grandma jan visit #3

what a fun week (well 5 days, close enough) we had with my mom while she was in town. it sure flew by! here is a rundown of what we did:

tuesday: ashford and i picked her up from the airport then had a late lunch at the hi life restaurant in our neighborhood, we all picked up azalea from school, made tacos for dinner, played with the kids and just relaxed that evening. no pictures, oops. 

wednesday: met up with vanessa and ewan at ella bailey park in magnolia (i mostly wanted my mom to see the amazing views from there), picked up lunch at un bien, hung out at home while ashford napped, made grilled chicken pesto sandwiches for dinner, took the kids out for ice cream in our neighborhood.

thursday: took her to swanson's nursery. she loves gardening and looking at different plants/flowers and it's a fun free thing to do. we enjoyed the koi fish (they are so friendly!) and the dwarf goats and hay maze. had lunch at home, picked up azalea from school, ate dinner at home, then went to azalea's soccer class (thatcher had a networking event all evening).

 

friday: we drove across the city to volunteer park (it was my first time there, but my mom and dad actually went there on their 2010 seattle trip!), enjoyed the green space, the conservatory, and the play ground, had greek lunch at vios in capitol hill (i've always wanted to go there, they have a kid's play area!), ordered pizza for dinner then my mom and i escaped to value village and goodwill for a bit. 

 

saturday: we drove into the mountains to snoqualmie falls and gold creek pond (it was the first time we've taken my mom into the mountains!), the weather was nicer than i thought it would be. 

nice face, azalea ;) 

and my goofy boy

we packed a picnic snack/lunch and the kids had fun throwing rocks in the pond and looking at wild mushrooms. it was the most crowded i've ever seen it there (obviously you can't tell from these pictures) 

 i was worried this trip might not happen because ashford woke up with a fever the night before, thankfully it was gone by morning. whew! saturday night thatcher and i got to have a date night while my mom stayed with the kids. we went to elliot's oyster house on pier 56 (downtown on the waterfront). i had a gift card from my employer in minneapolis for my 10 year anniversary. so nice! it was definitely more expensive than places we typically go to, so it was a treat. the food was delicious! only downside was it started pouring on our drive there and neither of us dressed for it (oops). after dinner, we watched the lit up ferris wheel for a while, then went to the co-op to get dessert :) the kids were really good for my mom, so that was nice to hear. 

sunday: my mom had to head to the train station early in the morning to go to portland, so thatcher and the kids took her. then they went to brick con (lego convention) at seattle center. i stayed home to get some work done, a nice relaxing morning to myself! :) here are some pictures from brick con: 

whenever my mom comes to visit, i always wonder what life would be like if my dad had never gotten sick with cancer and would have been able to come out here with her. would they stay in an airbnb or vrbo in our neighborhood? would they rent a car because we couldn't all fit in ours? what would my dad say about the cute and funny (and frustrating) things my kids are doing these days? it still blows my mind that he is not here, how can it be real? 

anyway, time marches on. nothing can change that. so we make the most of this life without him, like he would want us to. i can't believe i'll be heading home for kelli's wedding in a little over 3 weeks!