Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Lake Washington Life

We have some good friends in Seattle who own a boat and we got to go out several times onto Lake Washington. The weather was unusually wonderful the whole time we were in Washington, and we really got to take advantage of it. Boating is one of my favorite activities and I have fond memories of boating on Lake Washington while growing up. It doesn't get much better!



My brothers make some pretty priceless faces. Sometimes they're caught on camera.

Love this shot with Mt. Rainier in the background. The mountain's out!


Taking time out for a swim

Rainier has got to be one of the most beautiful mountains out there.

We stopped for dinner at Ivar's. Seattle tradition. This restaurant is right on Lake Washington's waterfront. We parked the boat, ordered food, and ate in the open air.
Theme Song: Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me, Elton John

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Downtown Seattle

After a wonderful time in Hawaii, we got to spend a few days in Seattle before flying home to Virginia. It was nice to have a break between six hour flights on the way home and to show Will some of my favorite places from when we lived in the Seattle area.

The Space Needle


The Monorail

Seattle Center Fountain
 We told Grant that he could go down and touch the fountain between water shows and that he had plenty of time to go down without getting wet. I got these photos just as the water was starting up again. Grant and Liam got a little wet. Ha!



After touring the Seattle Center, we headed closer to the water and Pike Place Market. I love this place. Cheap flowers. Good food. Fun times.


The famous fish throwers at Pike Place Market

The Gum Wall, Pike Place Market




At the end of the day we got the chance to go up in the Columbia Tower. The tallest building in Seattle, it has an observation deck that allows for a great view of Seattle, Bellevue, and beyond.




Theme Song: Hello Seattle, Owl City

Sunday, August 17, 2014

Family in the North

Our last big Hawaiian adventure was on the North side of O'ahu. We spent time at BYU Hawaii, where Dad went to school for a while, saw Grandma and Grandpa's house where they lived while Grandpa was working at BYU-H, visited the Laie Temple, and snorkeled in Shark's Cove (don't worry, no shark sightings).






Theme Song: Aloha 'Oe by Queen Lili'uokalani
(repeat song because now we really are saying goodbye to Hawaii)

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Triple D O'ahu

It wouldn't be a vacation without visiting a Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives local or two. The first one was a food truck (turned restaurant) called Camille's on Wheels in Kailua. Will and I got three tacos--one pork, one beef, and one fish. I loved the chimichurri fish taco and Will was a big fan of the pork. In general, all the tacos were good. My cousin also snagged us free fries, and they were very tasty. The final picture is a kale and quinoa salad, that was also surprisingly tasty. All in all, I'd give this place four stars. Not perfect, but very yummy.






The best part of our meal was definitely dessert. These are Ono Pops. I don't know what butter mochi is, but I liked it. The Lilikoi 50/50 was the best. A creamy inside and a mango outside. Yummmmm.


Our other Triple D stop was along the North Shore, at Big Wave Shrimp



The salad I definitely could have done without. No flavor, bad dressing. But the sauce was pretty good, and the shrimp was covered in panko. So crunchy. I always like shrimp, so it was pretty good. And mixing the sauce and the rice was a good decision. But prices were outrageous. Will and I split a plate and I still felt it was too expensive. I would say two of five stars. Tasty, but I could have done it just as well at home. Hopefully the shrimp was local--that would make me feel better!

Theme Song: Eat It, Weird Al Yankovic

Friday, August 15, 2014

Other Hawaiian Adventures

My sunburn and recovery kept me from a few activities, but Will and some other family members got to do some cool things, and Will took pictures.

After visiting Pearl Harbor, Will, Mom, Hyrum, and Grant visited the Punchbowl (Cemetery of the Pacific) and did some hiking.












Will's Hawaii Selfie
Theme Song: What a Wonderful World, The Ramones

Thursday, August 14, 2014

A Day That Will Live in Infamy

One of the most special places we visited was Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial. It was a powerful place, and very informative.






There are seven rows of three openings each in the roof to be a permanent 21 gun salute




Theme Song: America the Beautiful, Katharine Lee Bates and Samuel A. Ward