New Year’s Day, 2013 launched ski season here in the crooked little shack. It’s not just any ski season. For our family of four, this is the family ski base year. The scene: Stevens Pass. Allow me to introduce the players. Read More
ByGD
Stevens Passages: Full Family Snowboarding
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A New View of The Nutcracker
Well it was indeed a weekend to remember. Kicked off with a well-matched lineup of three awesome bands on Friday night, parts of my family braved the crowds at Steven’s Pass for four feet of fresh pow while those of us who prefer not to sink to our necks in the soft stuff stayed in town for Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Nutcracker. For my four-year old, it was the first time participating in the Christmas tradition.
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A Sign of Things to Come: Christmas Music
When my mother was growing up, she never had the kind of Christmas Hallmark sells, and she was determined that my brother and I would have a different experience. She was largely successful, but even so, not all of the traditions imparted were intentional. Some of her holiday ambivalence transmitted to me.
Case in point – our distaste for Christmas music. My mom and I both hate the commercial frenzy of the holidays anyway, but the Christmas muzak assault is the final straw that sends us both running to mail order. With extremely few exceptions, it is just BAD MUSIC that we are all force-fed for a month every year, and to add insult to injury, we are expected to feel nostalgic about it.
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We Got a Family Here
Pollyblog: 1. When you don’t want to say too much, but 140 characters just won’t cover it. 2. Good ideas that haven’t got their legs yet.
Family, Defined
Because our family is partly built through adoption, we spend a little more time defining what ‘family’ means.
I mentioned that I returned from Iceland Airwaves to a lice breakout at my daughter’s school. Ever since, I have spent up to two hours each night checking every head in the house for recurrences. Like the monsters in horror movies, every time I think it’s over, they rise from the dead to attack again.
This has resulted in some very cranky exchanges, as my daughters begin to take every tugged tangle personally, and I fight the urge to scream in frustration. Tonight the girls’ dad tried to break the negativity by letting each girl pick the music we listened to while they got their heads checked.
My oldest immediately shouted, “Lady Gaga!” A second later, she said, “No, wait. Journey, because that’s less annoying for mommy.”
The result; me and my daughter belting out “Don’t Stop Believing” as I searched her head for lice.
And I thought of the words of H.I. McDunna, “What! We got a family here!”
ByGD
Desiree’s Dolls
The average lifespan of a Favorite New Toy at my house is about an hour and a half. But this summer at the Ballard Farmer’s Market, my girls met Desiree Stone and Desiree’s Dolls, her traditional, handcrafted rag dolls. They begged for the dolls for weeks before they finally got to pick their favorites to take home. That was four months ago, and Sara and Cindy are still on the tea party A-list. Santa is planning to bring them new outfits for Christmas. Read More