la boîte

One of the oddball things I wanted to do when building our own house was make a space for a batting cage for baseball practice. Originally, i was thinking of a place where you could pitch or hit, but that would require 70-75 feet of space, so when we started seriously looking at the lot we eventually bought (only 45 feet long) I revised my mental picture of how I would use it.  

In the end, I was able to carve out a roughly 12' wide space along the side of the house which is fine for batting practice, at least.  This is why the first floor of our house is smaller than the 2nd and 3rd floors- which wasn't easy to build (that's why we have four big steel beams) but actually fine for how the house works- especially because we were limited in the total amount of floor space by the zoning code.  It's nicer to have that space on the top floor than down on level 1.  The overhang provided by the house also gives us dry access to the bike / outdoor equipment storage accessed from there. 

During the design process, Cari decided we needed a shorthand way to refer to the space, so she coined "la boîte." Totally works for our family, and I think I have heard the grandparents start to use it, as well.

This spring I was able to order a net online and put it up so that I could start using the space for hitting.  La boîte is too tight for regular balls to ever be used in it (I think even tennis balls may be too much), but I already had a golf-ball-sized whiffle ball pitching machine, and I been able to use that.  Cari was also kind enough to give me soft-toss a fair amount, as well.  The net I ordered was sized to hold in golf balls, and it's nice to never, ever have to worry about one escaping.  The net is only 34 feet long (the length of the house - I was able to order a custom size) and that is plenty to get good batting practice.

It has been really gratifying how much D has used the space, as well.  We want to thank our parents for indulging him with countless hours of "baseball" down there while they are taking care of him.  He is far more excited for T-ball to start up again next spring than he was when it ended in June.  

Eventually, I would like to be able to push the net together and roll it up somehow to clear the space below, but that is pretty far down the list.  At first I felt a bit embarrassed about having the net hanging down from below the house, but, like most things, I got used to it and it doesn't bother me anymore (can't speak for Cari on this one).  Someday, I am going to get the outlets working down there, maybe some lights on the underside of the house, a new (small foam ball) pitching machine, and practice lots. Maybe I will hit a baseball over the outfielders head next year!

roof is a wrap

It only took us the seven months from March through September to finish our roof, but we managed to finish before our overdue baby arrives!

Here are the posts on the pavers and the first planter boxes.   Now we (95% Jack, 4% me and 1% D) have finished the boxes around the perimeter along with the drip irrigation system.   We also planted some bulbs I’m excited about and come spring we want to put in grasses on the north and south perimeters.

August was so miserable with the wildfire smoke we didn’t have as many dinners (or parties) on the roof as I would have hoped.

A few of the plants we are hoping will make it through the incredibly windy winter are a new zebra grass, two kinds of junipers, some boxwoods and a dwarf spruce tree. 

I say that we’re done, but really there’s always more to do in any garden, right?  

While I’m sharing pictures, here is one of the progress on the six new townhouses being built across the street.  We have no beef with them and are kind of happy about where they sit on their lot in relation to our windows.  I’m excited to see what kind of street trees they put in since that side of the street doesn’t have power lines and the previous trees were only about five feet tall, which seemed like a wasted opportunity!

baby book = done

Finishing up D’s baby book before the arrival of our second is a wonderful task.  I feel super satisfied completing something and tidying up all the notes I’ve emailed myself over the last few years into a finished format AND it has the added benefit of reminding me of all the sweet things we have to look forward to.
I think at this point apprehension of birth and sleep deprivation is pretty natural, but there are also smiles, cuddles and explosive growth and discovery to look forward to.
Aside from having a new baby book to start on soon, this is a natural place to wrap up D’s book.  He’s at the age where any memory could stick around for life and his world is bigger and bigger all the time.

20 years

It was twenty years ago today,

In a moment that I can’t downplay,

That we met in 9th grade English class

And first impressions we did amass

So may I now relate to you

Some things from those first few years ?

Jack and Cari’s high school romance tale.

It’s Jack and Cari’s high school romance tale

History, math and science too

It’s Jack and Cari’s high school romance tale

Time made our interest debut.

Jack and Cari’s high school, Jack and Cari’s college

Jack and Cari’s life long romance tale

Eventually we dated.

‘Twas certainly a thrill.

We put our long distance time in.

We found our way to our true love.

We found our way to love.

It’s a lot of years to summarize.

Our time together is a prize.

Now we’re deep in the parenting phase

But this union is right always.

So let me tell you once again

You’re the only one that I want

For Jack and Cari’s life long romance tale.

Us with our siblings in summer 1998 before we met.

Homecoming 2000, Thanksgiving 2004, summer 2010

vroooooom

Two weeks ago we rocketed forward in terms of automotive technology, replacing our trusty 1998 Chevy Malibu with a 2014 Toyota RAV4.  The Malibu served us really well for six and a half years.  It never stranded us on the side of the road and the heat and AC were quite good.

Jack might have waited a bit longer to change cars, but it felt like a necessary step to me when I contemplated another car seat in the back and another rainy winter.  The RAV4 is a few inches wider (and a lot shorter), the back seat is way more comfortable and the trunk doesn’t leak.  Also the clock tells time, there are two cup holders, the windows are tinted, the windshield wipers work and of course there are many safety improvements including car seat anchor points.  We even have nice integral roof racks that came with the car.

Happily Jack also sold the Malibu successfully on Craiglist.  At $750 it felt worthwhile for us, but also like an honest bargain for the woman who bought it.

I read a fair bit on Consumer Reports while preparing to shop.   Did you know you can access the full site through the public library?

Deception Pass for the fourth time!

This year the 4th of July fell on a Wednesday so our camping trip was longer than usual.  For the first time in several years we stayed home on the 4th and then camped from Thursday through Sunday.  We successfully woke D up to watch fireworks from our roof and got him back to sleep again and got a reasonably early (for us) start on Thursday morning.

To mix it up we took the ferry from Mukilteo to Clinton, on Whidbey Island.  On the way up the Island the three of did a beautiful little hike at Ebey's Landing.

We reserved early and got our favorite walk in sites in the lower loop campground again.  For next year we have a few small site preferences to account for but I’m feeling better about going back to the same place year after year, because Deception Pass really is a remarkably beautiful and big park.   For the second time this year we hiked up the incredibly scenic Guemes Mountain, this time as a pretty large group.

The hours of daylight at the 4th of July are pretty extreme and it is super hard to get the kids to sleep while it is still light out, so I felt very lucky to have one evening with almost all the grown ups gathered around the campfire sans kids.

We also took a fun boat trip through Deception Pass and saw some porpoises and seal pups.

Blake Island

In mid-July D and I got to join my parents on four day trip to Blake Island on their boat.  By arriving on Thursday we got a nice spot at the dock and it was very relaxing.

D convinced his grandparents to play baseball without a ball for a surprisingly long time.  Later we ended up making a duct tape and newspaper ball that made it much more fun but we still couldn’t stand to play for the nine innings he wanted.  It is very reminiscint of Calvinball.

Another highlight was a 3 mile hike out to the NW beach.  It was D’s longest hike where he wasn’t carried at all.  He’s capable of the distance physically so the challenge is usually just morale.  On the way back he hiked like a champ while asking me to tell him everything I could remember about the plot of Lord of the Rings.  With that and all the baseball, we missed Jack.  He stayed home to conserve PTO and to allow the four of us to sleep on the boat rather than needing to tent camp.

Boat trips were a big part of my childhood and we’re so lucky my parents made this trip possible (and fed us quite well)!

record book of books

On of my most valuable posessions is the book list I’ve been keeping since August 2001.   The first entry is Huckleberry Finn which I read as summer reading homework for 12th grade English.  The most recent entry is Room by Emma Donoghue.

I’ve had a run of good books lately since I learned to filter library audio books by awards like “best books of 2010” and I’ve actually been able to finish longer books on my kindle by keeping it on airplane mode from time to time.  This pregnancy I’m also reading more fiction and less non-fiction about pregnancy.

We’re also enjoying another chapter book with D, called Brambleheart by Henry Cole.  Like so many kids’ books, the protagonist is a mouse.  Jack and I both learned the word gnomon (the triangular part of a sundial that casts the shadow) from the book.  It’s pretty interesting to me how much D can enjoy a story without understanding so much of the vocabulary.  Of course, a few months back when we were reading more books in French to him, I saw the same thing where he really wasn’t catching things but still seemed to like the books.  What a good little sponge!

Whistler's Mother and Toru’s fine self

Columbia Hills camping

Our first tent camping trip of the year took us to Columbia Hills State Park.  Neither Jack nor I had driven through the part of the state south of Yakima or spent any time on the Columbia River, so it was novel.  From cancelled trips last summer we have learned to plan adventure in Eastern Washington early in the season when fires and excessive heat are less likely.

We spent three nights camping, which was a good decision because of the length of the drive and we enjoyed sharing the trip and our meals with good friends.

Friday night we set up our tent in the windiest conditions I’ve camped in, which is what I had been led to expect for the area.  Funnily enough though it was hardly windy at all the rest of the weekend and we actually had thundershowers that cut short our swim and left seven of us huddled in the bathroom one afternoon.  Most of the time though it was pretty nice and not as hot as I had feared it would be.

The first picture below is a petroglyph we saw on a short walking tour.  Not much is known about them, but many tribes converged on the area and it sounds like it is roughly 400 years old, perhaps.

 

For Fathers’ Day, the two dads took an adult-paced hike while the rest of us enjoyed a decidedly kid-paced, much shorter hike.

No one got bit by a rattlesnake though the possibility had me a bit freaked out.  The long hours of daylight this time of year have their advantages, but it was impossible to maintain anything close to a normal bed time for the kids.

The roof is ready for summer!

Earlier this month we finished building our four roof planters, complete with automatic irrigation.  Jack set up the irrigation, which is programmed on a smart phone app and is smart enough to water less when it has rained.  The plants we moved from pots to planters seem much happier.  We also got a table and have really enjoyed sitting up on the roof, especially at sunset and later in the evening.

We also busted out some drywall to open up access to the cat door to the roof.  The kittens, who are now one year old, are figuring it out and really enjoying the outdoor time.

The next roof projects are building planters around the outside boundary and fixing up our free barbecue. 

Iron Springs again

We spent Mother’s day weekend at Iron Springs Resort on the coast again.  This time my sister and brother-in-law joined us for the first time and Jack’s extended family actually wasn’t there, due to a conflicting work party up at the family property.    We had pretty good weather, with one day where the fog didn’t lift until about 1 pm.    On the way home we visited Jack’s grandma and then took the Bremerton ferry back to Seattle.  Even though we missed the boat we were aiming for, it beat sitting in traffic on way home on a hot day.