We had an excellent vacation to Washington. The flight up to Seattle was a breeze. We left right on time and both kids were really good. We hired a car to come pick us up from the airport and take us to our hotel. This was actually cheaper than taking the shuttle and was much more convenient since we didn't have to make extra stops and we had lots of stuff with the luggage, car seats and stroller. When we got to the hotel our room wasn't ready. They were nice enough to hold our things until our room was clean. On the way to the hotel Faith had the biggest blowout she has ever had. Since our room wasn't ready we had to clean her up in this tiny bathroom in the lobby. I ended up throwing away her clothes as they were so gross. Thank God she waited to do this until we were off the plane.
That afternoon we had lunch at a pizza place called Zeek's. The food was pretty good. After lunch we headed back to the hotel and our room was ready. We settled into our room and then took the monorail downtown and explored the City and Pikes Market. Bryce really enjoyed the monorail. We ate dinner at Pikes Pub and Brewery. The food was quite good.
On our second day in Seattle we walked all the way from our hotel to Pioneer Square and took the Underground Tour. I had done this as a kids, but didn't remember much. Keeping the kids quiet and occupied during the tour was a bit of a challenge, but I'm glad we went. After the tour we walked around Pioneer Square and some of the surrounding areas. Later that day we took a harbor tour on Argosy Cruises. We had originally made reservations to take a locks tour, which was 2 1/2 hours instead of the harbor cruise which was just an hour. However, Bryce was very tired and we didn't think he'd survive the longer cruise. The harbor cruise ended up being just the right amount of time. That night we at at a Mexican restaurant and had the worst service I think I'd ever had. After being very specific about what I wanted in my burrito they gave me one that had lots of stuff I had said I didn't want. They had no changing table and Faith pooped so I had no choice but to change her on my lap in the restaurant. On the bill they charged us for three things we didn't order and the waiter tried to say it was our fault. We finally got things straightened out. To top it all off, this was Mother's Day. Oh well, I did get a delicious gellato after dinner.
The next day we went to the Seattle Children's Museum in the morning. The museum is right in the City Center where the Space Needle is. After the museum we headed to the Space Needle for lunch. We had an excellent lunch. Nathan and I both had blackened halibut sandwiches on a croisant type bun. Bryce had the chicken fingers kid's meal, which was a wopping $13.95. I never thought I'd pay so much for a kid's meal. However, when you eat lunch at the top of the Space Needle you don't pay to go up. If you just go up for the view it is $16/person. The restaurant rotates 360 degrees every 47 minutes. By eating lunch there you really get to see the City and the surrounding areas. It was very beautiful. After lunch we went back to the hotel to relax a little. Then we spent some more time at the museum and walked downtown. We went to a restaurant right on the peir for happy hour. Nathan and I both had a drink and we all shared a humus and pita bread plate. This ended up being our dinner since we had such a huge lunch. After happy hour we walked back through Pikes Market and Bryce and I shared another gellato.
On our final morning in Seattle we once again walked downtown to Pikes Market. There was a few sprinkles on the walk down, but nothing major. We bought a few things at the Market, including sweet potato flavored pasta, pumpkin butter, deli sandwiches for lunch and a poroshky for dessert. After our shopping was complete, we walked to the rental car place where I got the car and Nathan continued on to the hotel with the kids.
We were on the road to Spokane by about 12:30. On the drive over the mountains we had some snow and rain showers. Other than the last hour in which Faith was crying, the drive was smooth and uneventful. We arrived at J and Rachel's house around 5:15.
We spent the next five days hanging out with J, Rachel, Samantha and Emily. We had lots of time to just relax and play around the house. Some of the activities we did while in Spokane included: a bus ride to Mobius Children's Museum (the girls took the little ones while the boys played golf), wine tasting, a morning at the park, lunch out, Maggie Moos ice cream (my favorite), and the Lilac Festival Parade (a nighttime parade through downtown Spokane). We had an excellent time with the Dunne family.
Our trip back home was also uneventful. The flight home was a little behind schedule, but once again the kids were very well behaved.
Faith started crawling while we were in Spokane around the 13th of May. She gets up on her knees and can move one leg and then the other before ending up on her stomach. She then repeats the process. She can get just about anywhere she wants to go, it just takes some time. Before this, she could scoot herself around, but wasn't actually getting up on her knees. She also holds herself in a plank-like position, with only her toes and her hands touching the ground. She is very strong.
