Keeping Up With the Allens

Weekend in Chicago

This past weekend we hopped on a plane and headed to Chicago for a few days with Alex’s family. Alex’s cousin Josh was getting married, which prompted the trip, but we took an extra day to spend with Alex’s sister and her husband in the city.

{quick selfie at Josh & Janessa's wedding} — {quick selfie at Josh & Janessa’s wedding}

We flew in late Thursday night by way of Alaska Airlines, our new favorite airline. Alaska is nothing short of amazing – we had such a great flying experience. Alina and Alberto picked us up and whisked us off to their apartment in the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago. They just bought a new apartment a few blocks away but don’t close for a week so we weren’t able to see it quite yet.

{Alex and Alberto had a good time smoking hookah together} — {Alex and Alberto had a good time smoking hookah together out on the porch}

Our time in Chicago was quick and the weather was horrible. The predicted high on Friday, our only day in the city, was 86 degrees and it was supposed to rain. In reality it might have gotten to 55 or 60 degrees with a nice, consistent drizzle. Alex and I were not prepared for the chilly, rainy weather {go figure}, so after Alina and I went to yoga the four of us headed to a nearby neighborhood for lunch and a stroll.

{the neighborhood we stopped at was very Swedish so we popped into a Swedish bakery and got some treats}

That night we had an awesome dinner at Gather, a restaurant in the Lincoln Square neighborhood, which is close to Alina and Alberto’s place. The restaurant specializes in sharable plates, so we got a bunch of stuff to share. Everything was delicious! We had a really nice evening together.

Saturday morning we drove west to Batavia where Alex’s parents live. I had a brunch to attend in the nearby town of Geneva which was planned to honor my college friend Julie, who is getting married in October. It was really nice to spend some time with Julie and two of the other bridesmaids, plus it was a really nice morning.

That evening we were joined by Alex’s cousin Bryan, and his wife, Sarah, and some friends of Alina’s, Atalie and Ben, as we went to Josh and Janessa’s wedding. By mid-afternoon it was hot. Hot and huuuumid. And there were looming storms on the horizon. Perfect weather for a barn/outdoor wedding!

The wedding was held at Heritage Prairie Farms in Elburn, Illinois. The property was beautiful – lush, rolling grass and gardens, along with a few barns, a cute little house and a huge party tent. Josh, the groom, is Alex’s cousin, but they also graduated in the same class from the same high school, so while this was a family wedding, it was also a “friend” wedding where Alex got to see a lot of his old high school classmates.

{inside the barn where the ceremony took place}

{the reception tent - thank goodness we had a covered spot because it POURED later on in the evening} — {the reception tent – thank goodness we had a covered spot because it POURED later on in the evening}

{Alex and me with Stacy, Alex's cousin, and Alberto} — {Alex and me with Stacy, Alex’s cousin, and Alberto}

The evening was really nice. We had a great time seeing Alex’s family, dancing and catching up with Alex’s old friends from high school.

Our last day in Illinois was fairly low-key. We spent the morning just lounging around, chatting and hanging out. Bryan, Sarah, Atalie and Ben stayed over at Alex’s parents house, so it was nice for everyone to have more time together. I had one more bridal party affair to attend – I had my friend Julie’s bridal shower on Sunday afternoon, followed by a quick stop at the Bailey’s {family friends of Alex’s parents} new house.

{the bridesmaids with the blushing bride (Julie is in the middle)}

We had a really nice trip. It’s always great to catch up with Alex’s family – plus it had been quite some time since I had been back in Batavia and Chicago. But, it won’t be long before we’ll be back again…

New Siding

We just wrapped up a big house project: new siding on the south side of our house! This was the side of our house that was next to a home fire next door {four years ago} and our recent repair was a follow-up of that, which meant that we were able to use our original insurance claim. The siding that wasn’t replaced immediately following the fire had started to chip and peel quite a bit, thus telling us that it should have been replaced in the first place and causing us to re-open the claim.

It was really fun to see “behind the scenes” of our house, particularly what our house looks like without any siding. Our house was built in 1909, so it’s quite old and things were done a little differently back then!

20150528_174710850_iOS — {there was no Tyvek house wrap… no insulation… just the wooden planks which were covered by cedar shake-style siding – they would have kept up if it wasn’t for the fire!}

20150530_144241602_iOS — {the contractors wrapped this side of our house with Tyvek to keep it dry and they installed flashing above the windows and trim and replaced the trim in half of the windows.}

{the siding contractors did SUCH a nice job. we are really pleased with the care they put into their job - it was really clear that they wanted us to be satisfied with their work and that they were trying very hard.} — {the siding contractors did SUCH a nice job. we are really pleased with the care they put into their job – it was really clear that they wanted us to be satisfied with their work and that they were trying very hard. and the cedar shakes smell sooooooo good!}

Summer is Here!

Summer has arrived in Seattle! The transition from our beautiful, amazing spring to summer took place over the last week or so and it seems like the new season is here to stay. The highs all weekend were in the mid-80s, which is considered very warm {and a little unusual} for Seattle. I have a feeling we are in store for a long, hot summer here! I’m certainly ok with that but need to be better about planning no-cook dinners and preparing lighter evening meals, as we don’t have air conditioning {what happened to our mild, wet climate!?}. Oh, and I need to stock up on ice cream ingredients!

Alex and I had a nice week followed by a restful, but productive, weekend.

{I kicked off the weekend on Friday afternoon with a run around Green Lake with my friend Ali, followed by a pit stop at Mary's house to pick up this gorgeous bouquet of the last of her peonies} — {I kicked off the weekend on Friday afternoon with a run around Green Lake with my friend Ali, followed by a pit stop at Mary’s house to pick up this gorgeous bouquet of the last of her peonies}

{thank goodness I changed out our bedding last week and exchanged it with our lighter summer quilt - the timing couldn't have been better! we have been roasting this week.} — {thank goodness I changed out our bedding last week and exchanged it with our lighter summer quilt – the timing couldn’t have been better! we have been roasting this week.}

{this is Jackson's "come on, let me sleep, mom" look} — {this is Jackson’s “come on, let me sleep, mom” look}

{and this is him not caring that he's not allowed on the bed...} — {and this is him not caring that he’s not allowed on the bed…}

{Henry cat loves the change in bedding, but mostly, he loves the addition of the fan in our room!}

{summer is DEFINITELY here - it ended up being 84 on Saturday and 88 on Sunday and it's 84 right now on Monday} — {summer is DEFINITELY here – it ended up being 84 on Saturday and 88 on Sunday and it’s 84 right now on Monday}

{our Saturday afternoon plans of going paddle boarding were shut down by the wind, so we went with Ryan and Mary to Westward, an absolutely adorable water-side restaurant on Lake Union for a drink}

{we enjoyed an evening out at a fundraiser on Friday night, followed by an unexpected stop at a restaurant for dinner, then Saturday we spent the evening grilling out at Mary and Ryan's} — {we enjoyed an evening out at a fundraiser on Friday night, followed by an unexpected stop at a restaurant for dinner, then Saturday we spent the evening grilling out at Mary and Ryan’s}

{We had a very active weekend. Our pilates instructor, Diane, came over for our pilates lesson on Saturday morning. I am loving my FitBit - I walked more than 24,000 steps (!) on Sunday, which included a nice run along Lake Washington. Alex went for an awesome 20 or 30 mile bike ride on his new bike.} — {We had a very active weekend. Our pilates instructor, Diane, came over for our pilates lesson on Saturday morning. I am loving my FitBit – I walked more than 24,000 steps (!) on Sunday, which included a nice run along Lake Washington. Alex went for an awesome 20 or 30 mile bike ride on his new bike.}

{as a "thank you for putting up with us" gift, my dad got Alex and me three glassybabies. a glassy baby is a glass votive holder that is hand blown in our neighborhood. they are really iconic in Seattle, but particularly around my neighborhood. it was fun to pick out three colors and now proudly display them, along with the original one I already had. thanks dad!} — {as a “thank you for putting up with us” gift, my dad got Alex and me three glassybabies. a glassybaby is a glass votive holder that is hand blown in our neighborhood. they are really iconic in Seattle, but particularly around my neighborhood. they make great gifts! it was fun to pick out three colors and now proudly display them, along with the original one I already had. thanks dad!}

{the big project for sunday was staining the back patio table and the fence. it’s our first time staining the table and it looks brand new! alex sanded it down and applied some stain and voila!}

{aside from the lack of grass, I'd still say our backyard looks pretty okay!} — {aside from the lack of grass, I’d still say our backyard looks pretty okay!}

{this crazy pants is loving his kiddie pool!}

{that's all for now!} — {that’s all for now!}

Comb Family Trip to Seattle

A big part of the Comb family made the long trek out to Seattle this past weekend for my cousin Jonathan’s wedding. My dad, Fred; brother, John; and aunt Janny (my dad’s sister) all came out for a long weekend from Minnesota. We squeezed a lot into our time together, including a trip around the Olympic Peninsula, lots of family time and a fair amount of eating.

{getting the trip started off right at Bottlehouse!}

Shortly after everyone arrived on Thursday night we headed to Bottlehouse for dinner and some amazing wine.

Just after dinner I had to take Alex to the airport for him to catch a flight to Chicago to surprise his dad at his retirement party. More on that in another post!

Friday morning came bright and early and we set off for our 15 hour tour of the Olympic Peninsula.

{view of downtown Seattle from the ferry}

{Jackson came with us for the trip and experienced his first ferry ride}

{Hurricane Ridge} — {Hurricane Ridge – our first stop of the day. Hurricane Ridge is on the other side of Puget Sound from Seattle – when you look across the Sound over to the Olympic mountains you are essentially looking over to Hurricane Ridge.}

{Enjoying the view - they were looking north towards the San Juan Islands and Canada!} — {Enjoying the view – they were looking north towards the San Juan Islands and Canada!}

{Fred and Jan having a great time together} — {Fred and Jan having a great time together with the Olympics in the background}

{John and me - it's hard to get this kid to smile in pictures for some reason} — {John and me – it’s hard to get this kid to smile in pictures for some reason}

{Jackson got to take a quick swim} — {Jackson got to take a quick swim in Crescent Lake – notice the color of the lake – it is really exquisite!}

{We drove just over an hour around the peninsula to the coast side. Just past Forks, WA is Ruby Beach, which was our next destination.}

{There is something about the coast that makes it foggy when the rest of the peninsula is clear and sunny - the temperature dropped about 15 degrees here too!} — {There is something about the coast that makes it foggy when the rest of the peninsula is clear and sunny – the temperature dropped about 15 degrees here too!}

{Jackson was having a great time at the beach!}

{Our final stop was at the Quinalt Rainforest. Here we saw the world's largest sitka spruce tree, a 600-year old cedar tree, and, of course, the Quinalt Rainforest. This was the last destination of our 15-hour road trip.} — {Our final stop was at the Quinalt Rainforest. Here we saw the world’s largest sitka spruce tree, a 600-year old cedar tree, and, of course, the Quinalt Rainforest. This was the last destination of our 15-hour road trip.}

The theme of Saturday was Jonathan and Kelly’s wedding. Their ceremony wasn’t until late afternoon, so we started our day with breakfast at the Hi Spot, followed by a quick trip downtown.

{John really wanted to do the Underground Tour while he was here, so we made that happen. The tour is a comedic history lesson that provides a look under Seattle's sidewalks and roadways into the underground space.} — {John really wanted to do the Underground Tour while he was here, so we made that happen. The tour is a comedic history lesson that provides a look under Seattle’s sidewalks and roadways into the underground space.}

{Tried to go up to the Smith Tower observation deck but I guess they don't allow visitors anymore!} — {Tried to go up to the Smith Tower observation deck but I guess they don’t allow visitors anymore!}

{So we headed up to the Columbia Tower and had coffee on the 40th floor instead of paying $15 to check out the observation deck}

{New bike program! It's like we're a real city now!} — {New bike program! It’s like we’re a real city now!}

Jonathan and Kelly’s wedding took place at the Washington Park Arboretum, which is in Seattle, just about 2 miles north of my house. The bride and groom are both very into nature so the arboretum was the perfect location for their nuptials to take place at, if you ask me. The wedding was very casual, low-key and very much celebratory. It was a perfect party to honor Jonathan and Kelly and their love for each other!

{Jonathan and Kelly walked down the aisle together to the song "Latch", which was beautiful. I always love it when the couple walks down the aisle together for some reason. Something new I had never seen before was that their parents were all waiting for them at the altar. A really sweet touch!} — {Jonathan and Kelly walked down the aisle together to the song “Latch”, which was beautiful. I always love it when the couple walks down the aisle together for some reason. Something new I had never seen before was that their parents were all waiting for them at the altar. A really sweet touch!}

{Both the bride and the groom looked exceptional! I'm guessing I'll never see Kelly in a dress again, but she sure pulled off her short white lace dress and adorable white lace ballet flats!} — {Both the bride and the groom looked exceptional! I’m guessing I’ll never see Kelly in a dress again, but she sure pulled off her short white lace dress and adorable white lace ballet flats!}

{sweet touches - the place cards were origami cranes!} — {sweet touches – the place cards were origami cranes!}

{beautiful setting for Jon & Kelly's wedding!} — {beautiful setting for Jon & Kelly’s wedding!}

We had a great time seeing family and witnessing the incredible network of friends they have in Seattle. Both Jonathan and Kelly grew up in Seattle and went to college in Washington and have amassed quite a crew of friends, which is fantastic.

{Jon and John hanging out with baby Henry}

{The weather was just perfect for Jon and Kelly's wedding. We really had a great time!} — {The weather was just perfect for Jon and Kelly’s wedding. We really had a great time!}

First thing on Sunday morning I headed to the airport to pick up Alex from his trip to Illinois, then we swung back by our house and grabbed the gang and drove over to my aunt Cathy and uncle Michael’s home for a post-wedding brunch. Their home is on an incredible piece of property – they live on what’s called the Montlake Cut – it’s a canal that connects Lake Union to Lake Washington and there are so many fancy boats that pass through – enormous sail boats, yachts, kayaks, charter cruises, speedboats, cigar boats… you name it, we probably saw it!

{View from the backyard looking onto the Montlake Cut} — {View from the backyard looking onto the Montlake Cut. Across the water is the University of Washington campus – particularly the medical school buildings.}

{Cathy & Michael's backyard} — {Cathy & Michael’s backyard}

It was really nice to catch up with our family members. My dad’s sister, Cathy, and her husband, Michael, moved out to Seattle in the 70s and never left. Their two kids, Chris and Jon, grew up in Seattle, just about 2 or 3 miles north of where I live, and they both seem like they are staying put in Seattle, at least for now.

{The extended Comb family who was present for the wedding} — {The extended Comb family who was present for the wedding, which now includes Kelly – welcome to the family!}

Chris and his wife Heidi just had a baby {Henry} six weeks ago and I am really happy that my dad, Janny and John got to meet him during their trip. While my dad and John come to visit me fairly regularly, Janny hadn’t been out to visit since Jonathan graduated from college 7 or 8 years ago and I know she really enjoyed spending time with her Seattle family and re-visiting the city.

{Fred getting a chance to feed baby Henry!}

Sunday afternoon was pretty low-key. Janny stayed with Cathy for the remainder of the trip, while the guys and I just headed back to my house to relax for the afternoon. We did head out to Bottlehouse for a quick glass of sangria before venturing to the newest restaurant in our neighborhood called Vendemmia. It’s an Italian restaurant with fresh, homemade pasta and it was exceptional.

Our final day was also pretty relaxing. We had lunch out at Hi Spot then ran over to pick Jan up before driving over to West Seattle to Chris and Heidi’s home to spend some time with Heidi and baby Henry. It was a great end to our trip and time together. I am looking forward to their next trip out here!

A Quiet Weekend at Home…

I became a little delinquent in keeping things updated. This past weekend was not quiet. The weekend before was, though! Well, for me anyway… Alex had traveled to Montreal for his friend AK’s bachelor party, which he will write about when he gets around to it, so I was home to fend for myself all weekend.

I kept pretty busy the whole time Alex was gone. It was really nice just to have some time to myself and to decompress and get adjusted to my new summer schedule. I got a ton of stuff done!

{Henry cat kept me company and kept a close eye on the house}

{I took Jackson to the dog park and we met Mary, Ryan and their dog Berkeley}

{Our little espresso machine sure can pump out a good cup of coffee! I filled up my travel mug before heading out for a day of errands on Saturday.}

{one of my big projects was organizing my recipes.}

{One nice thing about Alex leaving is that I can cook whatever I want without having to worry about taking his tastes into consideration!}

{but then we made ribs, all for him, on Memorial Day, and had Mary, Ryan and Berkeley over.}

{Jackson and I had some great walks and runs while Alex was traveling}

{a mid-week treat from last week was beer can chicken}

We’ve had a lot going on the last 10 days or so, so stay tuned for more updates about my family’s visit, Alex’s trip to Montreal followed by his trip to Illinois, and some major work on our house!

Alex’s Big Birthday Weekend

We had a lot of plans leading into Alex’s big birthday weekend. The first was to celebrate my birthday with the cooking class Alex got me.

We ended up taking a Thai cooking class at Hipcooks on Friday night. The class was really neat and both of us agreed we probably wouldn’t have cooked much/anything on our own, so it was great to get us out of our comfort zone and trying new things.

On our menu was:

Tom Yum soup
Tom Kha Gai soup
Chiang Mai meatballs (pork meatballs with fresh curry)
Glass noodle salad with stir fried pork (our favorite!)
Massaman curry
Thai sweet rice with mango and coconut for dessert
Tamarind whiskey sour (cocktail)
Thai me up (cocktail)

The class was very hands-on and we got to play a role in a lot of different parts of the meal. I appreciated tasting the food frequently as we were cooking just to taste how things came together. We had a really nice time, though we had wished the other people in the class were a bit more fun. It’s such a shame that not everyone is as much fun as we are 😉

Saturday was Alex’s birthday! We woke up and had a little relaxing time at home before we made the two hour drive up to Whidbey Island for a quick day trip. The weather was quite cloudy, so it wasn’t the most ideal day for this trip, but we still had fun!

Our destination was Ebey’s Landing, which is a bluff overlooking a beach on Puget Sound. We stopped at a cute shop in Coupville, a little town nearby, and picked up the makings of a great picnic {two prosecco splits, some sandwiches, cornichons, chips and Mexican hot chocolate cookies} and headed down to the beach at Ebey’s Landing.

Jackson was along for the ride and he was in paradise. He had never swam in the ocean before – just lakes and rivers, so it was a little different for him with the waves. He was running back and forth, up and down the beach, stopping to shake off next to us while we were eating {delightful part of having a dog}, and running in and out of the water. Safe to say he had the best day ever.

We didn’t stay for too long because it was pretty chilly on the coast that day and we had evening plans we had to get back to! Thankfully we avoided traffic on our way home, which almost never happens.

{I can imagine this view is quite different when the sun is out!}

Since about October last year I had been scheming up a big surprise party for Alex’s 29th birthday. His birthday was conveniently on a Saturday and I figured he wouldn’t suspect it as much on his 29th birthday as he would his 30th. So, last night about 20 of our friends gathered at Bottlehouse, our neighborhood wine bar, and royally surprised him! Alex didn’t suspect a thing.

We had a great evening catching up with everyone and it was so fun to share our favorite spot with our friends. It was fun that most people had met before, even if they were in different “groups” – but our holiday party this past year provided a great merger of our different groups of friends, which was really nice. We are lucky to have so many wonderful friends out here!

It was really hard for me to keep the secret of this surprise party, especially the last week or so as the party grew nearer, so I am glad to be done with that. I love hosting parties, but that’s the last surprise party I’m throwing!

{Alex's new high-tech watch... the Casio calculator!} — {Alex’s new high-tech watch… the Casio calculator!}

In other less exciting news, I got a FitBit this weekend. I’ve been putting it to the test to keep track of my steps, fitness activity, water consumption, food and sleep. It’s pretty handy. So far I’m really liking it!

{screenshot of the FitBit app on my phone - this was clearly at the beginning of the day :)} — {screenshot of the FitBit app on my phone – this was clearly at the beginning of the day :)}

The farmers market in our neighborhood opened up for the summer season on Friday. I absolutely love going down to the farmers market on Friday afternoons and stocking up on farm-fresh produce and flowers, so it’s something I look forward to each week. This year there are several new vendors at our neighborhood market – there’s a brick oven pizza food truck, a beer stand, a few wineries, a jam vendor, as well as a mustard vendor, and then the usual produce, meat and dairy vendors.

Between the farmers market and our CSA, I try to get as much food as I can as a way to support the local farmers and vendors. Plus, it’s fun to walk down to the market {about 6 or 8 blocks from our house} with Jackson and see the same vendors or neighbors down there each week.

Today we are taking it easy at home. I’m exhausted. I think that keeping the secret of Alex’s surprise party took a mental toll on me this week, so it’s nice to have a restful day at home.

Happy Birthday Alex!

Today is Alex’s 29th birthday! We’ve got a really fun day planned and I’m excited to celebrate Alex being born.

We’ve got a big year ahead of us now that we are both in the last year of our 20s. We have a lot to look forward to and I’m really excited to see what our 30s are like! For now, happy birthday, Alex!!

Henry Cat’s Secret Life

The other day while I was on a walk with Jackson and Henry {yes, Henry comes on walks on our block with us} I ran into a neighbor who lives 3 houses down from us. We got to chatting about our pets and it turns out Henry spends a lot of time at her family’s house. So much time, in fact, that the other day she found Henry taking a nap in her son’s bed.

My mouth had to have been agape after she told me that. She said that they have a cat door and he either comes into their house that way or through the window they leave open in their second floor bathroom. Apparently Henry jumps from their fence onto the garage roof and into the window then finds a nice spot for a nap or grabs a snack from their kitchen.

I didn’t want to ask her too many questions for fear she would get mad that my cat keeps trespassing into her house, but she seems to really like Henry and said she didn’t mind at all and appreciates his visits. I didn’t get a clear answer on how often, exactly, he pays her these visits, but I’m guessing it’s sporadic. Now I know where to go looking for him if he doesn’t come when he’s called!

I had always assumed he had a second home, as most indoor/outdoor cats do, but this family is not where I assumed he was going. They have two cats, one dog, six kids and a lot going on! That’s the last place I expected him to be venturing off to. Perhaps we’ll stick a little camera on Henry cat’s collar to really get a glimpse into his outdoor life…

Last Weekend

Last weekend started on Thursday night when we decided to head to Bottlehouse for the evening – big surprise, I know. It was “new menu” day, which is always a really fun day to be there because the staff is really excited to share the new wines they helped select or the new food that Jed cooked up. On this particular day Sam was behind the bar and he poured us a variety of blind tastes so we could tour the new wine list.

I love blind tastes, even though I seldom get them right, but it’s just fun to really think about the wine you’re drinking and try to guess the vintage, if it’s old world or new world and the varietals. I have better luck with white wines, which is funny because I rarely drink white wines. We had a really nice evening and a great start to the weekend.

{Saturday morning started down on the lake with a long swim for Jackson}

The weather on Friday was amazing. Alex rode his bike to and from work and came home with a new biking backpack.

The forecast for Saturday looked incredible so Alex and I hopped on our bikes and rode out to Woodinville. The ride was really nice – the Burke Gilman trail hugs the northwest side of Lake Washington for a while before it hooks up with the Sammamish River trail, which, you guessed it, runs alongside the Sammamish River.

29012AE6-0E6E-43CE-8FA4-B4BF18B25A61F74A7A92-1BFC-481A-A7AF-30A851DCD8CA — {two new tires and I am ready to go!}

The bike ride took a little more than an hour to get us to Woodinville. We drove north from our house about 5 miles to make it a 13-mile bike ride instead of 18-miles one way. Alex could have ridden his bike back and forth between Woodinville twice by the time I could have made it one way with the pace I was going. Needless to say, I was very happy when we arrived in Woodinville. We stopped at Redhook Brewery for lunch out on the patio before turning around to make the sloowwww trek back.

After we got cleaned up we headed over to our friends’ Ryan and Mary’s house for dinner. Carrie and Patrick were there to enjoy the evening with us, as well. It was such a nice night and the Millers have a beautiful backyard, so it was perfect. We always have such a good time with these friends!

Since we had a day of fun on Saturday we honed in and got some work done on Sunday. While I was at a Pilates class on Mercer Island, Alex met Ryan and Mary and their dog, Berkeley, over at the Mercer Island dog park with Jackson, then we came home and got straight to work. I spent a few hours weeding while Alex cleaned up the yard and scrubbed our back steps and patio. We can’t wait to redo our backyard, though we’ve decided to put it off until later this summer.

This week has been fairly low-key, though it has seemed busy for some reason. Now we’re looking forward to Alex’s big birthday weekend!

{bffs swimming together in Lake Washington}

Summer Fun!

The weather has been SO nice this spring. It is making us that much more excited about all that we have in store for us this summer. The theme of this summer is being home/in the Pacific Northwest. We’ve got big plans to explore our region and enjoy our time together.

Here are some of our summer “to dos”:

Hike to Snow Lake
Go Stand Up Paddleboarding (SUP)
Explore the Willamette Valley wine country and Oregon coast
Take a camping trip
Go kayaking through the Arboretum
Attend two weddings in Illinois, one in Seattle and one in Minnesota
Spend some time with family and friends who are coming out for a visit
Go to an outdoor concert
Have a picnic at Kerry Park overlooking the city
Rent an electric boat on Lake Union
Spend a weekend on San Juan Island
Hike in the Enchantments
Do a day trip to the Olympic Peninsula and/or Whidbey Island
Host a BBQ {at least one}
Enjoy some new restaurants
Go to a Mariners and Sounders game
Just spend time outside 🙂