Working for the Weekends

Due to the past few weeks being sunny and yes, even almost hot on some days, I have not been in much of a blogging mood.  I am a terrible blogger.  I really lose steam after a month or two.  I know this.

Anyways, life has been good and busy.  I have been hanging out with intern friends, exploring Seattle a bit more, spending time playing with the Jackie and Lauren chatting with Aunt Sheila, and watching a lot of Mad Men on Netflix (an episode every night for the last two weeks).

Weekdays are usually pretty routine with work, workouts, and occasional happy hours, but the last few weekends have been really eventful!

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The second weekend of August was Sea Fair in Seattle, which is an event composed of an air show and Hydroplane boat races.  One of my intern friends at the office, Natalie, very generously invited me over to her house on Lake Washington to watch the show and experience Sea Fair.  I had so much fun!
I met Natalie's close friends from highschool and college as well as old family friends.
It was so good to be surrounded by so many great people.  Plus, we were in an amazing spot for the Blue Angels show!

After the air show, we went down to the hydroplane races.  Natalie's family had Pit passes, so we were down in the pits where the boats were being worked on.  It was a very cool experience.

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The next weekend was fun for 3 reasons.
1)  I went out in a town called Fremont with a friend from work, Jay, and his girlfriend and roommate on Friday night.  It was the first time I had been out at night in a long time, and it was just really fun to be out in a bar with friends and about a hundred other people around my age!
2)  The next morning, Saturday, aunt Sheila and I decided to hike up Little Si...  a small, but challenging mountain.  It was a cool and cloudy day, but it turned out to be perfect weather for the hike.  We stayed fairly cool, and the clouds didn't disrupt the view from the summit!  :)

3) On Sunday of this particular weekend, Yihan, an intern from China, invited a few of us over for a traditional Hot Pot meal.  Hot Pot is similar to fondue, because vegetables, seafood, meat, and/or tofu is cooked in a pot of VERY spicy broth at the table.  Although it was truly painfully spicy, the Hot Pot food was delicious!  My favorite part was the lotus root, and I was so happy Yihan introduced me to it.

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One weekend later was truly one of a kind...  the weekend of Seattle's annual Hemp Fest, a strange, strange place.  I visited Hemp Fest with my fantastic friend Sam, who made the experience all the more memorable.  Hemp Fest is a 3-day festival filled with hippies, rastafarians, and a lot of marajuana paraphanailia.  It was truly spectacular people-watching.

After walking through the madness of Hemp Fest, Sam and I walked to Pike Place Market and bought some over-priced and very delicious fruit which we ate at the park.

This was also the night of Jackie's birthday sleepover party!  The party was so fun.  The girls had hamburgers on the grill, ice cream sundaes, a swim in the jacuzzi, and in the morning- a pancake breakfast!  Oh, to be 10 again...

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This past weekend was really one of those relaxing weekends that you need every once in a while.  The highlights of the weekend were sunbathing in West Seattle with Aunt Sheila and going to dinner with Sheila and some of her good friends, Randy and Jill.

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This weekend is Labor Day weekend, and I'll tell you what I've been up to very soon!  So far, it has been an awesome weekend, and I am excited for what's to come!  :)  Spoiler Alert :  It's paddle boarding, canoeing, a neighborhood barbeque, and a Monday without work!

3 hours make a difference.

A three hour time difference does not seem like it would be a big deal, but once you factor in the hours I am at work and the hours I am sleeping... there is a very small window of time in which it makes any sense at all for me to talk to people on the East Coast.  I know this is not a good excuse, but it is a large part of the reason that I have been seriously out of touch with a lot of people lately... including my family.

For this, I apologize.  The next few weeks should be less busy.  Meaning that I will be a little more social and less of a workaholic.  :)

Anyways, here is a quick recap in pictures of the last week...

Tuesday: JACKIE's BIRTHDAY!!!  

And a Sarah Mclachlan concert...   

I got an unexpected invite to tag along with Uncle Joel and the girls.  

I was actually really impressed by Sarah and the two other band members who sang their own songs

Friday:  Late night muffin creations with Jackie  :)  

We were both in need of something to do, I think.

Saturday: Beautiful afternoon with Lauren.  

We had a few drawing lessons and then went for a long walk...

Sunday:  Solo trip to Alki Beach in West Seattle.  

I cannot explain how good it felt to be in the sun and on the beach for a few hours.

Bonus: Some strangers invited me to join their beach volleyball game.  :) 

Dear Seattle,

I love you, but- I NEED SUNLIGHT!!!!  
This is JULY.

The rest of the country is practically melting, and I haven't worn shorts in weeks.  Also, I am becoming relatively pale.  

Oy...  I am going to need a vacation after this summer.

Full House

After a week in Mexico with their Dad, the girls are coming home tonight!  :)  It has been such a quiet week, and it will be good to have everyone back in the house for the next few days.

And it gets better- Tuesday is Jackie's birthday!  Whoop Whoop!  

Other than this excitement - Life has been pretty calm (and cloudy).  

This week, I stayed busy with the internship, which has been quite fun!  Today, Aunt Sheila and I occupied ourselves by running errands, avoiding the gym, Skyping with the family, and doing yard work... aka pulling a LOT of weeds.  :)

My fingers are crossed for sunshine tomorrow!  The forecast calls for a high of 75!  OH HAPPY DAY!

I seem to blog on weekends...

This week FLEW by.  Megan left Tuesday night [sad face], and the internship was stressful due to various deadlines.

So now it is the weekend, and I think think this one will be very quiet.  The girls are heading to Mexico for a vaction with their dad and Sheila is heading to a business conference...

I guess that means I'll be working out, reading, catching some sun, and brainstorming adventures for other weekends.  In other words, I will be daydreaming of paddle boarding on Seattle's lakes, climbing mountains, riding ferries, and visiting Canadian Islands.

TO-DO LIST Highlights:

PADDLE BOARDING!!!  Check out the beautiful Mt. Rainier in the background!

(By the way- I stole this picture from another blog called "A New Journey...")

An interesting idea from Aunt Sheila- Paddle Board Yoga.

Dear Mount Si, one day, when I'm feeling especially ambitious and energetic, I will hike you.

Holiday Weekend. YES!

The past week has FLOWN by.  Ordinarily, I dislike time to pass too quickly, but it is actually pretty great.  I have been looking forward to this weekend for a few reasons.
1. Meggsie is here!!!
2. It is a holiday weekend.
3. The weather is supposed to be beautiful for a few days.
4. Without work on Monday, there is plenty of time to go exploring.

I don't have anything insightful to say right now, but I do have a few pictures to share!

A quick one from last weekend- Aunt Sheila, Lauren, and I went to "Suncadia!!!" which is basically a mountainous golf resort in the Cascades.  We had a sunny outside lunch, walked around, and enjoyed the scenery.  Apparently, I absolutely love mountains.

TODAY, after work, Sheila, the girls, Megan, and I went on a quick hike at Cougar Mountain to Coal Creek Falls...

It was a nice trail, and the woods were unlike anything at home.  I felt more like I was in a rainforest than the "woods"- but there was no humidity.  A perfect 75 degrees and sunny.

It was only a mile or so to the falls.  Highlights of the walk include:

A horse.

A giant slug.

A slip and cliffhanger stunts by Lauren... literally.

The falls were actually pretty cool, too!

Notice the GIANT green tree stumps.

After the hike, we drove just a few minutes to a public golf club that is one of the prettiest clubs/courses that I've visited.  We were there to check out the view of Seattle, but we stayed for a delightful dinner on the patio.

Sweet view of Seattle from our table on the sunny patio.

And the girls playing... 

Back at the house, we had an early Birthday Party for Megs.  :)  19 in 2 days...  

Tomorrow's agenda includes...  the Public Market and other downtown shenanigans in the morning followed by KAYAKING in the afternoon!

Sleepless in Seattle

I have created a rather clever list of reasons why one may actually be Sleepless in Seattle.
This list is based mainly on stereotypes as well as one or two of my own observations.


1)  Too much coffee.
Seattle is known for coffee. It is everywhere, and it is extremely difficult to avoid drinking.  (If we are being honest, I totally abuse the expresso machine in my office.)  All this coffee cannot be benefiting anyone's sleep habits.
2)  Too much grunge music.
Seattle is also known for grunge music.  How can you you sleep while listening to grunge music?
3)  Fear of Vampires.
The infamous Forks County is approximately 3 hours from Seattle.  141 miles by car.  A vampire could probably run that distance in an one hour.  And they probably do.
4)  Fear of Bears
Last night, I heard a newscaster say, "Coming up, It could be a record year for orphaned bear cubs."  It was not something I expected to hear at that moment.
5)  I would attempt to say something witty about Grey's Anatomy.
But I don't know anything about it- except that it takes place in Seattle.
6)  You are lonely Tim Hanks, waiting for Meg Ryan to come into your life.
As is the case in Sleepless in Seattle.


7)  Becoming preoccupied with a Blog.
I could come up with more reasons, but they would become extremely ridiculous, and besides, it is past bedtime.  Work tomorrow.