Family Time

Both BJ and I were born and raised near the Puget Sound and we never pass on an excuse for a ferry ride - especially when it means avoiding a drive through downtown Seattle. We left Port Townsend headed to Edmonds in the most direct manner.

Last August, I spent a couple weeks volunteering at my sister's office. Less than a month later, she was diagnosed with brain cancer. It's been a challenging year for her and her family, and one of our key stops was to spend some time with them.

Both of my brothers showed up as well and we had a wonderful time telling stories about one another and visiting some of our favorite Seattle haunts. I didn't recall the statue of Ivar,

but a visit to Ivar's is just about mandatory any time we visit Seattle.

We also convinced my brother-in-law to face the traffic so we could visit the Pike Street market - even more crowded than I remember,

but the resulting purchase turned out excellent.

After a few days with my family, it was time to visit BJ's family.

On the way south we spotted this truckload of hand crafted kayaks and canoes - if you have an imagination. Seriously, it was a load of beautiful 5/4 western red cedar just begging to be put to good use.

Any time we return to Tumwater, a visit to Eagan's is required. In this case, we went there before visiting any family. BJ's cousin recently posted a foodie review of Eagan's so that saves me the effort. This is the Smitty's burger which isn't on their published menu...

This year we went back to the American Heritage Campground. We'd stayed here two years ago and then stayed at the Airstream Club park last year. This year we hit the jackpot with a super deep, very private W/E site that actually got some sunshine in the afternoons. I'm pretty sure it was site 57 but I forgot to write it down.

We managed to time the visit just right and got to help my brother-in-law with a decking project. He had the frame all done and a portion of the deck laid. I enjoy these one day projects - enough to feel like I helped without it becoming work.