The Adventures of Brandt

Gruppo Carlson

2009-07-23T23:30:00.000-07:00

Read newer posts on our new family blog.

Big Brother!

2009-07-23T23:00:00.000-07:00

The baby has finally arrived! Rijder Gene Carlson was born at 10:26pm, weighing 8 pounds, and measuring 20.25 inches long. More details to come. Yippee!!!

Matthews Beach

2009-07-20T23:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the crappy iPhone picture, but it's the best we've got. Still no new baby so we met some friends at Matthews Beach today. It's freshwater, but there's sand and a lifeguard so I guess that's what qualifies it as a beach.

Kidical Mass Green Lake

2009-07-17T23:00:00.000-07:00

I thought yesterday's bike ride to the park was my last ride for a while, but still no new baby so we joined the Kidical Mass ride this evening. It was nearby (met in Wallingford and rode to Green Lake) so it wasn't much effort, compared to the previous Ballard ones.

Our Totcycle hosts promised Mighty-O donuts to the group and due to a mixup at the shop, only got part of the order before the ride. Since we had the empty Burley, we volunteered to pick up the rest of the donuts and transport them to the park. Why they'd trust a hugely pregnant woman with a bunch of free donuts is beyond me. Plus, we had to ride right by our house so it would have been very easy to make off with the goodies. The original plan was to swim in the lake at the west beach, but we ended up at the wading pool (yet again) instead and ate healthy dinners before breaking out the donuts.

Wading Pool

2009-07-16T23:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe this is our first wading pool picture on the blog--we've been so many times. This was our first morning visit, though. It stays hot and light until late so we usually come over after nap. Apparently the water is colder in the morning, but I just sit in the shade and let Brandt do his thing so I don't have to get wet. It was only half-filled today, if you think it looks more like a shuffling pool than a wading pool. The city is conserving water by only filling it full on the busiest days. It's a pretty organized operation: they only open it on days the forecast is above 70 and they drain it nightly and slightly chlorinate it and clean it hourly.

The gal in the background is one of Brandt's swim teachers. She was waiting for him to turn around to see if it was indeed Brandt because she recognized his outfit. I was embarrassed to think he'd worn the same swim outfit to class yesterday, but phew, he didn't. Speaking of swim class, yesterday was our last day. Some of us wrangled life jackets onto our little guys and took them down the big slide in the main pool. Brandt enjoyed climbing all the stairs up the slide and the winding ride down, but did not like plunging into the cold water. I asked if he wanted to go again and he signed "all done" and ran back to the little warm pool.

Bradner Gardens Park

2009-07-14T23:00:00.000-07:00

My original plan of staying home with a four-day-old baby was not to be today so Brandt and I met some friends out at Bradner Gardens Park. As nice as the planty parts are, the tiling in the bathroom is even cooler. Brandt's favorite part was the big broom for sweeping out the gazebo. Of course he swept pebbles into the picnic area rather than crumbs out, but he'll be a neat freak like his father in no time--the foundation is there.

In the afternoon we went for a pedicure to see if they could hit the right pressure points to encourage the baby to getting birthin'. Actually, it wasn't even a real pedicure. The nearby affordable place is closed on Tuesdays (who closes down on Tuesdays??) so we went to a fancy Julep in the University District and I didn't want to pay $78 for the pregnancy pedicure ("Legs feel lighter! Circulation-boosting massage using camphor and menthol, hydrating paraffin, and unscented organic moisturizer. Take home a complimentary bottle of Julep Nail Vernis") so I paid $38 for "Relief for Tired Feet" which I figured was a pedicure minus the polish. Turns out it was also minus the nail trim. I can still reach my toe nails, but I had been looking forward to not having to manage one last nail trim on my own. Oh well. And at least it was quicker so Brandt didn't have to sit through too much. He actually had a great time. They had lots of books and every seat had a chocolate next to it. He was mostly busy asking for the second chocolate ("Two two two shakas?"...I don't know the sign for chocolate so we just do the Hawaiian shaka sign, figuring that's close enough) before I gave in. The receptionist does a babysitting thing for kids there on Mondays and said Brandt was the best-behaved child she'd ever seen. I don't know why, but it always makes me cringe when I hear that. Weird, right?

Our other most exciting outing lately was riding the bus to the Central Library last Thursday. The plan was to watch African Masked Dancers, but the line was so long and Brandt really wanted to ride the escalator so we did that instead. The bus ride was great. It would have been greater had Brandt not shouted "Bus! Bus! Bus!" nonstop the whole way.

Fireworks

2009-07-04T23:00:00.000-07:00

We rode down to Gasworks Park for the big fireworks show tonight. It was sooo hot today that we didn't even head down until after 7:00. Sunset was 9:10 so the show didn't start until 10:00. I was hoping to toss Brandt in a bouncey house when we arrived, but the bounce houses were HUGE and then lines were long. So we passed the time sitting on our picnic blanket, eating hot dogs and brownie bites while watching the boats.

It was crowded, but not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. And Seattlites are so nice and mellow. We were right by the beer garden, but the drinkers were all quiet and well-behaved. I can guarantee this would not have been the case in San Diego! Or Vegas. And the show was awesome. I haven't been this close to fireworks in quite a while, so that alone was cool, but the display and coordinating music was great, too. Even better than the SPARKLE shows in Santa Barbara.

So glad we rode the bikes because the car traffic getting out of Gas Works was crazy. The bus looked packed, too. The ride up Stone was still easy for me. And I still didn't have to resort to my granny gear or rest on the way up. But this might be my last long ride for a while, I'm thinking.

On Thursday we went to the Bee Boppin' Bugs performance at the Fremont library. As soon as I walked in the librarian and Nancy looked at me with horrified looks and asked, "When are you due?" "Are you going to go into labor during my performance?" Sheesh. I'm not that huge yet. I assured them I had a while to go so they let us stay.

Water (pool and melon)

2009-06-29T23:00:00.000-07:00

Brandt had his third swim lesson at the Mounger pool in Magnolia this afternoon and he loves it! It's amazing what a difference a warm pool makes. He didn't hate our Green Lake pool, but he wasn't ecstatic to be in the cool water. Now he giggles the entire half hour and tries everything. I never would have attempted to dunk him in the old pool, but now he'll slide down the little pool-edge slide (yeah, very distracting for them to leave the slide set up during swim class!) and I let him sink all the way in before I scoop him up. He loves it! I'm [wisely] too scared to bring the nice camera to the pool so unless I can get a good iPhone photo, you'll just have to imagine how cool it all is.

It has been really hot out so it's definitely watermelon season. The baby-to-be even likes it. He had been demanding I eat chocolate, but now he's content with watermelon. And where have I been that I didn't know the trick of freezing watermelon slices? It's the best! I'm trying to do most of my watermelon eating while Brandt is napping or asleep at night so I don't have to share...or deal with hosing him down afterwards.

Green Lake Open Water Swim

2009-06-28T23:00:00.000-07:00

Dan and Brandt were my cheering section for the one-mile swim in the lake this morning. It was big fun, though it didn't quite go according to plan. Too embarrassing to write about twice so you'll have to read the details on MyGreenLake.com.

I was a little scared of the water quality, but the Friends of Green Lake people assured me it was nice and clean. I'm not sure I'll make a habit out of swimming in the lake, but I'll hop in now and then and let Brandt do the same.

Seattle Gymnastics Academy

2009-06-26T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today was Brandt's last day of gymnastics class. It's amazing how much of a climbing monkey the class has turned him into. But at the same time I can convince him to sit on the floor and demonstrate straddles, tucks, and pikes which keeps him in one spot for a few minutes. So you gotta take the good with the bad.

We're taking the summer off from classes, but hopefully we'll do another session soon because he really loves it. The last two classes he's been a bit grumpy and sleep-deprived on the way over (I've taped garbage bags up in the windows so hopefully things will turn around--the sun was waking him up at 5am!) and he still has a terrific time once we get there.

Tide pools

2009-06-22T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today was beach day at Itty Bitty Camp. It was a little cool out and everyone got soaking wet (you'd see if the photo showed the back of Brandt), but it was great fun. Brandt is holding his "tub of life" in which we put crabs and hermit crabs and rocks. The sea anemones were a big hit, too.

There was one casualty at beach day: I dropped the camera in a tide pool. Everyone was very impressed with how relaxed I was about killing the camera so I had to admit I'd already dropped it on the asphalt at Elbow Eye Park a week ago and broken the display. It still worked for a while after it's dip in the pool, but now it's dead dead. Fortunately (and not surprisingly) Dan thinks he paid for an extended warranty so hopefully we can send it back for repairs again.

Fremont Solstice Parade

2009-06-20T23:00:00.000-07:00

Brandt and I rode the bus for the first time (finally!) today. We were fortunate enough to ride with seasoned vets, Sloane and her mama, Amy. Actually, I think it was little Sloane's first time on the bus, too, but at least one of us knew what was what. The kids loved the bus ride, of course. We'll definitely have to do that more often.

Don't let the picture mislead you--Fremont was packed. We arrived a bit early so we could watch the Recess Monkeys perform and that got packed fairly quickly, too. As you can imagine, we saw a lot of naked people. Most were covered in paint, but there's a lot you just can't hide with paint.

Sloane impressed us by learning her first brand: Puma. Brandt's current shoes are Pumas so I tried to teach the word to him, too. Unfortunately he signed and said "poo" and then pointed at me and said "ma." I should have known this would happen because a few days ago he was watching with interest as I got my hair washed at the hair dresser and since I didn't know the sign for shampoo he decided he'd call it poo-hair. Great.

Itty Bitty Camp

2009-06-15T23:00:00.000-07:00

Brandt's enrolled in a very cool nature camp called Itty Bitty Camp on Mondays. We meet in a different part of Discovery Park every week. Today was pond day and since our focus was on dragonflies, our art project at the end was dragonfly wings (I don't know the sign for dragonfly so we just called them butterfly wings).

Yesterday we drove the bikes down to Seward Park for the weekly Lake Washington Boulevard bike ride. Every Sunday (Mother's Day through September) cars are banned so families can bike up and down. There was also a small Family Biking Expo going on. We didn't see anything new, but realized just how popular Xtracycles are up here.

We rode through Seward Park to finish up the day and saw a kid fall off his little bike and hurt his elbow. This happened moments before Dan got a bug in his eye so the park will forever now be called "Elbow Eye Park" because Brandt keeps saying "elbow eye, elbow eye" (and sometimes "papa bug eye, elbow eye").

Kidical Mass 2

2009-06-13T23:00:00.000-07:00

This morning was the second Seattle Kidical Mass. We met up at a park in Ballard and made our way to Golden Gardens for a beach party. The water was freezing (I don't know if I'm allowed to call it the ocean or if I have to refer to it as the sound or The Sound...I'll look into that), but Brandt dashed around in the surf, getting his feet and hands wet.

The ride home wasn't bad at all. I even made it up Stone Ave. with no break and didn't have to resort to my granny gear. So funny that cycling up hills is fine, but walking up a flight of stairs makes me feel like I'm about to pass out. We even had energy to hit the park in the afternoon. Dan and Brandt did most of the running around while I lolled in the grass.

Shades of the past

2009-06-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

The more things change, the more they stay the same. The two-year molars are taking forever to come in. They're not a huge pain to Brandt, but there's the occasional drool and chewing. The bottom left one is poking through a bit, but the other three are nowhere to be seen.

This new play center (I have no idea what these things are called) was our big score from the Daniel Bagley rummage sale a week ago. The sticker (which I knew was incorrect) said 50¢ so it didn't feel so exciting when it was really $5. And I can't find it online so I can't boast about how much I saved on it. But he loves it. And I love Daniel Bagley Elementary School. Hopefully we can move a few blocks north and get into their school zone. I hear it's one of the few public schools in the area worth attending. They even have a Montessori program!

Dutch Heritage Celebration, Twilight Crit

2009-06-06T23:00:00.000-07:00

Brandt and I drove almost two hours this morning to Lynden, WA, Dutch capital of the Pacific Northwest. It is a different world up there. The parade was great, but very farming-oriented. The beauty queen was called the Whatcom County Dairy Ambassador and rode in a convertible flanked by two people in cow costumes. And the majority of the parade acts were farming equipment...so of course Brandt loved it. The Taste of Lynden food area had poffertjes, but no pickled herring :(

By far, Brandt's favorite part was the $3 rickety train ride. He enjoyed it too much, in fact, and got incredibly angry when I removed him at the end of the ride. Fortunately I took a video of the whole thing so we can replay it to his heart's content.

I was worn out from the big morning so Dan and Brandt rode to Ballard for the Second Ascent Twilight Criterium without me. They had a great time and I had a great nap so it all worked out in the end. And maybe next year we can watch Dan ride in the crit!

Dapper dude

2009-06-05T23:00:00.000-07:00

Behold the greatest invention known to momkind: the Dapper Snapper. It's a half-belt so Brandt can wear all his too-big pants. Not such a big deal with shorts, but before now all the pants that fit him in the waist were way too short.

Alki Beach

2009-05-31T23:00:00.000-07:00

We found the greatest beach today! Alki seemed a bit too far for a bike ride so we drove over with our bikes in tow and rode once we arrived. It was the Summer Streets festival so the road was closed to cars, but even on a normal car-infested day, this is a great beachy area! It's like Green Lake's beachy dirty brother--it's even got its own Duke's and Spud to add to the family resemblance. It feels a lot like San Diego's Ocean Beach, but slightly less dirty.

The Cool Moms booth was doing face painting, but unfortunately (or fortunately, as far as Dan was concerned) they were only doing cheek art so I couldn't get Brandt properly done up. But he patiently got a soccer ball and really liked it.

The Boat

2009-05-25T23:00:00.000-07:00

After a romp in the park and the best brunch at Tree-House Cafe, we went to visit The Boat. Brandt liked climbing around on it as much as I did when I was little. The book about The Boat is almost done. We got to see a draft, but I can't wait to get my hands on the real thing!

Our short but sweet visit ended this afternoon. Our ferry parking spot was next to another toddler plus one-on-the-way family who welcomed us by saying, "Say goodbye to that cute little car of yours. You'll be getting a minivan soon, too." I laughed it off and when I met a family with two little girls in the play area I asked them what kind of car they drove, sure they wouldn't say minivan. But sure enough, they're van drivers, too. Eek--they're everywhere! But that doesn't mean we have to conform.

Salt Spring Island

2009-05-24T23:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we came up to Salt Spring Island to visit Aunt Bianca and Uncle Gordon. The weather is perfect so it's the ideal weekend for a visit, other than the 90 minute wait to get through the border yesterday. The ferry ride was a big hit and we even saw a Canadian hippy get out from her hiding place in the trunk once the boat left shore.

We had a wonderful time hanging out in Ganges all morning. The playground is great and a fire fighter gave Brandt a plastic fire hat and his first temporary tattoo.

Wallingford Farmers Market

2009-05-20T23:00:00.000-07:00

I don't think our neighborhood has a farmers market so we headed a whole mile away to the second Wallingford Market of the season. It was small compared to the weekend markets in Ballard and Fremont (which we've only seen while biking by), but it was still quite nice and much bigger than the farmers markets in Vegas. We didn't bring anything home this time, but Brandt got to pet a bunny and eat a honey stick.

After the market we rode a couple more blocks to the Wallingford Playfield and discovered the park is indeed as cool as it looked when we first noticed it a week ago. Hopefully we can make this a weekly habit. And next time we'll bring cheese and veggies and honey, but no bunny, home.

Kidical Mass

2009-05-15T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today was Bike-to-Work Day and there were a ton of activities. We kicked off the day by hitting the Cascade tent outside Gregg's Cycles for free stuff. Technically, it was a pit stop for people biking on their way to work, but I figure Brandt is my boss and I biked him there so I deserved the free bike light and Clif bars.

Next up was Summer Streets in Ballard at 4pm. I thought it would be bigger than it was, but it was still fun and Brandt got an Undriver License he's really excited about and everyone got free bananas. And we saw the Dutch Bike Company's seven-seat Conference Bike. It was OK, but I felt obligated to tell them it wasn't quite as cool as the similar bike I saw in Amsterdam a few years back that had more seats and several kegs in the middle.

Then the best part: Seattle's first Kidical Mass! We met a bunch of other families at a park a block from Summer Streets and we all rode along the Burke-Gilman trail to Gasworks Park for the purpose of increasing the visibility of family biking on Seattle streets. It was really fun and will hopefully be a monthly event. This was also our first visit to Gasworks Park and wow, it's cool! It was great for boat viewing so I'll definitely have to bring Brandt back down there. I'm a little worried next time I ride back home up Stone I won't be able to make it without resting halfway, though.

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

This morning we rode the Burke-Gilman trail the other direction to have brunch at The Dish in Ballard. It was delish, but the wait was awfully long. I'd love to go back, but only if we can get there earlier in the morning.

March for Babies

2009-05-03T23:00:00.000-07:00

This morning Brandt and I walked 3.5 miles in the March for Babies. It was really cool, and not only because we got free pancakes at the beginning and free hot dogs at the end. We gathered in Qwest Field (where the Seahawks play) and got to walk along the closed viaduct. The view was great, but Brandt slept on my back the whole walk and missed it.

I thought the march was exercise enough for today, but Dan really wanted to bike the Burke-Gilman trail. I was worried about the climb back up Stone, but Dan wouldn't let me whine my way out of it and said he could always leave me and Brandt at Gasworks Park and go home to fetch the car and retrieve us. Turns out I worried for nothing because Stone is not nearly as steep as 50th.

We saw a lot of cool stuff on our ride, including the very cool-looking Wallingford playfield park super close to home and the curious Wall of Death. Again, Brandt missed it all in favor of napping in the Burley trailer. We travelled east through Magnuson Park and back before Brandt woke up. On the way home we stopped at Tutta Bella for pizza and I am definitely going back when I can drink coffee because check this out: Caffe Cioccolato - Chocolate latte with Nutella, steamed milk and espresso. Yum!

Rain-ruined day

2009-05-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today coulda been so cool! Brandt and I were going to take the bus for the first time (finally!) to go downtown to the Denny Park play area opening celebration, complete with face painting, balloon animals, and live band. It was also Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day with big boat parade, but due to the weather we skipped that, too.

I took advantage of the situation and napped much of the day while Dan and Brandt did who knows what. And I got a little outdoor time, too, taking Brandt for rides on his new bike at 7am and 4pm, in between rain showers. He doesn't pedal yet, but he tries to now and again. And he loves pushing his way over obstacles, like the two cement curbs in the neighbor's driveway. He loves this bike so (too) much that I've taken to leaving and entering the house through the back door so he doesn't see the thing and insist on riding it.