The Akamines come to Seattle!

 

In October (I think it was October...it was so long ago), Pua and Kalama came to town to watch their daughter play volleyball. Jim and Cherie hosted a dinner at their home and we converge there for an evening of food and fun. We talked about Hawaii, ate great food, and sang songs. Unbelievable, but we did end up singing theme songs from TV shows. I think that's what happens when you don't drink. Thanks Jim & Cherie (for the food and warm hospitality - not the other part about not drinking)!

Kevin, Mary and Eric

 

See the plate of appetizers??? I made those. Bacon wrapped dates stuffed with gorgonzola cheese. They took hours to make. Literally. I won't make them again.

Predinner conversation

 

The Host and Hostess

 

Jim and Cherie were the hosts of this evening dinner. Altogether there were 9 of us...3 Akamines, 2 Heugels, Mary, Kevin, Eric and me.

Cool Centerpiece

 

Cherie made these interesting centerpieces by placing black stones and peppers into a glass vase. Nice, hey? Sorry that we cut off your face, Mary.

The spread

 

The Entree - Grilled Salmon

 

This was so ono!

Green Apple with Wild Greens

 

Mmmm...tortellini

 

Apologies, Day Trips, and Pictures

 

First of all, I can't believe I haven't updated in so long. Ugh. I blame it on losing my card reader (to download pics) and certainly not on being lazy. Maybe a little lazy. But I have found said card reader and have downloaded a bunch of pics, so I'll be posting them...slowly.

Here are some pics from a daytrip that I took with Susan and Nic. We headed to Whidbey Island by ferry and then drove north eventually connecting with I-5. "Connecting" makes it sound so direct...but it really wasn't a direct drive to I-5, but that's neither here nor there. It was a great sunny day - unlike today which was dreary and gray. And it's 5pm and pitch black.

Admiring the trees

 

While I don't have an artistic eye, I liked this photo.

Signage at Deception Pass

 

I had to remind myself about the seriousness of Sign #2. It would be me to take a slip and fall. All the way down. To the bottom.

We saw one of these...

 

After getting off the ferry, we headed to Langley where they were having a festival (Labor Day?). There was a Soap Box Derby race and tons of shopping. Anyway, I saw one of these there. I don't know what it is, but it was pretty cool.

Poor Nic

 

Nick (aka Unemployed Nic...but we had to change his name when he got a job) was part of the trio to Whidbey Island. He took a lot of pics with his fancy-shmancy camera. Still waiting on those pics, Nic.

Adventures in Babysitting

 

Last Thursday was a very happy day for some of my friends and their family. Rose and John welcomed twin boys, Eljin and Regan, and Autumn and Jacob welcomed Caroline. While Autumn and Jacob were at the hospital I got to watch Elliot - not for the whole day - good heavens, I can't be trusted. But from 4 - 6pm, and then at night while Elliot slept, it was an easy gig. Elliot is a very happy guy so he keeps himself entertained, but when he did need some attention, I pulled out the camera. Everyone loves to have their picture taken. Well, maybe just me and babies.

Shot number 2

 

And more pictures to pass the time away. Elliot was really good about keeping himself busy. Very little management on my part. Perfect. Later, we left for the hospital so that Elliot could meet his little sis.

The whole family...

 

I don't think that Elliott realized that he was meeting his little sister yet, but he noted quickly that there was a new baby with mom. I like this shot of the whole family.

And here's the little bundle...

 

This is Caroline Florence. This is a pretty new shot of her...she was working on getting her color, but she is an absolute doll.

More pics of the Rob Thomas night

 

There really aren't that many more pics, it's that I forgot to post them with the first pic. I still love him.

Terrible pic, I know

 

But this is the stage - for 2 musicians plus Rob Thomas. There was a piano, and 3 stools.

Snoqualmie Casino View

 

Here's the view if you look away from the stage. You can't lose either way.

The venue from the back

 

The view before everyone got there.

 

This is what Row 8 looks like. Pretty nifty, huh? Funny how it looks closer when no one is there.

August Highlight: Rob Thomas

 

I love him. I never used to love him, but after seeing him in concert, I've decided that I love him. Rob Thomas was entertaining and very funny. He mocked his own songwriting skills which had the audience rolling.

So the build up to this concert: Susan bought the tickets in April or May, and she got Row 8 seats! So cool. The venue was the outdoor concert theater of the Snoqualmie Casino. We headed out early to grab dinner and make a donation to the tribe (aka we played the slots - of course Susan came out ahead $180...I just made the donation). The venue was cozy and the weather perfect.

My day on the lake

 

A friend invited me to go boating on Friday to catch the Seafair Festivities which included the Blue Angels and a bit of the hydroplane test runs. Why not? I love the water, although I'm a terrible swimmer. Anyway, I packed a lunch and off I went. I thought it'd end up being a 3 hour cruise (a 3 hour cruise...the weather started getting rough...) Back to my story. We left Lake Union and headed over to the Montlake Cut with all the other boaters and then on to Lake Washington. By the time we got to the I-90 end of the bridge, the show was about to get under way. It was great to see the Blue Angels on the water. I loved it. After the show, we headed over to the east side of the lake to just float. Too bad it wasn't warm enough to swim, but it was still a ton of fun. The water was rough...lots of rocking and rolling, and I did hold it together fairly well. No tossing-of-my-cookies overboard so that was good. After an hour or so, we headed back to the south end of the lake to take a look at the hydroplanes. Dang...they go fast. I was convinced at this point that I am no daredevil. Just a nice steady pace for me and I'm fine. But there's more to the story. Read on.