Please use the proper terminology

I'm always marvelling at God's sense of humor. And believe me, He has a really good one.

I like to think that I have tried to teach my children some good manners.

Swearing for example has always been a big no-no, although I am realising as the boys get older that banning something only in fact makes it somehow more alluring. Like the use of the term for a female dog. If its used in context it is quite an acceptable term. Out of context....a definite NO.

So it was on our recent tour of the Underground in Seattle that the tour guide made Max's day. He told us about the inventor of the flushable toilet. The poor man's name was Crapper....and the device he invented was Crappers Valveless Waste Preventer....or "the crapper" for short.



I kid you not.



So...you may be able to see where this is going. When requiring the use of the facilities shortly after Max announced that he needed to use the crapper. I cringed. Before I could respond he let me know that it was in fact the proper terminology used in the appropriate context. For 10 year old boy it was a huge victory. and as he strolled off to use the crapper I thought I might have heard God chuckle.

Seattle...my nemesis

Some of you may recall my "almost" trip to Seattle last November. I was supposed to be running the Seattle Half marathon just after Thanksgiving but thanks to our record breaking snowfall that month the Pass between Spokane and Seattle seemed a little too treacherous for me and I begged off going.

Seattle 1...Donna 0

Fast forward to late February. Ciara has to go across to Seattle with her band for a competition. This is what our yard looked like late last week.....



So we thought it would be a good excuse to escape more Spokane snow and head across to Seattle early. Do some touristy sightseeing before Ciara's competition. Great idea right???

Well it started off well.

The hubster, kids and I hit the great open road. Love road tripping with my fam.



Lots of magnificent scenery made the 5 hour car ride fly by.









We spent the weekend seeing Seattle...

the Underground tour..(more on that later)

the Aquarium,





the Space needle





and the Pacific Science Center.



And then Monday rolled around and we started getting ready for the band competition. Sounds too easy but Seattle wasn't going to let me get the better of her. So she dumped a whole new load of snow on the Pass and closed it. The rest of the band couldn't get across to Seattle. No band = no competition.

Seattle 2....Donna 0

Hmmm....Closed Pass = no going home to Spokane. Yep...you guessed it. We were stuck in Seattle until Wednesday. At least the Sheraton was a good place to get stuck. Huge gym and heated indoor lap pool. Got to make the best of it



The end score:

Seattle 3...Donna 0

But I WILL have my revenge. My friend Amy and I are running the Seattle marathon at the end of this year. I'll be back, Seattle. I have a score to settle.

Living with Purpose

When I got back from Seattle there was a sad message waiting on my answering machine.One of my closest friends had lost her grandmother. My friend and I are as close as sisters.  I have not known life without her. We lived next door to each other from the time we were born and grew up together. So her grandmother was like my grandmother. 
And what a woman she was.
 She was an adventurer, a traveller, an independent woman who was ahead of her time.  She seemed fearless, travelling to every corner of the world...quite often by herself.  Always going somewhere.
She was elderly when she passed.  In her nineties.
I'm sad she has gone.
I'm sad for my friend and for her family.
But when I think of her I think of how she lived....with purpose. With drive and strength. And with an insatiable curiousity for the world.
A purposeful life very well lived.

Happy Valentines Day

What kind of parent would make an appointment for their daughter at the orthodontist on Valentines Day?

Who????

Um....I have no idea. Probably a really mean one.....I'm guessing!!!!


On a brighter note.....this is what happens when you try to take a picture of just one of your children. The others just HAVE to get in on it.