Day 3 Exploring

Another cloudy day in Seattle. I'm bummed because this means we can't see Mt. Ranier. 

In the morning, we walked around Pike Place Market where they are famous for flying fish. (See video below)

Then we rode on the Ferris Wheel. The views from inside were gorgeous.

Love the architecture of the city.

This picture is for my David. Those are Alaskan cruise ships (something David and I want to do.)

Century Link Field where the Seahawks play (Boo) and Safeko Field for the Mariners.

Next, we drove to Snohomish to have lunch at David and Kathy's house. Matthew and Ryan were great tour guides as they showed us around their home.

There's a lot of interest in airplanes, so we toured an aviation museum. 

Boeing field where they do test flights.

 The sun finally broke through the clouds; just in time for us to enjoy a rocky beach in Mukilteo. We had fun looking for washed up treasures and skipping rocks. 

Matthew set up a kitchen and served us food like sand seasoned seaweed. 

Before leaving, Matthew and I carved our names in some driftwood.
Douglas took us all out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant back in Snohomish. Then we drove back to David's house where we picked (or rather ate) blackberries. I had fun building Lego's with Matthew.
Early tomorrow morning I fly home. I'm going to miss everyone. It's been a great visit.

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Day 1 in Seattle, Washington

The night before flying to Washington, my brother, David, texted me to try and get a window seat on the right side of the airplane. I'm glad I did. I was able to see steam coming out of Mt. St. Helen.

The beautiful outline of Mt. Ranier.

And the clouds parted just enough to see the space needle.

David, Matthew, and Ryan picked me up and took me to see Snoqualmie Falls. Even though Washington has also had a dry summer, there was a descent amount of water flowing. It was beautiful. The hike to the lower falls was gorgeous. The moss covered cedar and pine trees are breathtaking. My favorite was a nurse tree. I later learned that they provide shelter to smaller slower growing trees as well as for animals.

I loved being able to catch up with my nephews and see what amazing young men they are turning out to be. 

At one point in our walk, Matthew turned around to look at David and I and said, "It's about time the two of you started talking to each other." Yes. Seven years is too long to be separated from siblings. I have missed David so much.

After the falls, we walked around a railroad museum.

David dropped me back at the airport so that I could meet up with Douglas, Ammon and Malena. We rented a car, checked into the Hyatt in Seattle and grabbed a late lunch.

Then we hung out at the hotel for a bit. Douglas and I then fought forty minutes of traffic getting out of Seattle to drive to Snohomish for a before wedding dinner hosted by the groom's parents at Collector's Choice Restaurant. There, I was able to reunite with Shaney and meet Addison. They are a cute couple. Mom and Dad were there as well.  There were place cards at the tables. Sigh! This meant I had to go outside of my comfort zone and talk to strangers. The highlight was that Ryan was sitting at my table. We talked a lot about hot wheel cars; something I know a lot about. At one point, Ryan asked me to point out who his Uncle Douglas was. After getting a good look at him, Ryan said, "Oh! He's handsome!" So cute!

Goodbye Preston-Hello San Jose

 The night before we left to drive home, Mom baked Kirsten a birthday cake. This meant a lot to her. Thank you Mom and Dad for entertaining us and loving us.

After being away from home for almost three weeks and separated from James and Justin, I was ready to get home. I had a hard time sleeping that night (as I always do before a big trip). I woke Deborah and all the kids up at 4:30am and we were all in the car by 5am. 

The trip was long, but went well. It was nice having Deborah there to talk to. It's a good thing we all get along well with each other. The kids did great! We made it to San Jose by 6am, just in time to jump in the pool and join the youth in our ward for a swim party hosted at our home. The kids who had been in the car all day, loved this freedom.

It felt so good to be home.