Syttende Mai (May 17th, Norwegian Constitution Day)

Folks waive Norsk flags whilst walking in the Syttende Mai parade in Ballard.

Mt. Si

Mt. Si

If you live in the Pacific Northwest and a full weekend of rain lets up, you take advantage of that clear day and spend it outdoors! After breakfasting at IKEA, we hiked up Mt. Si (about an 8 mile return hike) and picnicked amidst the view from the top.

The Biking Adventures Begin

Wes and I have been taking advantage of our new state and our proximity to great trails. Biking together on the weekends has been so much fun, except for the stinging nettle incident (my entire right leg was stinging for hours). We've explored a few nearby trails, but our favorite so far is the Beaver Lake area (not pictured).

Pictured is the view from Whitaker Park. We deviated from the Preston-Snoqualmie trail and kept going up...and up...and up...and up...Not sure of the elevation gain (Wes figured around 800 ft.), but it was a workout! Luckily it paid off with views of the Cascades.

Snoqualmie Petticoat

It's crazy to think how close we are to raging waterfalls! Snoqualmie Falls is just up the road about 20 minutes and is a sight and a half! You can feel the vibrations from the falls whilst standing on the viewing platform. As they cascade down, they remind me of lace...rather, a lace petticoat. Bit of trivia: the Twin Peaks title sequence features these falls--remember?!

Concrete Welcome Silos

Whilst visiting Dad I took the opportunity to take a pic of the "Welcome to Concrete" silos.

Me and the Fahzha

Me and Dad celebrating Cinco de Mayo, aka the day of his birth. We ate at the Buffalo Run Inn (which surprisingly had a full page of vegetarian options, although I'm not totally veggie anymore) in Marblemount (up the North Cascades Highway, about 20 minutes from where he lives).

Our living room comprised of (1) area rug, (1) sofa--Fred Meyer special (4) TV trays and, yes, your eyes don't lie (2) Xbox controls.  

Painting the magenta wall that the previous owners left for us. Next color: smoke screen.

Yeah, this is just me and my friend MARTIN GORE hanging out at Disneyland!!! 

Having fun on the Tower of Terror at California Adventure. 

My best friend Jamie and myself at her WEDDING! Had such a good time! 

Vik wants YOU to figure it out!

At the Ballard Locks, we had a chance to take a look around and see a few boats enter Lake Washington from the Puget Sound. I liked the Lock-Art. 

Third cousin twice removed? I really don't know how all that works, but he's a distant relative, living relatively close! Daughter of Anne-Marie, Oliver decided to try on my Ilie Nastase.