Oct. 10, 2011; Home Sweet Home!!

It's been a big weekend for the Shraders!  Friday I moved my stuff into the new house, and yesterday Lorelei arrived with Shawn's mom.  Today, Shawn should be here by the time I get off work.  I can hardly wait to have the family together again.  It feels like it's been far longer than just 3 weeks.


That picture above is Lorelei and Amy with a new friend at Lowman Beach.  This beach is about half a mile or so from our house, down a very steep hill (walking home is challenging).  It's gorgeous though.  You can see the ferries heading over from West Seattle to Vashon Island and beyond, and of course it's a fantastic view of the Sound.  When the weather is especially good, the Olympics are in full view as well.

It's peaceful.  We walked down to Lowman yesterday and were able to walk right by Lorelei's new school on the way.  It's about a block and a half from the house.  When we got to Lowman, Lorelei found another little girl her age and they played and had some fun.  It was all in all, a nice way to spend the afternoon.  


Shawn's day was less peaceful.

This was his drive through the first part of Wyoming.  I'm glad we didn't wait any longer to have him come out - we are getting into the tricky time of year coming through the Rockies and Medicine Bow.  He made it through, though, and by the time he hit Idaho, he had this:

Much better!  He stayed in Boise last night and should have a shorter day today getting here - just 8-9 hours.  The dog and cats will be grateful, I'm sure.  He has a chance for snow in the Snoqualmie Pass, but otherwise he should have a good drive.  By the time he hits Snoqualmie, he's almost here.  


Otherwise, things are good.  I walked around downtown Friday on my lunch and realized how much I love working downtown.  I've missed that the last few years.  I work very close to the shopping district, so there are all the department stores (Macy's, Nordstrom's, Barney's of NY), and all the usual suspects.  Intermingled are all these local specialty shops as well.  Those are the places I like to look in.  Of course there are fabulous-looking restaurants and bars on every block, too, but what I like most is seeing all the people out and about, creating the hustle and bustle.  There was a big protest all last week, protesting Wall Street.  Not sure what the actual reason for the protest was, but the people-watching was out-of-this-world.  I can't walk around without Petula Clark running through my head.


My job has given me culture shock, I think.  It's a very different atmosphere than MDK, and I think it's just going to take some getting used to.  I think I'll feel less alienated by the transition having my family here.  We'll see.  It's too soon to really tell how things are going to be.

In the meantime, I'll look forward to settling in with the family and having a nice week with Brenda.  With a little luck, all goes well for Shawn today and our furniture will arrive soon!