august wrap up: end of summer getaway, web leader training, water fun

i've gotten off track with my normal monday posting schedule, but that's ok. just trying to fit the rest of august into one post. 

 last sunday we headed north for the cabins at silver lake county park near our property. we booked a 3-night stay back in december (we also booked our june stay then - it fills up fast). it was our third time going and we've had cool, rainy weather every time. we thought for sure going in august this time would mean warmth and sunshine, but we were (mostly) wrong. haha. thankfully we are good at entertaining ourselves in any weather and it's still a beautiful place no matter what. we got up there in the mid afternoon and got everything settled in our cabin before heading to our property to grill dinner since it was the nicest weather night. we had hot dogs and brats and visited the neighbors' animals and admired their amazing flower garden. 

we relaxed at the cabin the rest of the night. it was dry out, so we busted out the light-up bocce ball set we hadn't used in a few years. it's always fun. 

monday morning we made pancakes and bacon and enjoyed our coffee out on the porch. then we set out for a hike near mount baker. the kids had never been there before, and it had been a few years for thatcher and me. we hiked artist's point. it was at 5,000 ft, but not a long or challenging hike thankfully. it was really beautiful. we also ran into our property neighbor at the end! 

after the hike, we drove to a picnic area for lunch, which felt much colder and windier. the rest of the day was spent hanging out at the cabin. thatcher went to our property to do a little work, but came back after an hour because it started to pour. and it poured the rest of the night. thankfully the cabin has a big covered porch overlooking the lake, where we were still able to eat dinner. thatcher had the idea to bring our own table and chairs and twinkle lights this time. it turned out so cute. 

in the evening after it got dark, we were all relaxing in the cabin when i saw a mouse run from under the fridge to under the oven. i jumped up to alert thatcher. which kicked off almost an hour of us trying to figure out if there was any way we could kill it or get it out. we put some food out and thatcher stood by with a broom, but it never came back out. we could see it under the oven with a flashlight. so we reluctantly went to sleep for the night with the mouse still in there. *shudder*. the top bunks became very popular. haha. we did not see the mouse again for the rest of our time there, thankfully.

tuesday morning we decided to go to canada for the day, since it was forecasted to be rainy at the cabin. we crossed over the border in sumas and there was no wait. we stopped in abbottsford, bc for coffee and pastries. then we started making our way to vancouver, which is a little over an hour away. the kids and i hadn't been there in five years, but thatcher has been more recently. it's one of my favorite cities in the world. we stopped at a park in burnaby along the way. 

once we got to vancouver, we went to a thai restaurant for lunch. then we walked around the waterfront areas downtown. i was so happy to be back - and it was beautifully sunny! 

we drove back to the cabin for one final night. we made dinner, played some games, and relaxed. 

wednesday morning i was sitting out on the porch when the sun rose over the foothills of the mountains and it was the most magical scene. i could have sat there forever even though it was only in the upper 40s out. 

the rest of the morning was spent packing and cleaning up the cabin before heading back to seattle. we stopped at a DQ for lunch on the way home. all in all it was a great trip! 

thursday morning azalea was up bright and early for her 'WEB leader' training at school. WEB leaders are 8th graders who have been chosen to be mentors for the incoming 6th grade orientation. they had two days of training before the orientation next tuesday. ashford and i met vanessa and ewan at golden gardens for three hours! it was the most glorious day. i'm so happy we are getting a little more summer weather before fall sets in for good. 

in the late afternoon, ashford and i headed to kay's for a mom happy hour/kid hang out. more time spent outside in the beautiful weather. 

friday azalea had WEB training all day again. ashford and i lounged around for the morning. well i mostly worked ;) after lunch, he and i met vanessa and ewan the the pool in magnolia. it was our first time there this summer and it closes labor day, so just under the wire. it was another perfect weather day and we all had fun. 

after dinner, thatcher and i went for a walk and then we each had a movie night with 1 kid (because they can never agree on a movie anymore). the boys watched 'if' and the girls watched 'my big fat greek wedding'. 

saturday morning i went to the gym and the grocery store. fritz came over to hang out with ashford for a few hours. thatcher had a volunteer shift for the opening of the new light rail stations in shoreline and lynnwood. i took the boys (and azalea) to 'mod pizza' for lunch. 

we hung out at home the rest of the afternoon. lots of cleaning and laundry for me, and a good amount of reading too, so no complaints there. sisi came over to hang out with azalea and they ended up back at sisi's for a sleepover later. 

4 more days til school starts! it's starting to feel real. ashford got his teacher assignment on thursday. he has the same 5th grade teacher that azalea had, so that's cool. his friends are split pretty evenly between the two classes.