Cassie's Visit

This weekend, our friend Cassie came to visit from Minneapolis. We had a great time and were really happy she was able to make it out. She's here from Saturday evening until Tuesday morning (tomorrow). Unfortunately, the weather wasn't quite perfect and we didn't get any views of the mountains. However, the sun was out and it didn't rain, so I'd say it was a success. Saturday night we went to dinner at Arnie's, a restaurant on the Puget Sound where Katie used to work. It was a nice sunny evening and a perfect night for a meal on the patio.

On Sunday Katie, Ken, Nate, Cassie and I had blueberry pancakes at our house, then drove down to Lake Union (a lake just north of downtown Seattle) and rented some Kayaks. We were out on the lake for about 2 hours. It was pretty cloudy, but it was a perfect temperature and we got some great views of some houseboats (including the house from Sleepless In Seattle), seaplanes and some yachts.

After kayaking, we took a quick stop at Kerry Park, which is where THE view of Seattle can be seen.

We then headed for Pike Place Market, where we enjoyed the street market and got some food. Before we left we got some salmon and some other goodies and made our way back home. We grilled the salmon with all the fixins; grilling never gets old!

Today, Katie and Cassie went downtown again to do some shopping, and took a ferry out to Bainbridge Island. They had a great time and great weather, though again missed out on the mountains.

We all had a great time this weekend, and Cassie has now declared that this is an annual trip :)

Seven Months?!

Okay, so I've caught some grief from a few of you for not updating our blog in a while. Seven months is a long time, I'll give you that. So a long story short, Katie and I got married in January in Mexico as most of you reading probably know. Afterward we came back and I've been putting in some long hours at work, and in March Katie started her new career of Real Estate Appraisal. She has been taking classes and has been hired as an Appraiser Trainee, a position she will have to hold for two years before qualifying to take the exam for the Professional License. She is really enjoying it, and is glad to no longer be in the restaurant industry! In March we took a trip out to Big Sky for a weekend with Katie's family and got some skiing in; the weather was beautiful! In the beginning of May, Katie's parents came out to visit for a few days, and then we all went to Las Vegas for a few days of R&R in the sun. And just a couple weeks ago, Katie and I went out to Big Sky again to help her parents with some landscaping for their housing project. We planted 41 evergreen trees (4-8 ft trees) in two and a half days! Other than that, we've been having some fun around Seattle. A couple friends and I climbed Mt. Si the other weekend, we've grilled out a few times (the weather has been AWESOME this spring), we went to a Mariners-Twins game last weekend, and Katie and I also participated in a 5k run for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on Sunday. Okay, well I think that about covers the last 7 months. Here are some pictures, enjoy!

Skiing in Big Sky

This was at a restaurant in Big Sky. Rylan got ahold of Grandpa's money!

On the way to Vegas from Seattle, a view of Rainier from above

In Vegas at the Bellagio Conservatory

Me and Jack in Big Sky, with some of the 41 trees in the background

This is a creek (currently a river) behind the houses in Big Sky

We had a grill-off to determine if there was a discernable taste difference when cooking with charcoal or propane. Verdict: No taste difference (verdict dependent upon chef's abilities)

Christen, Katie, Me, Nate and Ken enjoying some Mojito's on a warm Saturday afternoon

Downtown Seattle in the background of Safeco Field at the Mariners vs Twins game...unfortunately the Twins lost!

We were supposed to be in the cheap-seats, but an usher was nice to us so we got an upgrade! Joe Mauer at bat.

Katie and Christen at the game