we spent a good amount of time in national parks on our washington trip. starting with the olympic national park, we ate lunch one afternoon al fresco style, on top of hurricane ridge. we felt like we were eating on top of the world!
you can see by the pictures below, the clouds would just float right over the ridge, right past us…
{all photos by me.}
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from seattle we took a ferry and headed up to Sequim where my sister lives.
our kiddos were fascinated by the ferry’s that you actually drive your car on, park, and cruise across the water.
our first morning in sequim {pronounced s-q-w-i-mmm} we headed out to graysmarsh farm to pick berries. picking berries was a big part of my childhood in the pacific northwest. however, we didn’t ever go to farms to pick berries. my dad would find good patches of wild blackberries, then i’d spend my weekend picking till my hands were stained purple. We would keep some for ourselves, and the extra berries i would sell to the local berry shed for about 25 cents a pound.
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the next stop on our trip…
{our handsome driver. i looove his racing stripes!}
even though i have visited it many times before, i still love going to the space needle whenever i am in seattle. the view – on a clear day is so unreal. you just don’t realize how the city comes together with all that city and all that water unless you get 520 feet above ground.
this year the space needle is fifty years old! in honor of the event, it is currently painted in it’s original colors.
did you know… that there is a restaurant at the space needle that actually rotates around the needle while you are dining?
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we spent half a day in seattle. i have always adored the indie-chic creative culture in seattle. if the sun shined a whole lot more, this would be one of my top choices for a place to live. as you walk the streets it feels like a small town, complete with historic buildings, green plazas, and a quaint business district puzzle-pieced together around a beautiful waterfront. pike place market is where it all merges for me. there is raw live music, the country’s best fruit and veggies {dude. so good, you gotta eat them on the spot!}, local flowers, and authentic personalities all dwelling together. this market alone, is worth a trip to the northwest.
one highlight of the entire Washington trip –
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We returned home ten days ago from our very favorite family vacation yet. and, with the whirlwind of jumping back into Fall schedules and routines i’ve been reminiscing how wonderful our trip was and wishing just a bit that we were still there.
this trip served three purposes.
one: i was raised in Montesano, Washington with a good deal of time spent all-over the state as a child due to the fact my kinfolk were scattered all-over the Northwest. Since my Dad passed away on 9/9 – two days before 9/11 {it was a very emotional week in 2001.}, I have not been back to visit family, or friends since his funeral.
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in August, we spent one of our sunday afternoons walking through the Boston public garden. we also road the swan boats, and while on our boat ride we spotted friends from our suburb on the shore. we felt like such locals crossing paths with friends while in the city.
family outings can be adventurous and stimulating, but more often than not, they are much more low-key; they are always though, about sharing an experience. i like it the most when those experiences are completely new to all of us.
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