Spring Break in Seattle

We had a lovely trip to Seattle. For memory's sake:

Wednesday: We arrived so early because we left Atlanta so early! Wakeup time was 2:45 am. (!) Flight took off at 6:15. The airport was a huge part of our excitement, though, since it was the kids' first flight. (not Alex's, but he was 3). They did great in the security check and getting to the gate -- only bad part was not getting any breakfast, but we survived that. Easy flight, if a little long. Kate's device wouldn't download the movie app, so she had to use mine. It was fine though. Landed in Washington around 9:15. First stop, Aunt Jilly's house! To see it, first of all, and to meet our cousin Thomas O'Malley the (alley) cat. ;)

Next, we headed down to the famous Pike Place Farmers' Market, for a delicious chowder lunch and some tourist-level shopping. So fun. In the rain. Afterwards, we stopped at the Starbucks Reserve and Roastary and had a coffee "experience" at the Experience Bar. My drink, a gin-barrel roasted Rwandan cold brew with tonic and lime (!!!) was delicious. We made dinner at home that night, a Sun Basket meal of chili mac with lime yogurt topping and everyone loved it. I'm going to try to recreate it at home one of these days (after May 26 when the WLC ends).

Thursday: Kurt Cobain's memorial park bench on the very anniversary of his death 24 years ago. We didn't quite intend to be there on the exact day, but that's how it worked out. Nearby was a beautiful Japanese Garden that we explored, in the rain. It did rain while we were there! A true Pacific NW week. ;) Lunch was amazing.... lunch was at Din Tai Fung, a Chinese dumpling place. Again, the kids were adventurous (the chili mac the night before was not their usual fare, with quinoa pasta and lots of veggies)... and I was proud of them. We loved it and ate a ton. That afternoon, we toured the Theo chocolate factory. A tad disappointing -- the other time I toured it, we got to walk through the factory itself and even the tasting/confection kitchen. This time not so much. But still, we got good samples and spent lots of dollars in the gift shop! Thursday night we went to a pizza place for dinner. That was a lot of food for one day! We tried watching a movie (Guardians of the Galaxy 2), but none of us could stay awake.

Friday: Bit of a later start, but we were totally fine with that. We took a ferry to Bainbridge Island on the one sunny day of our trip. It was interesting to think that some people take the ferry in to work every day, and home again. Many were eating their home-packed lunches or breakfasts, sleeping, and otherwise bored, while we were taking pictures, exploring the views, and finding it all so interesting. Once we landed, we shopped in the very cute main street area, bought souvenirs, ate ice cream, and enjoyed the weather. (Well, kind-of. Alex was annoyed he'd needed a jacket in the morning, and now he was hot, but knew he'd need it again later on the boat. I agree, that was kind-of tiresome.) Still, an awesome day. Dinner Friday night was.... hm, what was it? Oh yes, Chinook's, a seafood restaurant at Fisherman's Terminal. Delicious. I had salmon tacos. We watched A Man Called Ove.

Saturday: Finished Ove, since some of us had slept again. ;) We had not yet seen the Space Needle, so downtown we went! Got our tickets, spent some time hanging out by the giant fountain while we waited (in the rain), and then went up to the top. Super fun, even if it is under construction until June of this year. We'll just have to go back! After that, the Chihuly Garden and Gallery, which was just the art our eyes and hearts needed in all the grey weather. Loved it. Everyone was hungry so we ate lunch nearby and then home again, home again! Jilly had to sing at Mass, and Kate and I went with her while Shawn did some laundry. For dinner afterwards, we found Bizzaro, a little (really little!) Italian bistro. I loved our conversation that night. Jilly was asking lots of questions about the kids' school. It was yummy and we hated that it was our last meal together!

This update is really bare-bones, despite the large number of words. I just wanted to record some of the details for posterity. :) It felt both really busy/packed, and also relaxed and not stressful. Thanks to Jilly for being the BEST hostess. Kate's probably seriously considering college out there, after we talked about it and UW and Seattle U. Don't know for sure how I feel about that! But I know that parts of all our hearts are still in Seattle, and likely always will be.