This is one of those posts where there is way less to say than there are pictures to say it. I have so many pictures. And how am I ever going to choose which ones to use without just having a mile of photos to scroll through? Not sure.
We had the wonderful opportunity to spend our fall break going to see my brother and his family in Seattle, Washington. Well, specifically on Bainbridge Island, just off the coast of Seattle. We have made this drive many times since my brother and his family moved there. It's a horrible drive. Really. But we are willing to do it. We really love our family, and we really love this part of the country. It's been a couple of years since I have been able to go, and about four since Troy was able. It felt way too long and it was fantastic to get the chance to go. I've said this before but I feel it even more strongly than ever - I love trapping my family in the car together. We just don't have that many years left together as this little family unit and being together is so important, even if we have to manage arguments and annoyances. A lot of them. It's very bonding.
So here are some posts about the things we love about going to the Northwest.
First of all, it's incredibly rewarding to arrive in Seattle after that 12 hour drive. Long, boring, not especially scenic. And then you climb the mountain outside of the city and make a hour's or so decent into Seattle and it gets so green and lush and lovely. We love arriving. We love pulling on to the ferry and smelling the sea air and feeling the moisture in the air. This time, before actually boarding the ferry, we spent a little time in the city itself. It would be our only chance this time. We parked near the public market and took a half hour to stroll up and down the market stalls, eat those fresh little donuts fried right there, and window shop. No purchases this time - which is a miracle because it means that my kids weren't begging and hounding me for trinkets. That was awesome. It's always a little hard to pass by the rows and rows of fresh gorgeous flowers that are so inexpensive. Somehow I made it though.
We made our way down to the boardwalk and found a great little seafood shop and got some chowder and fish and fries.That was a great way to start the trip! I love how much my kids love sea food. I like most sea food, but they adore it. I just think it's funny that they, all three of them, have always loved it and would each prefer crab and shrimp and even squid over many other foods. So we really enjoyed that. It was sitting at the picnic table that we decided the check the ferry schedule and realized that there was a ferry leaving in like 15 minutes or another one in an hour and 15 minutes. We dashed for our car which ended up being a little challenging to find, and then made our way through construction and traffic and made it the ferry in time to be the 2nd to last people on. Slick!
Somehow that ferry ride is one of our favorite parts of going to Seattle. We can't help but stand outside and let the wind blow us around like crazy and enjoy the sight of Seattle getting smaller and smaller as we head for the green coast of the island. It's exciting for we naive desert dwellers.
Once we docked on the island we navigated our way to Adam and Whitley's new place. My goodness what a treasure they have there. They bought a piece of property with a very lovely home on it, but the much bigger reason they got it was because it's a large property and came with some outbuildings and animals. I know they were very interested in the idea of getting a home that came with a lot of jobs for their kids to do. There are pastures to mow, alpacas and goats and chickens to feed and clean up after (Chase helped his cousin do poop duty for a couple of hours, and he did it willingly.) Pretty amazing. One of the outbuildings is a little guest cottage and we felt pretty darn pampered. There were enough spots for each of us to sleep - two queen beds and a cozy couch, although Chase opted to spend the nights inside with his cousin. It was so charming! Heated with a fireplace, cozy comfy furniture, a little kitchen area with drinks and treats that Whitley made sure to provide (best hostess ever), oh and not to mention a drop-down giant screen, perfect for watching any UofU football that happened to be on. (VERY FUN.) It was sometimes a little hard to want to leave that den of happiness.
One thing that inspired us to leave the cottage was the nature preserve literally across the street from their driveway. It was like walking out of reality and into the forests of Endor or something. We expected to see Ewoks under every fern frond. Troy and I enjoyed a walk there together as well as a long walk around the streets of the island. It was quite chilly and gloriously foggy while we were there. I know Whitley would think I'm nuts for calling it glorious - she gets all too much of the wet dark weather for her taste. But for me it's like entering a sanctuary, and Troy and I had many conversations about how much of that weather would really be too much for us. Hard to say. I just long for it.
Our hosting family did not have the same fall break that we did - so our visit came during their regular school week. I felt a little bad descending on them during their normal busy lives and they were very gracious about entertaining us when they could. Whitley took us on some fun outings to an antique store and some downtown shopping. We also went on a great hunt for duck boots to make my daughter happy. We were thrilled, after checking multiple stores, to find just the exact right boots that were over $100 in adult sizes but were half that in the kid size, the largest of which happened to fit her perfectly. It was a great find and since Romney has worn them nearly every single day since then I feel pretty happy about the purchase. Finding clothing and shoes that she really loves long term is not easy to accomplish.
Here's some photos of us enjoying the property and its residents:
To be continued....
