Umbrellas

I used to have a huge fascination with umbrellas.  It all started with Mary Poppins and she could fly with hers.  I used to try it even.  I would try running really fast and jumping as high as I could but never really seemed to get much air.  Then I would think, for sure it would work on windy days, but it only turned my umbrella inside out.  As I got older I loved umbrellas mainly because it added that bright splash of color to the dark gray canvas and I loved being the one holding the cheerful color and the sound of the rain falling on it, just kinda soothing if you will.  So thus continued by love for umbrellas.  You would think I was suppose to live in Portland because of such fascinations.  However, apparently its not that cool to use umbrella's in Portland.  You may get looked at funny.  So instead like everyone else I wear my black rain jacket and fit into the grayness that surrounds me.  Well enough about me.  Now onto my kids.

Maia found on of her umbrellas the other day as she was digging in the box that held all their winter accessories.  She got excited and figured out how to open it up.  So then came Paxton wanting the said umbrella.  So we found another and it was an umbrella party in our house that soon moved outside.  And no it was not a rainy day here in Portland, but a very sunny, warm, beautiful day.  So they had their little umbrella adventures outside playing and dancing around with umbrellas.  I was taken back to my love for them and enjoyed watching them explore a new-found object.


















So I think, maybe we should just not care about fitting into the Portland gloom, but be the bright splashes of color that brings cheer to the days of drear.  However, I won't rush that.  These sunny, warm, beautiful days have been absolutely lovely!

Paxton's 2nd Birthday Party

We had a celebration at our house on Saturday.  Our little man turned 2.  Wow 2!  I am that mom who loves to celebrates birthdays and loves to see the ultimate joy on her kids faces when they are being celebrated.  However, I am also that mom who gets a little teary eyed and emotional as she watches her kid turn a year older.  Another year yielding independence from me.  Another year of changes.  Its all very exciting, really.  We had fun having friends come and celebrate him.  The theme of the party was "The Wheels Go 'Round and 'Round."  In honor of Paxton's ultimate love for cars.  He was thrilled!

I found some little wooden cars that the kiddos got to color with markers.And then they got to take those flashy cars and zip them down the ramp.   Paxton was one of the first to get his car out there zipping it down.

 And of course we had to have some sort of car cake right.  So here it was.  I think this is one of my favorite part about birthdays for my kids is thinking through the cake.  I love to think through the design and then of course what kid of cake.  This one is adapted from a  Momofuku Milk Bar recipe.  Its a banana cake layered with chocolate almond ganache and banana cream.  With a chocolate butter cream on the outside.  Probably one of my favorite cakes I have made so far.  Ok enough about the cake.  Paxton thought it was great too as he was pointing at it saying "Car!  Car!"  It was a hit he knew what the shape was on top!  Success!

 I think he realized that everyone was singing to him.  He then leaned a little bit closer to me with a little shyness involved.  So sweet!  For the candles I put them as tail pipes and thats what we lit.  It was on fire.  I mean just the candles were. 

 So much fun to celebrate Paxton boy.  He is truly a sweet little guy.  He has a gentle spirit about him.  As much as he loves his cars, he also loves his sister and wants to find ways to make her feel better when she is sad.  I am so blessed to have him as my son.  We certainly have a lot of fun with him and many sweet moments too.   Happy 2nd Birthday Paxton Boy! 

Almost 2

I held Paxton today as he fell alseep on my chest.  I was reminded of the many moments as a baby he would sleep on me and we would take naps together while Maia and Daddy were off playing.  I thought of the many early mornings we would spend hanging out because he would wake up and then stay up for a couple hours.  At the time it was tiring, but then I think what a special time to have with him as a baby when it was all shared with his sister during the day.  Now he is almost 2.  I have been blessed to be this guy's mommy for two years and I love it.  He is so fun to be around with his huge interest in cars basically anything with wheels.  He loves to follow his sister around and do the things she does like putting on dresses and dancing around the room.  He is also my main cuddle bug.  I think he deliberately wakes up early to get those few moments of cuddles before everyone is up and the busyness of the morning begins.  His smile makes me so cheerful inside and out.  He can be wild and crazy running around our house with a stroller or shopping cart yelling "Go..".   He also can be so kind and go looking for Maia's blanket when she is sad knowing that is what will help her feel better.  I am so excited to get to know more of who Paxton is as he grows older.  As his mind matures and his personality comes out all the more.   What a fun little guy to be around. 

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Sweet Moments

As a mom I have found there to be some significant sweet moments.  Like that first full nights sleep that you have not experienced in a loooong time and when it happens its like Heaven on Earth!  Or the feeling of when you have actually accomplished cleaning the house and it stays that way until the morning when the kids wake up.  The sweetest cuddles from the ones who love you most, who see you at your worst and at your best, who you can be your absolute self to and they will still love you.  But right now I have been experiencing the sweetest moments are those times when my kids are getting along, there is peace in the household, kind words are spoken in gentle tones, there is laughter, helping each other, and looking out for the others best interest.  Be that it may, it can last for and hour or it can last for a minute, I just cherish it.  I pray over them to love each other and to become the best of friends.  Knowing I have no control over their relationship I just love love love when one asks the other to come over and sit with them, or take each others hands and play on the playground together,  Maia reading to Paxton the books she knows and he just cuddling in close to listen and especially laying in ones bed together laughing, playing and singing with each other.  I write this post mostly to remind myself that those moments do happen and to pray that they will grow to love each other and cherish those moments themselves when they have those sweet moments together. 

Tea Party

 In the Miller house we had ourselves the first Tea Party with Maia's tea set I proudly found at a great garage sale.  I have had them for awhile and have been waiting for Maia to be old enough to be careful and ready to play in this way.  Lately she has been playing tea party with all her kitchen dishes so I thought its high time we have ourselves a real party.  Maia was an excellent host offering Paxton and I tea along with cream and sugar.  Lets just say it could have been a milk and sugar party with some tea on the side.  Regardless, they had a blast and it has been the rave around here.  Maia can't wait for the next tea party and maybe we will have to get all gussied up and invite some guests too!  It was a great way to spend the afternoon.

Easter

Well really this is just a post to put some cute pictures of Easter on.  We really did not have a very exciting Easter this year.  Maia was sick all day so it became more of a mellow day.  We did manage to get a little egg hunt in in the back yard.  While Michael and Paxton went to church Maia and I got to read the Easter story together and reflect on that in between runs to the bathroom.  Poor girl.  I think we are on the mend now!  At least I hope!  So here is some photos of a snazzed up Paxton boy and a little egg hunt.  Maia was pretty sad she did not get to wear her Easter dress.  I reassured her, however, that she would get the chance to wear it.  So fancy pics to come.  Hope your Easter was fun and filled with Hope and Celebration!  He is Risen!

The Here and Now

Hello!  Its been awhile!  I have missed sharing life via blogging and so I decided to its time to get back on the saddle.  I was thinking I could do a recap, but then I would never do a recap because it would mean lots to recap, so I am just going to get to the here and now.  Its the end of March.  And it has been sunny and will continue to be sunny through next week!  At least according to the weatherman, who I should not put my full confidence in.  Its weeks like this that I need to remember when it is June 15th and it is still cloudy and cool and rainy, the sun does shine in Portland.  Spring has been beautiful and never ceases to amaze me!  I think that is also why these sunny days make it so amazing.  Its like the Wizard of Oz.  The winter is the black and white segment and then we go through a tornado and the sun comes out and its all colorful and beautiful.  Everyone comes out and there is life all around.  Parks are full of people, the bike paths are full of bikers besides the resilient commuters who made it through the black and white winter, and there is just color everywhere!  Pops of yellow, pink, red, white, purple all amidst the green foliage that surrounds us here.  Signs of new life!  Easter is here and we are reminded of New Life.  The beauty in that surpasses all new life in Spring.  We are getting to celebrate the reason for New Life in Christ and that is a beautiful thing!

So besides the beauty of Spring, we have been enjoying life as a family this week.  Michael has been off of school for Spring Break, so it has been nice to have him around without too much stress of school work hanging over his head.   We have had some mini family adventures and one lead us to the rose garden.  However there was no roses at the rose garden, it was a fun place for the kids to just run around.  And boy did they ever.  Maia had a bright pink dress on and she was probably the most colorful thing there. 

I just have to say I love this picture of Maia singing on the stage.  This is her free spirit singing and dancing not caring who is around and what others are thinking and wanting to sing because its fun to sing and dance on a stage.  I pray that never changes! 

Well there you have it.  A little update on what we are doing right now.  Yes our adventures are not extravagant, but it does not take much to be an adventure and when you are on it with these two little kiddos!  Happy Easter!

A little recap

 Now that Fall is in full swing, I thought it would be time to share a little of the adventures we had this summer.  We had a fun summer with Michael being off from school, we just felt we got some good family time in.  And we did!  We did some stuff around the Portland area.  We even got to join Michael on a work trip down in Florida in June.  In July we went to California and camped with family and friends.  Also on that trip we rode our bikes 245 miles in 23 1/2 hours (we slept for 30 minutes).  In August we did a little camping tour of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State.  On that trip we rode the Ferry to Victoria, BC and enjoyed our day there visiting Buchart Gardens and exploring the area.  We even got to go again with Grandma Jo and did some exploring of the downtown area.  What a fun time we had as a family and with family and friends.  Lots of memories made.  So here in a nutshell is a few snaps taken from our adventures. 

This was at Hurricane Ridge

At Buschart Gardens