Author: freeheelvegan

HIKING: CASTLE ROCK
MAR 06 (2020)

My parents were in town, and Todd was in school, so we hiked to the top of Castle Rock (Wenatchee, WA). Here are some family pictures!

AGE 5, MONTH 6
JAN 21 – FEB 20 (2020)

HOME ENTERTAINMENT

• Todd insisted that we needed to go to Chipotle and go for a hike, so we went outside for a short walk instead (this was after dark, late in the evening)
• Working on his zombie book, “Zombie Good Luck” (this ended up being 8 pages of drawing & writing); he writes some words from right to left & mirrored
• Playing outside with the soccer ball
• Playing the keyboard & ukulele & harmonica
• Building with Legos (i.e., ski slope)
• He made an armband/note for his classmate (Ceci) that was really sweet
• Todd said:
  • “I’ll be fine”
  • He used the word, “likely” appropriately

FUN ACTIVITIES

• Open gym @ Apple Valley Gymnastics 4x; he practiced his daffy & straddle jumps
• After the gym, we go to Ice for non-dairy sorbetto
• Globe trotters @ the Toyota Town Center (2/4); Todd wasn’t too interested but he saw some friends from preschool/kinder there
• Playing at Eastmont park (2/17)
• He really wanted a Seahawks shirt at Safeway & they had one on sale that fit him

TRIP TO SEATTLE

• See post, “Vegan Dining: Seattle (February 2020)“
• We drove to Seattle on 2/15, stayed at an Airbnb overnight, then returned home 2/16. The occasion was Ken’s retirement party.
• Dining out: No Bones Beach Club, Mighty-O & Sweet Alchemy (2/15); Wayward Vegan Cafe (2/16)

KINDERGARTEN

• No school on 1/21
• Todd got a “SMART card” at music for “Always Follow Directions” (1/22)
• Ski PE day at Mission Ridge (1/24)
• Todd stayed home due to a mild fever the day before (1/31)
• At home he readily practiced making ‘w’ then wanted to draw & color (this is such a new development for him!)
• ‘Muffins with Mom’ before school (2/12)
• He sings songs from music after he gets home
• Valentine party at school (2/14)

SKIING – MISSION RIDGE

• See post, “Ski Videos (Age 5, Month 6)“
• Not including night skiing, the 3 of us skied together 3x
• Night skiing (2/13); we were treated to a magic trick in the Hampton lodge!
• Todd’s first time skiing lower Chak Chak (2/13)
• Sebastian, Levi & Elizabeth skied with us for 2 runs (1/26)
• Eric & I skied together (best ski date!) when I had the day off, but Todd had school (1/27)
• I got first tracks down Chute 2 on a powder day (YES!!) when Todd & Eric went to the lodge (2/8)
• Todd skied runs on chairs 1, 2 & 4 this month
• He skied top to bottom under chair 2 (off piste!) (2/8)
• He skied Lemolo (double diamond run!) (2/9)
• He did 3 runs on chair 2 in one day (2/9)
• He said: “I like killed the ski area” (after Eric told him that ‘he killed it’ under chair 2)

HIKING – SQUILCHUCK STATE PARK

• Todd insisted that we go hiking after a day of skiing, so we went to Squilchuck (2/8)

FOOD

• Todd ate baked beans (“sugar beans”)
• He tried a radish & said he liked it
• He asks for “junk food” & he asks if certain things are “superfood”
• Dining out: Ice (4x); El Porton (1/26, with Sebastian & family); Aye Caramba (2/4; PTL meeting); Glaze bakery (2/17)

HEALTH & NIGHT TIME

• Todd was mildly feverish (1/30)
• Before bed he likes reading his book “Zombie Good Luck” (until he gave it away to his friend Reid, at school)
• He falls asleep with his arms over his head & says “put your hand on my tummy” or else he turns on his side to fall asleep & says “put your hand on my hip” (I leave his room after he falls asleep)
• He’s been waking up & going to Eric’s bed at night
• He said:
  • “I learned a hard lesson” (about running with his hands in his pockets)
  • “I just learned another lesson” (in the bathtub… but I didn’t see what happened)

SUNDAY, JANUARY 26

Todd leads us off-piste (Chair 1)…

Fresh powder on the flat section…

Todd practices his pole work and says, “I’m coming in hot! I’m coming in hot!”

Todd dropped into his signature run (‘Lower Rd’) from Summer Rd. Eric filmed from above while I filmed from below…

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8

Off-piste on Chair 2, Todd said, “Are you kidding me, Dada? This is the steepest slope!”

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 9

Todd skis under Chair 2 right at the top…

Todd skiing down Bomber Bowl (Chair 2)…

After a break at Midway (lodge), Todd agreed to his first run down Lemolo (his first double diamond run!)…

Even though the snow on this slope was pretty sun-affected by about noon, Todd still insisted on dropping into Lower Road.

AGE 5, MONTH 6
FEB 15 – FEB 16 (2020)

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15

We drove to Seattle in the early afternoon, and stopped for an early dinner at No Bones Beach Club (Ballard, WA). We had to wait a little while to get a table (this vegan restaurant is very popular, but its seating capacity isn’t very high), so we slipped into Mighty-O Donuts for vegan donuts. Mighty-O shares the interior space with Sweet Alchemy, so I sprung for a scoop of vegan ice cream, too!

At No Bones Beach Club, I ordered a very spicy margarita. {Something I wouldn’t necessarily repeat!} Eric ordered a refreshing beverage (a mojito?) and the Buffalo Tempeh Sando. We split the Coastal Chowder, which was excellent! {I took a picture of Eric’s food and a sandwich that I didn’t order. After I photographed it and started to dive in, I realized the mistake! It was (unfortunately) sent back.}

What I did order was the Sweet Pineapple & Soy Curl Sizzling Lettuce Cups. This was so good! It was a great choice. Todd ate fries (and we ate his fries, too).

After the meal, we checked into our airbnb (house) and got things settled before heading to the Wedgwood Ale House.

The occasion? A retirement party for our very good friend, Ken. {Oops, no pictures of the event!}

In our ‘pre-Todd’ era, Eric and I did loads of super fun mountain biking with Ken! Here are a few pictures of us, with Ken.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 16

This morning, we met Ken and Daisy for breakfast at Wayward Vegan Cafe. I ordered the Garden Benedict…

“Grilled “eggy” tofu slices, fresh spinach, creamy pesto, zesty bruschetta mix, avocado and parmesan on top of a grilled English muffin, covered with cashew hollandaise and cheddar cheese sauce. Served with seasoned flowering kale.”

Todd loved his mac ‘n cheese! {Of course, everything at Wayward is vegan!}

And…right after the fabulous meal (and company!)–

Todd ran on the sidewalk, toward the car, with his hands in his pockets. Splat! Ouch! Fortunately, the wound was pretty superficial. He fell asleep shortly after this picture was taken, and was basically fine after he woke up. He admitted that he learned a “hard lesson”!

AGE 5, MONTH 5
DEC 21 (2019) – JAN 20 (2020)

TODD SAID…

• “Never mind”
• He said he wanted to paint on our walls so he could train to be a worker building houses
• “What? Are you out of your mind?” quoting the ‘funny kid show’ (i.e., YouTube videos of funny/painful mishaps)

HOME ENTERTAINMENT

• Favorite shows: Mighty Pups, Secret Life of Pets 2
• Todd drew pictures of Eric and a chicken (separate pictures!) with the Magnadoodle, and he wrote “Spiderman to the” before getting upset that he ran out of room to write more letters (12/21)
• Drawing on his magnadoodle or on paper
• He’s initiating writing/drawing so much more (i.e., he made a numbered Christmas list writing the words Minecraft boots, Hot Wheels, ball and coat)
• He likes to sign his name “Toddeo”
• He made a painting & wanted to put it up in his room
• Setting up his Lego “Minecraft City”
• Todd & Eric worked & played outside during a snowstorm (1/15)
• Building with Legos (our own police headquarters)
• Reading kinder level “Bob” books with just a little help (i.e., Sight Words, First Stories)

CHRISTMAS 2019

• See post, “Christmas 2019“
• We drove to Bend, OR on 12/22 & drove home on 12/28

NEW YEARS DAY

• We visited our rental house & met our renter; then we visited Eric’s parents (Todd’s Grammie & Granddad), brother (Jeff), and Todd’s cousins (Kylie & Adam)
• See post, “New Year’s Day 2020“

KINDERGARTEN & FUN ACTIVITIES

• Todd started going to kindergarten full days instead of half days (1/06)
• Open gym @ Apple Valley Gymnastics (1x)
• 1st time being able to get on the rope swing by himself

SKIING – MISSION RIDGE

• See post, “Ski Videos (Age 5, Month 5)“
• 1st time night skiing (1/2)
• Not including night skiing, the 3 of us skied together 8x
• We did runs on chairs 1 & 4
• Todd needs the chair slow to load but he’s trying to jump up on it.
• On 12/21 we saw Elias from Todd’s class & skied 3 runs with him
• He started skiing off piste off Summer Rd (see videos!)
• We bought Todd a set of poles; he said “I’m so excited to try my first set of poles”
• 1^st time skiing with poles (1/19)
• Playing on the snow slope & snowball fights

FOOD NOTES & OTHER

• His Goppa consumption is still way down but we got new spouts & that increased it a bit
• Todd ate raw spinach & Grandma’s mac ‘n cheez (12/23)
• He likes making a clicking sound with his tongue
• Todd helped me make mango coconut cookies & then he really wanted to make his own creation with strawberries & tofu
• Dining out: El Porton (1/16), Ice (1/20)

SKI VIDEOS
AGE 5, MONTH 5
DEC 21 (2019) – JAN 20 (2020)

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21

We saw Elias from Todd’s class and skied 3 runs with him and his dad. Sweet! Todd followed Elias down the terrain park off Mimi (where Todd doesn’t typically ski)…

THURSDAY, JANUARY 2

This was our first time night skiing at Mission Ridge! We split a bean burger in the Hampton lodge.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 11

Todd started skiing off-piste runs with great interest this month! This is off Summer Rd, Chair 1.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 18

Powder day!

SUNDAY, JANUARY 19

After skiing on January 18th, we bought Todd a set of poles. He said, “I’m so excited to try my first set of poles!” He skied with them for the first time today.

Todd missed his ‘drop-in’ spot off Summer Rd and insisted that he needed to hike back up for it. He named this run ‘Lower Road’.

NEW YEAR’S DAY 2020
AGE 5 MONTH 5
JAN 1 (2020)

During the second week of Winter break we scheduled a day trip to see Eric’s family on Camano Island, WA. On the way, we visited our rental house, in Marysville, to check on the status of our landscaping. While poking around from the sidewalk/grass our renter waved from her living room chair, so I decided to knock on the door. We introduced ourselves and explained why we were there. She was delighted to invite us in to chat and show us around. Since I’d taken a picture of Todd on the new carpet on ‘moving day’ back in 2016, I jumped at the opportunity to take an updated photo!

We arrived at Grammie and Granddad’s house. Uncle Jeff (Eric’s brother) lives there, too. Later on, Cousins Kylie and Adam showed up. It was a great visit, and something we need to do more often!

CHRISTMAS 2019
AGE 5 MONTH 5
DEC 22 – DEC 28 (2019)

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22

We drove to Bend, OR, making our (new normal) stops at Burger King and Burgerville in The Dalles, OR. {Impossible Whoppers, fries, play break @ BK; Bliss shake @ Burgerville}. In the evening, Todd practiced his strong moves while watching American Ninja Warrior. Before bed, he drew a Dr. Seuss-like car on his Magnadoodle.

MONDAY, DECEMBER 23

When we visit my parents, Todd always loves play-fighting with Grandpa! He cracked us up eating his romaine lettuce like a savage.

In late morning we went to the Juniper Swim & Fitness Center. I did the water class with Grandma & Grandpa, while Todd played in the kid’s pool. At one point, they had to clear the kid pool, so Todd got to join me in the shallow end of the regular pool. Next up, we had some non-dairy sorbetto at Bonta (and did some Christmas shopping!).

Next, we went to the movie theater to see Frozen 2. It was great! Back at the house, Grandma made homemade mac ‘n cheez for dinner.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 24 – CHRISTMAS EVE

On Christmas eve morning Eric and Todd went to the Sun Mountain Fun Center. This was Todd’s first time on a bumper car!

Nana and Grampy (Jason’s parents) hosted dinner this year. Keeping with tradition, Nana bought the cousins matching elf shirts to wear. Ashley was the princess elf, Eli was the gamer elf, and Todd was the cute elf. It was an opportunity to take some group family photos. As usual, we had lasagna for dinner.

After dinner, Grandma played songs on the ukulele and Grandpa opened his birthday presents.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 25 – CHRISTMAS

On Christmas morning I told Todd that it was Christmas morning time, and he said he knew it. He asked if everyone could open their presents, and he said, “And even Grandma can open her pan. And it’s so heavy.” [That cracked me up! He was talking about a cast iron pan 😀 ]

Interestingly, he wasn’t in a hurry to go to Karin’s house. His mind was on everyone else opening their presents, rather than opening his own presents.

Of course, once he saw the presents under the tree that all changed!

Karin and Jason hosted Christmas dinner.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 26

Eric did some go-kart racing at K-1 Speed. He placed first in both his heats! Todd posed on the podium for him!

We went out for Mexican food at El Rodeo. The adults ordered a round of Cadillac margaritas. I was sitting at the end of the booth with Todd on my right and Karin on his right. I was passing Karin’s margarita toward her, but Todd thought it was meant for him. Before we knew it, he took a swig from the straw. Needless to say, Todd immediately found out it was not apple juice and I felt like a terrible mom! [But now we all laugh retelling the story!]

After the meal, we watched some Christmas Vacation on TV, and Todd wanted lots of tickles.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27

We did some shopping at Village Baker (to get Todd some more bread) and Savory Spice Shop (to stock up on Indian spices). Todd played at the park on the way back home. We made some Indian food for dinner.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 28

We drove home, stopping in the Dalles once again.

AGE 5, MONTH 4
NOV 21 – DEC 20 (2019)

TODD SAID…

• “It’s gonna suck to go. It’s gonna really suck.” (talking about going home after visiting Grandma/Grandpa)
• “Mom” or “Dad” (sometimes…instead of mama and dada)
• Todd hums the Star Wars Duel of Fates tune all the time
• Singing into the microphone: (i.e., “Daytona,” by Chris Rea & “Jet,” by Paul McCartney & Wings

THANKSGIVING

• We went to Bend, OR to visit my family for the long weekend (11/27 – 12/1)
• See post, “Thanksgiving 2019“

HOME & OUTSIDE ENTERTAINMENT

• Phone games: Tomb of the Mask, Rescue Cut, Mr Go Home
• Books: The Mr. Books series (we cracked up reading Mr. Skinny and Mr. Jelly…“Oh calamity!”)
• Open gym @ Apple Valley Gymnastics (11/23; playing hide & seek)
• Building a Lego Minecraft treehouse from downloaded instructions (11/24)
• Playing Atari Maze Craze (he tries to be the winner)
• Painting his super hero figures
• Wrapping Christmas presents (he loved helping with cutting the paper, managing the tape, sticking the tags on, and getting things from around the house to wrap up for specific people)
• Making a gingerbread house (12/15)
• Helping me make chocolate chip cookies (he didn’t like them!)
• Setting up Blokus pieces to ‘trap monsters’
• Opening an early Christmas present from Grammie: Lego Killer Croc Tail-Gator set

KINDERGARTEN

• There was no school on the day before Thanksgiving (11/27)
• Todd was Student of the Month for November, so we were invited to chapel on 12/3 for presentation of his award: “This kindergartener has been working really hard to make good choices and do his best work. He is kind and eager, always ready to go no matter what we are doing. He is learning sight words quickly and loves to help his friends learn them too. He’s made great progress in being a SMART Crusader! Way to go, Todd!”
• See post, “Kindergarten Student of the Month“
• Holiday performance (12/8); Todd really participated well this time & it seemed like he had a great time!
• Field trip: Holiday singing at the courthouse (12/9)
• Todd received a “SMART” card for doing good work at school (12/16)
• Holiday party at school (12/19; full day)
• Full day at school for the last day before winter break (movie afternoon) (12/20)

SKIING – MISSION RIDGE

• We skied 3x (12/8, 12/14, 12/15)
• Elisa rode with Todd on Chair 1 for the 1^st time (12/8)
• On 12/8 we did 7 runs on Chair 1 (Mimi)
• Todd’s improving with his turns, working on bringing the skis together at then end
• When he wants to go fast, I can’t keep up with him on the groomers!
• He still loves eating snow & playing on the snow slope

HEALTH & OTHER

• He likes to point out words that he can read in books
• He tried to sound out “Han Solo” in his Star Wars book
• We started teaching him to wipe his own tooshie (12/8)
• He randomly told me before falling asleep that he wants to be a mailman when he grows up…but only for 2 days.

FOOD NOTES & DINING OUT

• He got a Pizza Hut ‘free pizza coupon’ for his reading log at school
• Dining out: El Agave (12/16; Elisa only..work party!)

KINDERGARTEN STUDENT OF THE MONTH
AGE 5, MONTH 4
DEC 3 (2019)

In November we received an exciting email!

“Todd has been chosen as November student of the month and will receive his award at chapel on Tuesday December 3. Chapel begins at 8:30 if you would like to join us. He does not know about this.”

We showed up before chapel started and got to see Todd in the lobby area, playing with his class. He didn’t seem to think it was strange that both Eric and I were there!