Monday, August 30, 2010
Mom's Birthday and My New Camera
We celebrated my mom's birthday.
I love my mom.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Baby Augie and Baby Luke
In August, we celebrated babies by meeting some for the first time. This is baby Augie, born in the middle of April, 2010.
Here is sweet Augie with his daddy Brian, one of Ben's friends from elementary school.
And Augie with mommy Lacey.
When we arrived at Tom and Amy's house, Luke was sitting on the couch. What a doll! Here he is playing on his play mat with his doting mommy.
Amy with Luke - This is pure baby bliss!
Daddy and Baby.
Babi and Deda with their grandson.
The next day, Amy bundled up the baby and we ventured out to Half Moon Bay
We stopped to take pictures.
Here is Tom and Amy's engagement spot, now with a baby in their arms.
We had lunch at Cameron's pub.
And I put Kari in ye olde stocks!
Family photo time!
Father and son.
Kari and I in the back of the bus.
After lunch, we walked on the beach. Tom, Amy and Luke took a short nap.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
My July
On my 33rd birthday, we had dinner at Two Guys from Italy. They have the best butternut squash ravioli.
I love this picture, my husband and homemade tiramisu.
Over the weekend, we continued the birthday festivities and headed to the beach. We found a friend.
My new ring! Thanks, doll.
And dessert (can you see the fresh whipped cream in the upper right hand corner?)! To die for!
Monday, August 09, 2010
Washington Whirlwind
In the beginning of July, we flew to Washington for Ryan and Jackie's wedding. Even though we spent less than 4 days there, we packed our trip with a lot of mini adventures. If we had one more day, Ben would have chosen to visit Mt. St. Helens. At least we got to see it from the sky! 
Ryan recommended that we hang out in Seattle to miss the traffic. We parked the rental and headed to the market. Unfortunately, it was closed for the day. 
This may or may not be the original Starbucks. 
We had done some research and decided to have dinner at a restaurant that no longer exists. Luckily, we came across Taste of Seattle and found plenty of delicious goodies to enjoy!
We made our way to the Space Needle, which is kind of a dud. Our friend Ryan mentioned that he's never actually been to the top. Reasons why you may skip the Space Needle if you are ever in Seattle:
It is not that high especially when compared to the rest of the skyline.
You see the same views when your plane circles and then lands in Seattle.
There are lots of foreign tourists and families that don't understand personal space and the concept of waiting in line.
They try to force you to take a picture in front of a poster of the Space Needle for an extra $20 by making the line to the top go directly through the photo staging area (which is almost unavoidable unless you are bitchy like me).
You get the idea by photographing the Space Needle from the ground, as well and it's more interesting to look at.
And at $28 per person for a 1/2 hour of "fun", tops, you are more likely to have a good time in a nice restaurant or on a harbor cruise or something. But then again, if you don't make it to the top of the needle, you can never say that you did it!!!
The ocean with the setting sun.
The next morning we got up early and decided to take a leisurely drive to Mt. Rainier. We stopped to take pictures along the way.
We went where the wind blew us and ended up at a family owned Colonial Life Museum.
We checked out the covered wagon
and the school house before getting back on the road.
The highlight of the Colonial Life Museum was the bonnet I found in the gift store. It really came in handy as we explored Mt. Rainier!
This is a photograph of the receding glacier.
And this is a display to show you where the glacier has been in the recent history.
It was so sunny and bright due to the snow reflecting all the sunlight that I would eventually have to bust out my bonnet!
On the way back to our hotel, we continued to drive and make frequent stops where exploration was required.We stopped at this barn (the name escapes me) in Ashford. An artist makes sculptures out of metal and wood pieces, basically remnants that he is reusing rather than throwing away.
Seahorse.
Rooster and giant tricycle.
Eagle with nest (can you find the moon?).
Giraffe. The tail almost looks like it's swaying in the breeze, but it's not! All metal, people!
We stopped in Elbe and checked out the oldest Lutheran church in Washington. All the towns on the drive to Mount Rainier are located on the Nasqually River. It's warm, breezy and beautiful.
Later that night, we met up with our old friends at the Fish Tail Brew Pub. Jared lived in San Diego for some time when we were there, and Ryan, the groom, who has been friends with Ben since elementary school also lived in San Diego, where I met them both. Jared doesn't have a permanent address and camps in Mt. Shasta where he works. He measures trees and studies fire damage, so he isn't a park ranger, but a scientist. He also hiked and camped along the Pan American highway, a trail that runs from Mexico to Canada. Ryan is currently studying to be a fire fighter/EMT and about to marry Jackie, a future mortician. It was so nice to see these guys, especially since Jared's car broke down and he had it towed hundreds of miles to get to Olympia since Ryan was getting married the next day!
Before heading to Centralia for the wedding, we drove into the heart of Olympia, the state's capitol. We checked out where the government does its work.
Ryan recommended that we hang out in Seattle to miss the traffic. We parked the rental and headed to the market. Unfortunately, it was closed for the day. 
This may or may not be the original Starbucks. 
We had done some research and decided to have dinner at a restaurant that no longer exists. Luckily, we came across Taste of Seattle and found plenty of delicious goodies to enjoy!
We made our way to the Space Needle, which is kind of a dud. Our friend Ryan mentioned that he's never actually been to the top. Reasons why you may skip the Space Needle if you are ever in Seattle: It is not that high especially when compared to the rest of the skyline.
You see the same views when your plane circles and then lands in Seattle.
There are lots of foreign tourists and families that don't understand personal space and the concept of waiting in line.
They try to force you to take a picture in front of a poster of the Space Needle for an extra $20 by making the line to the top go directly through the photo staging area (which is almost unavoidable unless you are bitchy like me).
You get the idea by photographing the Space Needle from the ground, as well and it's more interesting to look at.
And at $28 per person for a 1/2 hour of "fun", tops, you are more likely to have a good time in a nice restaurant or on a harbor cruise or something. But then again, if you don't make it to the top of the needle, you can never say that you did it!!!
View from the top.
The ocean with the setting sun.
The oldest neighborhood in Seattle, along with the oldest high school (top, middle). 
Downtown Seattle with Mount Rainier in the far distance. 
Back on solid ground. 
We headed back to eat more food. And by the time the sun set, we had made our way to the rental car and toward Olympia where we would be spending the night.
Downtown Seattle with Mount Rainier in the far distance. 
Back on solid ground. 
We headed back to eat more food. And by the time the sun set, we had made our way to the rental car and toward Olympia where we would be spending the night.
The next morning we got up early and decided to take a leisurely drive to Mt. Rainier. We stopped to take pictures along the way.
We went where the wind blew us and ended up at a family owned Colonial Life Museum. 
We checked out the covered wagon
and the school house before getting back on the road.
The highlight of the Colonial Life Museum was the bonnet I found in the gift store. It really came in handy as we explored Mt. Rainier!
It was a gorgeous day and everything was so green. Here we are at Alder Dam.
And after a couple hours of driving, we arrived at the national park.
This is a photograph of the receding glacier.
And this is a display to show you where the glacier has been in the recent history.
It was so sunny and bright due to the snow reflecting all the sunlight that I would eventually have to bust out my bonnet!
BoNnEt TiMe!!!
On the way back to our hotel, we continued to drive and make frequent stops where exploration was required.We stopped at this barn (the name escapes me) in Ashford. An artist makes sculptures out of metal and wood pieces, basically remnants that he is reusing rather than throwing away. 
Seahorse.
Rooster and giant tricycle.
Eagle with nest (can you find the moon?).
Giraffe. The tail almost looks like it's swaying in the breeze, but it's not! All metal, people!
We stopped in Elbe and checked out the oldest Lutheran church in Washington. All the towns on the drive to Mount Rainier are located on the Nasqually River. It's warm, breezy and beautiful.
Later that night, we met up with our old friends at the Fish Tail Brew Pub. Jared lived in San Diego for some time when we were there, and Ryan, the groom, who has been friends with Ben since elementary school also lived in San Diego, where I met them both. Jared doesn't have a permanent address and camps in Mt. Shasta where he works. He measures trees and studies fire damage, so he isn't a park ranger, but a scientist. He also hiked and camped along the Pan American highway, a trail that runs from Mexico to Canada. Ryan is currently studying to be a fire fighter/EMT and about to marry Jackie, a future mortician. It was so nice to see these guys, especially since Jared's car broke down and he had it towed hundreds of miles to get to Olympia since Ryan was getting married the next day!
Before heading to Centralia for the wedding, we drove into the heart of Olympia, the state's capitol. We checked out where the government does its work.
And made our way to the farmer's market. This is a great place to shop and eat. We picked up a few things for our neighbors, who take care of our animals while we are gone, that are made or grown in the area. They also had food trucks with dishes from all over the world. I had Indian.
We arrived in Centralia with a few hours to check out some antique stores - they line the main road. We also checked in to our hotel, The Olympic Club. The bride and groom stayed here as well, along with family and friends.
The hotel was located just above a bar and all the rooms were different, paying tribute to local people.
The hotel also has its own movie theater which is unusual since Centralia, and the hotel itself, are quite small. 
This is our room.
Here is Ryan getting ready for his big day in the honeymoon suite.
My sweet doll getting ready to walk to the Aerie Ballroom.
Us. 
Neal, the brother of the groom and wedding officiant. (I didn't take that many pictures at the wedding because my camera hates taking pictures indoors. But here are Ryan and Jackie's wedding photos, taken by Ryan's cousin Kettie. They are so great!)
Jackie walking down the aisle with her dad. 
The wedding cake and cupcakes. 
The first dance. 
Ryan dancing with his mom. 
Ryan and me. 
Ryan and Ben. 
After the reception, we continued to celebrate back at the hotel, without Ryan and Jackie.
This is the bathroom in the bar. Many of the faucets work. 
Me and mountain man Jared. 
Neal and I. 
This is us right after the bar closed and they kicked us out. Ryan's cousin Amy had to finish her food outside. 
It was really nice seeing our good friend, Ryan, getting married and just hanging out with some of our San Diego friends. Washington was awesome and I hope we will be able to go back again some day. 
The next morning was a rough one, but well worth it! 
Update: As of March 2012, Ryan and Jackie welcomed their first son Charlie McCoy Johnson. 