European landscapes and stuff.

Since I (and Lindsay) lugged my camera equipment and tripod around Europe for 2 weeks, here are a few of my favorite shots from our trip. You can see more on my website, from the 4 main regions that we visited.

Switzerland
Provence
Dordogne
Paris

Zurich, Switzerland

Lake Breinz, Switzerland

Cannes, France

Pont du Gard, France

Nimes Amphitheatre, France

Perigueux, France

Les Cabanes de Breuil, France

Gordes, France

Sarlat, France

Beynac-et-Cazenac, France
Paris, France
Gordes, France

Chateau de Beynac, France

Les Cabanes de Breuil, France

Vacation was fun. Too bad it's over.

At the beginning of March, Lindsay and I took our first extended vacation without the kids. It was an epic trip. I blogged about it on my website (which I prefer to use for photos), so I neglected to blog about it here (until now). The blog on my website is kind of a travel log and journal of our trip, so it may be a bit detailed for the casual Rutman fan. If you are interested in the details, you can go there:

aaronrutmanphotography.com/blog

and read the entries in reverse order for the complete chronicle/pictorial journey. In any case, we had a great time, despite missing the kids for two weeks. We visited my parents in Southern France, and went to some new places we'd never been:



I got to take Lindsay to a few places I hadn't been in 12 years:



The weather wasn't always quite what we would have liked, but we still had fun. We visited the very spot of our engagement 8 years before.
I hope we get to do another trip like that before too long.

Ada is 4

It's been a couple of months, but I still want to acknowledge that Ada had a birthday.
I don't believe in outfit fights on your birthday. I let Ada run errands with me in her red, puffed-out costume dress with red go-go boots. It's hard to be efficient when everyone stops you to gawk at your mini movie star. This delighted Ada.

Ada had a baby doll party with some friends. They decorated diaper bags and filled them with supplies they used to take care of their babies/stuffed animals. Seth wanted to participate in the party, but was uncomfortable with all the babying. He insisted his stuffed bear was 18 years old, so he decorated a "teenager bag" instead of a diaper bag.

We had various caretaking activities. Seth got his scrubs on and decided to offer his services as a pediatrician. He was overwhelmed by all the business he got, and frustrated by the non-critical ailments they were bringing him. I heard him repeatedly telling the kids "you don't need to bring your baby to the doctor for an ow-ie!". He was so annoyed by their ignorance. Ada finally satisfied him when she brought him her baby with a broken clavicle she had already diagnosed.

Some of the kids took medical matters into their own hands.

The party goers.

Ada wanted a cake with fruit on it. I made a buttermilk cake with mango curd and strawberry mascarpone frosting because I love an excuse to experiment with a new cake idea. Plus, Ada likes to say mascarpone.

The babies got a mini cake in their honor. Here's Ada helping her beloved "Fao Baby" blow out her candle.



Some well-received gifts.





 
Happy birthday to our little sweetie. We love her to pieces!

buddies

Lately

A couple weeks ago Lindsay started a new job. After a 3 year hiatus, she's back as a nurse in the operating room.

She's working full time for a while, as she gets her bearings again. In a few weeks she'll likely cut back to a couple/few shifts a week. For now though, we've been adjusting to the schedule of two full-time working parents, which, it turns out, is not so easy. We've been trying to give the kids as much time and attention as possible when we have them.

 

Last week I had MLK day off and Lindsay didn't, so I spent the day with the kids. We went downtown and did some exploring. We went to Pike Place Market and finally had some crumpets at the Crumpet Shop, which we'd been meaning to do for months.

The nutella and raspberry crumpet was a bit of a mess.

We walked all over the place in the cold, and then grabbed some donuts from Top Pot (a Seattle original, and home of the "hand-forged doughnut") to eat at home with hot chocolate. Not the healthiest day in their lives, but Seth did claim it was one of the top 3 best days of his life.

Last weekend we went bowling. Seth loved it. He really wanted to do it right with the correct form.

 It's tough to find a ball that's light enough and with the holes close enough together. He dabbled in a few other techniques.

 

Stoked.

The sun peaked under the clouds last week and I was able to get some shots of the kids with my big camera. Pretty cute kids if I do say so myself.