Unpacking

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE: Today we're still unpacking from our five day holiday excursion, and the kids are getting around to checking out some of their fabulous new gear. 

For instance, Annabelle opened up her new case of oil pastels. "So many colors!" she marveled upon first glance inside the box. 

She immediately set about making several pictures, getting used to the new-to-her media. 

After she'd produced four drawings, she crafted a sign that read "Signed Prints 1¢." Pretty cute - and affordable!

CJ, Christian and I each purchased one. She must have anticipated this, as the back of her sign read ...

The kids got a little exercise by playing a new Xbox game, "Dance Central 2." It has a number of songs they really love on it, so they enjoyed shaking their groove things.

They also test drove a new-to-them XBox peripheral, uDraw. 

Annabelle said it's a bit hard to use straight out of the box "but once you figure it out it's OK." 

Both she and CJ scoffed that this picture appeared in the "Science Fiction" category. 

"Doesn't that look just like the Eagle on the Moon?" CJ questioned. 

Image credit: NASA

Why yes it does, CJ. ... Above is a photo of it during its descent toward the Moon during the Apollo 11 landing. (The long probes sticking down from its 'feet' were sensors that told pilot Buzz Aldrin and module commander Neil Armstrong when they were in contact with the Moon's surface, at which point they were to kill the descent engines. 

MEANWHILE, ON MARS: Curiosity continues to perform flawlessly on the Martian surface. Recently, NASA shared the latest, greatest self-portrait from MSL. It was taken on the 84th and 85th days (Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 of this year). The rover used its Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) to capture dozens of high-res photos which were combined to produce this portrait. 

In the photo, the rover is paused at "Rocknest," which is the spot in Gale Crater where MSL took its first sampling scoop. If you look closely, you can see four scoop marks in front of the rover. Neat-o!

In the background, you can see Mt. Sharp, the rover's ultimate destination. Its peak is about the same elevation as Mt. Rainier here in Washington state.  

Home Again, Home Again

ROADIES: Christmas 2012 is now in the rearview mirror, as today was the long (6+ hour) drive home.

Before we headed out, we hit the lovely, lovely pool in Siletz (thanks Nonnie & Bops!). There, CJ exercised his new-found swimmer boy confidence. It was great to see, and we'll definitely have to be hitting up the municipal pool so he can keep his water progress going.

We left Siletz a little before 10 a.m. and made a mid-point stop in Vancouver, Wa. around 1 p.m. There, I whipped up a batch of Chex Mix for someone very special (hi, Undine!), and we stretched our legs and then hit the road again.

We stopped in Tacoma to let the dogs visit some grass and for a little sustenance for the humans. Rather than just hit a random spot off the highway, thanks to the magic of the Internet and a smart phone, I found a point of interest with a little history - Engine House No. 9.

The former fire station was built in 1907. It had 100 percent horse drawn fire-fighting carriages, until it converted to the newfangled steam pumper machines in 1919. Today, a nod to the firefighting ponies past is visible on the entrance to the bar, which is the former horse stable. The names of Nip, Dick, Joe, King, Rowdy and Barney are displayed over their former stables.

In 1965, the station was abandoned. It sat vacant for several years until 1971, when a local newspaper reporter bought it. He and a partner restored it, converting the ground floor into a tavern and turning the second story into an apartment. In 2011, the present day owners purchased it.

Today, Engine House No. 9 is on the National Register of Historic Places, and it boasts many claims to fame. It's purportedly Tacoma's first craft brewery, it's home of the area's first beer club, and features the longest brass firepole still in existence.

This artifact was hanging over our table. It was fun listening to the kids' guesses regarding what this object was.

After the first couple of errant guesses, and we pointed out the target on it, reminded them where we were and then they figured out it was a device for catching jumpers from a burning building. 

The surrounds inspired Annabelle to create some artwork. Here's a graphic representing the Unicorn Fire District. :) 

We got home around 6:30, in time to see the Holiday Bowl and watch UCLA get overwhelmed by Baylor early and often. Ouch. Was rooting for the Bruins, in the interest of Pac-12 solidarity and all. 

More Merry

OVER THE RIVER AND TO THE WOODS: Christmas morning we left one set of grandparents' house for another, driving from Vancouver, USA, to Siletz, Ore. It would mark our third grandparents' house visit in two days, having visited Lake Oswego family on Christmas Eve. Here's CJ during our Lake Oswego stop, reading up a bit about that city's history.

Annabelle love the icicles on the tree.

There, it was time for more food and fun with family.

CHRISTMAS MIRACLE: On our way to Siletz, we stopped at a Safeway in Corvallis that was open on Christmas day. Imagine CJ an Annabelle's delight when we spied some Twinkies knock offs on the shelf. CJ, especially, was devastated by Twinkies' demise, so this was a most welcome development.

Though the box doesn't bear the Twinkies name, the golden, creme filled cakes were a suitable substitute.

 

IN THE SWIM: One of the highlights of visiting family in Siletz is a swim in their lovely pool. CJ made some great swimming strides with the help of Aunt Erika. 

 

Christmas Eve

SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN: Merry Christmas Eve. We've taken our show on the road. Right now all of MPA's student body and faculty are visiting family for the holidays, first stop, Vancouver, USA.

In the meantime, I'm finally getting around to posting some photos from our Space Needle Santa visit last Friday afternoon.

Space Needle Santa is super cool. He has a red rocket and a snazzy Santa space suit!

After the Santa visit, the kids moved to the cookie decorating station. There, they covered some rocket shaped sugar cookies with icing and a half ton of sprinkles. 

The rockets were consumed immediately. 

Naturally, the kids had to check out the observation deck. We were so lucky, not only was it sunny, but it wasn't windy. Weather wise, this visit in December turned out  to me nicer than many of our summertime visits!

CJ spent quite a bit of time using a telescope to check out the surrounds.

Annabelle was more interested in examining CJ, apparently. 

Now, we're checking Santa's progress 'round the globe via NORAD and looking forward to ripping into some presents in a bit. 

Merry merry to you and yours!