Pike's Place Market

Even though there is a coffee shop on nearly every corner, Seattle is not a town that rises early. Nothing seems to open before 10am. Since we're a family of early-risers, we decided to try our luck with a morning trip to Pike's Place Market. Many of the vendors were absent, but the food purveyors were all there. And since it was slow, everyone took the time to chat up the kids.

Jeff and I were taken with the variety and colors of the fruits and vegetables. Our farmers market starts out slow and green, but here there were lots of selections. Even the fish mongers displayed the fish to take advantage of color.

We took the kids to the very first Starbucks and to Beecher's cheese shop. Bayley was in heaven watching them make cheese. They have a viewing window and signage that explains the steps. I doubt the boys even realized they were learning about cheesemaking as they nibbled on their samples. I love when that happens!

Jeff & I fell in love with Pappardelle's gourmet pasta and wound up taking three pounds home! I'm excited to try them out. We couldn't decide which to get, so we opted for the three most popular. They smell amazing.

NEXT TIME...I'd go hungry. We were full from breakfast, so many of the treats didn't tempt us. I've heard amazing things about the mini-doughnuts, but we were too stuffed!

Hayden's Review :: I liked it when the guy shoved fish in my mouth and I said it tasted like boloney. I liked all the dead fish because it looked like tehy were having a staring contest. I found chocolate spagetti. I liked all the real chocolate in my Starbucks cocoa.

Bayley's Review :: Really annoying because we had to walk around and it smelled like fish. Two good things were the bread samples at the pasta place and where they were making cheese. They had cheese samples that tasted as good as Dubliner.

Ride The Ducks

Being die-hard Ducks fans, we thought surely something called Ride the Ducks would be in Eugene! I was quite confused when a friend said it was a must-do for our Seattle trip with the kids. We researched it and found they have these land and water tours on military surplus DUKW vehicles in other cities as well. We knew the boys would be thrilled by the idea of driving into the water, so decided to give it a go.

Reservations are reccomended, but we got there just as they were lining up to board a tour and were able to get us right on. The kids got their quackers, they snapped a truly unflattering picture of our family, and we loaded up onto the replica of a WW2 amphibious truck!

Our driver told us all he was former coast guard and a licensed captain, bus driver, and lunatic. He didn't mention he doubled as a stand-up commedian! He changed hats every few blocks to go with the mood of the neighborhood. Hayden was in heaven and wanted to know where the guy found each hat!

This was a great way to get a brief history of the city while keeping the kids entertained. I love when they learn and don't even know it! A walking tour would give more details, but they'd wind up bored. This way, they actually paid attention as we say the highlights of the city - including the anatomically correct fountain. Hayden was giggling and blushing...Bayley leaned over and whispered "what did they make his privates look like that?" Which made me want to giggle and blush!

After a peek at most everything - which turned out to be a great point of reference for the rest of the trip - we headed up to Lake Union for a quick ride. We got to see a different persepctive on the Seattle skyline, as well as the house they used for Sleepless in Seattle.

Grace loved the entire thing. I'm not sure if it was because she didn't have to have a car seat (the seats are high-backed like on a bus) or having the windows open or all teh new sights, but she was excited the whole time. She also got quite brave, trying to reach out and touch the water!

NEXT TIME...I'd take the tour again! I'm looking forward to doing it again with Grace when she's older.

Hayden's Review ::
The driver was totally crazy and had lots of wigs for his hair.

Bayley's  Review ::
Everything was awesome, except the ride to the lake was a little long. Plus, I liked to stick my hand in the water.

Rainforest Cafe

We thought Rainforest Cafe would be a fun way to start our Seattle adventure. The kiddos had never been, so it seemed like an exciting way to kickstart the vacation.

The boys enjoyed the animatronic crocodile greeting us, but Grace wasn't interested. As we ventured in, she lit up at the sight of the floor to ceiling fishtank columns. She watched the fish zoom around while we waited for our table.

The hostess thought she was giving us a special treat when she sat us by the elephants. But they were a bit too life-like for our two-year-old. We hoped she would get used to them, but every ten minutes there is a thunderstorm inside Rainforest Cafe, which truly freaked her out. And then the elephants started trumpeting...so we moved to a table closer to the butterflies where she could see the monkeys. 

Still, every thunderstorm she wanted out of the place! We ate as quickly as we could and got the heck out of there!

NEXT TIME...hopefully she'll realize it's all a show.

Hayden's review :: I liked the crocodile and the delicious food. The mini hot dogs were cute and the mini cheeseburgers were awesome.

Bayley's review :: I liked the magnetic rocks (in the gift shop) and the big fountain. It did scare Gracie, so that lowered it down to a 7.8 from me. On the pizza the cheese was top notch, but they only had one pepperoni per slice.

Learning Curve

This camera has a serious learning curve...because Hayden is still blurry...

And according to the camera, Sostenuto does not have red eye. Um...yeah...

New Camera

We're hoping Mommy can figure out how to use this one so the Burke kids are no longer a blur!

Date Day

When Jeff & I Grouponed a Snowshoe Tour from Evergreen Escapes we expected a a drive up the moutain, snowshoe 101 lessons, and a box lunch. Thank goodness Evergreen Escapes has higher standards than we do! We had such a lovely day, a total escape from the typical.

After loading up downtown around 8, our guide gave gave us the highlights of our day and our expectations rose. We'd get to see Mutnomah Falls, Columbia Gorge Hotel & Timberline Lodge. Instead of taking the usual Portlander route to the Falls, we got off the interstate and took the historic Columbia River Highway, which meant we were also treated to views of Wahkeena Falls & Horsetail Falls - plus a bit of history, geography and ecology of the region.

Multnomah Falls was so different than the crowded experience we've always had on hot summer days. Plus, our guide treated us to freshly brewed tea and our choice of quick breads provided by a local bakery. He shared a few stories about the falls before we loaded up and headed for the mountain.

Along the drive he was able to explain a bit about Beacon Rock, Bonneville Dam, and the ever changing Columbia River. The drive up the mountain was very smooth, and we were able to park right at the door of the beautiful Timberline Lodge.

The Lodge is amazing, more so because of all we learned about the history of the building. (The Shining used outdoor shots of the Lodge, but nothing from the interior.) The craftsmanship is worth seeing, regardless of whether you're interested in the activities of the area. The ironwork and wood carvings are spectacular.

At the Lodge we indulged in a buffet lunch. Buffet can be a scary word, but this was delicious and well done. When our guide told us we could burn up to 2,000 calories snowshoeing that afternoon, no one felt guilty about helping themselves to a serving oft he Swedish cream dessert!

After donning our gear, we were given the tips and tricks of snowshoeing. Our group of nine took to it quickly. Ranging from a middle-schooler to a great-grandmother we all enjoyed tromping through the woods. The first half was a lot of downhill, and as we got more comfortable on the snowshoes, some tried fancy footwork like running down the steeper parts and blazing their own 'shortcuts'.

The way back was obviously uphill. It was moderate for the most part, and peaceful because we got to trek along for longer periods. But then...the aproach to Timberline was very steep. We were huffing and puffing like the big bad wolf  as we summited the Lodge.

As a reward for our efforts, we were treated to hot cocoa and the gorgeous views from the bar atop the lodge. We even splurged on a few adult hot drinks (the BFK, Chocolate Irishman & Hot Buttered Jack are all reccomended). Once we were warmed up, we loaded back in our comfy seats and our guide passed out cookies (a treat from the same local bakery). We headed back to Portland along a different route, and delivered one of our tourmates at McMenamin's Edgefield, where we got to learn a bit about the property and the McMenamin's empire.

We made it back to our car before 7, and enjoyed a fun drive home laughing about the highlights of our trip. The Groupon made the trip a steal, but we'll be taking another Evergreen Escape soon. No doubt it will be worth every penny.

Family Photo Attempts

Science Fair

The science fair at the boys' school had to be rescheduled due to snow, so we finally got to see the final drafts of Bayley& Hayden's presentations. Hayden had so much fun doing his with his classmates, he wants to do his own experiemnt in 3rd grade for extra credit!

The boys were excited to see all their favorite brain teasers from OMSI set up in the cafeteria. There were some they'd already figured out, and some they are still challenged by. Bayley likes the logic puzzles, but Hayden was more interested in the ones that involved electricity.

 

Hat-tastic!

Grace loves "pretty" hats. I don't know how pretty anything is that comes from the dollar store, but she loves them. She has a "pretty blue" one from last spring, and her new "hot pink" one. I find her hat affection adorable, until she decides that I too must wear one.

She was on full-on "I'm 2" mode for today's visit with Nicky. He's so sweet, he had a look of concern every time she threw a fit. He's so nice, he even let her snatch back her binoculars everytime he tried to look at them. He even waited for her to discard them, but she took them back every time she noticed.

My favorite moment was when Nicky packed Grace's bejeweled purse with the binoculars and Rogue's half-chewed bone, and went to the door - ready to go with the things he couldn't seem to play with at the house!

Gram-Mo & Pop-Pop

Baby Natalie needed a couple of playmates until school is out and she gets Aunt Christina at her beck and call - so Gram-Mo & Pop-Pop are here to play with the baby. It's fun to get a daily update on what is new in the world of Natalie (currently, doing raspberry sounds while being fed peas and considering a walk across the living room). It's also great that my kiddos get extra time with their grandparents too.

Gram-Mo is always up for a game, whether Scrabble with Bayley or tic-tac-toe with Hayden. Once they're bored, she'll strech out on the couch with her Snuggie and lose herself in her Nook Color.

Pop Pop is always game for dress up (he looks great in a hot pink straw hat with the fading smell of graham crackers) and he's helping Bayley learn about his latest interest - coin collecting. It started with the State quarters for our state of the week year, and now he's interested in rare coins and such. Pop Pop brought a coffee can on pennies (doesn't everyone have one?) and they've been sorting through to fill up coin books he got for Bay.

It can get a little crowded, but it's nice that the kids will have these memories forever.