Legos

 What is Leila's favorite activity of late? Building Legos while watching The Sound of Music. She has started following Legos directions all by herself. Brilliant!

Mt. Rainier Snow

Over Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend, we spent Sunday at Mt. Rainier playing in the snow. We have done this for the past two years and it has always been pretty crowded, but not this year! Thanks to the Seahawks, who were playing a major game of the season (I can't tell you which one!), we practically had the mountain to ourselves! Thanks, Hawks!! We had a great time sledding, building an Olaf, having lunch in the lodge and throwing snowballs at each other. 

We had one exhausted, little girl on the drive home! 

Point Defiance

January is always the time when Leila and I find ourselves heading to the zoo for some mommy and daughter time. Every year, Chris is knee-deep in set construction on the winter weekends, so we make the most of our zoo membership and hit the zoo quite frequently. Plus, like people always say…the animals seem to be out and about on the colder days more so than warm days. I think that is true! 

Hockey Kitty

 Look who's ready for hockey!

Our Little Actress

 Anyone who knows Leila knows that she loves musicals and the stage. Because of this love of musical theatre, Chris and I have been pretty sure that we would someday see her in an ERHS production with her Dad as her director, but this day came sooner than we expected! Leila is going to be in Shrek! She had her very first rehearsal in mid-January and boy was it special…for all three of us! I think as parents you really hope that your child will enjoy the same sorts of things that you do and seeing her on stage, with Chris giving her direction, was precious. At one point Chris and I made eye contact with each other and we were both bursting with pride! We can't wait to see her take the stage when the show opens in late February!

Turtles in the Park

Leila is totally into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles these days. During a trip to the park, we spotted Raph and Donny! 

Sound Of Music Sing-A-Long

 Shawn and I have been wanting to take Leila to the Sound of Music Sing-A-Long at the 5th Avenue Theatre for several years now. This last fall, Shawn asked about buying tickets for the January event and I was all for it! Mike and Chris came too…quite a feat getting Chris to come too as he got his fill of this show when he worked at The Village Theatre. We had a wonderful time and are already making plans for next year! It was a blast! When you walk in the door, you receive a goody bag full of props that you will need during the show. For example, there was a sprig of edelweiss that you were supposed to hold up while singing along to that song. Shawn and I have seen this movie so many times in our lives (Shawn actually saw this movie at the 5th Avenue Theatre when it debuted…multiple times too), but there was something so magical for me to see it on the big screen. When Julie Andrews came on screen singing "The hills are alive with the sound of music..", Shawn and I both started crying. We were not the only ones! And, I just gotta mention, that Carrie Underwood has NOTHING on Julie!! Please! Anyway, the afternoon will be a special memory we will long remember. Leila has watched the movie probably 15 times in the last month and a half since the sing-a-long!