Deception Falls Photos

Sharaya suggested this place on our way home from Leavenworth and it was beautiful! It was a very short walk to the falls and they didn't disappoint!

 

 

We continued across the bridge, up some stairs and under the highway overpass!

 

 

 

 Going back down we crossed back over the bridge and

spotted another bridge farther down the river so we had to go check it out!

Down here it was quiet and much more secluded. We walked out on the rocks and were able to explore a little more.

They found a caterpillar!

It was such a great day!

 

A Day In The Swiss Alps

Sharaya couldn't decide what we should do on Labor Day and Diana suggested Leavenworth. It's a small, Bavarian style town in the Cascade Mountains just east of here. Unfortunately Chuck had to work and Diana, well, she still lives on the East Coast so Sharaya, Allie, Beth and I went. 

It had been years since I was there and I had forgotten how quaint it was!

It's so beautiful, nestled right in the mountains. And we had great weather! One store Sharaya said we just had to go into was the hat store! The place was packed, but we still had room to have a little fun!

Next was the antique store. Oh, I could have spent a lot of money in there! Look at this ferris wheel!

We definitely couldn't miss the Christmas Store! Oh my goodness that place was amazing! Two stories tall and the best Christmas decorations you could ever hope for!

 At church we've been singing a song called Lion and the Lamb that has really touched my heart lately so when I saw this ornament

I knew I had to buy it! 

Allie bought a gorgeous white, sparkling butterfly. 

This is the one Beth bought - Anna with a snowball in her hand. 

I think Beth actually gasped when she saw it!

 

And of course we had to stop for ice cream before heading home! Cold Stone Creamery! Yum! On our way to Leavenworth we passed some signs for Deception Falls so we stopped there on our way back. It was so beautiful! I'll write about that in my next post!

Oh To Have The Energy of a 6 Year Old Again!

Gosh, I thought I was doing well in keeping up with this blog! But now an entire week has passed! And there hasn't been that much going on. You'd think that would make the time go very slowly but it hasn't. Maybe it's my age. I think the older I get the faster it goes!

Beth had a dentist appointment on Tuesday. Nothing major, just a couple of fillings. She doesn't really listen to me when I try to show her how to do a better job brushing her teeth but the dentist has been encouraging her. So then we go home and together we brush our teeth and together we follow the dentist's suggestions. It seems to be working!

Diana started her second job and really seems to like it. She's realized she's working at the same two jobs today - but on the other side of the country -  that she did when she graduated from high school. She's not super excited about that.

I watched Allie the other night so Sharaya could go out with some friends. I took Allie to the park but there was a huge private party going on so we went to a neighborhood elementary school and played there. I forget how much this girl likes to climb! Oh my goodness!
 

 

It was kind of funny. She climbed up on the outside of the play area, moved along the outside of the steps, the walkway, etc. and I'm under her the entire way, spotting her, holding my arms out just in case she falls. Then a while later a mom with her two young sons - around Allie's age - came and they did the exact same thing, climbed up on the outside of everything. Mom is sitting in a different part of the playground and she yells over at 'em, "You two be careful!"

You can definitely tell I raised girls! :) 

No Cancer

Beth had her follow up appointment at Harborview this week and everything is fine. No cancer. She had just a little pain for a couple days but then it was gone. The stitches came out just a few days later and it was so clean I couldn't even tell where they had done the surgery. 

A few days ago she went to the dentist (a different location from the oral surgeon) and had two fillings so she was on soft foods for 24 hours. Again, no pain and all was back to normal in no time.

On Wednesday we had our annual staff picnic at Marina Beach. The weather was beautiful and it's always fun to hang out with co-workers and not talk about work! :)

I don't have permission to post pics of everyone, so the sail boats will have to do!

Beth came with us and of course texted Nick most of the afternoon and even sent him pictures. Via text! No one showed her how to do it, she just figured it out on her own. That girl amazes me sometimes.

I've been trying to do things that I love but don't do on a regular basis. Like swimming. Today I went - by myself I might add - to a local pool and swam laps for about a half hour. I was so nervous going somewhere I've never been but I did it. And I had such a great time being in the water!

(Thanks Google)

 

I've also been spending time down at the beach. There have been some beautiful sunsets this summer!

You Have to be Smarter Than They Are

You know how it is with life, sometimes there is SO much going on and other times, hmmm not so much. This week has been a 'not so much' week.

We have seen some seeds of healing in a family relationship. That's been such a blessing and an answer to prayer!

Sharaya and Diana saw the same movie, at the exact same time, 3000 miles apart! I think about what it took to accomplish this: first deciding on which movie to see, then checking show times to make sure they matched with the different time zones, then they were actually able to pull it off! I think this is such a clever idea! I absolutely love these two that they would think of doing this!

I've been feeding the birds and squirrels this summer but the crows have been taking all the food! I've seen people posting pictures of large, open containers filled with shelled peanuts and the squirrels are all over them. But when I put them out, the crows eat everything!

 When my sister was here we found this cute little bird shop that had squirrel feeders that looked like this one.

 So I got the idea to make something like that myself. At first I got a big square vase but found the crows could get into it! Here is one trying to bite through the glass.

 Then I saw one just stick his head right in and grab a peanut! Before I knew it they were all gone.

(You can see his tail feathers sticking up on the left.)

So then I found a round vase with a unique shape that was big enough for the squirrels but I knew the crows wouldn't be able to get through. I put it in a clear bin and filled it with rocks so it wouldn't move or roll around. Then I put in the peanuts and waited.

The peanuts were still there this afternoon so I know the crows couldn't get to them. (I do put some out for the crows in a separate bowl, but I also want some exclusively for the squirrels.) Then this afternoon...

Yay!! He ran across the driveway and buried it near some trees. :)