On a Roll!

It is now nearly eleven p.m. and I am still awake. I will no doubt be suffering the consequences of this tomorrow. But at least I've got two pages to show for my late night. Plus, crafting and sewing are my preferred methods of relaxation - and trust me, a relaxation session was entirely necessary tonight. I've got a bite mark on my arm to prove it.

Page 1: Coming home from the hospital w/ Kendry. We had purchased his take home outfit in a newborn size a few weeks prior, but his 10lb arrival made it clear he wouldn't be sporting any newborn clothes. So while we were still at the hospital my mother-in-law went and exchanged the outfit for the next size bigger. Page 2: Kendry's first bath. Despite his face in the lower picture he has loved his baths from Day 1.

Next few pages on my to-do list: 1st haircut, 6mth mark, AK trip, and Christmas 2009.

And to clarify my earlier comment, the bite came from my kiddo, and it wasn't really intentional. He was using me to pull himself up to his feet and, in the process, my arm got in the way of his mouth. Apparently biting is part of his concentration process for standing up. Boy, did it hurt. And things just kinda went downhill from there. By the time I got Kendry to bed I was feeling pretty emotionally drained, not to mention bruised. But, God gives us strength for a new day, and tomorrow I start a fresh day of parenting. On that note, I suppose I had better get to bed.

Ten on Tuesday

1. We got our Girl Scout cookies this weekend. Tagalongs, Samoas and Thin Mints, oh my! I let Kendry have his very first Thin Mint on Saturday but he barely ate any of it. Are we sure this kiddo belongs to me?

2. Our multi-talented son is starting to develop his dancing skills. Lets hope he doesn't plan on learning any moves from his parents. As you can see in the video, mine are a bit spastic and are sure to embarrass him for years to come. But for the time being he thinks they are cool enough to mimic.

3. We're planning to make Paula Deen's Baked French Toast Casserole w/ Maple Syrup for Easter brunch (along with 3-4 other accompanying menu items). Dee-lish!

4. It seems I am in trouble with my husband for purchasing a pastel argyle sweater vest for Kendry to wear on Easter Sunday. Its the argyle part he dislikes. Isn't it a rule that argyle can't be dorky until you are at least out of the toddler years? Naturally, I will be posting photos of this controversial outfit for you to weigh in.

5. Voila! Another scrapbook page completed:

6. It was beautiful here again this weekend. Kendry enjoys keeping us company outside as we start spring projects in the yard. He may only be crawling still, but he is certainly the little explorer.
7. I'm putting Kendry's Easter basket together tonight. I didn't buy him any candy - he is, after all, only 10 months old and, let's face it, all of it would be eaten by Mommy and Daddy anyway. Like we need that. But I did find him a few cute Easter goodies.

8. I was pretty bummed when our local Christian book and gift store closed in December, but I just found out that a new, revamped store supplying books, gifts and, wait for it... COFFEE (hooray!) has opened in a new location. I might need to check that out this weekend.

9. Veggie Tales Toddler Songs is such a fun CD. Kendry and I rock out to "This is the Day" and "If You're Happy and You Know It" in the car each morning, although I have yet to get him to clap along with me.

10. Kendry seems to pick up some new talent every time we spend a weekend with Justin's family. In February, after a few days with Miss Ava, it was finally figuring out how to crawl on all fours. Then, when I left Justin and Kendry in Quincy for the Big Climb, I returned to find my son doing this repeatedly:

Cute, but I would rather he had learned how to do his own laundry.

Outdoor Baby

When we got home today it was still 60+ outside, so we headed out to make the most of the remaining daylight. There is so much for a kiddo to discover outside, even just in our own back yard.

Like Daddy's planters.

Mmmmm, this clump of dirt looks yummy.

I suppose I could have stopped him from eating dirt, but where is the fun in that?

Amidst all the distractions he still manages to give me a few smiles.
Look at that toothy grin!

Then some goofy antics.

"Look, Ma! I can do a pushup!"

Finally, a serious pose for Mommy and her camera.

Take Me to the Emerald City

In preparation for our travels to Quincy and Seattle last weekend I was totally in my organization element. I started packing us up mid-week, and even had a list to check off items as I packed. It was fantastic! And I didn't forget a thing. I got the okay to leave work at 4pm on Friday, and by 5pm we had the car (and kiddo) packed and were pulling out of the driveway. I took this ease with which the weekend was starting as a good omen for all that lay ahead.

I should have known better. Perhaps I should have yielded more to my maternal instinct when, an hour into our drive, I kept catching a whiff of something that smelled a bit sour. Mind you, our kiddo was a major spitter-upper for the first 6 months of his life so this was not an unusual smell to us. And we have found that when Kendry is teething he regresses to spitting up again. His daycare provider had sent him home in a bib that day, which I took as a sign that he was spitting up a bit. I figured the sour whiff was simply from his bib. I figured wrong. You see, Kendry was also wearing his second outfit of the day due to a blowout at daycare. Maybe I should have considered that fact as well. But nooooooo - it took me another hour to discover Kendry's second blowout of the day. Terrific. No wonder he wasn't falling asleep like he usually does in the car. I wouldn't be able to sleep sitting in that either. Ahhh...the many facets of the teething stage are so wonderful, aren't they?

Without another town for twenty miles I had Justin pull over to the side of the road. Poor Kendry was not a happy camper. Neither were we. (BTW, see Red Bag sharing in this adventure?)

And no sooner do I get him in his new, clean outfit than he spits up all over it. Just peachy.

"I don't know what all this fuss is about Mom. Now could you please put some clothes back on me cuz its getting cold out here?"

We finally made it to Quincy where Kendry enjoyed an evening playing with his cousins, Paxton and Ava, and got to stay up way past his bedtime.

Fast forward to Saturday morning. I was on the road to Seattle by 9:30am, all by myself. I made it to Amanda's house by noon. We chatted for a bit - let's face it, she and I could probably talk for days and still not be done - and then we headed to Alki Beach for some rollerblading. It was gorgeous!

It doesn't get much better than a beautiful, fun day in Seattle with a girlfriend.

Bust out the cameras cuz its photo shoot time!

See the Space Needle poking up atop my head?

Seattle helps me find my zen. Now if only I knew what zen really is...

Hold that pose, chica. You look fabulous against the Seattle skyline.

Now on to the next stop(s): Target and pedicures

Look at those pretty little piggies!

Time to get glammed up for our dinner at Black Bottle.

Finally, Sunday arrived and it was time for the main event of the weekend: Seattle's Big Climb 2010, tackling 69 flights of stairs in the Columbia Center. WHEW! Talk about exhausting. We don't have photos of this because who wants to carry a camera with them up 69 flights, right? But we took a picture of our climbing team, Step It Up, as we dined on a delicious breakfast at Fado afterwards.

The unidentified male sitting with us is Amanda's boyfriend, Chris, who I finally got to meet this weekend.

After the climb and stuffing myself to capacity with an Irish brunch, all I wanted to do was take a nap. Alas, I still had a 6 hour drive home. I picked up my boys in Quincy and we arrived home safely around 6pm. Much to our surprise, our basement door was standing wide upon when we pulled in our drive. Guess we forgot something after all: closing and locking the basement. Thankfully, everything was just as we left it.

Red Bag Does Seattle

Red Bag destination #3: Seattle

Date: March 20-21, 2010

Occasion: Hanging out with Amanda and tackling the Big Climb once again.

From here on out I will be referring to Red Bag as "she". I figure such a glamorous and reliable traveling companion deserves at least that much recognition.

Here we are at Amanda's house at 7:30am on Sunday morning, all decked out to climb 69 flights of stairs. Not that Red Bag actually did the stairs with me. I had a hard enough time lugging my own LB's up those stairs; there was no way I was tacking on her 10 too. Although she probably could have helped me body slam a few stair hogs out of my way. Me, competitive? Never!If I'm really honest here, 10lbs might be a bit optimistic. I'm not sure I have ever successfully packed an overnight bag under 10lbs. But my determination to use Red Bag has definitely got me packing a little lighter so everything fits. Or I just squeeze a few items into Justin's bag when he isn't looking.

Seattle was gorgeous and wonderful! More on that later...

TOW

1. Here is my little snaggletooth. Tooth #4 is just about to break through.

2. I am so excited to visit Amanda in Seattle this coming weekend! I hope Seattle has decent weather cuz I am dying to do some rollerblading on Alki Beach.

3. Justin has worked incredibly hard the last few days getting his rose garden started. This is a picture of his progress as of Monday night. On Tuesday night he planted the last few bushes. They are going to look beautiful! If his extended hours outside over the last few days are any indication of how much work these things are going to require, we could be in for an interesting summer. But I'm sure Kendry will love keeping daddy company while he works, so long as we can keep Kendry out of the thorns.

4. It was 70 degrees here yesterday - perfectly gorgeous! We may have roses before too long.

5. These days Kendry climbs or pulls himself up on whatever he can. This day it was our patio door, where he enjoyed licking the nice clean window. As OCD as I am, I have come to terms with the fact that this window will consistently wear fingerprints and mouth marks for years to come.

Kendry has yet to master letting go and falling safely back onto the cushion that is his rear end. I think it still scares him a bit.

So after awhile he lets us know when he is ready for help getting back down to level ground.

"Umm, Mommy? I think I'm stuck up here."

6. I'm going to be an auntie again! Hooray! I'll let you figure out which of my many siblings or siblings-in-law is the lucky prego.

7. HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!! Did you remember to wear your green?

8. This weekend's road trip could prove to be quite the challenge. We have not taken Kendry on the road since our Christmas in Quincy three months ago, and that trip home was a bit trying. Since then Kendry has become more willful and opinionated about being confined to his car seat. Our driving schedule should accommodate Kendry in that it will be nearly his bedtime when we leave on Friday, and naptime when we return on Sunday. Just in case though, I am putting together "Kendry's road trip bag" to help keep us sane in the event of a meltdown. Expect the best but prepare for the worst, right?

9. I am sick of March Madness already. Is it really necessary for each individual ESPN sportscaster on every single ESPN program (on every ESPN channel) to analyze every possible bracket scenario? I think not. The horse is dead, people!

10. My new mantra this week is "simplify". But I'm pretty sure I picked the wrong week to start. :)

Breaking in the Kelty

One of the activities Justin and I enjoy doing together is hiking. Shortly after moving to the LC Valley in the summer of 2006, we embarked on our first backpacking trip: the Milton Creek Trail. I see no need to revisit the painful details of this hike, and by painful I mean the loss of at least 5 of my toenails; instead, I will simply point out that the photos below were taken in the first 2-3 miles of the trip, before the trail dropped all the way down into the farthest reaches of the valley. Notice how we are still all smiles at this point?

Smiles were a little hard to come by the next day when we had to climb all the way back up the mountain in 80+ degree heat. But, we made it out alive, no thanks to the millions of tiny little bugs that ate at us the whole drive home too... oh, right, I said I wouldn't revisit these details. Sorry. Seriously though, in spite of getting in a little over our heads on this hike, we came out of it with a new hobby we both enjoyed, and battling through the adventure together made me feel like we were even stronger of a team.

The following summer we tackled our second trek: Oregon Butte. This time I had the proper hiking boots (oh how I love my Merrells) and we were just all-around more prepared. We even enjoyed some bacon for breakfast. Thats what I call camping!

Unfortunately, we haven't backpacked since. The summer of 2008 quickly gave way to our IVF journey, and in the summer of 2009 Kendry was just a newborn.

With the warm weather arriving, Justin and I are both getting excited to do some camping and hiking. Naturally, we intend to take Kendry with us, which is why we recently purchased a Kelty carrier for him. Yesterday I took him for his first ride.

Hear me out before you laugh at the thought of me trekking around my neighborhood like a lost hiker with a 23lb kid on my back. I am, after all, still training for my Big Climb this weekend and figured walking some hills with the extra weight on my back would be a great workout. Sure enough, it was.

I did feel a little like a pack horse, with the shifting sounds emitted by the Kelty reminding me of a saddle squeaking lightly with each step of the horse. And Kendry grabbing my pony tail like reins didn't help. I suppose its unfair to expect a 10 mth old not to grab the pony tail bouncing up and down mere inches in front of his face.

It hit 70 degrees here today, so Kendry's first real hike isn't too far off. Possible hiking sites: Clearwater National Forest or Palouse Falls.

Big Climb

Its not too late to sponsor me or our team (Step it Up) for the Big Climb in Seattle on March 21st. We'll be climbing 69 flights of stairs to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. So dig out your pocketbooks and donate! I have attached the Big Climb website link to the right for your convenience ---->

Or you can go directly to our team's website:

http://www.llswa.org/site/TR/Events/BigClimb?team_id=26350&pg=team&fr_id=1110

Amanda and I did this climb two years ago. See the tallest building I am pointing to? That is where we'll be climbing - inside the building, of course.We don't look too worse for the wear here, do we? Only 9 more days until its climbing time...

The Adventures of the Red Bag

Not needing to pack much for our overnight trip to Montana this last weekend, I happily dug out my adorable, bright red, faux snakeskin Bath & Body Works duffle bag. Is this bag totally cute or what?Allow me to give you a little background on this bag. The week before our wedding in 2005, I was shopping with my mother, grandmother and sisters in the Wenatchee mall when we wandered into Bath & Body Works and saw these wonderful red duffle bags. My grandmother, wanting to mark the occasion with a gift to us girls, bought each of us one of these bags. So you see why this bag is so precious to me.

As I am prone to overpacking for every little excursion I travel on, I don't often get to use my red duffle because it simply isn't large enough. But every time the occasion (and my belongings) fits, I am practically giddy as I retrieve the bag from the closet and admire it lovingly. Every time I see the bag I think of my grandmother, my mother and my sisters, and I feel loved. To me, this bag epitomizes the Binder women.

The men who have been so fortunate to marry the Binder women, however, all seem to hate the red bags. My wonderful husband, who will occasionally hold my purse for me when needed, refuses to carry this bag. A few years ago, I had the splendid opportunity to dig out the bag for a short overnight trip Justin and I were taking. Trying to be economical, I attempted to pack both of our belongings into the bag. Justin walked into the room as I was doing this, stopped dead in his tracks and said "You're taking that thing?" When I told him I was indeed, he promptly walked to the closet and pulled out his own bag. Nevermind that we both could have easily traveled with just the one bag. No, sir.

When I shared Justin's adverse reaction to the bag with my sisters I found it humerous to discover that they had each had similar reactions from their spouses. But my husband's aversion to the bag has left me undeterred. Truth be told, I think it has emboldened me to find more occasions to use it. When it came time to pack my hospital bag when Kendry was born, which piece of luggage do you think I selected? You got it! In Justin's defense, that was one time he willingly carried the bag for me. He doesn't hate it enough to make his contracting, overdue wife lug it in from the car.

As I packed for our mother/daughter trip this last weekend I had a fun idea to start documenting the travels of my precious red bag. As of today, the bag is nearly four and a half years old and has been on many little trips with me, but very few that I can specifically document for you. Therefore, we will start with what I can recall.

1. Trip destination: Gritman Medical Center, Moscow, Idaho

Purpose of trip: the birth of our precious first born, Kendry Dru

Date: May 2009

2. Trip destination: Kalispell, Montana

Purpose of trip: mother/daughter trek to pick up my parents' new standard poodle puppy, Ramses

Date: March 6-7, 2010

Stay tuned for more adventures!

Meet Me in Montana

As I type this my mother is on her flight back to Fairbanks. Miss you bunches already, Mom!

Now, cue the Dan Seals and Marie Osmond tune. Montana is B-E-A-utiful! But I'm getting ahead of myself, so let me start at the beginning. Saturday morning arrived with blue sky and incredible sunshine - a perfect day for a drive. We sent Kendry and Justin off to spend the day with Justin's family. Here is my little man ready for a day with Daddy, riding up front in the old Chevy pickup.

Mom and I meant to be on the road by 8am. Actual time of departure: 9am. Not too shabby!And barely 30 minutes later we were already stopping for our first photo op. There is a Gimlin Road near Pullman, WA, which said landmark I am told is a reference to this Gimlin bloodline. Justin and I have driven past this sign many times and have commented on how we should take a picture someday. When I told my mom about the sign she insisted that this be the trip, and it was. Two hours later, mom and I vanished into the black hole that is the Spokane Valley Mall, only to claw our way out three hours later. Oh right, we were supposed be be driving to Montana, not shopping. Whoops! Fortunately, Montana allows you to legally drive 75 on a two lane highway, at dusk, with a winding river on one side and a falling rock hazard on the other, so we made up for a little lost time. Okay, I didn't really drive that fast; I had my mother in the passenger seat, after all. But seriously, who is in charge of these outrageous Montana speed limits?

Our Spokane shopping delay, therefore, made us miss a bit of Montana scenery on Saturday because by the time we neared Kalispell it was pretty dark. We found our hotel fairly easily and hurried off to enjoy the hot tub. Aaahhhh.... and goodnight.

9am Mountain Time: Good morning, Kalispell! (This greeting only after a morning dip in the hot tub, of course.)

From our hotel looking toward Glacier National Park:

Now on to the main purpose of our trip: picking up my parents' new standard poodle puppy. We drove 45 minutes toward Glacier National Park, where we were pleasantly surprised to encounter more and more, and more, snow. What would I do without my wonderful SUV?

Shortly thereafter we were introduced to Ramses:

From there, we headed right back the way we had come, only this time we got to thoroughly appreciate the beauty that is Montana, particularly Flathead Lake.

Can anyone doubt there is a God when observing this breathtaking scenery?

And now, the moment you have been waiting for, my emotional breakdown from being away from Kendry. Okay, not really. While I did feel my heart lurch when I heard a baby's hurt cry in the mall on Saturday, I was able to pretty much relax for the majority of our trip. That being said, when we still had three hours left of driving on Sunday I was getting pretty antsy to get home to my little boy. So, we don't have photos to show for the remainder of the drive. However, here are a few highlights to cap off my road trip summary.

Lessons learned:

1. A Toyota Echo can, in fact, be fitted with a hitch and haul a trailer behind it.

2. In true Alaskan fashion, my mother can ride for five and a half hours with her heated seat on the entire time.

Wildlife spotted:

1. Two beautiful swans basking in the sun on Lake Coeur d'Alene.

2. A handful of deer grazing in a meadow in Lolo National Forest.

3. At least six roadkill skunks, which made for a very fresh-smelling drive.

4. The most adorable standard poodle puppy.
Kendry really enjoyed Ramses too.

Finally, like any good mom, I had to bring home a gift for my kiddo. His very own little sunglasses.

I brought home Krispy Kremes for my other "kiddo".