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Holidays 2010

Tue, 28 Dec 2010 12:28:40 -0800

My family was all together for Thanksgiving this year. It was so fun to hang out with Chris & Christin and Baby Griffin, despite the wrench that the snow & icy roads put in our plans. It was a “Poter-Weis” day of thanks, as we joined Rob’s parents, Lisa & Brad & kids, and his grandmother for Thanksgiving dinner. That morning, we did a Turkey Trot 5K-a family tradition that my sis-in-law Christin wanted to share with our family-5 kids, 2 grandpa’s, 7 moms & dads/aunts & uncles-even the dog (for a portion)-everyone but the baby and the babysitting grandma’s participated-it was SO FUN!
We started Christmas the day after Thanksgiving, with cutting down a tree and decorating the house.
Rob had a conference in Portland, and with live-in grandparents, I was able to get away with him and get most of my shopping done during his meetings. Then there was our church’s annual “Prairie Christmas” musical which Rob participated in...the girls loved seeing daddy on stage-and they really did put on a great show! We wend to Seattle’s traditional JulFest, celebrating the holy season Swedish-style-and watched some cousins perform there.
We had a chance to see Santa, Lucy & Maiya were very brave this year, sitting on his lap and asking him for a scooter for M, a “tractor/crane/truck thingy” for L, and a lion for their baby sister, who “sat on daddy’s lap” (as daddy sat next to Santa).

Lucy and Sophie performed in their daycare’s Christmas show. Sophie’s toddler class was adorable as they stood on stage and stared at the audience while their teachers tried to lead them in singing “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”. And Lucy played Mary in her class’s performance of “Away in a Manger”, and she danced shyly as they were “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”.
We went up to Seattle on the 23rd, spent a family day with grandparents, cousins and aunts & uncles as we all went on monorails, merry-go-rounds, rides, Santa’s laps, and ended the day with a Disney 3D movie at the theater (Tangled). There was dinner with the whole fam, and then on the 24th was Mohrweis Christmas, receiving fun presents from Nana & Opa, then having dinner at Ohma’s before heading home to see if Santa had visited our house yet....

Sophie first awoke at 8:00 on Christmas morning. It took a few minutes to realize that it was Christmas, but when we began to investigate what Santa had left in her stocking, she was elated! She woke up her sisters with much enthusiasm and her new headlamp shining bright. What followed was a great morning of reading the 1st Christmas story and then opening lots of gifts from Santa, Mom & Dad, MorMor & Grandpa, and Aunt CeCe. We had a chance to play and relax for a bit, and then Nana & Opa, two great-grandmas, and the Thomas Family joined us for dinner.

It doesn’t get much better than watching your own kids experience the wonder of Christmas!

Snow Days

Tue, 23 Nov 2010 09:42:54 -0800

It’s not too often that we get snow in western WA. So when we do get it, it’s a BIG deal. We made a valiant attempt to stick with our previously-made plan of spending a few days in at a cabin Bremerton on the beach with my family (Chris & Christin & Griffin are in town). 2 hours on the road and it was just awful! Wind, snow, plummeting temperatures...so even with my dad (aka Mr Chicago) at the wheel of our 4WD vehicle, the storm won. We turned around and made it back home in one piece. This morning there’s about 8 inches on the ground. School’s closed. The radio’s on and all they can talk about is the storm and all of the abandoned cars on freeways... “don’t go out if you don’t need to”...and on and on about the unplowed and unsalted roadways that are now covered with ice and snow. Ugh!
The girls and Grandpa went out to play. And now we’re enjoying some hot chocolate, hoping that the road conditions improve so that we can make it to Seattle to spend time with the relatives....

School Days-September, 2010

Sat, 13 Nov 2010 18:54:33 -0800

I did poorly with the pictures (actually, the cutest ones I got were on my cell phone, and I put them on Facebook if you’re interested), but the blog needs to reflect that this past September marked a HUGE milestone here at CampMohrweis.
Maiya started real Kindergarten. Last year, she did full-day twice-a-week K4 at a local private school. This year officially marked the beginning of her school career. She was SO READY for Kindergarten! Her first few days were a bit rough (we arrived a bit late on the first day...her teacher had a family emergency on the second day and she had a substitute...and she didn’t know ANY of the children in her class prior to that first day), but she made it through, and she still LOVES school. Loves it! She still prefers the social aspect of school, but she’s definitely learning, and she does enjoy doing her worksheets at home. We’re so proud of our social, energetic Kindergartener!
Also, Lucy started preschool this year! At the end of the summer, we decided to enroll her and Sophie into part-time daycare at the same facility that her preschool was to be at. We had her scheduled for all-day care on Tuesdays and Fridays as well as 2 1/2 hour preschool class (the same teacher that Maiya had as a 3-y/o) on Tuesday/Thursday. That put her there 3 days a week, and on Tuesdays in two different classes...for our shy, hesitant little girl, it was just too much. So we dropped the preschool and had her just in daycare twice a week. It has taken awhile for her to adjust (yeah, two months or so), but she finally acts excited to go and has fun while she’s there. I’ve also noticed that she has lots of friends. All of the kids shout out her name when we drop her off.
Sophie started daycare in September as well. For our little afraid-of-nothing social butterfly, I think starting daycare was one of the most difficult things in her two years. But she too has adjusted. And while she still cries when we drop her off, we are assured by her teachers (one of whom we know well and love from church) that she mellows out quickly and is her happy little quizative self throughout the days.
More to come about school/daycare. We just got their school portraits back. Hopefully I’ll find a chance to scan & post them!

Summary of the Summer

Thu, 11 Nov 2010 14:34:50 -0800

Yeah, it’s November. And I left off in June. So here’s our summer in a nutshell....
Started with Maiya’s K4 graduation...my birthday...the arrival of the summer staff...and our monumental cross-country trip. I just wanted to document the trip here on campmohrweis because it was truly aBIG trip for me and the girls. First and foremost, it was the first time for all of us to see Baby Griffin, Chris & Christin’s little one. He is adorable! So fun for the girls to meet their first cousin on my side of the family.
Adding to monumental-ness of the trip: It was the last visit to the Northbrook that I grew up in. We did the old neighborhood traditional pancake breakfast, the parade, bbq with the neighbors and fireworks. I was able to relive a lot of great childhood memories and watch my girls live them for the first time. It made it even more fun to watch other “alums” of Oak St there with their own kids.
We enjoyed a few fun days with the Brown’s. My friendship with Missy is such a blessing, we have gone through our whole lives together, and raising kids at the same ages, though many miles apart, is so fun!
And our first multi-state road trip...my parents and I packed the three girls and a whole bunch of stuff in the minivan and drove from Chicago to Hilton Head, SC. We all had a blast! Tons of swimming, two nights with our friends the Bohannon’s in NC, and our first trip to the Atlantic coast, where we got to reunite/meet for the first time many distant cousins and relatives on my dad’s side of the family. Truly a great time, and precious memories for my parents and I (and hopefully the girls will retain some of it)!
We arrived home to a cool and rainy PNW summer (no pics of the garden this year--hardly anything (except the strawberries) grew this year). The girls are getting more into the camp summer staff. We spent many-an-afternoon down at the waterfront doing “swim lessons” between camper swim times with the lifeguards. We also did our first tent-camping trip ever with 3 kids at our good friends’ riverfront property--so fun!!
In August, over Labor Day, we went to Lake Chelan. It was fun to be able to be there with Rob’s parents and Lisa & Brad and the kids!
Oh, and at some point in there, Sophie broke her nose. Yeah, Sophie, the one who’s already had surgery on her nose, broke it when she fell off a swing. To the left is her mugshot. We didn’t take her in to a doctor to prove it was broken, and she healed quickly...but that. was. stressful!
So, that was summer, in a nutshell. Hope you enjoy the pictures! If you click on them, it will take you to the mobileme gallery where you can download them.

nana’s 60th birthday

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 16:06:50 -0700

Over the weekend, we celebrated a big one with Rob’s mom. We did adults’ dinner at the space needle (thanks to my sister for watching 5 kids!) and had cake with additional family members at rob’s parents’ house. Mark & Jessica flew in from Texas. We had a great time celebrating a very special woman whom we love very much. Hope it was special, Jean. You are wonderful!
Lisa made a book with pictures from throughout Jean’s life and the special people in it.
Jean was born on her brother Jim’s 5th birthday. Happy birthday to Uncle Jim as well!
Our dinner party was so big we sat at two tables. Ohma “got stuck” with the younger generation...she’s a pretty cool grandma, though. She fit right in with her grandchildren and -in-laws, and hiked upstairs & outside to the space needle observation deck with us.
These kids LOVE THEIR NANA!!!

friends: new & old, silver & gold

Sat, 12 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0700

Last year, we were pretty tight friends with two other families whose oldest children were in Maiya’s preschool class. They each had a child Lucy’s age as well, and their mom’s were great girls that I got along with really well. We had some fun park & zoo dates and hang-outs...until the Bohannon’s PCS’d to North Carolina, and Drew & Maiya were in different preschool classes this year with totally opposite schedules.
This past weekend, the Bohannon’s were in town and got to spend a few nights at camp. The Larsen’s joined us on Saturday, and we had a great little reunion. From Jeep rides to dress-up to zip-lining and everything in between, it was a very short but sweet time. SEE PICTURES HERE.
Living way out in the country, in a pretty transient community near a large military base, and having thousands of people pass through our “home” every summer, we have had many friends in & out of our lives. It’s not how I grew up at all, and it’s been hard to adjust to such frequent change. I forget who this quote is originally attributed to, but I do truly believe that “it is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all”. I also believe that it is the best of friends who are able to pick up after a long absence right where the left off. The Larsen’s and Bohannon’s are friends who fall right into these categories-those whom we’ve loved and (in a sense) lost...but those who are able to catch up right where they left off. The kids even did the same. Maiya cried the day Sierra moved away, and on a few other occasions, she’s mentioned how sad she is that her friend Sierra moved so far away and how she might never see her again. But those two girls picked right up where they left off too. Next year, Maiya will be going to a new school without any of her preschool buddies. She’s beginning to realize that she needs to say good-bye to good friends again, but she’s also learning the value of friendships, and that she can love and appreciate many people throughout her life, making new friends while still remembering the old. I know it’s kind of cheesy...but I recently taught her that song I learned when I was 8 years old in the girl scouts: “make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other’s gold”. It makes me feel better when I consider all of the valuable friends that I have had and lost contact with along the way. God has so amazingly blessed us with so many wonderful people in our lives, and we thank Him for the memories and the reunions, and for new friendships every day! We are confident that He will do the same for our children, and we pray that they will treasure their friends.
We are thankful for all of our precious friends, those near & far, and we look forward to times of being able to catch up, right where we left off, with so many of you!

grandpa’s visit

Sat, 29 May 2010 00:00:00 -0700

there’s been a lot going on around here, so i haven’t had a chance to post. at the end of may, my dad came to visit. he & my mom are in a major transitioning phase of their lives, dad thinking about a new career vs retirement, selling the home where they raised their kids, and moving to who knows where.
we had a lot of fun visiting with him.
while he was here, our nephew/cousin Griffin was born. we were on a walk through the pasture when Chris called Dad with the news. (below-dad on his cell phone. he shed a little tear as he discussed the arrival his new grandson with his own son).

We had a great visit! It’s hard to live so far away from my mom & dad, but when we do get time to visit, it’s like they’re always just next door. Please pray with them and us as they make big decisions about their future.

new playhouse!

Sun, 16 May 2010 00:00:00 -0700

just had to share a picture of this. our neighbor Dan built this playhouse and donated it to the TMTL fundraiser auction. Rob’s Uncle Dick & Aunt Carol purchased it, and they gifted it to us. It is the coolest playhouse I have ever seen. The girls love to take their baby dolls out and play house, sometimes they color in there, and oftentimes, it’s the perfect place to just go and yell & dance (because mom can’t take it in her house and this crazy washington spring has been so cold and rainy!)
Thanks, Dan, TMTL, and Uncle Dick & Auntie Carol for this wonderful little place! We cherish it, and it will definitely house some very special memories for our girls.

sophie!

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 20:02:57 -0700

we can’t believe it’s been two years since our little firecracker was born! click here to see pictures of her over those 2 years. sophie is truly the wild child in this family-the youngest-the spoilt one. she’s incredibly smart, speaking full sentences, loves reading books, understanding when she has to go potty (although her parents are too lazy to get her truly potty-trained). sophie’s also our brave child-the climber, the jump-in-and-do-it kid, and the one who is just into everything (note the picture of her lipstick-covered hands & face from her little adventure in my make-up drawer last week). her middle name is a perfect fit--joyful most all of the time, she loves to laugh and make others laugh. she has a super sweet tooth-won’t take a lick of her dinner most nights until we threaten to take away her dessert. and a true mohrweis, she loves chocolate! matching her sweet tooth is her sweet personality, loving and lovable at all times.
happy birthday, baby girl! we love you! XOXOX

chelan trip april ’10

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 08:44:24 -0700

it’s becoming a yearly tradition for us to spend a week in april over in chelan wa. we stay at a time-share condo, (thanks to rob’s parents) which has a pool & hot tub, plenty of lake frontage, and is a short walk into the darling town of chelan. for those of you who are reading this and trying to picture chelan, if you’ve been to lake geneva wi, it’s very similar-only a bit smaller-scale, and probably more beautiful because of the surrounding mountains. when we go in april, it’s usually still a too cold to swim, but we enjoy the hot tub and lots of walks to shop & drink coffee in town, go to the fun park right on the lake, and when there’s adult time, we try to enjoy some of the wineries up in the hills. this year, we celebrated rob’s birthday there. his dad took him golfing one day, and then his parents watched the girls so i could take him out for lunch and some wine tasting and his mom made a great steak dinner for the family.
Here we are enjoying the lake...

the pool...

The walk...

The Park...

the wineries & vineyards (adults only!)

and just being on vacation!

WE LOVE LAKE CHELAN!!!

couple’s retreat

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 20:59:03 -0700

rob & i got away for a few days-ALONE! no kids, no friends, no family. just the two of us. We had a great time just being us, being in love, being in canada, being “unplugged” from phones/internet/our every-day lives. it was a great experience!

We did the Butchart Gardens--so beautiful!!!

lots of shopping and eating out...

and walked all over the beautiful island city of victoria, even through an old castle

We traveled by boat, just to make the experience a bit more fun and beautiful. It truly was a great trip, very refreshing for both of us as individuals and as a couple to take the time away from all of the chaos that our lives normally entail. We were able to unwind, relax, reflect, and communicate in a way that we often are too busy to do.

hanging out with the girls

Sat, 17 Apr 2010 20:37:25 -0700

someday i will take photography lessons. and get/learn how to use photoshop. meantime, i will use my really cool camera to take mediocre pictures of my beautiful daughters and post my favorites here for you all to see. here they are enjoying a spring day out in the yard, picking dandelions, riding bikes, and snacking on warm freshly baked bread from our neighbor.

3 in a bed and the little one said...

Fri, 16 Apr 2010 21:05:47 -0700

the old nursery rhyme continues:... “roll over” so they all rolled over and one fell off”
with sophie approaching her 2nd birthday, about when lucy & maiya transitioned to big girl beds, and having just rearranged the older two girls’ bedroom, i thought we could try having all three in the full sized bed if they were lying perpendicular to how you normally sleep in the bed. lucy & maiya were all about it. sophie, on the other hand wasn’t so sure. in our case, the old nursery rhyme would go: there were 3 in a bed and the little one said, “i want my crib!” she fell asleep reluctantly in between her sisters that night, actually with maiya’s arm around her. but it only lasted a few hours until she cried and wanted out. so sophie’s back in her crib, and she doesn’t seem to be in too big of a hurry to change that situation.
they were so cute, all in a row, i just wanted to share the picture. we’ll let you know when she graduates from the crib, though, and how it goes! that’s all for now.

country livin’

Thu, 15 Apr 2010 13:40:55 -0700

having both grown up in the city/suburbs, we are so excited for our children to grow up here in the country, with seemingly endless space to run and play and explore. there are horses, chickens, and tons of wild life right outside our front door. yesterday was a beautiful spring day, and we had a fun play date with Tatiana & MJ, who came over and enjoyed a walk around the pasture. after they left, we heard that our neighbors’ sheep had lambs. so we went to meet them (aboard our quad & trailor), and the girls had such a blast. for those of you city folk like myself who have never pet a newborn lamb (seriously-hours old), they are surprisingly cute (given the fact that full-grown sheep are kind of ugly). even more surprising, they’re NOT soft & fuzzy. the girls were all pretty brave, lucy even let one of the lambs suck on her finger. here are some pics of the day:

I couldn’t resist editing this one-it took a little coaxing, but sophs & little MJ were SO sweet holding hands!

The big girls organized a picnic snack-parasol and all!

Then it was off to see the little lambs!

This one was just 2 hours old--precious!

easter 2010

Mon, 5 Apr 2010 20:58:39 -0700

we went to seattle for the weekend to celebrate with cece, lele, brad & kids, and ohma, all at nana’s & opa’s house while they were with mark in texas. the girls, especially maiya, are beginning to “get” the real meaning of easter (while still enjoying the easter bunny & egg hunts, etc), which was really fun to see. i’ll let the pictures tell the story, but first, i need to shout my praise: ‘Hallelujah, Christ is Risen, We are set Free!’.

Egg coloring Part1...we did 18 eggs and ate them all in the week before Easter....not to worry...

there was an impromptu Egg coloring Party when we got to Seattle, with plenty of helpers, including cousins and Aunts LeLe, Katie, CeCe, (and a bottle of wine for the adults : )

Final products on display...

And used by the bunny for an egg hunt in the morning!

Easter Baskets.

Off to Church.

All 3 of the girls take after mom with a love for PEEPS!

Easter Egg Hunt with the Cousins...and Posing with the Cousins

We hope you all had fun celebrating Easter!!!
I did load an Album on the Photos and Movies page. Click here for more Easter 2010 photos!

a day in the life

Fri, 2 Apr 2010 16:43:21 -0700

I just thought I’d post a bit about what we’re up to. Kind of a catch-all of the past few months and a bunch of pictures to portray what we do on a daily basis....
We love talking to MorMor & Grandpa on skype!
Sophie enjoys playing hide & seek.
We go on lots of walks,
Work on “projects”, ride bikes, and play on the swing-set....
and our favorite thing to do is hang out with friends-especially cousins James & Elsa and our new neighbor baby Jonas.
Mom got a new camera for Christmas, so there’s lots more to show...stay tuned!
I uploaded an album of the girls in little country girl outfits to our photos and movies page. See all the albums, or go straight to our “Country Girls” and “Camera Happy in February 2010” albums.

lucy!!

Fri, 2 Apr 2010 16:21:11 -0700

Click for “3 Years of Lucy” photo album.
i have a lot of catching up to do on the blog. 2 months ago, lucy turned 3. i posted a very nice blog about my amazing middle child...and iweb crashed when i went to upload it. i quit blogging for awhile...but now i’m back at it. if it crashes again, though, i am moving to blogspot!
here’s how i would describe the 3-year-old lucy jean...
hilarious.
quite possibly the world’s BEST cuddler.
she’s a stinker winker bear (and she knows it!!!)
a 100% daddy’s girl (probably because she is proving to be a mini-mommy-seriously-scary how much she is like me!)
a nurturer...perhaps it’s circumstance, her becoming an older sister at only 14 months, but from day one of sophie’s life, lucy has been gentle, kind, and sweet to her little sister and really to all little ones. she’s an amazingly conscientious and thoughtful little girl!
she has already mastered the art of being the middle child (yeah, she can just work her way right into or out of any situation. i don’t want to say she can manipulate any situation...but as a middle child myself, i have to say, that’s kind of a skill that you have to perfect if you’re ever going to get a word in edgewise)
3 years ago, i spent 3 weeks on bed-rest trying to slow this girl down. she has already surpassed the average height/weight for her age, she’s beginning to recognize letters and write her name, and i’m sure that she could win a tricycle race any day!
Lucia Jean is one of the three greatest blessings in our lives, and we are so grateful to God for giving her to us. Happy belated birthday lucy-belle! We had so much fun celebrating her birthday weekend with all 4 of her grandparents and her cousins at a near-by indoor water park. much fun was had by all.

family: the greatest blessing of all

Tue, 9 Feb 2010 20:59:13 -0800

this past sunday, february 7th, was not only superbowl sunday. it was rob’s nana’s 90th birthday. and not only were the saints fans celebrating in new orleans, but nana’s family was celebrating in seattle. it truly was happy gathering, a tribute to nana and her life. all of her descendants, her 3 children, her 9 grandchildren, and her 11 (and the one on the way) great-grandchildren were there together. one of rob’s cousins gathered old and new photos from throughout nana’s life, we watched a video/slideshow of these memories, we sang happy birthday and even a hymn. family members gave little speeches about how special nana is to them. i left nana’s 90th birthday party feeling so grateful for family, nostalgic for all of the family parties that we’ve been to, including holiday celebrations, our children’s birthdays, my grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary, poterek weddings, especially our own wedding, where so many family and friends watched and celebrated as rob & i began our life together, and, morbid though it may be, i even reflect on my grandma poterek’s funeral, which (anyone who was there can attest to this)-was oddly enough a great celebration and showing of love for one whom so many would miss. family is an amazing gift from god, a part of his plan to provide joy and companionship to each of us.
but not everyone is blessed with such wonderful large families...
today i met a very sweet gentleman. i’ve already forgotten his name, but not his face, nor his birthday. he was a patient who came through the er today when i was the triage nurse. while obtaining this man’s medical history, he informed me that he lives alone, his wife has alzheimer’s and he has a daughter who might be calling to find out how he was doing. as i placed the patient’s i.d. bracelet i noted his birthdate, and i realized that he had just had one. he verified this fact, stating, “yup. the big 8-0!” to which i replied, “did you celebrate?” the man responded in a suddenly very choked up voice, “i had a glass of wine”. even as i write this now, my heart is aching for a lonely old man who celebrated his 80th birthday completely alone.
the stark contrast between these two birthday celebrations is a poignant reminder to me of why not to take the amazing family that i have been blessed with for granted...and a lesson to me in how important it is to appreciate people. not everyone is blessed with such amazing families. but everyone needs to be loved. and everyone has a story. perhaps the cute old man, or even the grouchy old lady, you run into at the grocery store is celebrating his or her 80th birthday alone, and just a kind smile or greeting will brighten their otherwise lonely, dark day.
I just read this quote and thought it appropriate...
“Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” -Buddha
Please, let’s share our lights so that we may help to light the world!

Maiya

Sat, 23 Jan 2010 21:58:14 -0800

So our little girl is 5! “What is she like?”, you may ask...and we shall tell you....
Click the link if you want to see “5 Years of Maiya” photo album.
Maiya is very sweet-spirited and tender-hearted. She just has an innate gentleness that is so warm. She has a toughness in her too, though (just ask Lucy what happens when she tries to play Maiya’s computer game without asking...), but generally, she’s very slow to anger and quick to show compassion. It’s refreshing. I would say that M is usually a people-person. She’s always wanting to be around others, for example, for the longest time, she didn’t want even to go to the bathroom by herself! But just recently, as in just the past week, we’ve noticed a new independent streak about her. It’s fun to watch her wander off on her own, come out of the office/play room with art projects that she’s cut and glued and written all sorts of letters, even some words, on, all by herself. If I had to guess, Maiya is going to be one who is way more into the arts than the sciences or sports. Like I said, she’s been working on her own little art creations. And I’ve always said that this girl has a knack for music. When I was pregnant, I swear she would dance inside of me to music I listened to, and as an infant, she would literally hum herself to sleep. She continues to sing and hum to herself constantly, usually right in key, and even as she walks, she has a little skip to her step, as if she’s dancing all the time. It is so sweet!
Maiya is learning to read & write. She knows most of her letters, and is slowly grasping the concept of sounding out words. Although she doesn’t enjoy “homework” aka schoolwork/writing, she picks up pretty quickly on the worksheets that she’s required to do.
What else to say about our little 5-year-old?...Rob & I were discussing the other day the values that we would most like to instill in our children as we raise them. We didn’t actually prioritize a list, but I will for you now:
1-An understanding of God and commitment to Christianity
2-Love and Commitment to Family
3-Honesty & Integrity
4-Work Ethic/Time & Money Management
5-Being “leaders”
We have many other desires and goals for our children. But these are our priorities and the values that we most hope to instill. And I think Maiya is catching on to some of those lessons prayed for Jesus to enter her heart at age 2, one night as I snuggled her at bedtime, and a song with the words “come into my heard, Lord Jesus” played on her CD. Don’t ask me how I explained it to a 2-year-old, but I did, and I believe that she truly understood what it meant to invite Christ into her heart (or stomach, as she said it at that time), and since that day, without prompting, she calls herself a Christian and tells her sister especially that Jesus is everywhere, even inside our hearts.
Maiya is also a good little helper around the house. Sometimes she complains, “ugh, why do I always have to do everything!?”, but generally she picks up as she is asked, and especially now that we are beginning to offer an allowance for her chores, she is understanding that she can donate part of her money to church, and the rest she can save in her piggy bank or spend. Right now, she’s saving up to buy a $20 doll that she spotted in the camp gift store this past summer. She’s pretty committed to making that purchase. It has been interesting to watch as she plans her savings with the goal of having that doll in mind.
Okay, so there’s so much more that we could share. Like how Maiya is a great big sister, loves playing baby dolls and cuddling stuffed animals, has lots of friends and is very honest. But this is already long, and I’ve had a long day of birthday celebrating. Hopefully that paints a good picture, especially for those of you who don’t get to see Maiya very often!

Maiya’s 5th Birthday

Sat, 23 Jan 2010 21:20:49 -0800

It’s hard to believe that 5 years have gone by since our firstborn arrived...But it’s true, this weekend, our little Maiya turns 5! 5, half a decade, 1/6 of my life, on her way to kindergarten-5!!!
Here’s how we’re celebrating: We brought cookies to school on Thursday, and Lucy, Sophie & I got to hang out in M’s class for the afternoon. It was fun to watch Maiya in action with her friends and teacher. Today we had a gymnastics party-10 little girls in a gym full of tumbling mats, uneven bars, trampoline, climbing ropes, and chaos...followed by sugary cake and fun little girl gifts. Maiya chose a Tinkerbelle theme, and she and her sisters and friends had a blast! It was fun, and totally worthwhile, to have a party at a place where everything was right there, we didn’t have to clean up afterwards, and we had two college-age girls entertaining the children. After the party, we went on a family hike on one of the many trails by our house. Maiya suddenly has a new-found love for finding trails and leading us all through the woods, discovering nature and loving the outdoors. It’s a strange transition for us to watch, because she’s never really been the adventurous child...but it’s fun to watch her joy as she finds new trails to explore. She just bounds ahead of the rest of us, also with this new-found independence. Love it! We ended the day with Maiya’s favorite-steak-for dinner and opening her gifts from us. Lucy picked out a pink “hoooahue”, her pronunciation for hula-hoops, and a pink feathery snap bracelet. Sophie (aka Mommy) bought Maiya the kitty webkinz that she’s been begging us for the past week since she saw it on the store shelf, and we also got her a very own real (cheap) pink digital camera. Tomorrow, after church, we plan to meet Nana & Opa, Auntie Lele and Uncle Brad, and cousins James & Elsa for a Red Robin (had to talk her out of Chuck-E-Cheese!) lunch, and then we will Skype MorMor and Grandpa as M opens her gifts from them.
That was a long version of the 5th birthday itinerary. More importantly, I’d like to share who Maiya is at age 5...in fact, I think I’m going to make that its own blog page....

Holiday Picture Album

Sat, 16 Jan 2010 10:40:08 -0800

Click here for Holidays 2009 Picture Album, and read the below blog to read about how we spent the holidays.

Holidays 2009

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 22:34:39 -0800

Every time I try to upload an album of pictures from our holiday celebrations, my webpage builder crashes. Not sure what that’s about...gotta ask my tech support...and Rob is very busy these days : )
So to recap, we did Thanksgiving here in WA this year. My entire family was able to come for Thanksgiving, Rob’s family was minus Mark, but plus Ohma, and our neighbor “family”, the Thomas’, joined us as well. It was a crowd, but there was lots of love and tons of food shared. We had a great time hosting!

The entire Poterek family then traveled to Chelan WA, spent a few nights in wine country, in a condo on beautiful Lake Chelan. There were some fun Christmas festivities there, lots of time for family bonding, and some wine tasting.

Christmas was fun! We spent Christmas Eve at Rob’s Ohma’s, and most everyone was there...we missed Mark again, but he came out just after Christmas and we got to spend some time around New Year’s with him. Christmas morning was great with the girls, Santa brought some fun baby doll stuff, scooters, books, and a new camera for mommy (don’t be surprised if you see nicer quality photos here on campmohrweis from now on)

and for Christmas dinner, we spent our last year at the Thomas’ camp house, enjoying our camp family and Alan’s awesome homemade pasta!

Christmas extended to the New Year. Rob’s family got to celebrate in Seattle when Mark came to town from Texas, Santa Claus waited till Jan 3rd to c0me to Nana & Opa’s house, and the girls got to have another Christmas morning with their grandparents aunt & uncles and cousins. It was great!

Post-operative Progress

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 15:25:51 -0800

Post-op Day 15, and I’m finally posting...
Thanks to all of you who prayed and thought of us as Sophie underwent surgery and as she’s been healing in the past few weeks. God is good! Sophie (and her parents) came through surgery without a hitch. She was up and running just 2 hours after leaving the hospital, and I swear she hasn’t stopped yet! I’m going to post some pictures here of the progress...

this is one day after surgery. the bandage included a bloody steri-strip which covered dissolvable sutures and a clear tegaderm which was adhered pretty well to her skin covered it all. The surgeon wanted that to stay on for at least 1 week....

Sophs decided that two days of that was enough. She ripped the surgical bandage off herself. We freaked out a bit, but spoke with the on-call surgeon who instructed us just to keep it covered and clean. Luckily, we had some cute Hello Kitty Bandaids on hand that were the perfect size.

On Monday Jan 11, we had her follow-up appointment with Dr. Perkins. He and the team were happy with what the wound looked like. We were warned that there would probably be a scar where the scab is now, and there’s some redness around it which is apparently just normal surgical wound redness, they say it should fade in the next 3 months. We are now changing the bandaid every day, and applying an ointment to prevent MRSA, a nasty infection. After 10 days of that ointment, we will be able to forego the bandaids and begin to apply maderma, a scar cream (those of you who’ve seen the commercials--it’s supposedly like a magic eraser for scars...we shall see!)
The other day I snuck a few pics before placing the new bandaid.

Hemangioma, scab, bloody dressing, cute bandaid, or scar, we LOVE our little girl, and we thank God for the happy, BEAUTIFUL creation that He made in Sophie.

Goodbye, Sophie’s Strawberry

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:06:09 -0800

Tomorrow we will endure, for the first (and hopefully last) time, the experience of having our precious little girl go to the operating room....
Anyone who lays eyes on our little Soph can see her “strawberry”. That mark, in medical terminology, is called a hemangioma. For those of you who aren’t familiar with hemangioma’s, they’re congenital malformations of capillaries which cause a bright red blister-appearing spot. They usually develop shortly after birth, are often on the head and neck, but can be anywhere on the body, even internal. They can grow quite large, but usually resolve on their own without treatment-within the first 10 years of life.
We first noticed that Sophie had a little red mark on her nose just a few days after her birth. At first we thought that she had scratched herself. As the “scratch” grew and never scabbed, I began to do some research and discovered that what she had would only continue to grow. I feared the worst as I realized that my poor baby would have this ugly nasty thing on her face. I thought of it as so unfair to her, feared that she would be emotionally scarred by her blemish. And selfishly, I dreaded the stares as people looked at my child, the “what is that on her face?” comments as people stared at her with disgust or pity. As the hemangioma grew (it did, until she was about 1 year old, and has stayed steadily bright-red-lima-bean-sized for the past 8 months) so Sophie grew, with beautiful blue eyes and blond hair, and a personality so vibrant that her hemangioma is the last thing we think about when we see her. I’ve stopped photoshopping it out, for when I do, Sophie’s just not Sophie without it! As accustomed and unaffected by the “strawberry” as we’ve become, we still dread those school days and those mean children who’s comments could potentially hurt our little girl. For example, a few months ago, one little girl pointed and stared and said, “she looks like a witch”. The hemangioma is indeed where witches always seem to have huge ugly warts. It’s one thing for me to deal with comments like that, it’s a whole other thing to imagine my little girl having to deal with being called a witch!
Well, we just so happen to have a connection with a surgeon at Seattle Children’s Hospital who manages children with hemangioma’s on a regular basis. We spoke with him once about treatment options, and we decided to first try a medication that was fairly benign in terms of side effects, and as it turned out, benign in terms of diminishing Sophie’s hemangioma. So the doctor spoke with us about surgery...it’s becoming more common for these things...the location of Sophie’s is usually one of the slowest healing, and almost always requires some plastic surgery to remove scar tissue left behind after the hemangioma itself is gone.... We got a second opinion, a plastic surgeon, who said all the same things. No one would say straight up that it’s better to do it now than to wait, but we scheduled the surgery 8 weeks ago, planning on canceling as the date came nearer if we weren’t sure that it was the right thing to do. Since then, I have had conversations with two parents, one a stranger and the other a doctor I work with, both of whom have had their child’s hemangioma’s removed at age 2, both of whom said it’s the best thing to do. Still, the dilemma weighs on our minds: the decision to subject our child to an operation for cosmetic purposes; we question: should we wait till she’s a bit older or to do it now while she has little clue as to what’s going on?...is the scar it leaves now going to be worse than it would later on...? are we making the right decision?!!
As I approach tomorrow’s surgery, I am anxious-still about whether we’ve made the right decision, and of course, the worries about my baby being sedated & “under the knife”...yet I find comfort in God’s omnipotence and his comforting love. Please, pray for us, and especially for Sophie, as we mourn the loss of her special strawberry, that her surgery will go without a hitch, that she will endure no pain, that she will heal perfectly, without a scar to be seen, and pray that Rob & I will have peace about the decision we have made, and will not be anxious while our baby is in the operating room.Sorry this is such a long blog...it has been very cathartic for me.

family portrait time

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:00:35 -0700

Our neighbor Angela once again took her camera and our family to several locations in this beautiful place we live; this time the whole family dressed for the occasion, and we are so excited to have such precious portraits that have captured our family’s love and our girls’ joy in life. We will cherish these “Captured Moments” forever!
Thanks, Angela. You truly have a gift and such a great heart. We will miss you when you go off to college this year!
View family portrait album

gardening

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:21:27 -0700

As mentioned in the welcome page of our site, we have put a lot of time and love into our garden this summer. It truly has been a joy to watch seeds turn into tasty veggies and fruits and beautiful flowers.
See pictures of the garden, from start to finish.

welcome (back) to CampMohrweis

Sat, 22 Aug 2009 14:29:39 -0700

This is 2008’s “welcome” video...looking at it now, about 1 year later, it is amazing how much the girls have changed! Stay tuned for some stories, photos and movies...I hope to post a lot!

Vegas Vacation!

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:59:15 -0700

In March, we went on our first ever vacation without the kids (since Maiya was born), and it happened to be my first trip to Vegas--what a trip! My parents flew in and stayed at our house with the girls, so we had no worries, just lots of staying out late, sleeping in, relaxing by the pool, enjoying adult company and each other. It was wonderful-and for those of you parents considering your get-away, 4 days/3 nights was the perfect amount of time to enjoy it without missing the kids too much!

The Rocking Chair

Sun, 15 Feb 2009 18:59:59 -0800

Snow!!

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 13:29:54 -0800

What a crazy winter! Feet of snowfall in Washington & Oregon, cold and freezing rain all over in the Midwest & East...we have been doing our best to enjoy it here. We are prepared to be snowed in (although it thankfully looks like it will warm up enough to get out). Christmas shopping is done, most of the presents wrapped, most of the cards mailed. Firewood and food are well-stocked. Rob is on vacation till New Years. Now we are just enjoying family time and projects around the house that we’ve been wanting so badly to get done.
Check out our snow pictures!

Poterek Family Holidays

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 19:25:30 -0800

So my family, which is split between the Pacific Northwest and the Midwest, convened at our house last month. We chose to celebrate Christmas early, and made it as much like Christmas as possible...you can see by the Christmas tree cutting and existence in the living room that we did a good job to make it feel real. It was fun to be able to watch the girls’ excitement, and I wanted my parents and siblings to be able to be a part of it!
Pictures ...I realized that most of the pictures were taken on my parents’ camera-and I didn’t think to upload pictures before they left...sorry!

Fall Fun

Fri, 7 Nov 2008 20:55:42 -0800

We had a lot of fun in October! You already saw some Halloween pictures (the trunk or treat ones are still on the camera, yet to be uploaded), but I thought I would post some of our other autumn activities.
Maiya’s preschool class took a field trip to a local pumpkin patch. Our friend Claudia (she’s an adult, but our whole family, including the girls, love her, and Maiya literally calls Claudia her friend), joined us for the day-she’s the one who took all of the great pictures.
Several weeks ago, my friend Ingrid visited from Colorado with a friend of hers. We took them to a local cider mill and on a mini tour of the Olympia (Puget Sound) waterfront. It was a cloudy, kind of rainy, typical fall/winter/spring NW day, but we had a lot of fun! Click here for pics of that day.
Disclaimer: As I have pretty much been pregnant for the past 4 winters, I don’t have a whole lot of warm clothes that fit me. However, I don’t wear the same outfit every day. It just so happens that I did on these two days that I’ve decided to share here.

Halloween

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:10:17 -0700

We stuck with the bug theme this year...Maiya was a butterfly, Lucy a Pooh Bear Honey Bee, and Sophie a Lady Bug. Thanks Mom & C for helping with the costumes!
I made an album called Ladybugs with pics of all three girls on their 1st Halloween in the same lady bug costume--see if you can tell who’s who! (there’s one of each-I’ll post the answers in a few days)
Click on the pic above for the Halloween album

Sunday Afternoon Gardening

Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:49:27 -0700

We have had the most glorious fall here in the Pacific Northwest. Today was an exceptionally gorgeous day, and we took full advantage of it to landscape-take 2. This summer, we created a garden spot in front of the house thanks to our neighbor Lynne. She had taken clippings from her garden and her friends’ gardens, brought them over and helped me plant my first very own garden. We didn’t realize that the soil we used had a ton of grass seed in it, and as we didn’t have a whole lot of time to spend weeding, the grass completely took over the beautiful plants. So a few weeks ago we dug up our plants, placed them in pots, dug out the old soil, ordered some new soil, and invited Rob’s parents down for the day (today) so we could redo our garden. The girls had fun playing with cousin James and their unofficial older sister Janae (our 6- year-old neighbor). Rob and his dad manned the backhoe and raked the soil into place, and Rob’s mom and I managed the kids and the placement of plants and bulbs.
It was so fun to spend a day with the family, playing outside and accomplishing a huge task that we’ve wanted to get done for a long time. Thanks Jean & Tom for your help!
Click here to see photos from the day