Mount Ranier National Park

It was our last weekend in Seattle before heading back to Colorado (boo-hoo!) so Denise and Roger joined us for a trip to the National Park, just a couple of hours drive from Seattle. We entered the park at the Northwest Entrance and exited at the Southeast Entrance, so we had numerous spectacular views of the mountain (which really can't be captured by a novice photographer!). Even though we can see Mt. Ranier from Seattle (and it seems quite close) that view pales in comparison to the close-up views in the National Park.

We rented a cabin for Friday and Saturday nights, about 4 miles from the small town of Packwood, just south of the park. We could hear the river from the deck and it was located in a quiet little subdivision with no streetlights so the stars were easily visible.

Saturday afternoon we took a 1.5-mile walk to see the Patriarch trees -- mostly Western Hemlock, Red Cedar, and Douglas Fir varieties. It was interesting to learn that when the old trees die and fall, they are considered "nurse trees" and they provide nutrients for new trees, which grow right out of the fallen trunks.

Sunday we drove the winding road to the southwest entrance, completing our circle drive of the park. The visitor center at Paradise gave us our closest view of the mountain. Through our binolculars we even saw hikers up on the mountain. We also saw a group of buildings that serve as a base camp for climbers, half-way up the mountain.

Mt. Ranier is a volcano with an ice cap of 26 glaciers -- quite unusual for a volcano. From Seattle, it just looks like snow, but up close we could definitely see the blue color of the glaciers. Speaking of blue -- the sky was unusually blue, with no haze and no clouds. We even saw Mt. Baker, 40-miles away. Awesome weekend!

8 weeks old

Pals forever

Blurringly-quick hands and legs

Baby Time for G'ma

San Juan Islands

drug-sniffing German Shepherd

mount baker

ferry docking in Anacortes

Roger driving onto the ferry (white car)

Glass and Pottery Shop




Last Friday night we stayed at Denise and Roger's so we could get up early (5:30am) and go with them to the San Juan Islands. We were on the road at 6:30 and arrived in Anacortes about 8:30 to board the Washington State Ferry that took us to Orcas Island. While we waited to board the ferry we noticed a border patrol agent with his dog sniffing every vehicle in the waiting line. Once on the ferry we enjoyed the ride! It's a special treat to be out on that huge expanse of water after living "inland" our entire lives.
The San Juans include 172 islands, but many of them are uninhabited. Orcas is 57 square miles, so we got a good look in just the one day we were there. We landed on the south side of the island and drove to the north side where the largest town is located -- Eastsound. From there we went east to Moran State Park and up a steep 5-mile road to Mt. Constitution -- elevation 2,409 feet.
There is a lookout tower up there that gave us a breathtaking view of the islands and snow-covered Mt. Baker and Mt. Ranier. WOW! My photos just DO NOT do it justice. It was spectacular. On the way back to the ferry we saw some small deer near a hotel -- they were tame and several were eating out of the hands of some very excited children. We also stopped at a very interesting artsy shop on the way that featured beautiful glass-blown flowers and bird baths , along with lots of pottery.
The ferry left Orcas at 7pm and we were back home about 10pm. We appreciated Roger doing all the driving -- over 250 miles -- while we got to ooh and ahhh over the scenery.

7 weeks old

Emmett smiling at Mom and Dad

Outside for a walk in the stroller

Emmett playing in the crib

Night caps

The twins were 7 weeks old yesterday. They are awake much more these days and they are both smiling. It is SO PRECIOUS! We just love to see their bright eyes and those sweet little mouths break out in those smiles. There is a cute little toy hanging on their crib that has a little plastic mirror in it and they both enjoy smiling at themselves. I wonder if they somehow know it is THEM???

The days have been perfect for a stroll outside and they really enjoy the ride, even though they sleep most of the way. This stroller is actually a frame that receives their car seats -- it's handy to put them in their car seats in the house and then just carry them outside and snap them into the stroller frame. The base of the car seats stays in the car so, again, you don't have to carry the babies out and then try to get them in the car seat (rain, hot, cold, etc.) you just strap them inside the carseat in the house and snap them into the base in the seat of the car. It's a nifty solution.

Bike Ride

Chuck (patiently?) waiting for me to take pictures

Gas Works Park

not many boats in storage this time of year

Lake Washington

football game in progress

picking blackberries

Yesterday we rode another one of the great trails in the city. We started at Gas Works Park http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gas_Works_Park on Lake Union and ended up on Lake Washington. It was a beautiful day with sunshine and temps in the low 70s. The Burke-Gilman trail is used by lots of bike commuters, joggers, dog-walkers, etc. And on a beautiful weekend day there were probably thousands of people on that trail at one time or another. And most of the cyclists were out there for a good workout -- they whooshed by us like we were stopped.

All of a sudden the path was clogged by walkers and it was hard to maneuver. It wasn't too long before we found out why the walkers were rushing down the path -- a Washington Huskies game was in progress. The path is adjacent to the stadium which is adjacent to the Lake -- and those people rich enough to afford "boats" were sitting out in the lake watching the game. Once we passed the stadium the trail was not nearly so congested.

We stopped at a Metro Market right close to the trail and got a sandwich for lunch. There was also a conveniently located park right there too so we had a nice spot to eat our lunch.

Further up the trail Chuck stopped to eat a few blueberries. They grow wild in the Northwest and are considered a nuisance here. But they are so delicious. We saw lots of people picking them all over town yesterday.

We rode about 20 miles yesterday but Greg managed to get in 40 miles on different trails around the city. Seattle has great bike paths here.

Six Weeks Old

Nap Time for Maggie in her "Boppy" seat

Sleeping in her crib

Emmett directing the orchestra on his "Mozart for Babies" CD

Emmett talking to me

The twins were 6 weeks old Tuesday. They just get sweeter every passing day. They are awake much more now and Emmett even gives us a smile now and then. If you click on the photos to get a larger version, you may notice that both of them have a bit LESS hair than when they were born. (Heather says expect to see more of those cute little hats on their heads in future pictures.) According to the baby books, this is a common occurrence and their new hair will start coming in soon.