memorial day weekend 2018

we had such a fantastic memorial weekend! it ended up being way busier (and more fun) than we we anticipating. i guess that's what happens when you get a surprise guest! friday afternoon thatcher's sister cedar asked if she could come out and stay with us from saturday to tuesday. she had not been out to visit yet, so we were excited to have her! 

thatcher picked her up from the airport at lunch time on saturday. after she got settled in, we ventured out to give her a walking tour of ballard. we walked down to the locks first. it was packed there!

 

then we headed to the newly re-opened nordic museum. the nordic museum had been housed an old school about a half mile from our house, but they built a brand new building for it, which is even closer to us now. it just opened at the beginning of may. cedar was really excited to go as she has a passion for history and nordic culture. 

the new space was beautiful. it's not the most kid-friendly museum in the world, but the kids did pretty well there. 

we bought a membership so we can go back as much as we want in the next year. we went home to rest for a bit before heading out to walk around more of the neighborhood (ballard ave and market street). we also had dinner at "the hi life" restaurant. we stopped for grocery store ice cream on the way home and it was the first of many late nights for the kids ;) 

sunday morning we got up and out the door early to go into the mountains. lots of time sitting between these two monkeys for me ;) 

 our first stop was snoqualmie falls (which was the busiest i've ever seen it. a theme through out the weekend i guess!). 

next we drove to gold creek pond, which is one of our favorite spots to bring visitors. it's absolutely stunning scenery, a nice short hike, and great place to just hang out. we had some snacks and then did the 1 mile loop around the pond. it was a beautiful day for it. 

we went through snoqualmie pass on the way back. we got home in the mid afternoon and i quickly switched gears to go see my lifelong friend kelli who was in town from san francisco. it had been 18 months since we last saw each other. she was staying with her friend janna in woodinville (about 40 mins away), so i drove out there to meet up with them (as well as kelli's husband and some other friends of theirs who were also in town). we met at columbia winery and had a little wine before heading back to their house for a bbq. they grilled burgers and brats and we all hung out and chatted. it was a nice relaxing evening and so great to catch up. here is a picture of kelli and me from the winery: 

while i was gone, the rest of the gang took a bus to the fremont neighborhood to explore:

monday morning we took the bus to south lake union. azalea found the most fun seat on the bus...

then we walked to pike place market. crowded, crowded! ;)

 

we went down to the waterfront and got a quick snack of french fries (and a cup of clam chowder for me) at ivar's.

then we walked to the ferry terminal to take a ride over to bainbridge island. another fun activity to do with visitors. and another beautiful day!

 we spent a couple hours on bainbridge. walked around the downtown, went to some shops, had lunch at our go-to vietnamese place, and stopped at the history museum (where azalea got very absorbed in the movie with some older ladies and men) :) 

 when we got back to seattle, we walked over to pioneer square and then by thatcher's office before catching a bus home.

the last stop of the night was "mod pizza" for dinner because it was getting late and we were too tired to go to the grocery store/cook dinner. so many miles walked that day, we were pooped!

thatcher went back to work on tuesday. ashford and i took cedar to the goodwill in ballard before heading to the airport to drop her off. whew! it felt weird to go back to regular life on tuesday afternoon after that whirlwind weekend, but a little routine is always good. 

in just two weeks we get to play tour guide again when my aunt and cousins come from new jersey (and my brother from minnesota). i can't wait! happy unofficial start of summer!