Cana
The day began with breakfast at a wonderful little french bakery next to the Hyatt. The food and coffee was delicious. They also didn't flinch when the kids ordered coffee too. They had bread all over in wonderful animal shapes. The kids want to try to do this too. Callie ordered the best french toast I have ever tasted, Brent got two mini Cinnamon rolls, but says next time he only wants one and then maybe a quiche. I got a fresh baguette with jam and butter. Yummy.
We got to the zoo about a half hour before Rebecca. The kids decided that the souvenir that they wanted was a stuffed animal, similar to the build a bear thing. They were quite cute and Callie also to a dress for her flamingo. No names yet. We watched the flamingos work on their nests and fight while waiting for Rebecca.
After the other kids arrived it felt like we were racing again. My left foot was hurting, I had stepped on the leg of a desk chair at the hotel and the side of my foot was swollen and bruised. I hobbled through the zoo OK. The zoo is really nicely set up. It was small and easy to see everything in just a few hours.
The birds on the net above the bridge made this feel like Jurassic park, except the only real danger was a little/lot of poo. The kids thought this was hilarious.
We couldn't leave town with out another spring roll, so we headed back to the Talin market to try the restaurant across the street. The rolls were not as good as the ones at the restaurant that shares the parking lot with the market. The meal was OK, the fish sauce tasted watered down and they didn't use basil. I will be going to the other restaurant next time.
Cana
We had a nice breakfast with Rebecca and her family before walking about a mile to the start of the Race for the Zoo starting line. Our 5K started at 9:00 am. The kids aren't tired, it was just really bright out. Brent and Julian couldn't hold still. They had ran to the race and were constantly wrestling and jumping around before the race began. Were weren't sure they would make it to the finish.
OK, Callie was a little tired. Rebecca and Clarissa were going with the boys. Callie and I were teamed up and Rebecca's parents had Sebastian, Damian & Isabella. I think. It was crazy. There were around 9,000 racers. We were wearing our green t-shirts, everyone but Callie, so it was easy to find each other before the race, but once it started I didn't see anyone.
The line of people seemed never ending, both in front of us and behind. Everyone was really friendly and the only ones that seemed at all in a hurry were what Callie called the "baby pushers" You quickly learned to stay out of their way. Throughout the race there were people in green zoo shirts encouraging everyone and making sure everyone was heading the right way. Some were in costume or playing music.
After the race we walked another mile back to the hotel. There wasn't much time to clean up before the lunch at the bistro; so everyone agreed to be stinky together. Thankfully we drove to the Bistro. Lunch was lovely. Afterwards Florent took Brent and Callie with Julian and his cousin go karting. They had a blast. I got to go back to the hotel and relax until dinner. We had dinner at a fun Greek restaurant on Nob Hill and headed home exhausted from day 2.
Cana
The kids and I headed up to Albuquerque last weekend. We left town around 10am on Saturday and headed straight for Talin Market. It is a little international market, nicely laid out. However, use restrooms elsewhere. We were able to find our spring roll wraps, fish sauce, sticky toffee pudding and Vietnamese coffee makers! Yeah! After shopping we had a couple orders of spring rolls at the little restaurant on the other side of the parking lot. Very good.
After our snack we went shopping at Barnes & Noble and then headed over to Sport Systems to pick up our race t-shirts and packet. They had only the kids sizes left, since they had changed the system and not held shirts for those that preregistered. Nice. They promised to mail mine. Not a big deal since we were wearing the St Clair shirts on race day anyway. While we were there the hail and rain came. It was intense. We were running around through cold running water to get our stuff. I couldn't stop giggling. The water was literally running over my ankles. The kids and I were soaked.
We were in a hurry not to get to the hotel to clean up before meeting Rebecca at the Bistro. The hotel was lovely, staff friendly and room clean. In addition, they had the most delicious, warm, chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. This is the view from our room. We were on the 14th floor. The building across the plaza is the Hyatt where Rebecca was staying. They are prepping for the Cinco De Mayo celebration in the plaza. The kids wanted to spend the entire weekend in the room.
We made it to the Bistro, got our St Clair tshirts and headed to the BBQ. Quite a busy start to the weekend.
Cana
OK, this is the last post about our trip to Seattle. We actually got back on the 8th. The drive home was pleasant. We again had most of our daylight hours in Nevada. The sun started to rise in eastern Oregon and we had breakfast at a truly horrible little restaurant in Idaho. Patrick, we got him at Cattins restaurant in Puyallup, WA, was a surprise hit. It became a joke to move Patrick when no one was looking and we giggled endlessly. We are very silly. Both shots of Patrick are in Nevada.
Cana
We haven't seen Liz or Grace since we moved to New Mexico; add my sister's separation and this was a very special visit. Gracie has grown so much and she is a delightful little girl. The kids played well and Grace seemed to enjoy all the attention.
We went for a walk around the property, which was truly beautiful. Especially on a sunny spring day. She house sits on 2 1/2 acres. The "trails" are well maintained by the landlord. What a wonderful place for Grace to grow in.
During the walk, Grace seemed very attached to Callie.
Grace wore Brent out with the race game. Up and down and up and down. She thought it was very exciting, Brent not as much, though he had fun. I told him that was what it was like for Callie for years. He was completely out of breath by the time they stopped. I will forever be in awe of the energy of preschoolers! The kids had a sleepover, Gracie's first!
Cana
The second half of our trip was spent at my sister in law's house. It was a very nice visit. Heather was nice enough to put up with JT's request for a party. I heard they had a good time. I avoided the party by spending the night with my sister. The kids love all the laptops and have been asking and planning how to get their own now. It was nice seeing everyone. Noah has grown so much! Heather's house is beautiful. They seem to be nicely settled despite the flood thing. Everyone headed back to work/school Monday and we headed for home on Tuesday.
Cana
We were fortunate enough for the first half of our holiday to stay with Jeff. He was a fabulous host and we are very grateful. The kids love going to Jeff's, aside from Jeff, who they think is great, they get to visit Ms Mouseytongue, jump on the trampoline and lay on their old couch.
Jeff used to dive, his kids do too. He also has done some coaching.
Cana
On our way to Seattle we drove over the Hoover dam and into Las Vegas. It was a really pretty morning.
The kids were a little cold, but we all enjoyed stretching our legs a bit after being in the car all night.
On our way past the bridge construction on the other side of the dam, we notice they have two porta potty's on the crane.
The bridge construction was fun to watch. The workers were all tied down. We all decided this was work we could never do.
We drove past some of the hotels on the strip on our way to the kids favorite breakfast place, Black Bear Diner.
Cana
Callie loves
manga; specifically "Fruits Basket". She has been reading her books for most of this vacation; she brought 13 with her. She was on the computer today, but she was still reading. She found a site with the "Fruits Basket" series online. Brent has been enjoying himself with his cousin, Grace. He is learning what it is like to be the older sibling. Grace wants him to snuggle, shop and have tea parties. So cute. Maybe he'll see his older sister in a different light now.
We have learned a lot about ourselves on this holiday. First, we are no longer Washingtonians. We feel out of place here and have missed our New Mexican home since we left it. We also learned that friends and family are important and making time for them in our lives is essential. We have learned just how much we have changed since we left. We feel completely out of sorts with the pace of life here. Our friends and family remark how much they have slowed during our visit, and we still feel that
everyone is in a hurry! We had planned to do a bunch of shopping during our return to
civilization. But
strangely nothing
appealed to us in the malls. My daughter got bored after the first few stores and we didn't finish the mall. Turns out we really didn't need stuff. We just thought we did. We hardly got anything at all. Our perspective is different now; I like it better.
Cana
Keeping the kids on task this week has been quite a challenge! Next week should be next to impossible. We don't leave for Seattle until Thursday. I really wanted to count at least Monday and Tuesday as school days. We had one day this week that really didn't count. This is our first trip back, so I understand the kids excitement.
