Christmas 2010

Christmas this year consisted of lots of meals and lots of attention for Sonya.

We had Karren's mom and brother over for Christmas Eve. Karren also invited two of her favorite people, the Nielsens, over for dinner. As you can see, it was delicious.

After much effort, Sonya finally went to bed. We then got to set up the room. Karren was especially excited about the doll house.

Sonya had been asking for dollies and a doll house in her prayers for at least 2 months. Here, you can see her reaction on Christmas morning.

We then had the Anderson family over for the traditional waffles with strawberries and whipped cream. This is a third generation Wilde Christmas tradition that I always loved. It was my favorite part of Christmas growing up.

Finally, for the second straight year, we threw a nice dinner with the Garrity family and invited over a bunch of friends. It was both gorgeous and delicious.

Finally, Christmas went out with a bang with Sonya's rendition of Jingle Bells.

Christmas Preparation 2010

Getting ready from Christmas takes a bunch of preparation.

1) Create a fabulous Christmas card. Thank you to Ksenia Everton for taking awesome photos to work with!

2) Prepare desserts for the Ward Christmas Party.

3) Decorate an awesome gingerbread house with the Wolfers.

4) Attend a musical concert at a retirement home featuring Sydney and Sonya.

5) Decorate a potted Christmas Tree. Only the living at our house.

6) Annual Zoo Lights visit.

Washington DC

When I saw the cheap airline prices from Portland to Washington DC, I couldn't resist.  One of my college friends, Dana, lives just 10 blocks East of the Capital Building and she offered her home to us as a place to crash.  She was an amazing host and it was fun to catch up with her.  I had forgotten about her extensive vocabulary and Karren was calling everything "extra delicious" by the time we left.

We got to see a lot of memorials (Washington, WWII, Lincoln, Korean War, FDR, George Mason, Jefferson, Old Post Office Tower),

toured the Capital and White House,

visited with family (Uncle Leon's family and Karren's cousin Taryn's family) and friends (Dana's family and Tom and Eric),

visited some museums (Natural History, Holocaust, National Archives - Constitution and Declaration of Independence, Ford's Theatre - where Lincoln was shot, Mount Vernon - where George Washington lived) 

and even got to visit the Washington DC temple and Mount Vernon.

While at Mount Vernon, I met the recently retired White House Executive Pastry Chef, Roland Mesnier.  I couldn't help but buy Karren an autographed copy of his book.

Sonya loved the Christmas camel at Mount Vernon.

There was no rain and the crowds were minimal, but it was REALLY cold.  We loved our trip and were grateful that we got to go!

Finally, for those who want to know .... 43 unique stamps. :)

Thanksgiving 2010

We visited Seattle (Ilene's house this time) for Thanksgiving, but this time it was only a one day trip.  Both the food and company was amazing.  Here is Sonya showing off her turkey.

Family Photos

We purchased a Groupon for Yuen Lui Studio and there are a few photos we really liked. Enjoy!

A Weekend Getaway at Ebey's Landing

Karren had been wanting a weekend date with just the two of us for a while. My Aunt Ilene volunteered to take Sonya (and ended up spoiling her), so Karren and I visited Whidbey Island. We stayed two nights at an awesome Bed and Breakfast in Coupeville, Anchorage Inn Bed and Breakfast. It was a great value, the food was tasty, and the inn keepers were awesome! In the evenings, we watched movies and played Carcassonne on Karren's I-Phone.

On Saturday, we explored Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve. First, we visited Fort Casey State Park where we hiked a bit, learned about composting, and played around the Fort.

Afterwards, we spent the rest of the day hiking the Ebey's Prairie and Bluff Trails (5 miles total).

Although it was overcast, it was gorgeous and we were happy to get some extended time to spend as a couple.

Stunning scenery and a stunning wife .... what more can a man ask for?!?

Here we are at the end of our hike of Bluff Trail ... see how happy we are?

Verbort 2010

As per tradition, we attending a sausage festival near Forest Grove, Oregon. It is a delectable feast of Saurkraut, homemade sausage, pie, and milk...all served in an elementary school cafeteria. Cam went a little overboard and spent 1/3 of my month's grocery budget on sausage for the freezer. Yikes!

Halloween 2010

Aren't you glad these characters are a part of your world?

I love the following sequence of photos!  Les poissons, les poissons .... Wilde style ...

Cakes in the patch