Seattle Trip 2011

Hey all,

I had a GREAT time in Seattle last weekend!! I flew out Thursday night, the 10th. I left work at 4pm and drove to Albuquerque and parked my Jeep for the 3 days I would be gone. (remind me to tell you the Jeep story too!) I had a straight flight on Southwest to Seattle and Reuben picked me up at the airport with flowers in hand...can we say awwww?? Now you must remember we are not dating anymore, but it was a very sweet gesture and I also got a great big hug out of the deal... (I think he misses me!) We drove 45 min to his mom's house in Edmonds, WA and got settled in and went to bed. Reuben's mom, Esther, was already in bed for the night, when we arrived, so didn't get to see/meet her until the morning.

Friday a.m. I woke up early cuz Reuben and I were going to go site-seeing in Seattle!! We had breakfast and got to meet Esther, his mom, and also the cat, Orange. Reuben packed us up some snacks and sandwiches and waters and we headed out!! Our first stop of the day was Puget Sound! We took pictures and watched a couple of para-sailers out on the choppy water, which was really neat. I also picked up a seashell and later Reuben told me that you're not allowed to take things off the beach...I guess he felt I wasn't committing too much a crime so he didn't mention it while I was in the act of taking it! Reuben got a stick and wrote "11-11-11" in the sand and took pics. When we were in St. Thomas, a year ago, we had written "10-10-10" in the sand there. So, we joked that next year, we have to go to another beach for 12-12-12. I suggested Hawaii..Reuben says South Texas! lol

Next stop was downtown Seattle!! We had a difficult time finding parking, but finally did and headed over to the monorail. We rode that and walked around a small mall for a little bit and then headed over to the Space Needle! Went to the top of that...it was mildly cold and sprinkling, but fun! Took some more pictures and then left for our next stop...The Coast Guard Museum!! We had a heck of a time getting to the museum with road construction going on, but finally made it and then had to get cleared to go ON the base since the museum is on base. We drove over to the museum and went inside and the guy greeted us with a million dollar bill!! Of course, it was fake and had Coast Guard stuff all over it, but it was cool nonetheless!! Reuben gave me his so I have two now! We took lots of pictures and then before we left, I bought a CG sticker and a CG sweatshirt! We went outside and took pictures of the boats and such and also of the Polar Sea boat! There are two of those huge red boats that we learned about in bootcamp, so it was nice to actually see one of them! The other is the Polar Star.

Our next adventure was the Pike's Place market! Very famous place downtown Seattle where there are vendors selling everything under the sun...flower bouquets made out of vegetables, seafood, fruits, cheeses...everything! They give you samples and such and the atmosphere is just awesome! It's a very busy, bustling place! We also stopped at the Hard Rock Cafe and just looked around. We walked around and down the pier area and saw all kinds of ships and took more pictures! We decided it was dinner time so headed back to Edmunds and stopped at a fastfood fish place and ate there. It was delish and took something home to Reuben's mom too. She was very glad we did!! We hung out that night in the cozy, warm house and Esther showed us pictures, I got a shoulder rub and had great convo and many laughs. Reuben and I stayed up late watching tv and chatting.

Saturday, was our day to take the ferry over to another part of WA and to meet up with my friend Kim, from my McD's days here in LA. Kim lives in Berenton, WA. I think that was the name of it. lol So, we got to ride the ferry (it carries your car too!) and Reuben and I stood out on the deck and yes, it was freezing cold and probably the reason why I came home sick, but it was fun to be out there in the cold moving fast across the water! We drove down to Berenton and stopped at this pier to see the USS Turner Joy. We didn't pay the $12 admission, just took pics and went inside the gift shop. We met Kim around noon at a Starbucks and she brought her granddaughter, Sierra, with her too. It was great to catch up with her for about an hour and then we headed out for our drive up North! We drove and drove and enjoyed the scenery and mountains and finally got to Port Angeles, WA. Cute little town and it was a little overcast so couldn't see the Olympia mountains too well, but it was cool to be there! Had a brought my passport, we could have taken the ferry from there over to Victoria, British Columbia...aka Canada! Oh well...there's always next time. We headed back to the ferry and took the 5pm over back to Edmunds. The water was SOOO choppy and wavy I was frightened!! They even announced the emergency procedures over the intercom which was also frightening!! lol I didn't think we were gonna survive, but we did. :) Reuben drove us to a brick-fired pizza place and we placed a to-go order and then went into the bar and he bought me a drink! Reuben paid for everything while I was there, which was really sweet of him. We waited an hour and finally got our pizza (they had a large group in there) and headed back to eat pizza with Esther. We had another warm, cozy night at the house chatting and picture looking and hearing stories. Reuben's mom is hilarious!!

Sunday morning, it was time for me to get packed and ready to head back to NM!! I got to sleep in a bit and lounge around and then finally had to get in the shower and packed up! Reuben packed me some snacks for the plane trip and also packed leftover pizza for us to eat before I left too. I had cried all morning cuz I was really going to miss them and had a great time there! Wasn't quite ready to go home! Finally said my goodbye's to Esther and Orange and then we headed out to the airport! We got the airport, got my boarding pass and then we went to a sitting area and ate our pizza and chatted. Finally, it was time for me to get through security so Reuben and I said our goodbye's...lots of hugs and tears. He waited until I got all the way through security and then I saw him leave. It was a wonderful time!

The flight got into ABQ about a half hour early, so that was good and then I gathered the Jeep and headed back to LA. I stopped at Smith's and then got home about 7:30. I was able to get all my laundry done and cleaning up around the house and ready for the work week! I've been recovering from that cold all week and today finally feeling better!!

So, the Jeep got fixed right before I left for this trip. It had been making an awful noise down by the tire for a long time and finally after two mechanics, we figured out it was the half shaft, down by the CV joint. The lift was causing it to work in a awkward way, so it finally gave out. I had Brian fix it for me cuz he was the only guy in town that wasn't too busy to get it done before I left town!! Brian owns the Coffee Booth where Tyler works too. Brian also fixed Kalyn's car and is good friend with Reuben. It cost $800 but it runs so smooth now and I can finally enjoy the new brakes and tires I had gotten this summer. I hope it lasts awhile now cuz it has cost me some dollars this year! It just turned over to 70,000 miles a couple weeks back.

The kids are doing great!! Tyler had the guitar competition last Saturday and became one of the 6 finalists out of 70 people! They named 6 finalists and 3 of them were from LA!! Tyler's friend Thomas is one of the finalists. 3 guitars will be given away and they took down the voting thing today, so hopefully we find out soon who won!! I'm enjoying having Tyler around and he keeps everything all neat and clean at the house like I do. Kalyn got two jobs....she works at Piercing Pagoda and also Spencer Gifts, both at the Roseville mall in MN. She bought herself a new outfit for her first day today at PP. Kalyn also had to go get Sasha's Xmas present yesterday, early. Sasha had chewed 3 of the metal bars off her crate and could fit her head out and through the opening she created!! Kalyn went to Petsmart and got a different kind of crate that Sasha can also fly in (to come visit in NM). She will keep the other crate for trips to WI. I believe she got the kind that is all plastic and only has smaller bars on the front that she can't get her teeth around to chew them. lol That dog is crazy!!

Thanksgiving is coming up! My bosses here at the gym are having me over for lunch on Thursday and then in the afternoon I'm going to Catrina's for dinner! We plan to watch those undefeated Packers play the Lions!! Should be a fun time! My friend Sharon is baking this weekend and just brought me some of her cookies to try!! Yum!!

I've got all my Christmas cards ready to mail, some gifts purchased and then need to do my baking so that I can send a care package to Miss K! I'm sure my Mom and Dad will want some of my baked goods as well!! Can't believe in a few weeks Kalyn will turn 19!! My babies are all grown up!!

Well, this is my 2nd time typing this, so I hope I didn't forget anything. Lost the first draft. LOL Luckily I'm at the gym and have time!! Until next time...