August 17, 2012: HURRICANE RIDGE (and some other stuff)

Doesn't this picture make you feel like breaking into song, Julie Andrews-style?  Just one week ago today we went to Hurricane Ridge in my beloved Olympic Mountains.  After staring at those crazy beautiful mountains for the better part of a year, we finally got to go up in them.  I cannot begin to describe the excitement I had about going to Hurricane Ridge.  A kid on Christmas morning isn't strong enough - I was far more excited than that.

Hurricane Ridge is the highest elevation you can drive to.  It's about 5,000 feet, maybe a bit more.  From there you can take several different trails that are all levels of difficulty and scariness.  We took some of the main trails that were well-marked and not too long, but still very narrow in spots with sheer drop-offs.  Quite an adventure for young Lorelei.  Hell, quite an adventure for her not-so-young parents.

This is the trail I took up to a point called Sunrise Ridge.  Lorelei and Shawn stayed below because it was pretty narrow and steep:

I walked up the trail, got to the top, took a few pictures, had a panic attack, and very slowly made my way down.  Yikes.  I got some good pictures though:

The road you see is the one we drove on to get to Hurricane Ridge.  17 miles of terror, as some would say, but frankly, I have not experienced anything like driving through the Smokies in West Virginia in the fog.  I'll take Hurricane Ridge any day.  It's still crazy though.  17 miles of crazy.  We saw lots of cyclists heading up the mountain on that road as well.  I think those people have some sort of disorder.

Lorelei and Shawn standing on a big pile of snow in the middle of the trail.  Isn't that cool?  I mean, except for the sheer drop off on the side of the trail so you have to very gingerly make your way over the snow....  I think it took a year or two off my life.

There are loads of deer in the mountains - black-tailed deer.  Just like our Ohio white-tailed but with (you guessed it) black tails.  They are quite used to the tourists making their way on the trails.  They just hit the cool shade and chill while the tourists ooh and aah.  It's pretty amazing, really.

I love how Lorelei is getting photo-bombed in that picture by a deer.  Click on it to make it bigger.

They really are just sort of everywhere.

That guy was a young buck.  His antlers were just starting to come in.

And of course, there were the beautiful flowers in bloom all over the place.  The mountains are a spectacular place.  I can't say enough.  I suspect I will return again and again to Hurricane Ridge.  The trails are amazing and you know what you hear up there?

Nothing.

Nada.

Silence.

You don't even hear the deer.  That alone is enough to make me very curious about this strange thing people do that involves sleeping in tents outside with campfires and such.  Hmmm.  I might have to explore that.  I am a hotel snob, but we'll see.  Hurricane Ridge makes me think that whole camping thing might be worth a look-see.

The white stuff in the picture above is snow!

Wildflowers!

Out in the distance (which is north) is the Strait of Juan de Fuca, which is the strait to the Big Water.

All of these pictures were taken from trails.  How can one not find peace in these surroundings?  As you can see, we had a misty day.  There was a layer of fog in the valley over the strait (which is fairly common) and a layer of mist toward the tops of the mountains (also common).  I think the views are lovelier with the mist crawling in and out of the peaks.

I love the mountains.  That's all there is to it.  This move to the Pacific Northwest gets better and better.

I didn't take pictures of the drive over to Hurricane Ridge, and I'll do better next time with that.  The drive was gorgeous.  It started with the ferry across the Sound to Southworth, then heading north and west.  We went over the Hood Canal, which was lovely.  We also had to go through Port Angeles (city on the strait), which was a nice, quaint little burg.  We had lunch there.

We also took a detour to Lake Crescent, just few miles from Hurricane Ridge.  Look at that water!

Isn't it beautiful?

Lorelei and I waded in those waters - so clear and crisp!  It felt wonderful.  It very much reminded me of the Minnesota lakes, with their wilderness all around and then these fantastic waters - the quarries too.  It makes me happy to give these experiences to Lorelei, as my parents gave similar ones to me.

The weekend before we went to Hurricane Ridge, we explored some of the parks closer to home.  We explored a very intriguing place called FLAMING GEYSER State Park.  Here is the FLAMING GEYSER in its glory:

Isn't that about the funniest thing you've ever seen?

But it is kind of cool to think about this flame being caused by the geological phenomenon....  It's just...well, not what you picture when you hear FLAMING GEYSER PARK.  It was a pretty park, though.  It reminded me of Battelle Darby.  I loved that park back in old Galloway....  Here are some trees covered in moss - really pretty:

From FLAMING GEYSER, we headed to Snoqualmie Falls.  Snoqualmie Falls is nestled in the Snoqualmie Pass and Wenatchee National Forest, right there on I-90.  If you are driving to Seattle from the east, you can't miss it.  There's not a lot there, just a little town (the town Twin Peaks was based on), and of course, the Falls:

Pretty cool, right?

Snoqualmie is a bit kitschy, but quite picturesque.  And it's right here.  Maybe a half hour away.  I love the road trips, but how nice to have so much local too.

August is high season and traveling season here in Seattle.  It's go-everywhere-and-be-outside-all-the-time season.  Why wouldn't you?  It's fantastic outside!  We've had a bit of a heatwave (90 degrees) this week, but it's still not terribly hot - much less humidity.  We are surviving without A/C, and I can't remember when I last turned it on in my car.  It's good.  Shawn is also enjoying a month-long break from school, so that's another reason for our great excursions.  He continues to do well in school and at work, and Lorelei is, of course, loving summer.

Last weekend we also went to the Oregon coast.  That is a blog post all its own, and will be coming soon.  For the time-being, however, ruminate on these photos of Hurricane Ridge, and let me know when you are coming to visit.

Love to all -
Becky

July 22, 2012: Mountains and Music

It's been a crazy busy time here in Seattle, so we have a lot to catch up on.  But first, a word about the weather.  Summer has arrived in Seattle, and with it warmer temperatures (70-80 degrees) and lots of sun and blue sky.  Our house does not have air conditioning, but with the purchase of a few fans we keep comfortable enough.  There is little humidity, so the air quality is much different than it is east of the Mississippi.  The days very often have started out overcast, and then the clouds all burn off in the afternoon, bringing heat and stunning views.  Then in the evening the cooler temperatures return.  The most striking thing is the sunsets.  The picture above was taken from our balcony one evening.  The building you can sort of make out in the distance is Lorelei's school.  And of course, that's the Sound further out.

This one is taken looking directly across the street.  Spectacular.

Lorelei and I had a lovely visit in Ohio - it was too short but it was fantastic.  We had so much fun seeing everyone, and Lorelei enjoyed her cousins on both sides of her family.  She couldn't wait to have a sleepover with Emma and Kayden and her Shrader Grandparents:

And her favorite:

Lorelei also had the opportunity to enjoy her Siefert cousins in a way she never had before.  The boys doted on her and took her places, and really made her feel a part of things.  Even with her diving board accident (which took several years off my life as I watched her fall off the board) she didn't even cry because her cousin and Aunt Janice kept telling her how tough she was.  Now she has her own war story from the summer and the memory of hanging out with her big, grown-up cousins.

 It was a lovely trip.  Too short, of course.  We missed Steve and Stephen, and also John and Meredith, but they were a bit busy welcoming James' little sister, Madeleine Sue!  Fantastic!  We also had a lovely July 4 with the Niemanns - that is a tradition that I find wonderful.  I'd fly back every July 4 for that!

Another word about the weather.  It was over 100 degrees in Ohio and high humidity.  Last summer I vowed to have no more summers in Ohio.  I miss my people so much, but this move has taught me one thing:  I'm not cut out for Midwestern summers.  The Detroit airport was so hot inside that I counted the minutes until we boarded.  When we landed to a clear, cool Seattle evening, I was happy to be home.

We arrived in Seattle and the busy summer events have begun.  Everyone waits in Seattle to schedule things until July and August, the high season.  We barely know anyone and we've been invited to two weddings in July.  We also have Capital Hill Block Party (music festival) going on now, which I hope to make it back to yet this afternoon.

Last weekend we drove to the foothills of Mount Rainier for Dave and Megan's party commemorating their wedding (which they had back east several weeks ago).  They rented a cabin and had a nice cookout.  Even though the cloud cover prevented us from seeing Mount Rainier in all her glory, the scenery was so amazing anyway.  We were about 2 miles outside of Mount Rainier National Park.

That sign identifies the White River Forest.  It's pretty much all protected land out there.  I admit, I caught a little bug to buy a cabin there.  There is no cell phone reception and nothing to do but hike around, which is fine with me.  Here are some scenes from the cabin's back yard:

Isn't it gorgeous??  We rode down there with Ed and Amy and Dave and Megan's friend Laura.  Here's Maya being a chip off the old block.

 Look at her fabulous party dress!


Lorelei and Ed have thumb wars when they get together.  The smack-talk is getting pretty obnoxious.

Maya and Uncle Shawn. 

We really loved it down there and will make a point to go back on our explorations, hopefully yet this summer.  I'd like to go when you can see Mount Rainier, but it's really such a crap-shoot as to whether she will be "out" or not.

As I mentioned, this weekend is Cap Hill Block Party.  It's a 3-day music festival.  We went yesterday and I may go back to see a few bands this afternoon, but it doesn't hold a candle to Bumbershoot Festival, which is Labor Day weekend.  It's good to go, though.  It's helped me learn my way around the city, doing things like this.

These pictures were taken last night at the Block Party.  It really was a lovely evening to be out and about.

Next weekend we have a wedding to go to in Grapeview for one of my coworkers.  Grapeview is on the Case Inlet, a little southwest of here.  We'll have to take the ferry over and then drive about halfway to Olympic National Forest.  I can't wait to go - it's at her family's house on the beach.  It should be fantastic.  I'll certainly have pictures of that.

Until then, everyone enjoy the summer!  Be safe, and start thinking about when you are coming to visit Seattle!

New Experiences and New Dreams

It's baseball season, folks, and I'm living in a baseball town.  Let the good times roll!

Okay, well, maybe not really.  I mean, the Mariners aren't very good.  They sort of remind me of  my hapless Pirates:  a ball club with not enough money and not enough talent.  The baseball field, however, is amazing, and the very big benefit of having a not-so-great team is that tickets are cheap.  Lorelei and I went to a game through her school on May 4 (Happy Birthday, Jack!).  It was really fun and I foresee the Shraders hitting the baseball field more as summer arrives.

Our seats were toward the top, but it wasn't too bad, we could see pretty much everything.  If you enlarge this picture, you will be able to see the Space Needle out the other side of the stadium.

This display is made of baseball bats.  It's at the main entrance to the stadium.  Pretty cool.  I loved it.  I think that baseball might come alive for me again out here.  Oh, and did I mention that Mike McCready played the National Anthem at this game?!?  Mike McCready!  From Pearl Jam!  Just wandered into a more than half empty stadium on a cold night in May and played the Anthem.  Sure, why not?  I love that.  There are a few celebs here who are very much a part of the community.  Eddie Vedder, too.  (Um, he lives less than a mile from our house.)

Lorelei loved the game, too.  Though for different reasons:

Nothing like a bunch of elementary school kids hopped up on cotton candy.  Whew.

At the game we went to, the Mariners played the Twins.  The Mariners were up by 2 runs by the time Lorelei and I left in the 7th.  Of course by the time we got home they had lost the lead and the game.  <sigh>

Next up was Mother's Day.  We spent the morning at the West Seattle Farmer's Market.  The picture above is Megan and Dave - friends out here in West Seattle.  Dave is a friend of Shawn and Ed's from Toledo.  He and Shawn went to high school together and Dave and Ed were in a band together.  How funny - if Toledo's population goes down, it's because they all moved here.  Ha!

After the market, we went to the park.  It was a glorious day, complete with soaking feet in the Sound and swings and playing on the beach.

The above picture was taken from one of the trails we followed in the park.

A meadow on the same trail.

The beach!

The water!  (A bit chilly!!)

Big playing on the driftwood.  It was a lovely day!

After mother's day, it was crazy work until May 20 when I left for a conference in Palm Springs/La Quinta, California.  I was gone for about 4 days.  It was a jam-packed 4 days of seminars, receptions, networking, dinners, and becoming more educated about what goes on in my line of work.  I found it very educational (believe it or not) and enjoyed some of the seminars a lot.  I also liked meeting people that I had worked with but never met; it's always good to put a face with a name.

But that's really just a cover for the fact that I was in constant awe of being in southern California and in the desert.  It was nice to stay at this fabulous resort, but the overwhelming part of the whole thing was that I absolutely fell in love with the desert.

This is the resort.  Pretty much what it looked like outside my room.  Very nice.  They were having a May heat wave, though.  Temps were about 106 degrees each day that we were there.  They came down right after we left into the 80s and 90s, but yeah, well over a 100 each day we were there.  Telling yourself it's a "dry heat" only gets you so far.  At about 105, who cares.  It was damn hot.

I also got to see Pauline, whom I worked with at MDK.  I have missed her so much - it was fabulous seeing her.  For all who who know her - she looks amazing and is doing great!  I'll have pictures next time!

One night we went to a dinner in the desert.  We had the opportunity to go on jeep tours of the desert and they also had some amateur astronomer with his telescope (oh, how I hate to say it, but Shawn's is bigger and better), and we saw Saturn and its rings.  Very, very clear sky.  It's hot in the desert, but once the sun goes down, it's really different.  I fell in love with the formations and stark landscape.  It's just so different than anything I've ever seen.

The above formation is Elephants walking in the desert.  My angle isn't great but you can see the front "elephant" - see the trunk?

The sun is beginning to set here.  Just gorgeous.

You might have to click on this one to make it bigger to see it, but it's the desert wave.  Pretty amazing.

Perhaps the most striking part for me was that we were on the San Andreas Fault line.  There are these lines of vegetation that you can see kind of traveling through the desert - that's what our guide said was the actual fault line.  Everyone got a lesson in plate tectonics, which of course, I loved.  I can't wait to bring Shawn and Lorelei to the desert.

We are starting to make our plans.  The shock of moving has worn off and things are beginning to settle down.  We are planning to hit the Washington coast, Olympic National Park and of course, my beloved Hurricane Ridge in August.  I think...maybe if we can swing it...during Lorelei's mid-winter break in February, we'll go to Hawaii, or southern California.  I'm sure Yellowstone and Yosemite are next up.

It's perfect timing that today is Memorial Day, as I'm struck by how amazing and different this country is.  We are truly fortunate to be able to see as much of it as we are.  I wish everyone could experience this.  My eternal gratitude to those who sign up to protect it for us.

Love and blessings to all!

Now You Are Seven!

Lorelei is seven years old!

How on earth did this happen?  When did she get to be so big and grown-up??

In true form, and consistent with her previous birthdays, we celebrated at a nearby park.  These two are her classmates who came to celebrate with her.  Aren't the three of them lovely?

They had fun.  We played on the beach, ate some lunch, hit the playground, and played some more.  And yes, that's the Sound out there.  The rain was threatening but it held off so Miss Lorelei could have her birthday party.  Fabulous.

Lorelei is amazing.  Of course I think that, I'm her mom.  But she is truly a wonder and so much fun.  She's an only child of perhaps unconventional parents, so she regularly watches TV with me.  That means she watches "Bones" and reruns of "X Files".  Funny enough, I have seen all the X-Files episodes about a hundred times and still get freaked out.  Lorelei's first time through and she's telling me it's ridiculous that I have to hid my eyes in a pillow.  Really, Mom, grow up.  Goodness.  In a few years I think we'll have our hands full.

All those girls are amazing.  I remember 7.  I received a book for that birthday from my first friend, Kerrie.  It was called Now You Are Seven.  I loved that book and I gave it to Lorelei this year.  <sigh>

As well as Lorelei's Birthdaypalooza, we have also trekked out a bit in the last few weeks.  We went to Bainbridge Island a couple weeks ago with Ed and Amy, and of course, Miss Maya.  It was a gorgeous ferry ride:

That's looking west toward the mountains as we are heading that way. It was a beautiful day.  Here's a look back toward downtown:

I like that one because I like the seagull hanging out with us.  Here's a better picture of downtown:

Kind of a neat picture.

Bainbridge had some pretty good BBQ, which means it looked like a dive farmhouse with a little too much hayseed going on.  Sure, it looked wrong, but the beer was cold and the BBQ was sweet-sassy-molassy-amazing.  We sort of ate and drank our way through Bainbridge.  It was decent and it's clearly got the island-town thing going on.  I liked it, but I have to admit, I like the hustle and bustle of Seattle.  One thing is for sure, Shawn and I chose well in deciding to move here.

Here is Mount Rainier from the ferry.  Very nice.

When it's sunny and clear, this place is transformed.  I can't say enough about it.

In other news, Shawn has been crazy busy.  His spring semester and summer semester overlapped so he had double the amount of classes and work for a couple of weeks (what the hell).  Of course, he is very engaged in his work too - there was a lot going on for him for awhile.

Ed and Amy continue to adjust to life with Maya.  Oh, the joys of new parenthood.  I had the pleasure of babysitting recently and here she is, letting those animals talk to her and tell her how it is:

She's precious.

Finally, it's really starting to hit home that we live in wine country.  A coworker of mine has informed me that it's rose (as in rose-ay) season.

I'm going to like this season.

April 12, 2012: And Out of the Darkness, Comes a Great Light

Do you see that?  That's the beach a few blocks from our house.  That's what it looks like on a clear day.  Go ahead, click on it.  Make it bigger, enjoy the view.  It's amazing.

Yep, the beach again.  But that white stuff in the distance is the Olympic Mountains.  My beloved Olympics.  In just a few short weeks all tire restrictions will be lifted in the Olympics and we can travel at will to Hurricane Ridge and the other sights the Olympics hold.  We can already tell that the mountains aren't quite as snow-covered as they've been.  Truly, it's a sight to behold.

I keep thinking that maybe we should look at some of the other neighborhoods in Seattle and consider living there.  For instance, Ballard, which is close to Lake Washington and houses the Locks where the boats come in from fishing in the Big Water.  Also, Ballard is home to the Scandinavians.  I do love Ballard.  And then there's Magnolia and Queen Anne, both with amazing views, amazing homes, and also close to the water, but on the east side of the Sound, the downtown side.  Fremont has the water of the Lake and also its own brand of funkiness that feels homey to me.  There are also about 5 or 6 other neighborhoods with equally fantastic attributes and surroundings.  But...I love the west side of West Seattle - I love that I am so close to the beach I smell the sea just about every morning.  I also love that there is very little obstructing my view of the Olympics.  Some mornings, when it's crystal clear, they are close enough to touch.

Seriously.  Look at that!

I seem to be hitting the beach lately when the tide is rolling in or rolling out - not sure which - and I get the loud waves.  It's been really gorgeous.  Check them out.

And of course, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge that Lorelei has overcome her rather recent fear of barnacles enough to check out the tide pools at the beach.  I have no idea about the barnacle thing.  I didn't even know what they were until she was suddenly afraid of them.  But look!  She's obviously over it.

I guess that's probably enough about the whole "Seattle is so beautiful" thing.  You get the point.  But wow.  When Spring arrives in Seattle it arrives with bells, whistles and a parade.

In other news, things are going well.  I'm busy at work.  So busy, in fact, that I'm headed to Palm Springs for a seminar or something in May.  Looking at a map, Palm Springs is in southern California, in the mountains on the edge of the desert.  I'll let you know how it goes.  I'm interested to see what this new place is like.  Otherwise, work is good.  It's challenging, busy, crazy and never a dull moment.  I'm happy to work with some really amazing people and I've begun to embrace Washington law and feel a part of it.  It's good.

Shawn continues to catch the eye of his coworkers at Allrecipes.com - they are really accommodating about permitting him to shadow the web developers as he wants while he's in school.  They are excited about having someone on board who is studying web development.  They see bright things for him, and really, that's what it's all about.  He landed a pretty good gig there.

Lorelei is doing well at school, though she still exists a bit apart from her classmates.  No real friends, at least in her class.  I fear this move has been hardest on her.  She has more fun in her extra-curriculars with kids in different classes than among her actual classmates.  Sometimes I think she would have been like this in C-bus, too.  She approaches this world from a different perspective than a lot of kids her age.  All in all, though, she seems to be having fun, and that's all that counts.

We are all feeling more a part of things here.  It helps that the weather has turned, and the light!  Well, and of course, Steve having layovers here has been nothing short of amazing.  It's lovely having family on a regular basis here - more than I could have hoped for.

It's 8:49p as I write this and still not quite pitch dark yet.  It will be in another 5 minutes, but wow.  This is the payoff for the darkness in the winter.  Also, Lorelei and I booked our tickets to come back to Ohio for a week in July.  Very exciting times indeed!

Until next time - happy spring!