Happy Holidays

We hope your Christmas is a peaceful as Taiya sleeping on our new couch.

The Rains Came Down and the Floods Came Up

We had our first big adventure as homeowners when record amounts of rain fell in Seattle. Our dainty little creek in the back yard became a raging torrent. It was unreal. Sadly, lots of water found its way into our basement and we quickly learned a lot about about sub-pumps, sandbags, and concrete.

We Love This View

We got married just a few minutes walk from this spot and grew up at the base of the canyon. This was taken on our trip to visit family in Utah over Thanksgiving. Please note the severe lack of snow.

Best Friends for Knowing the Longest

When we were little we used to tell each other about our best friends. I had a best church friend, a best friend in my grade, a best friend at recess and a "best friend for knowing the longest". Of all of those friends, only one has held their title. "Juicy Q" is still "my best friend for knowing the longest." She visited for the weekend and we had a blast dancing til dawn and chatting for hours near the Seattle harbour. There are some friends who you know you will always stay in touch with. We danced with the best of them and even made money on our jaunt out on the town. We are good, what can we say?

Happy 30th Birthday to My Sister

It has been pretty fun knowing you all this time. Lots and lots of love from me on your birthday.

Camping in Leavenworth

We set off for Leavenworth, the somewhat cheesy Bavarian town about two hours East of Seattle, for one last chance at fairweather camping. The weather called for clear skies and we figured that we better get one more camping trip in before the winter (aka permanent rains) start. To our surprise, the area near the river where we were planning to stay was closed. We didn't let that stand in our way and we hiked past the gate and set up our own awesome little space. Taiya was absolutely loving it. She ran in circles from the river to the tent and all around. We decided that we will make it a tradition to go car camping the weekend after the campgrounds close every year.

Mikey got a harmonica for his birthday. Sometimes when he plays Taiya howls like she is singing along. It is pretty awesome.

I just like Mikey's face in this one

I just like Taiya's face in this one.

One of the best perks of my job is I can borrow and test out any gear I want. This tent was awesome! It is the Big Agnes Big House 4. I also tested out the Thermarest Dreamtime sleeping pad and the Marmot Couloir. I would definitely recommend all of these. Mikey could stand in the tent, Taiya had plenty of room to stretch out and I stayed warm even with temperature dipping to the 30s.

Of course, you can find all of these products at http://www.rei.com/

Henry's 2nd Birthday

Happy Birthday Henry! We will miss out on the real party in Utah but we made the most of our time together when the Barlands visited last month. Here are some pics from the trip.

Henry at Alki in his awesome new REI rain jacket

Don't worry, we had our own little party when they were here. Complete with funfetti cupcakes!

Of course, uncle Mikey had to work off the cupcake he ate. Here he is showing his nephew how to get great abs.

By the end of the trip Henry learned to love "big dog Taiya". Good times.

How do you know you are loved?

Love is homemade chicken noodle soup when you are sick. Complete with homemade noodles.

Mikey's 27th Birthday Party!

Our first house party turned out to be a great success. 30+ people showed up to help us celebrate our new place and Michael's birthday. Here are some pics of the grand event! Sadly, I started taking photos pretty late in the evening and I missed capturing most of the crowd.

Good Conversation and Good Friends. What more could we ask for?

Mikey, Ryan, Dave, and Jason chatting in the living room

That is a nice spread if I do say so myself

Mikey drinking Powderhound with our Powderhound

Tami, Ava, and Taiya

Julie and Terry (both clients) and our best pal Ryan

Carly, Juli, and Courtney chatting on the couch

Laura and Dan. One doctor and one doctor to be, talking about doctor stuff

Taiya did know what to think of all the action. She was pooped by the end of the night and found solace under the kitchen table and out of the way.

Fall in West Seattle

The autumn colors this year have been some of most beautiful I have ever seen. This Taiya love comes to you from an awesome park just a hop, skip, and jump from our new hood in W. Seattle.