The Keene Family

I turned the big 35 this week! As usual, I turned the whole thing into a larger event than just one day. On Friday, JT and I took a bike ride in the sunshine on the trail while Haley was at school. Then we had a playdate with friends, then went to Goodnight Moon at Seattle Children's Theater. On Saturday, I had my birthday workout with my workout group, then came home and planted my new hydrangea. That afternoon, JT went to a birthday party at a friend's house and Jim was at work, so Haley and I took the opportunity to get our toes done! ...and also get some frozen yogurt before we went home. Right before dinner, too! Sunday morning, the kids made me birthday cards and I got lots of hugs and smooches. It was pretty nice. Jim made breakfast so I could get ready for church in an leisurely fashion. We also took a couple of photos to mark the date. After church, we came home and packed up to go to Port Orchard. We stopped on our way to get...

Our elementary school has the Watch DOG program, in which dads sign up to spend a day at the school. Jim signed up in September at the Watch DOG Orientation night, which was attended by over 200 dads (!). His dad finally came. JT got to choose a book for Jim to read to his class. He picked Gus the Friendly Ghost . I have no idea why. On his way to Watch DOG day! Jim got to help out around the school, go to recess, and hang out with the other Watch DOG dad for the morning. He had fun, and JT was super excited to have him around.

Last week was a whirlwind. I was gone for most of it. We started Monday afternoon with a surprise to Red Robin for lunch, and to see the new Cinderella after. (I accidentally showed up right on time for the RPX showtime. What is that? I'm not sure, but it costs an extra five dollars per ticket . Awesome.) Haley and I are matching, by accident Totally wore them out with my fun plan! Then a babysitter arrived and I went to the airport to head to a week-long conference. I led two days of training at the hotel, then attended for a day, then presented on Friday before flying home. I had four 18-hour days in a row and came home very tired. I grabbed Chinese takeout on my way in town to share with my mom and children, and was greeted on the first day of spring by this lovely card and my favorite flower at home. It is so nice to not have to cook, fold laundry, or pack lunches for a week. But I will say that I really, really, really love being at home with my family...

Here we are again, another year of welcoming in summer with spring skiing. Most people in our area are referring to spring snow skiing, but we are happy to be out on the water! (Although one item on my list to do is snow ski and water ski in the same day.) We found the slalom course at our favorite lake drowning underwater, marked off with milk jugs. We'll have to wait for the water to go down some before using the course. JT was so excited about his new purchase: a Ski Nautique G23 remote control boat. Unfortunately, about 15 seconds into its first run in the water, the propeller fell off and sank. He was such a good sport about it, and didn't let this major disappointment ruin the trip. We are working on ordering a new propeller. The lake calmed down a lot, and Jim got some amazing water!  JT was pretending to be asleep as flagger. I thought he really was asleep, because he forgot to tell me when Jim fell! We had a wonderful first trip out and look for...

This season with Upward basketball was a wonderful experience, and it flew right by. We can't believe it's already over! JT had his last game on Saturday. Aunt Jennifer, Travis, and Russell came, as well as Uncle Jeff, Preston, and Grandpa and Grandma Cole. It was a pretty full cheering section! JT had a game highlight moment when he stole the ball, dribbled down to his hoop, and scored! Then, on Monday, we had the "Awards Banquet." They should rename this event "End of the Season Celebration" because there are no awards and it is not a banquet. The players stood on their chairs and we clapped for each team. There was a video with footage from games and practices (we saw JT at the very end!). There was a magic act that was pretty fun for the kids. There was a speaker. The kids each got an Upward drawstring backpack, and then we left. Uncle Jeff made the drive all the way from the peninsula after work to come watch a kids' magic show. ...