Halloween 2009

Well, since Katie was dressing up as a Dalmation for Halloween, I just couldn't resist dressing up as Cruella de Ville! So, I ordered a wig online and made a cape with a big collar. Underneath the cape, I just wore all black. It came together nicely! Regina dressed up as Sponge Bob Square Pants and of course was very popular with the kids. She handed out candy while Katie and I did the neighborhood. There were tons of kids out. Lots more than last year and I thought it was crazy last year!

Halloween at Briarwood

We dressed up and visited Betty this afternoon to participate in the costume contest they were hosting. It was a small, informal event, but fun. We took Lucy along with us and she wore a Dalmation cape I made for her!

Getting Ready for Halloween

Here are some pictures of Katie in her Dalmation costume. She's totally into everything DOG right now, so this is the perfect costume for her. Notice the jack-o-lanterns Katie and Regina carved.

Pumpkin Shopping at Fall City Farms

Katie, Regina and I spent some time at Fall City Farms today looking for the perfect pumpkins for carving. The weather cooperated and we enjoyed exploring. Here are some pictures:

12-Week-Old Lucy

Katie is completely in love with her new puppy, Lucy. She's a Yorki-Poo, which is a Yorksire Terrier/Poodle mix. Here she is at 12 weeks old!

Betty's New Home (for now, anyway)

Regina's Mom, Betty, is currently residing at a rehab center near our home in the Seattle area where she is recovering from her June 2009 stroke. Here are some pictures of this beautiful facility. It is also a retirement community and I wouldn't mind retiring here at all!

Here is a nice big deck on the main floor of the retirement center.
The health center, where Betty is staying, is 2 floors above this.

Katie and her Grandma out on the deck.

Another shot of the girls.

This is the main area of the deck.
Behind it is the lobby and main entrance to the retirement center.

Main lobby area.

There is a full bar where residents can gather with friends for drinks.

They also have a restaurant for dinner.

And a cafe for lunch.

On the health center level where Betty's room is located,
they offer this private dining area where patients can enjoy a meal
with their family and/or friends.

Betty's Recovery Update

You may remember that Regina's Mom, Betty, suffered a massive stroke on June 10, 2009. On Labor Day weekend, she was discharged from the hospital in Waynesboro, VA where she lived at the time of the stroke. Still unable to walk, talk or take care of herself, she required 24-hour nursing care and physical rehabilitation therapies, so we brought her out here to Portland where she was admitted to Avamere Rehabilitation of King City. Well, when Regina got laid off and we made the decision to return to Seattle, obviously we had to also move Betty.

Fortunately, we found Briarwood Health Center which is close to home and provides excellent healthcare and stroke rehabilitation services. We were very fortunate that a bed just happened to open up the day we toured the facility, so we jumped on the opportunity to claim it.

Katie's "2nd" First Day of Kindergarten

This is turning out to be a time of transition for us, the most recent development being our move back to Seattle from Portland. Regina got laid off from her job that had required her to relocate to Portland. Our housing there was a rental and our house here in Seattle didn't sell, so we are now back in our home in the Seattle area! She'll look for employment here so we don't have to worry about selling the house and moving.

Fortunately, we were able to get Katie admitted into Chestnut Hill Academy in Bellevue. Last winter, we had applied there (as well as to Catlin Gable in Portland) just in case we ended up back here. And here we are! Katie's first day was Monday, October 5. She missed about a month of classes here, but it shouldn't be a problem. Although we LOVED Catlin Gable and will miss being part of their community, we are very pleased with our choice of school here. We had toured it last year during an open house and discovered it is an amazing school.