Rock Star

Oh. My. Goodness.

A Serious Bond

Have you met Vinnie? He's our dog in cat's clothing. And is he ever bonded to Stella. Oh my. The girls actually refer to him as their brother and I often find Stella taking an impromptu nap with Sir Vincenzo on the couch. (Stella is just waking up in that photo.) And Stella is more than tolerant when Vinnie insists on sitting in her chair with her as she eats breakfast each morning. Life wouldn't be the same without our little man. 

The Many Faces of Three

Oh, three. 

Perhaps three is the age that starts to define parents. Challenges them. Nudges them toward really living out their parenting philosophy. 

Or perhaps three is a whole lot of serious giggles and deep breaths. 

In any case, there are many faces to three. And this time around, Brian and I are much calmer and more collected when faced with, ahem, the passion of a three year old. And really, Phoebe is such a delightful and gentle soul most of the time, it's a relief of sorts to see a little rage creep in here and there. 

And yes, it's been six months since my last post. Time is a wily bugger these days!

90

Great Grandpa Paul celebrated his 90th birthday last weekend and the whole Bressler clan drove down to Vancouver to help celebrate. It was a whirlwind tour (sorry to have missed you, Vancouver and Portland friends!), but it was well worth the trek. 

Here's Mandy chatting with Paul and Peggy.

Here's part of the gang catching up and reconnecting. (It was so nice to meet everyone!)

Here's Harte giving a thoughtful toast to the Birthday Boy.

And here's Phoebe with a bucket on her head. 

Oh, and here's Ryland and Stella wrestling IN the bucket. 

Ah. Buckets are rad.

Here's Brian chilling in the sun (sans bucket).

And here's a crazy hotel chicken. 

Happy Birthday, Grandpa Paul! We love you!

To the Cabin

A few weekends ago, our beloved Aunt Mandy and Uncle Jeff (Brian's fabulous sister and her wonderful husband) graciously invited us to their family cabin on Lake Tyee near Baker Lake. Besides learning a whole lot about beavers, teeny frogs and swim noodles, we loved just eating and hanging out together. The girls adore their aunt, uncle and pupster cousin Lucy, so they were thrilled to play in the sweet little cabin. And the adults had a blast catching up, playing games and laughing way too hard. 

Thanks, Mandy, Jeff and Lucy, for such a lovely and relaxing weekend. Thanks for loving our girls so openly and for feeding us so deliciously! We love you!

Kindergarten

Stella started Kindergarten this month. 

Wow. 

Kindergarten. 

It's an honor to watch you grow, Scout. You rock our world!

Summer Sledding

Over Labor Day weekend, we headed to Mount Baker for some summer sledding. Our dear buds, Leah and Nali joined us and we had a dreamy "last day of summer" experience from start to finish. 

 Happy girls in the snow. 

And now that Stella and Phoebe are certified hikers, we took a little stroll up Artist's Point to explore the miniature tarns and the stunning views of Shuksan and Baker.  (I kept chuckling to myself that this is our girls' playground essentially. Their "backyard" is undeniably one of the most stunning places on earth. Lucky lucky.)

Phoebe prefers to run up trails. 

Happy family.