Trip to Seattle

Todd and I recently took a trip to Seattle! We had never been out there, and Todd had to go out there for a work training, I decided to join him for a visit to a new city/state and to see our friends Kern and Dorothy. K&D are Todd's friends from his school days in Wilmington, and now live out there in scenic Bellevue, WA. We arrived on separate flights on a Friday, and I returned home on Tuesday. Todd came back 2 days later on Thursday. My mom was awesome enough to come up and watch Natalie for that time. The day before we left, Natalie started sneezing a lot (which only means one thing: cold---ear infection!). God must have been with us, because although she had a runny nose for most of the time, she never did get an ear infection (this might be the first time ever). We had a great time in Seattle. We went out to 88 Keys for some dueling piano fun Friday evening. Saturday, we went to the Rock and Roll Museum, the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (did you know there was such a place?), and to the Space Needle. While the views were great, we couldn't see Mount Rainier due to cloud cover. Then we went to an awesome Italian restaurant called Pasta Freska. There are no menus, and they just keep bringing you more and more food. I would label this place, "Italitan tapas." Each dish comes in fairly small portions and no one seems to get the same thing. Sometimes Dorothy and I got the same thing, while Todd and Kern got something different. They also brought a Montepulciano wine that Kern and Todd drank (and I also had a sip of- it was YUM!). I enjoyed a strawberry lemonade!

Sunday we headed out to Safeco Field for the Mariners/Yankees game. It was a beautiful sunny day, with temperatures in the 70s. It was fun to see the Yankees get beat by the Mariners. :-) Afterward, we went back to Dorothy and Kern's to grill out some yummy steaks and a delicious potato dish. Oh and let's not forget game night and ice cream (if you haven't ever tried Ben and Jerry's cinnamon bun or marzipan ice cream, you are really missing out. Might be my new faves!).

Monday, we went to Pike Place Market and then for a drive out in the Cascades to Snoqualmie Falls and through Snoqualmie Pass. They always have to use tire chains through Snoqualmie Pass (well, at least according to The Weather Channel!) and I'm a weather geek, so I wanted to drive through there. They don't use chains on the tires in Massachusetts because it rips up the asphault. Pike Place Market was really fun. We got to see them toss fish, and were there as they cut the cake for Pike Place Market's 102nd birthday! We also ate lots of yummy food as we strolled around. It was another nice day- sun and maybe a few degrees warmer than the day before.

Tuesday I had to come home, but it was so good to see my baby girl! I really missed her and I swear she got even smarter when I was gone. I feel like I've missed her a lot this summer, between work trips to North Carolina, fun trips to Seattle, and her spending time with her grandparents down in Plymouth while her daycare was closed. But it's good to be home with her now!