Tofu & Croquet

If you look closely at this picture, you might see Noel's head. Between the two trees there, he's in the grass, playing croquet by himself. Don't worry, Jason, Aric, Jared and Adam eventually joined him for the "Gentleman's Game" as Jared called it. We were at Jared and Damie's house for a Spring Break BBQ with Jared's homemade tofu burgers. It was relaxing; we sat on blankets and talked and enjoyed our food...Kayla even liked the burgers (I broke off a few small pieces of the tofu and let her eat them).

Obsession

Last night we went to ShopKo to pick up a couple of things and check the price of diapers. We'd been cooped up in the house all day and wanted to get out but couldn't spend a lot of money. So since we needed a few things anyway we went "out" to ShopKo. I know, the things we do in a small town for fun on Saturday nights. Anyway, we browsed a bit after we'd picked up what we went there for, and somehow ended up in the game aisle. We saw a game we'd played and enjoyed with Lorin and Katrina over Christmas, Blokus Trigon, and the next thing I know it's in the cart. It's not like Jason to make impulsive purchases, so I looked up, surprised. It was on clearance for $8. We'd looked online for it before and couldn't find it for under $25. So we bought it. That meant that all day today we played Blokus Trigon. During Kayla's afternoon nap Jason and I played a couple of times and then we decided to try and fit every single piece on the board. Here he is trying to get the last few pieces on. I'd already given up. It is quite difficult!

Pretty in Pink

We had Summer and Michael over for lunch and games this afternoon, and while we were enjoying a card game I got out some chocolates we'd gotten in a gift exchange over Christmas. They were all packaged fancy and looked delicious so I figured offering them to guests was an opportune time to try them out. Part of the packaging was a bright pink bow around the top. Summer took it off and tied it around Raina's neck. She looked so purty! (And the chocolates weren't very good, by the way.)

Watchin' the Game

Tonight Jason is watching the baseball playoff game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Kayla wanted to participate, so we set her up in the Boppy and she settled right in and relaxed watching the game. She did really well supporting her head, and sat there for a good 5-7 minutes. She's doing a lot better with sitting/laying in one position/place for longer periods of time. She doesn't like reclining as much...she always tries to pull herself up so she's sitting up straight. She's determined to sit up! It's fun to watch her develop. Today she also laughed for the first time. It was adorable, and I tried to get her to do it again so Daddy could hear it, but alas...she would not. Most likely she won't do it again for another week or two, though that won't stop us from trying!

Note: The photo quality is poor because I took it with my phone, not my camera.

An Afternoon With the Family

Today Jason's parents came over for the afternoon/evening, and they brought his little sister, Whitney, and her husband, Rolie. We had lunch together after church, and then napped/talked/passed Kayla around, and then this evening we played some games and ate delicious pizza from Papa Murphy's. They left around 10 p.m. It was a great afternoon!

Here's Nana playing a game while balancing a sleeping baby at the same time. Kayla slept for four hours starting around 6:15, which was a BAD idea because then she now won't go to sleep at all. Fortunately we have a movie to watch: "Chicken Run." Hopefully we won't be up too late trying to get her to sleep so we can go to bed.

And finally, the first photo of Kayla with her Papa Jack. This was the first time he'd met her, and she just slept comfortably in his arms the entire time. He had to fight Nana for a chance to hold her, though! Notice the hair colour similarity between Kayla and Papa? It certainly runs in the family!

Last Time For a While

Tonight our brother-in-law, Lorin, came over to play some games after dinner. We haven't seen him in a few weeks, and he was here in town staying with his parents and visiting friends while he waited for his wife, Jason's sister, Katrina, to finish up her 2-week class at University of Oregon in Eugene. Tomorrow evening they'll meet up at the train station in Pasco and head to their new home in Indiana. We're all sad they're moving so far away, but this is where God led them, and it's probably the best place for them to be right now. Hopefully we'll see them at Christmas. In this picture, Jason is showing Lorin his nerdy-ness on Google Earth. Lorin was so interested because he wanted to see if Jason's nerdy-ness outdid his own. I'd say it probably did.

Also, I decided it was time to go on a "clean out the cobwebs" rampage around the house. Here's what I found in the living room window tonight:

Dessert & Dancing

Tonight we went over for our second regular Game Night with the Lees. Yes, it needs a title such as that. Because it is super fun and definitely something to be remembered. We had dinner first, which was delicious and healthy: Lentil Nut Roast, a wonderful veggie-ful salad, and amazing bread. Mmmm! Then, Summer pulled out all the stops and brought forth the most decadent dessert I'd seen in months: Cherry Cheesecake. Oh man. SO yummy. I had to take a picture to remember it always.

After dinner we played a couple of games: Word Blur, Loaded Questions, and Scattergories. It was a lot of fun. Around 9 p.m. I started feeling super tired, so we decided to head home. But not before Summer and Michael entertained us with their mad dancing skills. (Believe me, it's better than Michael's Monkey Dance.)

A Late Night

Tonight Jason and I paid a long overdue visit to our wonderful friends Summer and Michael. We got to enjoying game nights together last year, but then they left for Thailand as missionaries for a year, and this only our second time getting together with them since they returned in December. Scheduling just never worked out. This time, however, we've planned ahead and will be getting together with them more regularly.

On the way home from their apartment, Jason commented that there are just "some people who are always happy and positive and fun, and just plain good people. They make you feel like a better person for having spent time with them. Summer and Michael are that way." He's right. We're so lucky to have them as friends.

Here we are, playing "Puerto Rico" and thoroughly enjoying ourselves (it was a bonus that Summer made DELICIOUS apple pie).

It's About Time

Jason and I took a brief hiatus from playing games during May. We'd been playing them a lot, and we got a little tired of them. Tonight, separate of each other, we decided we should start up again. So we pulled out "Agricola," a super fun, super spendy game that we splurged on this winter after hunting for it in several stores (we finally found it in a tiny game store in Boise). It's been so long since we used the strategic part of our brains that we both found ourselves making stupid mistakes throughout the game. "Argh!" was a common exclamation.

In this game, you try to grow your family and grow your farm, including fields, pastures, stables, animals, and rooms in your house. You can build stoves/ovens, dig a well, turn your field's harvest or animals into food, and more. With two people who know how to play it generally takes 2 hours to play. Great for a Sabbath evening!

Just for the record, I beat Jason 38-27. Perhaps we should take a break from games more often!