Kirsti's 16th Birthday Party

On Saturday, June 11, we went over to the Hines' to celebrate Kirsti's 16th birthday. I know it's so cliche to say this, but how time flies! I still remember when she was born, and how excited we all were! (My mom & I were doubly excited, because we were some of the only people, other than Tracy & Dan, to think it was a girl.) To think she's now 16... it's crazy! And it's so funny to see her & Dan work on chemistry or math together; when he met her, she was an adorable five-year-old, and now she's in high school needing his help on complicated subjects. I sometimes can't believe it!

To the party, Kate wore her cute birthday cupcake outfit that she wore to her own party, and when we celebrated Dan Hines' birthday in April. It's such a cute outfit, I figure she might as well wear it more than once!

Seattle--The Final Leg

On Saturday, the three of us went to downtown Seattle while Gail was working. It was an absolutely gorgeous day; sunny, but not too warm. We ate at Ivar's Fish Bar, which is an iconic fixture on the pier. The shrimp was very good (not surprising, considering Seattle has great seafood). We then just strolled around the area; downtown Seattle is so beautiful, that even if you're not going somewhere in particular, it's still entertaining. First we went to Pike's Place Market, which is fun, but so busy, especially on a Saturday. But, it was still nice to see it again. We then went to this place called The Fisherman's (or something like that) and had a drink; it's right on the pier, so the view of the water and the mountains was absolutely beautiful. Then Kate had fun riding the carousel at the nearby arcade; she loves doing stuff like that!

On Sunday, the three of us went downtown again. We first hit up the aquarium, which was a lot of fun. The best part was seeing the sea otters being fed; so cute! We then went on a harbor cruise, since that was the last thing included in our City Pass that we had not done. It was an hour-long, narrated ride about the history of Seattle. Very interesting, and beautiful, of course. After that, we met Kim (Austin's ex-girlfriend) and her boyfriend Nate for some coffee. It was nice to see her, and she really enjoyed meeting Kate.

Then that night, and all day Monday, we just kind of hung out with Gail at her house, since we had to leave insanely early on Tuesday morning. It was a lot of fun to just relax; we talked, watched some movies, and laughed at Kate's various antics. On Tuesday morning, we left the house at 3:45 am (yes, AM) and had an uneventful, if long, flight home. It was such a fun trip; can't wait to go back!


On the ferry ride over on Saturday. Can you tell it was windy?








Why so suspicious?


Trying to catch a glimpse of Daddy while she's on the carousel. And even though you can't see me, yes, I am right behind her.


A beautiful view from the ferry


In the beautiful new dress Grandma Gail bought her!


How do I measure up to a Sixgill shark? Not very well, apparently!


At the exhibit about the orcas




Finally tuckered out at the last bit of our aquarium visit.


Here she is on the harbor cruise; still sleeping!


The aquarium from the harbor


A cool cruise ship we saw during our harbor cruise


It's kind of hard to see the mountains in this picture, but it's beautiful!




Still fast asleep while we waited for Kim


Saying good-bye to Grandma at the airport


We had our layover in Chicago. They have this fun "kids' area" that thankfully kept Kate quite entertained!


In control of the cockpit!


Can I get you any refreshments from the plane fridge?



How cute; I would have LOVED this when I was a kid

Seattle--Day 7

On Friday, June 3, we went to Dan's aunt & uncle's house for the day to barbeque and hang out. It was fun to see them; I think the last time we saw them was the summer of 2007, when they came down for our wedding, and later for Nancy's. We saw some of Dan's cousins, too, and his little first cousins once removed. One of them, Peyton, looks so much like Dan it is CRAZY. He's 11 (I think?) and he looks just like pictures of Dan from when he was that age.

Then, that evening, Gail, Vicki, et. al watched Kate while Dan & I went on a murder mystery dinner cruise. That was seriously one of the highlights of my vacation; it was so much fun! The food was amazing; we had crab legs, beef tenderloin, Atlantic salmon, fruits, breads, and a delicious boysenberry cheesecake for dessert. And the actors were phenomenal; they were so witty that Dan & I were just laughing the whole time. The premise of the show was that a private investigator that this fashion designer had hired had been found dead, and we needed to figure out who killed him. Since the show revolved around fashion, etc. the woman playing the designer had some people come up to act as models. I was one of the ones she picked (and Dan wouldn't come up with me, no matter how much I tried to convince him), so that was kind of fun. Dan asked if I was nervous, and I truly wasn't, but that may be because I had a couple glasses of wine before going up there.

It was such a fun thing to do; I hope we'll be able to do that again sometime!


Before boarding








Such a great view!

Seattle--Days 5 & 6

On Wednesday, we just relaxed at Gail's house and spent some time together as a family, which was nice. Gail had to work, but since she works from home, it was nice to be able to chat with her during her breaks and when she didn't have to take a call. Then on Thursday, we went to the Seattle Art Museum, because the admission is free for the first Thursday of every month. You can't beat that! We had a great time looking at all of the exhibits. My favorite, of course, was the European art; we saw some great pieces, both religious and otherwise. None of us really cared much for the Modern art; some things, like a blank canvas--yes, BLANK--with a black border is something that any of us could do, no matter how artistically inclined we are or are not. Kate loved the kids' area the best, of course! We met two other couples who had children (both girls) who were almost the same age as Kate. One was only four days older than Kate is! So it was fun to see them interact.

That night, we went to Salty's on Alkai, which is a great seafood restaurant my mom had recommended. We went on a night they were having a fish fry special, and it was amazing. We all had the two-piece fish dinner, with one halibut and one salmon, although the salmon was way better. Their desserts were amazing, too; Gail & I shared the white chocolate mousse cake, and it was every bit as delicious as it sounds.

And, as a fun little twist, we got to take the Salty's limo back to the pier to catch the ferry. We had taken a cab to get to Salty's, but we were a little hesitant to use the cab again, since we felt like we had gotten taken advantage of. We asked the cab driver how much it would be to get to Salty's, and he said $20. I had mapquested it, and I knew it was only five miles away, so I thought he was just estimating. We noticed halfway through the ride that the meter wasn't running, and then when we got there, he said it was $20. Hmmm. Even though the posted rate was $2.50/mile, and we only went five miles, so shouldn't that be $12.50 or thereabouts? But, stupid me, I was too shy to say something, and Dan and Gail hadn't noticed, so we paid our $20 and went to dinner. But I definitely didn't want to take a cab back (at least not a cab from the same company!), so while I was in the restroom, Dan talked to the manager and asked if there was an alternative way to get back to the pier. The manager had been fawning over Kate all night (and really, can you blame her? haha) so she was incredibly helpful, and just offered us the use of their limo. How nice! And, as a kicker, the driver was from Lake Geneva and had family in Madison, as well as Buffalo Grove & Lake Zurich, IL. What a small world!


In the kids' area of the museum






Thrilled with her balloon from Salty's!




Mad that Daddy actually had the audacity to hold her, instead of just letting her roam free in a moving vehicle.

On the ferry ride home, she seriously entertained herself for most of the hour-long ride back by putting a piece of paper in this cup holder, then getting off the bench to fetch it from the floor, getting back up on the bench, and doing it all over.




My happy girl!


Can I just tell you how much I love this beautiful, sweet, precious girl? Isn't she adorable??

Seattle--Day 4

On Tuesday, Dan, Kate & I went to the Experience Music Project in Downtown Seattle. It was so amazing; their showcase exhibition was called "Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses". As you can imagine, for lifelong fans like Dan & me, it was absolutely fabulous to see. We saw Kurt Cobain's actual guitars, shirts, handwritten lyrics... I know it sounds corny, but I actually got a bit teary-eyed seeing all of his personal belongings.

After we saw the Nirvana exhibit, we went to the sound lab on the third floor. You can do all these cool things like record a demo tape, play instruments, mix different songs, do vocal recordings, etc. We had a blast; I love music, even though I'm not the best at it!

Afterward, we went to the Space Needle, which was right across the way. We had gotten these things called City Passes, and it gave you access to six different attractions (the zoo, the aquarium, a harbor cruise, the Experience Music Project, the Space Needle and the Pacific Science Center) at a price that was half off, compared to paying for the things individually. The Space Needle isn't something that I would pay for on its own, but since it was included in our City Pass, we figured, why not? The view was very beautiful to see.


Relaxing at Grandma's before we head out




She absolutely loved this chair and always wanted to climb up in it. We just had to be sure that there wasn't a cat or dog tail nearby; I don't think they'd be too happy about that!


On the ferry ride over to Seattle.


Pretty girl!


Quite possibly one of the greatest musicians of our time, Mr. Kurt Cobain






The shirt Kurt Cobain wore on the cover of Spin magazine


The blue guitar that Kurt played throughout most of the In Utero tour


She doesn't want to hold still to take a picture!


In the sound lab


My angry rock star look






Little music mixer!


Watching music videos on the sound stage






Crazy how many guitars there are!


The ticket to the last show they ever played, in March (I think?) of 1994


The shirt Kurt wore in the Smells Like Teen Spirit video


The guitar that he played in the Smells Like Teen Spirit video


A cardigan that Kurt always wore.




At the Space Needle


The view from the observation deck of the Space Needle




On the ferry ride home. Luckily, Gail lives just a ferry ride across from downtown Seattle, so it's quite convenient to get around, even without a car. Gail let us use her car whenever we wanted, which was nice, but the ferry is only $7.oo roundtrip for walk-ons, whereas it's $15.00 each way if you bring your car, not to mention parking downtown, which is expensive! So for the most part we just got around by foot, which was fun because it allowed us to see the city, and not to mention it was fantastic exercise!