We enjoyed a slow day at the lake. Anchored in our spot and had the cove to ourselves by nightfall.
Category: Fun
Bubbly and pinochle.
Happy Champagne Day!! My calendar tags August 4th every year for this bubbly celebration. Google also lists various other champagne-related days in October and December. I, for one, will celebrate them all!
We sipped as we played a few rounds of pinochle with these nifty vintage cards – found in the time capsule.
Cheers!
Fair city.
My seat for my flight home on Saturday was on the side of the plane that usually faces away from Mt. Rainier. So, I was happy to hear the pilot announce that we would be taking off to the west and flying around the city, due to the fact that Seafair was underway and the airshow that accompanies it over Lake Washington. It turned out that I was treated to the most beautiful views on the way up after all. Thanks, Mom. 🙂
This shot is taken looking to the south east. Queen Anne Hill is the treed hill to the lower left. Lake Union is above it. Downtown is in the center of the picture. Elliott Bay is to the lower right. Above downtown is the south end of Lake Washington, and the wispy loops of smoke to the right of the I-90 floating bridge are from planes in the airshow flying over the hydroplane race course. And, of course, Mt Rainier watching over it all – Mount Adams poking out to its right. If you look closely you can find the Space Needle, Seattle Center, CenturyLink Stadium and Safeco Field, Boeing Field, Elliott Bay Marina, among other landmarks.
I love this town.
Goodnight.
Goodnight mountains.
Goodnight moon.
Goodnight Mom.
I’m going back home in the morning.
Nite, nite.
Monday Monday.
Worked from mom’s house again, and then headed out to meet Colleen and Jake for dinner. Our table had a beautiful view overlooking Elliott Bay. Simply gorgeous.
The Great Wheel after sunset: 
And….. The golden hour:
Playing in paradise.
Monte and I joined 2 of my sisters, brother-in-laws, and 3 nieces/nephews for a weekend of fun on Lake Cushman. It sits just east of the Olympic mountains in Washington State. The lake temps were in the 70s and clear, sunny and in the 90’s above. Just beautiful. We kayaked, tubed, ran up the lake by motorboat, tried the rope swing, tent camped, played games, and just had a really great time together.
Love me. Love me not.
We are spending the weekend at Lake Cushman, playing on the lake and tent camping. Fran and Art’s property is fringed with daisies – Mom’s favorite. Nice.
It’s Friday!
We tried a nice Indian place for dinner. I loved it. We took the long way home and waited a half hour watching the sun set behind the Olympics. Simply gorgeous. If we waited another 20 minutes it would have been even more amazing. Stay tuned. 🙂
Good brew.
We hit Gig Harbor tonight with Fran and Art. Nice burg. Nice brews!
Seaside.
We explored a bit after work. This is a shot of the surf, at sunset, on the banks of Sinclair Inlet. 
One fine day.
Today we set out for a day of crabbing. What a beautiful day! Sky was blue. Sun was out. We got our fill of crab – both dungeoness and rock crab. We boiled them up at home and were treated to an exceptional dinner.
At one point during the day, a bald eagle circled right above us for a while, riding the thermals. This was the best I could capture. Pretty bird.
Ales of summer.
Rachel flew in today, so we met her at a local brew pub to catch up. I’m a fan of most beers in a green bottle — lagers and pilsners. But those are not so easy to find here in the yeasty, hearty, and dark brew-pub PNW. I happily discovered Alaska summer ale yesterday and loved it. Tonight I tried Silver City’s Ziggy Zoggy lager and really enjoyed it.
Cheers!
Seventh inning stretch.
We hopped on the ferry tonight to watch the Mariners play the Angels. A group of ten of us sat together in King Felix’s court, rooting for the Ms. As the sun was setting I popped up to the 300 level to get a peek over the Port of Seattle towards Elliot Bay. The haze is still thick. The sun was like a pink ball glowing in the sky.
And we won!
A fanfare ending to a family reunion extravaganza.
For the last week and a half, Monte and I hosted his family’s bi-annual reunion. We started out with a big 3-day weekend, enjoying reconnecting and having fun at the house and in the backyard with 21 of our relatives that came from pretty much every corner of the country. Then, for the next week, ten of the family that could stay longer came to stay with us at the house. We packed it with as much food and fun as we could. It was really a special, wonderful time. Sailing, floating, grilling, cornhole, homemade pasta, bimini ring game, barbeque, card games, homemade pizza, geocaching, karaoke, low-country boil, gardening, sno-cones, sightseeing, even taking part in our neighborhood’s 4th of July parade. Over the last few days, our party dwindled until it was just four of us yesterday. We set out for the lake and sailed to Starnes Island to anchor up and watch the fireworks show. It didn’t disappoint. We squeezed every bit of fun out of the time spent with everyone.
Today we said goodbye to the last two revellers. It’s just our flock now. The house is quiet.
I leave you with two shots from the fireworks last night — here’s to family!
Sheila365 