Month: January 2014

Abby’s Registered for Kindergarten!

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I dont think I was prepared for this. I know we were just walking into the school office to turn in paperwork but I left there feeling super emotional and anxious. I just registered my first born for Kindergarten. Kindergarten!!! 
In less than 8 months, she will officially be in elementary school. She will be learning to read, write, and think like a kid not the preschooler I see in front of me now. Abby is very excited and has asked a million questions about what Kindergarten is like. I love that she has a love and a drive to learn new things and ask questions about everything. While it makes me sad to see her growing so fast, I am excited to see what this little sponge is going to soak in once she starts Kindergarten in the Fall. Lots of changes coming!

Finally Employed!!!

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I worked for the first two years after Abby was born and as I came to the end of my pregnancy with Ellie, Shaun and I decided that it was time to stay at home with the girls. For three year I stayed at home with our little monkeys, caring for them and making sure they always had one of us around. When it came time to look for work again, the road was rough. The three years of being at home with Abby and Ellie helped both myself and them but hurt my resume and made it difficult to get hired. 

When we decided to take the huge leap of faith and move to Seattle, deep down I knew that something special was waiting for us. Good things were coming our way and if we had the strength and the patience, all of the positive things waiting for us would present themselves. 
In September we discovered a place to take the girls and let them play while we had some time to ourselves. It allowed us to unpack, get the house set up more and have a dinner with just the two of us every now and then. By October, Shaun was employed with Amazon and he was led to that job through some of the most unlikely avenues. Then a job ad popped up on one of Shaun’s sites and behold, a job was open at the playcare place that we took the girls to. Normally I wouldn’t have given it much thought but then I learned I could take the girls with me to work, which gave me the best of both worlds. So I put my resume together, applied, interviewed and….
I GOT THE JOB!!!!
While its not a career, I finally broke the streak of unemployment. My time at home with the girls actually helped me instead of hurting me. It was all meant to be and happened for a reason. For the time being, I now have a job that allows me to see the girls while I work and that makes me a very happy girl.

Monorails and Beautiful Glass

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Another beautiful sunny day here in Seattle and when the sun comes out, its time to have some fun outside. So off to downtown Seattle the Wharton family went with the hopes of trying something new. Once downtown we thought it would be great to take the monorail again, since Abby and Ellie loved it so much, and head down to the Space Needle. 
Once there we thought about our options and Abby said she wanted to go to the place with all of the funny glass. The Chihuly Museum is what she meant and that is where we went. ( I rhymed… did you catch that.) What an incredible museum. I was worried that Abby and Ellie would get bored quickly but they loved each an every minute. I think the colorful glass kept their attention.
Riding the monorail with my favorites!
Love that sassy little face.
Space Needle coming in to view.
A picture perfect day down in Seattle Center.
Weird and so cool. Abby and Ellie loved all of the neon colors.
Shelves and shelves of beautiful glass vases and other jars. I want one!

Under the Sea
Fisherman’s Lagoon
Coral Reef
Fisherman’s Lagoon
Fisherman’s Lagoon
Fisherman’s Lagoon
Fire and Ice
Abalone Bowls
Abalone Bowls
Hanging Flowers
Space Needle Flowers
Up close and so beautiful
Performing in the arboretum.
A final bow and kisses to their adoring fans.
ENCORE!
Reflective garden. Every single sphere in the garden reflects the Space Needle from it.
Space Needle reflection
Space Needle reflection
Sunset over the Chihuly and the Pacific Science Center.

The sunny days in Seattle are always special and today didnt disappoint. I love exploring all that this city we live in has to offer and much much more. On to the next adventure!

Ferry Ride… No Car Needed!

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I think its pretty apparent that we love to take ferry rides. If you have ever been on a ferry ride across Puget Sound, you would probably understand why. Then again, so many people become so complacent with where they live that it loses its thrill. It has yet to do so for us and I don’t think it ever will, especially for Abby and Ellie.
So far we have taken ferry rides with our car, that way we could drive to our favorite places once across the sound. But today, we didn’t feel like spending a bunch of time on the other side so we decided to just walk on! Its super cheap and the walk on ride back is free. After parking the car and bundling up it was off for the ferry on a chilly but beautiful and sunny day.
Parked, ready to go and enjoying the sight of Mt. Baker covered in snow in the distance.
Winter sun setting on the Puget Sound
Doing their best fashion walk up the walkway to board the ferry.
Patiently waiting and having a few good laughs with daddy while waiting for the ferry.
Silly Ellie…
Beginning of a beautiful sunset near Edmonds
“Look mommy!”
Sunset and Moon-rise over Edmonds
Very important conversations with daddy.
Sunset over the Olympics
Watching the ferry some in to the dock. Pretty neat to watch.
Bye Bye Cars… Its been fun!

The girls had a great time and enjoyed riding the ferry in a new way. As we waited to disembark we had the chance to watch the ferry pull up and we watched as the cars unloaded too. Its always fun to see things you love to do from a different perspective. Until next time Edmonds ferry!

Just A Little Reminder

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After a tough week and feeling a little down, the rain setting in and not letting up, the clouds finally parted and out popped the most beautiful rainbow at a beautiful time of day. It was just a little reminder things are good, it could be worse and that there is beauty no matter what is going on in life. Its exactly what I needed.

Happy New Year!

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Happy New Year from the Whartons! Wow, I cannot believe its 2014 already. Where has the time gone? Soon Ellie will be 4 and … *gulp*… Abby will be 6. Abby will start Kindergarten in the Fall and I will be an emotional mess. Just kidding. I’m sure I will be fine but dealing with the change can be hard sometimes. So much in store for the new year. 
This year we decided to celebrate the way we did the first time we lived in Seattle, food and then Alki Beach to watch the fireworks over the city. We stopped at one of our favorite burger places, Teddy’s for some yummy treats then afterward we headed on our way to ring in the New Year.
All would have been perfect for us, but unfortunately at around 11pm a heavy fog started to roll in. By the time it hit midnight, all we could see were dull flashes of light across the sound from what we assumed were the fireworks. Oh well, we still had fun and the girls had a blast. Plenty of people were setting off their own smaller displays along the beach and that was the world to the two of them.
Enjoying some Teddy’s. By the look of it, these two might not make it to midnight.
The huge fog bank that rolled in at about 11pm. Hmmm….
Space Needle… What Space Needle? All I can see is fog and the lights along the water.
Waiting so patiently for the fireworks.
Happy New Year!!! The fog was so thick that my camera continued to focus on the spots of moisture in the air and not my kids!
This is what we should have seen from Alki Beach!

We spent the rest of the New Year hanging out at home, watching movies and then taking a drive. We drove to Edmonds to our favorite beach and watched the ferries arrive and depart. It was so relaxing and well deserved. The girls played in the sand, threw rocks into the water and just played. While it was still a somewhat cloudy day, the rain stayed away and gave everyone the chance to get out. Its a great start to the new year!

Ferry Lights
Watching the ferries roll in.