Summer In Seattle

After juggling around a host of schedules trying to get everyone down for a visit to PDX around the 4th of July and Owen's birthday, we made a last minute decision to hit the road and go up to Seattle ourselves instead.  What a great decision, as summer arrived in Seattle a few days before we did.

We're blessed to have such wonderful and welcoming family to stay with and to have both families so close that we can see everyone on one visit. We simply relaxed and enjoyed the comforts of our "homes away from home" in both Bellevue and Lake Ki. Our Seattle visit was short on pictures, but high on family, friends, and fun, with beautiful weather at every turn.

The kids found a trove of classic toys at Nana's house.

Josh, of course, took a major digger just before we left and spend our vacation showing off yet another scab on the face. Someday he's going to ask us about all his scars and we'll just have to answer, "I don't know bud. You were two."

We celebrated 4th of July with the amazing view from my parents' house in Bellevue. Jeff and Ethel stopped by to join us for great grilled shrimp and veggies and then the boys were SOOOO excited to set off some of the (thankfully small) fireworks that papa had acquired.

Well, they were excited until the fireworks actually started. Owen stuck around and enjoyed the show, but Josh ended up inside with grandma watching through the window.  Too loud!

It's not 4th of July without Strawberry Shortcake!

Owen stayed up to watch the show. Quite a sight off the deck watching hundreds of private fireworks displays around Puget Sound. The landscape simply shimmers with light as far as you can see.  After all that, the "BIG" show over Lake Union didn't live up to Owen's expectations, but he sure liked staying up late!

We lucked out that our summer visit finally coincided with Colleen's trek through Washington. The last time I saw Colleen, she had 3 boys in Everett. Now, we have seven boys between us with her Luke and Tommy each born just weeks ahead of Owen and Josh.  We had a fun playdate at Somerset Elementary. I'm so glad she's a dedicated blogger, because one visit was simply not enough catch-up time.

Amy and the boys also joined us for an afternoon and dinner up at Lake Ki. As always,  Owen and Sam were bonded from sight and even chauffeured us around the lake in the paddle boat.

Ah, summer in Seattle is short and fleeting, but when it arrives, it's one of the most beautiful places in the world!