Finally

Okay, so we've been home since Monday night since our travels to Seattle and Utah, and I've had plenty of time to blog...I just haven't (until now that is). Since we've been home, our focus has been on putting the kitchen back in order (counter tops are done as of Tuesday, but there is a problem....the two pieces that meet in the corner are off just a bit. Now you might say, "Emily, 'just a bit' is not that big of a deal. Nobody will notice but you". But isn't that the point?? They are our counter tops, that we paid a lot of money for, and we will and do notice!!! The installer left without speaking to us about this issue and didn't even mention that he was "done". So, I had to call the guy who sold us this product and made commission off of us, and I lost my cool. I screamed at his voicemail...I don't get this mad very often, but I was HOT!!! Needless to say, he is coming to examine the work on Monday, and will do what is necessary to get the counter tops to our satisfaction).

Wow, that was a long side note..on another side note, our entire floors are being replaced on Monday/Tuesday. Oh, and I go back to work on Monday (Mark gets another week of vacation since he teaches regular ed.) So, our world is caving in all at once around us and we've been preoccupied with the house, therefore, neglecting this blog.

In order to prepare for writing a current post, I have gone through all the blogs that I read to catch up on the news that I missed while we were away, and found the tiniest spark of inspiration to write....thank you fellow bloggers!

I believe I last left you my dear reader (I'm still not convinced that more than one person reads this...I never have any comments left for my enjoyment) on our departure to Seattle. So now I shall share with you our Seattle adventures:

Day 1 (Tuesday night July 29): We left our house once the snail-paced counter top installer "finished" for the day. We drove to Tukwila (just outside of Seattle....MUCH cheaper hotel rates) and spent the night. My husband chose this hotel as he had stayed there before and raved about it. Now, I'm all for cheaper hotel rates, however, I'm also for security, comfort, sleep, and enjoyment. The hotel looked fine from the lobby perspective, and on our way to the room Ryan and Mark chatted about their different memories at this location:

Ryan: "Remember Dad, we stayed here near the pool one time".

Mark: "This place is so much cheaper than being right in Seattle".

Mark: "Oh, we stayed over at this end too".

Ryan: "Yeah, I remember. I don't remember that freeway being so close, though".

So, we unloaded the car and let ourselves into our room. Upon entering the room the comments starting changing and I began adding to the dialogue as well:

Emily: "Does it smell funny to you"?

Mark: "You're such a hotel snob".

Emily: "Our door doesn't lock. This isn't good".

Ryan: "Hmm. It's changed a bit".

Mark: "I think it's fine".

Emily: "Help me put the heavy chair in front of the door".

Mark: "Seriously, Emily. No one is going to break in. The door locks".

Emily: "No it doesn't."

So, we (I) secured the chair in front of the door (did I mention our room had an outside entrance? It did not open up to a hallway like some hotels...) and got ready for bed. After Ryan and I harassed Mark about him not being allowed to snore, we all drifted off to sleep. Or rather, we tried to drift off to sleep. There was a freeway right next to this hotel. It actually sounded as though the hotel was under the freeway. We could literally hear car after car after car drive by. ALL NIGHT LONG! Nobody slept well, but at least nobody broke into the room.

After our experience in Tukwila, we headed into Seattle to begin our vacation/honeymoon/birthday trip for Ryan. :)

Day 2 (Wednesday, July 30): This was Ryan's birthday! We went to the Seattle Center and decided to go to the top of the Space Needle. Mark and Ryan had never done this before. I had. Neither of them are inspired by heights, but they faced their fears and we all went up.

After hanging at the top of the Needle for a while, we ventured over to the EMP (Experience Music Project). We spent the better part of the afternoon here until it was time to go check into our new hotel to get ready for the evening plans. If you've never been to the EMP, it is quite a musical experience. We even made a music video that we brought home on DVD. Ryan was on the guitar, Mark was on the keyboard, and I played the drums. We rocked out on our video to Twist and Shout.

After spending the day at the Seattle Center, we checked in to our spendy, but secure and comfortable room where we freshened up for a live performance from John Hammond at Dimitriou's Jazz Alley.

Day 3 (Thursday, July 31): We spent this day visiting the waterfront. We went to the Pike Place Market, the Seattle Aquarium, walked up to Pioneer Square and over to Safeco Field. Walking through Seattle felt extremely safe and the scenery was beautiful. Mark and I love taking pictures and Seattle provided the perfect backdrop for hundreds of beautiful photos. We changed hotels again and were conveniently located in Pioneer Square.

This evening's outing included a live show at Highway 99 Blues Club from Nathan James and Ben Hernandez.

Day 4 (Friday, Aug. 1): This was our last full day in Seattle. We wandered through Pioneer Square and took an Underground Tour of Seattle. After this tour and a delicious lunch at Mitchelli's, we walked down to Safeco Field for the Mariner's game. The Mariner's lost to the Baltimore Orioles, but we had fun anyways. This was my first pro. baseball game and I loved it! However, I did not love the price of food at the stadium. Two foot-long hot dogs cost $25.00! Anyhow, we had fantastic seats and the little boys in front of us even got a game ball (they were from Baltimore and were as cute as they could be). Here are some pictures from the stadium:

Day 5 (Saturday, Aug. 2) We headed home on Saturday and had an uneventful drive back to Oregon with our Seattle souvenirs and memories in tow. We all had a great time and even came up with some new outings to try (dinner cruise and ghost tour) the next time we head to our favorite north-western city.

There...now at least I've blogged about one of our trips. I feel a bit more caught up :)