.

john has since finished off most of the candy. lucy is only allowed one or two pieces a day- she gets a little nuts on sugar. except yesterday when i was too sick to get off of the sofa, i let her eat whatever she wanted as long as she let me lay there and rest. she polished off a bag of whopper eggs, a pack of pez candy, at least two otterpops... no wonder she didn't go to sleep until almost ten!