Mt Hood snow play!

Anne and I collaborated to bid on a vacation house at a charity fundraising auction last spring, and had arranged to have it this weekend. The cabin was in Rhododendron, just outside of the Mt. Hood forest, so we drove up Saturday morning, dropped off our stuff, played outside all day, spent the night, and then played outside again today. It was really fun to go find snow - the kids were happy, Jasper was happy, we were happy.

We started off Saturday at White River snow park - we walked a little and then sledded and had a snowball fight. Jasper loved the snow and romped around in it.

 

 

 

I had so much speed going down this really steep hill, and there was a big slope and jump at the bottom - you had to hit the jump, because the alternative was hitting a rock or a tree. But I knew that landing on my bum was going to make my tailbone ache - this was pretty fun as an alternative!

happiness

Liesl had her playdate with Ryder today, and it was really sweet. They held hands on the walk home, "so they wouldn't get lost". Ryder was chatty and friendly and polite - really interested in talking with us about his day and himself and his family - he was confused by Sebastian's big brother lack of interest in him. :)

He asked for lunch; when I laughed and pointed out that he'd had lunch at school, he asked if we could have second lunch. So I suggested various foods (cheese, crackers, raisins, peanuts, apples) and he said yes to all of it. He and Liesl sat down to eat together and when he was full, he said "That was a really nice lunch, thank you for all the food! Is it okay if we go play and leave the rest?". They played air hockey and family, read books together, and wrestled/tickled. They were both sad when it was over and we had to promise to play again sometime soon.

Ryder

Liesl has a crush on a boy in her class, Ryder. And he has a crush on her. It's really, really, really sweet. They sit next to each other and chitter chatter whenever they can. They play together. He gave her some wrist bands and she wears them EVERY DAY. Her dinner conversation is full of "Ryder says" and "me and Ryder were talking about such and such." Grandpa Raab has been teasing her this week about her boyfriend and she gets really happy and really embarrassed. (Sebastian is horrified.) It's just really cute and funny and it makes her so happy. So while volunteering at the FPE food drive on Monday morning, I was delighted to meet Ryder's dad - we exchanged phone numbers, and stories of our children's obsession with the other (thank goodness it's not an unrequited crush!), and we've set up a playdate for Friday. Stay tuned!

the Raabs visit!

Grandma and Grandpa Raab came to visit us this week, and it's been grand. We have totally failed at taking pictures of most days, but the visit has been sweet and fun. Grandma got to watch Liesl's ballet class; Grandpa got to watch Sebastian's futsal game. They made our annual gingerbread houses together, in a mess of icing and candy. Grandpa has been making his way through some household projects that Steve and I have been neglecting for ages.... now I know that next time, I'll have to prepare a punch list in advance of his visit!

Because they were here, Steve and I got to escape to Seattle for a day and night to attend his law firm's holiday party. We took the train north (very civilized), stayed at a swanky hotel downtown, mingled and ate and drank and danced at the party (so fun to dance!), and then slept in the next morning. We had a leisurely brunch at Macrina Bakery, bought some Alaskan king salmon at Pike's Market, and took the train back home. It was the first time we've been away for a night from our children, and it was a delightful little trip.

On Monday night, we went to a Christmas light show at a Victorian house in North Portland - it was pretty and spectacular and sweet - really fun.

Christmas pho

We have an annual tradition of eating pho (Vietnamese beef and noodle soup) on Christmas Eve at the Hoangs. We had to move it up this year because of planned travel and visitors and vacations, but it was still Christmas pho, and it was delicious. Cuong makes the soup from scratch and the broth was delicious. We ate too much, we indulged in an orange wine, we got sleepy from warmth and fullness ... it was grand.

Steve and I contributed dessert (an impossible pie... sort of...*) and almendrados (Spanish macaroons), and this platter of tropical fruit. Kiwis, pineapple, coconut, dragonfruit, mango, persimmons - and they had jackfruit.

*Steve wanted to make a lemon coconut dessert, and found a recipe for an impossible pie. But then he decided to add mango chunks - I dissuaded him from also pineapple chunks - and then bread cubes, in a bid to make it like bread pudding. But then he forgot to add the flour which was to settle and make the crust in the pie.... it was really funny and sweet. We ate it. Well, maybe not the children.

school photos

annual checkups

The kids had their annual checkups this week; all is well with both.

Sebastian is 53 inches tall and weighs 61 lbs.
Liesl is 48 inches tall and weighs 48 lbs.

Christmas tree!

We ventured out on Saturday morning, in the steady rain, to pick out and cut down our Christmas tree. There'd been some debate about whether we would even get a real tree this year, for fear that Jasper would eat the tree/pee on the tree/knock it over/eat the ornaments/chew the wires. But tradition prevailed over common sense, and off we went to Quail Creek Farm, just west of us.

Poor Steve, stuck with the thankless job of lying on wet cold mud and using a dull saw to cut down a tree.

 Unwrapping our beauty!

After a break to let the tree branches dry off, in which we hung up our stockings and put out the rest of our decorations, we hung lights and ornaments.

 

An attempted selfie with Jasper; he just wanted to eat my Santa hat.

We put the tree on top of a stool to get the decorations a little higher up and farther away from Jasper. So far, he's only knocked off one (nonbreakable) bell, and that was from an enthusiastic tail-wag and not intentionally.