Tag Archives: pictures

Back To Normal

When I last left off, I had just finished a half-marathon and was mentally preparing myself for a hike the next day. I’m happy to say that the hike didn’t happen as my legs were angry enough with me as it was. We did, however, go up to Hurricane Ridge to check out the views.

There was lots of snow (yes, that’s my 12-year-old son dwarfing his grandmother and father):

Lots of wildlife:

A clear view of Mt. Baker, 180 miles away:

And lots of trees:

I even got to try the infamous Starbucks Mint Frappacino (it was heavenly and I earned it) while the boys had quite a bit of fun goofing around with the outback hats:

The view of Port Angeles at the base of the Olympics:

But alas, all good things and all holidays must eventually come to an end. My mother-in-law went back to the Motherland this past Saturday… but not before we went out to dinner to celebrate both our milestone birthdays this year (we split this delicious morsel 3 ways):

And today was business as usual, or Week 0 Day 1 of marathon training, to which I went out and completed 5 miles plus 1. James is still hurt, but he’s in the process of formulating my training plan as I write this. He’s such a good sport. He actually just gave me a breakdown of my long runs for August and September, including (but not limited to) the 2 back-to-back half-marathons I’m signed up for, preceded and followed by those gnarly 20-mile runs… dear, oh dear, let the games begin…

Have a fabulous week!!

One Day of Sun

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The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another.

–Henry van Dyke

Apparently the theme for spring this year is pink. I’ll take it. It looks kind of pretty against a blue sky.

Any sign of spring in your neighborhood yet? (Or autumn, whichever the case may be? 😀 )

Hurricane Ridge

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We’ve left the real world for a few days and have hopped on over to Port Angeles for a short break before school starts up again. Port Angeles is about 100 miles from where we live (by ferry) and it’s right next to the Olympic National Park. It sits on the Strait of Juan de Fuca (the waterway that represents the border between the U.S. and Canada), and Victoria, B.C. is only 20 miles by ferry.

Okay, all that being said, we had a very full first day. Before heading up to Hurricane Ridge, we stopped in Sequim (pronounced ‘skwim’) at this charming little ’50s diner to have lunch. AJ wants to go back for the milkshakes alone:

After lunch, we headed up to Hurricane Ridge for a little hike. They call it that because of the 75+ mph winds that blow through there. It was indeed a hike, and once again, I wish I hadn’t worn my running shoes (she will never, ever learn).

The views at the top were just amazing:

You can look down and see Port Angeles, as well as Victoria, B.C. on the other side of the water.

Views of the strait:

You can just see the hiking trail we used to get to the top of the mountain (there are fires burning on the range right now, hence, the haze):

Going back down, James made a comment that the only exciting animal we got to see all day was a chipmunk. Not 5 minutes later, we got to see this (can you see him?):

James found a charming, 2-bedroom, vacation home to rent while we are here. So after a long day of being out, tired and grimy, we got to come back to this (which was a very pleasant surprise as we hadn’t seen it yet):

With fabulous views of the water (#spottedtheship):

Next up, Lake Crescent… 🙂

Ivar’s and Mukilteo

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This past Sunday was a beautiful day on the Sound, so we opted to go out for lunch. Because of the previous day’s activities (Hamster Run), no one felt like cooking, so this seemed like the most logical solution… besides, it was nice family time, all 3 of us. I can just imagine what people thought when they saw us trying to walk.

Ivar’s Seafood in Mukilteo backs up right onto the water at the ferry terminal, so we had great views.

Lots of activity going on as well, watching the people and cars going on and off the ferry.

If you look left of center in the above picture, there’s a white spot. That’s Mt. Baker. Here, I’ll zoom in for you:

Quite a few people were out, just enjoying the parks and the water.

And special for the haters (haha, #kiddingnotkidding), we had some very special guests join us for lunch:

Squirrel count: 27. And we’ve only just begun…

Have a great Thursday!!

Fail…

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I made this rice tonight:

Notice what I did wrong? Aren’t you supposed to boil the water first before you add the rice? No worries… I’m not eating it… I’ll ask James later how it turned out.

Last night, I made these whole wheat tortillas in the oven:

I thought they’d be yummy, nice and crisp. I may as well have been eating a piece of cardboard because that’s exactly what they tasted like… cardboard. <sigh> Time for me to resign as the family cook… the boys will have to make their own Mac & Cheese (bummer).

These…

… are the bestest, most sinful snack ever in the history of ever. Cinnamon and sugar crostinis, courtesy of Haggen’s (so, no, I didn’t make them; James and I did, however, eat an entire bag of them last weekend).

On a bright note, the rescue and rehab center I work at just released 3 orphaned goslings to a new family (geese are awesome at fostering other babies… because they can’t count). What makes this special to me is that I was the releasor of said releasees. It was amazing. The little goslings thought they needed to follow me, so they did, until I walked them over to their new family… then they made a beeline to their new brothers and sisters and never looked back.

Two are smack dab in the middle… a little smaller than the others but they’ll thrive now.

Two days later I went back to check on them. Yep, still there, still with their little yellow heads (look for the tiny tint of yellow).

Rock ‘N’ Roll Seattle is coming up, June 18th. I don’t even want to talk about my training… that deserves a post all on its own (hint: severe PF).

Have a great night/day!! Got any wisdom for Wednesday?

Small Town Charm

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I live in a beautiful little town that surrounds a lake. We’re very rural here and don’t have much of a downtown, but this little clock tower is a great landmark. It’s sits in the town center.

Yes, it was raining today… a lot… so I walked over to the stream that runs this-way and that-way through our town. Because of all the rain, it was flowing full force. Believe me when I say, I will take this rain over the ice and snow we had in November and December any day. (Looking at the picture above, the stream runs just left of the clock tower) Just another day… 🙂

This was also posted in response to Jackie’s challenge, Echoes of my Neighbourhood, from A Cooking Pot and Twisted Tales. Share in the fun! I feel I get to see the whole world right here from the comfort of my living room! Thanks Jackie!

One Word Photo Challenge: Summer

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Summer to me is all about the beach, the swimming, being carefree.

One Word Photo Challenge: Summer, by Jennifer Nichole Wells.

Halloween from days gone by…

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2007

2009

The first year of starting a life-long tradition with his BFFFFFF….

2012

2013

2014

2015

Evil ventriloquist dummy; Ezio from Assassin’s Creed; and Darth Vader

My little boy is nearly too old for trick-or-treating. He stands close to 5’3″ and is 11 years old now. My, my, my, how the time does fly. When he’s too old for it, I’ll have to figure out another way to restock my goody supply for free…

Hope you had a wonderfully prosperous Halloween!

Never A Dull Bling

The trials and tribulations of a 40-something novice runner

Tag Archives: pictures

Back To Normal

One Day of Sun

Hurricane Ridge

Ivar’s and Mukilteo

Fail…

Small Town Charm

One Word Photo Challenge: Summer

Halloween from days gone by…

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