my mom’s sweet seventieth

In late November my mom threw herself a big (and fun) birthday bash a few weeks before her actual birthday.  Little did she know, in June we had booked a three bedroom airbnb in the Fremont/Ballard area to surprise her.  We actually managed to pull off the surprise part too!

My dad cancelled her plans for the weekend, as she made them, and we all agreed to meet for dinner Friday night in Fremont.  The ploy for getting her from the restaurant to the airbnb was “let’s go look at Christmas lights.”  It was enough.  Jack, D and I go there first, and my parents and Becky drove up, at which point my mom saw us on the porch and was very confused, but then happy.

Saturday we walked around Ballard, ate lunch at Bitterroot BBQ and enjoyed not driving at all.  Jack was kind enough to take D home for a rest in the middle of the day to “check on the kittens” so that the rest of us could walk at an adult pace.  In the evening, Becky and I made a leg of lamb in my Intstant Pot and Myra continued the surprise by joining us for a nice dinner.

Sunday morning more good friends came for quiche and coffee cake.

Thanks for everything, Mom.

a Shelton visit

Taking the ferry from downtown to Bremerton, on our way to Shelton, has become our new routine for visits to Jack’s grandma.  We leave early and eat breakfast on the boat while we enjoy the time not being in the car.  Last weekend Jack’s mom and stepdad visited at the same time and we had a nice time, including the ritual of helping with online accounts and passwords.

(Edited to add St Seattle w/ halo pic -JB)

August weekend

 

This post is just an excuse to share some pictures I like of things other than our house!  Last weekend we got to spend some time with my sister and we also had a great time at Jack’s [g]uncles’ pool party.

Becky clearly said something funny at brunch.  Wish I remembered what it was.

Pool volleyball is a blast and the floaty toys were unexpectedly perfect for these toddler cousins.

mother’s day at the beach

 

Jack’s stepdad’s family brought back an old tradition a couple of years ago.  Almost 30 of us rented cabins at the same resort some family members first visited 40 or so years ago.

It was clear and windy, as you can see in the video below.  At first D was reluctant to get wet or dirty, but he got over it, though falling on hard, cold sand while short on sleep led to some tears.  My mom and Jack’s grandma joined us, and with help from both of our moms we got some time alone together and I got to sleep in on mother’s day in our beautiful cliffside room.  We also got to play a board game with Jack’s cousin and and his wife, who also had a built-in babysitter in Jeff’s parents.  D enjoyed his time with his cousins.

 

Part of a Mariner’s game was D’s first sanctioned hit of TV, which explains the solemn expressions on Jack and D’s faces, below right.

I like how my mom and D have both shadows and reflections in this one.  In the other, Jack impresses D with his moves.

Group shots

legacy hat

On Friday Jack’s dad was buried in a beautiful cemetery under one of the oldest trees I’ve ever seen in the city.  D wore a Packer’s hat Mark gave him last season. 

family reunion at Mt Rainier

Instead of trying to camp together during the busy summer months, we got together with my dad’s side of the family early this year, in April, at a cabin near Mt. Rainier.

We went on a couple of short hikes and got caught in a hail storm that sent us running back to the car for lunch.

The cabin was on the banks of the Cowlitz river and we had fun walking around in the bizarre looking environment of an island in the river.

early season camping at Camano

 

We had a great time camping at Camano Island State Park with Jack’s cousin and his family.  We lucked out with lovely weather without a shadow of April showers.  Originally we planned to go to the family property, but the winter collapsed the picnic shelter there and things were too much of a mess.

 

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Easter 2016

 

We had a nice, busy, double Easter celebration with brunch at my parents and the afternoon at D’s cousin’s.

Doesn’t GG have a good silly pose?

Mark/Dad/Grandpa

 

It’s been almost a month since Jack’s dad passed away, unexpectedly, at home.  It’s taking time to process and it’s impossible for me to sum up a person so close to us, so for now I’ll just say that he was one of Jack’s greatest fans and was thrilled with his new role as a grandpa.    Here are a few favorite pictures of him.

winter picnic 2016

This year we had another small, fair weather winter picnic. 

Jack and I moved up in the egg toss standings, tying with my cousin Brad, the reigning champion, and his daughter, Jennifer.  Trish won at bingo.   My great aunt Jean opted out this year, so my dad was the oldest of the original picnickers, going back to the 1960s.


In search of a nap, D and I walked the upper part of Lincoln park and it was beautiful.  For all the times I’ve been to the park, I had barely explored the higher elevations and I look forward to walking there again.