Wabbit Hunting

This little rabbit has been teasing my mom in the garden for weeks. On the 20th of March they actually caught it (with help from the garden hose) but it found it's way back into her garden.

My dad repaired the holes that the bunny was using to sneak back but the little guy is getting too smart! We try and corner the bunny and send it down to the open door, but this little guy is fast!

"Maybe they won't notice me if I hide behind this rabbit..."

Yummm... these flowers are so tasty.

Joshua Tree National Park

On Monday we drove an hour to Joshua Tree National Park where we went on a walk around a great little trail. Great-Grandma Koke came along too!

Brooke on the yucca plant reminded me of the cabbage patch kids!

Kent, Brooke, Annie, Carol and John at the halfway point of our walk.

Good thing I was there to save this rock from falling.

This was a perfect little spot for Brooke.

What a neat view! The Joshua Trees are so interesting to see. Every tree is so different from each other. There are also so many interesting rock formations in this park.

There are so many different kinds of cacti. I was really wishing that this one was in bloom. I'm sure it's a magnificent pink flower!

Grandma Carol's Garden

Thank you baby Etta for such a cute dress!

Grandma Carol let us pick some flowers in her garden!

Then she put them between our toes! Boy, does that tickle!

Sweet little toes.

Naked baby in the garden! She's no pansy! :)


Grandma Carol has a beautiful garden. We have enjoyed watching the birds at the feeder, the bubbling fountain, and the little bunny running around eating her plants. See a future post for that story...

If you click on this photo you can see an zoomed in shot of that bee. It's just bathing in that pollen! How cool!

Hiking in the Desert

Today we took a good little hike in the desert. We followed the McCallum Trail to a palm tree oasis. It's so cool to see a little lake and streams in the middle of a desert! Little fish were swimming all over and we saw about ten lizards.

Everyone got a chance to carry Brooke along the trail!

Sunny California

It was a long day getting down to southern California. We woke up at 3:45am and arrived at 5:00am at the Wenatchee Airport. Once we arrived in Seattle there was another four hour wait. Brooke is such a different traveler then she was in December and January! She is not able to get a nap when she is in such a different place. She wants to watch what's going on! I was hoping she would sleep on the plane down to California, but it didn't happen until the last fifteen minutes! At least the plane was full of young families and children heading to Disneyland.

Grandma Carol and Grandpa John were so excited to see Brooke again!

We plugged "In and Out" into the GPS and it sent us in the wrong direction. Along the way we saw a lot of interesting things! Above: A young guy collects cans and bottles for recycling money.

This gentleman had sparkly Obama t-shirts and jeans that he placed on the fence and in the tree.

"Emergency Hookers" towing company. I won't repeat their slogan.

Driving into Palm Springs we passed all the windmills turning in the wind. They are so cool!

Today we enjoyed a dip in Great-Grandma's pool! Brooke had a good time kicking, licking and slapping the water. She's fast asleep after all this activity!

March Update!

When we take a drive in the car, Cassy does a great job of entertaining Brooke! I can sneak a peek of her during the ride through the handy mirror we set up. She's often playing with her toys or laughing at Cassy.

Last week we took Brooke out on a slightly more successful skiing adventure on Blewett Pass. Cassy had a great time in the snow!

Kent and Brooke watch Cassy playing in the snow.

The weather is really starting to warm up so we took out the umbrella stroller and Brooke got her first ride sitting forward. She loves watching the world go by! We walked down to Rusty's and had one of their famous hamburgers... yummmmm... Kent ordered a peanut butter milkshake which turned out to be a bad choice because we were really cold walking back!

Brooke and Maisy having fun on the floor of the living room!

Brooke really has an amazing tongue. I don't know how she curls it under like she does!

On Thursday I was the guest conductor for the Okanogan Jr. High Band Festival. 160 seventh and eighth graders arrived in the morning in Pateros.

We had a lot of rehearsal time during the day where we worked in balance, blending and especially playing in a very loud gym. The poor (30 or so) percussionists had to learn how to play so softly! The students were so well behaved and very prepared so we could concentrate on making music.

The concert was a success! Every piece sounded great and we got a lot of positive feedback from parents in the audience. I was so tired by the end of the day! Not teaching for almost a year made this day a real challenge for me to stay upbeat and energetic for nine hours straight.

Playground Fun!

Today was a wonderful day. During Brooke's morning nap I found my gardening gloves and put on a warm hat so I could comfortably work in my garden for the first time this spring. I got busy trimming the lavender, butterfly bushes, and fescue. There were so many little discoveries like variegated tulip leaves sprouting through the dried lavender of last year.

The local trolley passed by and rang it's little bell (which always makes me believe I'm in Mr. Roger's Neighborhood of Make-Believe), a woman passed by pulling her cute blond haired boy in a red wagon, the train blew it's whistle as it roared past, skateboarders zoomed by on the bumpy sidewalk making the neighbor dogs bark. Gardening really relaxes me and allows me to appreciate the little things in life.

We ventured out to visit the playgrounds near our house. We are so lucky that we live near three playgrounds, tennis courts and a swimming pool! I'm sure Brooke will take full advantage of our location in a few years! Above is the new playground built for the Vale Elementary School. I just love it! Great slides with twists and turns, a climbing wall, drums to hit, and much more. It will be so fun to chase Brooke around this one!

Brooke's favorite part about the playground was swinging around in circles. The slides and other parts were way more fun for me than her. I've been WAITING to have an excuse to go on them and I'm going to take advantage of it. My love of playgrounds must have stemmed from the many hours at the Coast Guard playground in Petersburg. I remember many days where Caitlin and I would play "hot lava" and "you're it!" until the sun went down.

Creeper Crawler

I never thought it would happen. The little girl who loves to roll back and forth and walk has began the process of crawling. It's not there yet, but it looks like it may only take a few weeks or so! That reminds me to start baby-proofing the house. When Brooke really wants something, she works for it. Along with the movement, we get to hear the screams of frustration. As if to tell her Mommy, "Just give it to me!". This girl means business!

"Watch out Mom and Dad, I'm learning how to MOVE IT!"

Step One: Have a goal and start pushing those legs!

Step Two: With the goal in mind, get your "bumpa" high in the air!


Step Three: Roll forward and REACH!

Step four: Enjoy your reward!