Month: November 2012

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Thanks Giving

It was our second Thanks Giving day in America and this year we thought we’d move away from the traditional American experience.

After a day of presents for all, roast pork, watching the Macy’s parade and game playing I decided that we ought to go for a walk and get a bit of fresh air. This met with multiple objections from all people in the house. The only way to get them to agree to leave the house was if they could all go for the walk in their pj’s.

So off we went in pj’s, boots and coats:

We drove round to Timberlake park and walked down to the lake. It was a lovely calm evening after several days of rain and the water looked so still and inviting that Toby and Tracy were both tempted to go for a swim. Toby took his coat off ready to swim but then changed his mind.

As it started to get dark we went back to the car so that we didn’t get attacked by wild bears, raccoons and beavers. Fortunately we got home ok and then settled down for a nice relaxing evening of TV and stinky smells! That’s brussel sprouts for you!

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Piano Boy

A few weeks ago Toby and Harry started piano lessons on Wednesday mornings before school. They like their music in America with school bands, marching bands and all sorts so the boys have clearly caught the bug.

After a couple of lessons they decided to invest some of their birthday money, money fron Aunts and Uncles, winnings from tomato competitions and pocket money, in a keyboard so they could practice at home. Luckily Tracy found a keyboard that was a bargain and, more importantly, came with headphones!

They have both been practicing the songs they learn in the lessons as well as trying to do the national anthem. They have no music sheet for the national anthem, they are just guessing. It’s not going too well! What is going well though are the following:

Mary had a little lamb:

httpv://youtu.be/5es7mqvAQ2M

Twinkle, twinkle little star:

httpv://youtu.be/Gauned8_7No

The good news is that they are under instruction to create a Christmas day show. Can’t wait for that!

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Soccer!

It had been a weekend full of soccer. Friday night was training up at the highlands for Toby which wears me out as I walk round and round the pitch for an hour and a half while he plays! Then on Saturday morning it was an hour and a half north up the I-5 for a Gunners match in Burlington. Unfortunately it was another defeat but as the coaches keep stressing, it is a development year for the boys, playing against older, bigger, stronger boys and we will hopefully see the benefits next season. Hopefully!

Sunday morning we had to set the alarm and be back up at the highlands at 8am for the Gunners second match of the weekend. This time it was against another Gunners team in the same division but under 11’s rather than 10’s. In the most miserable rain and high winds the younger Gunners roared into a 2-0 lead against the older Gunners. It stayed that way until half time but, unfortunately, it was a game of two halves because the younger Gunners tired again and let 3 goals in in the second half. A very close game but unfortunately another loss.

The excitement will come in the last game of the season when Gunners take on arch enemies Cascade FC. These two teams are tied on points in second and third from bottom of the table. The Gunners are currently third from bottom and outside the relegation places so it is a winner takes all game on the 1st December – will Tracy be able to take the stress?

With that game over there was just time to take a break before Toby had to go to Arena Sports in Redmond for his inside soccer. For the first 2 weeks Toby had seemed to struggle a little with the whole concept of indoor soccer and the ball bouncing off the walls. This week though it obviously started to click. The Scorpions won 8-2 and Toby scored 4 – so finally we got a win in our weekend soccer bonanza!

After all that we only had one more game to go and this time all we had to do was watch. Seattle Sounders had their best ever season and qualified for the Western Conference final against LA Galaxy. Unfortunately the Sounders had got thrashed 3-0 in LA last week and so our hopes were not too high. After getting comfortable in our club seats, Tracy went to ogle David Beckham while I sat with the boys and they stuffed their faces with pizza.

httpv://youtu.be/mS35kX4S7_c

With national anthems and ceremonies out the way we waited and hoped for a miracle. For the first hour it looked like we may get it as Sounders were winning 2-0 and definitely the better team. Then the ref got involved and gave LA a penalty and it all petered out into a nothingy sort of game. Sounders lost 2-1 and the season was over – which is probably a good thing as we are over dosing on soccer at the moment – poor old Tracy!

 

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Ferris Wheel

It opened earlier this year but despite a long, sunny summer we still hadn’t made it to the Seattle Wheel – until today! We woke to our first big frost of the winter. It had already started on the Friday evening up at the Highlands where Toby had his soccer training and it clearly continued all night because it almost looked like snow when we woke this morning. Jack Frost had been very busy.

As we lay in bed watching the local news, the news reader told everyone to make the most of today because although cold it was going to be sunny. So we decided to get up and head to Seattle to the wheel.

We got over there just ahead of opening so the queue wasn’t too bad at all. Harry and Toby desperately wanted us to go in the VIP capsule of the wheel but at a cost of $50 per person we decided against that. After a short wait we were sat in our pod ready to go. At this point both boys decided that actually they were scared and weren’t sure if they wanted to go round on the wheel after all. Good job we didn’t go for the VIP pod as that had a glass bottom – that would have really scared them!!

 

The pod was heated to a lovely temperature inside and the weather outside was beautiful and with that three circuits of the wheel began. The views were fantastic. There were ferries, mountains, stadiums, containers, the aquarium, the Space Needle, seals in the water – everything!

Having overcome their fear of the wheel they didn’t really want to get off. Particularly Toby who “loved it”. After leaving the wheel we decided to take a walk up to the market – although we did stop briefly for a picture or two. Can you spot Toby in the first one? The sun was too bright for him apparently!

After a tour of the market and local map shop we set off to the cool part of Seattle – Capitol Hill. It may be the hip hop happening part of town but it was a bit grubby for us and full of weirdos! On the plus side it did have a frame shop so I can now hang my birthday presents up once I have framed them up correctly.

With Harry having a soccer match in the afternoon it was soon time to head back home. As we drove through the back streets of Seattle Toby announced, “you probably won’t believe me, but I think I just saw Barack Obama’s mum”.

It’s amazing what you get to see when you spend a morning in Seattle!

More pictures here…