Washington (State, not D.C)

I haven't been "home" to Washington in nine years. That is a long time to be away from the place I spent my first 18 years of life. My parents own a second home there (or is it officially their first home?), and Bree and Mason have both gone there with my mom, and I died with jealousy both times. And last year my best friend Jaime moved there! I informed Chad that our big vacation this year would be to Washington.

By the way... because I grew up in Washington, I never realized how, when the majority of Americans hear "Washington," they immediately think of Washington D.C. It still really irks me that whenever I say I'm from Washington, I get asked, "State, or D.C.?" Um, if I meant D.C., I would have said D.C.! So annoying. If you're going to shorten Washington D.C., could you please just say D.C.? Because Washington only has "Washington." And I refuse to say "Washington State." No one has to say "Arizona State." It's not fair. I'm sure I will never get over this.

Aaaanyways...

The trip fulfilled all my expectations of awesomeness. Nay, exceeded. Warning: this post's a long one.

Day One:

1, 2, and 3: We spent our first morning on a hike to Twin Falls near North Bend. It was green and cool and glorious. The smells of the moss and fir trees and the sounds of nearby running water were overwhelmingly beautiful and nostalgic. I can't believe this is where I grew up.
4, 5, and 6: After our hike we stopped at the Green Valley Meat Market, where they sell delicious (if not overpriced) jerky of all flavors, along with tons of other miscellaneous meat products. Bree is a little obsessed with beef jerky, and she had fun sampling the flavors.
7 and 8: The kids spent a lot of time in my parents' yard, which has actual green grass, wild flowers, and an evergreen tree. At our house in Arizona, the only thing to play with in the yard is gravel.
9: My mom organized a treasure hunt, and the kids followed clues to find their cash and candy waiting at the end. We quickly headed off to Walmart to spend the loot.
10 and 11: We ate lunch at the Mexican Restaurant (that is literally what it says on the sign...it's actually called Rio Blanco). This was one of our family's regular favorites, where my brother always ordered a cheeseburger.
12, 13, and 14: My mom mentioned a local donut place she had seen on the news, Legendary Doughnuts, and suggested we try it. Best. Decision. Ever. I can honestly say these are the best donuts I've ever had in my life. We may have gone there three times during our short Washington visit. Chad says he got sick of donuts (please, Chad, like that's even possible).
15: I don't know who this grown-up girl is. But she loves to read.

Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium:

A delicious breakfast at the Sunbreak Cafe, just a short walk downtown. Here we are that morning, strolling through the train station where my dad catches his ride to work in Seattle:

Mason and Bree were thrilled with the massive whipped-cream topped hot chocolates.

(And I was thrilled with my enormous strawberry cream cheese French toast sandwich. The house-made egg bread slices were 10 inches wide)

Enchanted Village. Okay, so it's called Wild Waves now, but it will always be Enchanted Village to me. Besides, this family could not handle any kind of waves in Washington's June weather, thank you.

 

Les Gove Park in downtown Auburn:

Mom and Dad treated Chad and me to a date night at the Mariner's game. Beforehand we stopped at Ivar's on the Seattle Pier for dinner, and Top Pot donuts (because we had to do further research to verify that Legendary was, indeed, superior). We miraculously got away with two downtown Seattle stops without paying for parking. Sweet. Plus, I got to wear my Mariners cap for the first time in...years.

After a few days of being in Washington, we drove across the Narrows Bridge (while Chad uncomfortably asked "Why are you in the far-right lane?") to the peninsula to visit Jaime, who was excitedly awaiting our arrival. It had been 1 1/2 years since we last saw her family in Vegas. It was surreal to see her in her new home, surrounded by scenery that I used to call home. We settled in to the guest room for a few days, and I eagerly took in the sights of their little town.

We visited the local farmers' market, and snacked on delicious cherries, strawberries, carrots, and sugar peas. We also visited the free downtown aquarium. There was also an event going that day where the kids got to "fish" for trout. That was pretty exciting. It was my kind of fishing: where you can't even count to ten before you get a bite on your line.

We visited the much-talked-of Indianola Beach, where the tide pools did not disappoint. Crabs, hermit crabs, giant sea snails, tiny fish, and sea stars (not starfish Meg, you sound like a tourist). The sky, which had pelted our van with rain on the drive to the beach, decided to have pity on us. It must have sensed the importance of our visit. It was gorgeous.

More random pictures from our visit with Jaime:

1: Chad always tells me I'm lame for taking selfies. I took this particular lame selfie so I could always remember this gloriously drizzly Sunday when I got to use the umbrella I won at a white elephant gift exchange when I was a teenager. It drizzled all day. I was in heaven.
2: Bree and Lincoln could not get over this giant teddy bear.
3: Lincoln and Scarlett were just the same size during this visit. Lincoln was happy to have someone to follow around all day, play with, and share lotion apparently.
4, and 5: Jaime and I always cook and bake when we get together. We work seamlessly together in the kitchen, and have produced some pretty spectacular food. Because we spent Father's Day with them, we treated the men to ribs, homemade rolls, corn on the cob, and salad with homemade Caesar dressing. Rob and Chad are lucky men. We didn't bake during this visit, which is SO out of character for us, but Jaime made some delicious strawberry ice cream.
6: Back home, bedtime is like a race to the finish line for me. Jaime and Rob are really good about taking time to read stories, which our kids absolutely loved.
7: It wouldn't be a visit with Rob and Jaime without playing Canasta and Settlers of Catan. The boys got served some serious humble pie as Jaime and I trounced them at Canasta. It was the first time the score had been so overwhelmingly in our favor.
8, 9, and 10: Rob and Chad offered to watch the kids while Jaime and I went out. Just the two of us. It was heavenly. Jaime suggested we catch the ferry and have dinner in Seattle. After I realized she was serious, I was totally on board. The sky and clouds were breathtaking as we ferried across the sound. I was a little bit freezing, and I clearly cannot take a decent photo in direct sunlight, but it was so much fun. We took advantage of our quiet time to really talk. Jaime is a great listener, and always has advice that I need to hear. Dinner at Cheesecake Factory was delicious (even though we have one near us in Arizona, the last time I'd eaten there was with Jaime and Rob in Vegas). After eating, we did a little shopping to savor every last kid-free minute we could. By the time we got back to the house at 11pm, Chad and Rob had long since put the kids to bed. Best night ever.
11 and 12: Jaime drove back to Auburn with us, to see where I grew up. Chad watched all the kids while Jaime, my mom, and I drove down Green Valley Road to see our old house, which was depressingly run-down. The lower lawn sported an R.V. and a goat pen. We tried to describe its glory days to Jaime, and I promised to show her a good picture later. After we got back to my parents' cottage, Jaime got to meet my dad (for the first time) as he arrived home from work. He and Chad had some work to do in the backyard, cutting down an old tree that was threatening to fall into the neighbor's yard. The kids watched from the window as the chainsaw roared, and Bree and Zackary helped clean up branches and leaves.

And then...my life was altered forever. Jaime and I slipped away, just the two of us, for yet another run to Legendary Doughnuts.

I had overlooked the "doughsants" (a croissant that had been cut and frosted like a donut) on my previous visits, because...well I was there for donuts, right? But Jaime insisted we try just one, and we chose a strawberry-frosted one (in the upper left corner of the box). As soon as we got back in the car, we had to sample it.

Oh. My. G.O.S.H. I can't even describe how amazing it was. Flaky, tender-crisp layers of croissant, glazed and then frosted with delicious strawberry frosting. One minute I was reveling in the flavor, and the next minute I was in awe at the AMAZING texture. The other donuts, which were of course delicious, suddenly paled in comparison. We savored each bite, and erased all evidence of the one and only doughsant we'd purchased. We considered going back inside and buying more...but we just couldn't bring ourselves to add to the already enormous pile of pastries we were already taking home. It was a life-altering experience. I will forever measure pastries against that divine doughsant.

Too soon it was time for Jaime's family to make the long, rush-hour drive back to their home on the peninsula. I made sure that Jaime promised to visit me in Arizona before another 1 1/2 years has gone by. I will hold her to it.

We knocked out a few more things on my wish list before our trip was over. We took a picnic lunch to Flaming Geyser State Park, which was 5 minutes away from my house growing up. So many good memories of family events, church picnics, and rafting trips:

I can't believe how green it is. It's unreal.

On our way back from the park we stopped at Mosby's road-side stand, where I remember getting produce as a teenager. We couldn't resist the Rainier cherries, and we picked up some multi-colored baby potatoes to go with our dinner. I breathed in the fragrance of the tiny candy-sweet strawberries. And they had mangoes from Mexico on sale for 50-cents each. I did not expect the most delicious mango I'd ever tasted to be in Washington, but it was. Go figure.

A few days before we left, I noticed that my childhood friend Tina had posted on Facebook about being at her sister's graduation. In Auburn? But she lives in Florida! I texted her, and had a very strange text conversation with a person who, after far too many texts had been exchanged, turned out not to be Tina. After finally getting a hold of her through her parents' home phone (a number found in an old church directory my parents still had), we connected and met up at the park with all of our kids. It's not always easy to keep up with old friends, but even though Tina and I go years between seeing each other, it's like no time has passed. She is still as sweet as ever, and I love her dearly.

And some random photos from our trip:

1: I frequently shopped at Goodwill when I was a teenager. Thankfully, it was totally cool to attend our high school sporting funky vintage thrift store finds. Chad and I went there on a mini-date, and I scored some serious deals on denim.
2: After Lincoln spent hours with this "Leaptop" at Jaime's house, she generously told us he could keep it. He loved showing off his skills with letters and sounds.
3: A salmon berry. My dad taught me all about edible native wild berries when I was a kid. I remember supplementing hiking trip food with berries from the trail. Bree is a little obsessed with eating food found in the wild. We tasted these tart little babies at Flaming Geyser.
4: Papa Murphy's pizza. Better than I remember.
5: When Chad and I were at the ball game, the Mariner Moose wore a "Vote for Pedro" shirt and did the Napoleon Dynamite dance. I have that same shirt.
6: Chad hurt his back while we were there, so I used my dad's back massager on him. Lincoln insisted on a turn.
7 and 8: After going to the park with Tina, she joined us at the Teriyaki Wok for old time's sake. The food was exactly the same as I remember it. My family was unimpressed. I make homemade teriyaki sauce that is much tastier; they are spoiled. And the waitress was bizarre. She kept trying to "help" with the kids; she picked celery out of Mason's soup because he said he didn't like it, and he lifted up Tina's little boy to put him back in his chair...among other things. So weird.
9: My parents took us to China House one day, which was my sister Jessica's favorite place to eat. We used to eat there for special occasions. I remember Jessica opening birthday presents there once. It was delicious.
10: I did a makeover for my mom, using my favorite Mary Kay products and techniques. Her blue eyes are stunning.
11: One day my dad was coloring with my kids, and I told him I remember him doing that with me when I was little. I especially used to love paint by numbers. That got us going on a paint by numbers hunt. We found a cheap little kit at Walmart that required us to scan, enlarge, and print the picture so we could actually see the tiny numbers, then we had to mix our own colors. I spent hours completing this one (my old allergies were flaring up, so I was content to relax inside). So fun.
12: I almost didn't include this picture of Chad and me eating fish and chips at Ivar's. It's an awkward picture, which didn't capture as much of the water as I'd hoped it would. But this was our second meal at Ivar's while we were in Washington (we knew there was nothing like it back home), so I decided I'd post it in all its awkward glory.

Lincoln learned to "snap" along to the music on his Leaptop, after copying my dad:

We had two full weeks of sights and tastes, family and friends. It was wonderful. It would have been perfect had it not been for my intermittent allergies, and that looooong drive. Driving away from western Washington was a little bit of a let-down. I would miss the waterfront, and the rivers and streams. And you can't see trees like that just anywhere.  Oh, and don't even get me started on the moss and ferns. I was sad to leave.

Back to the dry southwest for us. Home.

But not before stopping at the Glen Canyon Dam near Page. Arizona and it's dams. Water is a big deal around here.

Despite my several inquiries as to why we don't live in Washington (Me: "We could move here, right?" Chad: "NO."), it was good to be back in Arizona (it wasn't awesome to be back in 110-degree weather, but I'm working on focusing on the other 8 envy-inducing months of our year). We got to see so much beauty on our trip. And I am so grateful to my parents and to Jaime's family for letting us stay with them and live in their world for a bit. It may not officially be my world anymore, but I feel like now, more then ever, I can still call Washington "home."