We've had sunshine!

Two very nice days of sunshine, and we made the most of it.  It's not a sunshine that you can get warm very quickly in - it's still a little chilly - but it does a lot to lift the spirits and get everyone in a festive mood.

Monday we went to Community Park, which is a half-mile walk - or ride since Graysen rode her bike.  Katherine was bundled into her bear suit and was asleep after 2 blocks.  Graysen does really well on her bike and stops at all cross-walks to hold your hand across the street.

The first thing we did was swing.  Mike pushed Graysen in the big-girl swing, and Katherine enjoyed the baby swing.  She did look like a baby bear sitting there with her arms and legs sticking straight out and her hood with the ears.

It was pretty exciting to see Emily's friend Paige arrive with her mom and baby brother.   They played nicely, running up the hill and through the trees and playing on the slides and in the playhouse.


Emily had a break from work and came by and spent a little while with us.  Walking back was not quite as much fun as walking there, but it was not bad.

The girls and I sat on the deck in the sunshine after we got back and looked at clouds and ate lunch.

Today was better than yesterday, warmer but windy.  We just went across the street to the park there.

 Lots of moms and dads and children running around.  Graysen played all over the equipment, and Katherine just took it all in, sitting in her stroller and watching and listening to the kids.

While Graysen had her "yogret" break, Katherine checked out the grass.  I don't think she was too pleased with the feel of it because she got grumpy pretty soon.

She downed a bottle and fell asleep, so Mike took her home and put her to bed while Graysen and I stayed and played some more and then rode up and down the sidewalk.  Once again, we had lunch on the deck and a pink Play-Doh session.

Before we left for our errands, Graysen put on her tiara and tutu and entertained us with some ballet.

Mike has been trying to get a haircut for more than a week.  The two barber shops he knows about, one in Snoqualmie and one in North Bend, seem to open and close at the owner's whims.  He tried the Snoqualmie one Friday and Saturday and then went yesterday and today and struck out every time.

We did get our driver's licenses though with no wait.  We walked in and got waited on immediately by two cheerful ladies who made it fun for us - except for the writing of the check:  $89 apiece for the privilege of driving in Washington.

It's hard to drive around much without wanting to take pictures.  Here are just a few on the drive from Snoqualmie Ridege to Snoqualmie itself to North Bend.

Entering the town of Snoqualmie.

Mike stopped on the way home from North Bend and took this photo of Mount Si.

I've worked hard on the sewing room as well as the desk area in the bedroom.  I feel like the more I unpack and try to organize, the more "things" get brought out to add to the clutter.  I did finish folding the fabric and put it into the cubes but not in any particular order - just stuffed in.  The drawers are full of fat quarters, and the plastic drawers on top will hold small pieces.

Besides the fabric, all the rest is just piled any old way.  I have a sewing table and cabinet picked out from Ikea if we can get over there to look at it and possibly buy it.   Something similar to this:

It will come slowly.  We're really liking the apartment even with all the clutter.  Looks like the clouds and possible rain will be back for the next few days, but that just makes coming home to a fire and cup of coffee even better.