City Stroll

Seattle - Feb. 08

Happy 2nd Birthday

Miki turned 2 on Feb. 12, 2008. Nana and Pop were present, thank you for making the trip.

E decided to tweak the object of "cake" this year and brilliantly came up with an earlier, brunch-hour type party complete with pancakes! It was a great, lounging event with friends, plenty of coffee, tea, a woodstove and patches of sun.

The Tea Is Out Of The Bag

On the first full-day in Seattle, the 5 of us wandered over to REI. It was cloudy, a bit blustery and threatening to rain. In the store's children section Miki had a grand time scrambling up the top of this real cool "jungle gym" and sliding down a funky, twisted tube. Could only just barely tear her away from it long enough to try on a new windbloc fleece, a rain jacket and some purple fuzzy pants.

Pop entertained Miki in the shoe department and had her down-right belly laughing. I think he was pretending to make her mouse eat the little goldfish crackers. I could hear her clear across the women's area into the far corner of the men's section!

We stopped by a friend's high-rise apartment on the way back to say hello and check in on Miki's first walking instructor, peer and only Seattle playmate!

Somewhere in the weekend (can't remember if it was day 1 or 2) E, Nana and I stole into a little tea shop on the Pike's corner for a afternoon breather while Miki dozed in the stroller. I seem to recall the sun coming out later in the afternoon around 4pm and having to squint at that glare flashing from Puget Sound or all the shop windows.

Had an evening bit to eat at Fox Sports Bar & Grill. Honestly, it was a pleasant surprise...and we all enjoyed it. Especially the "wall of water".

Strolled into the downtown Barnes & Noble to let Miki check out some books. Nana and she had a great time reading together on the little Pooh Corner bench.


This posting is late, we returned from Seattle almost 2 weeks ago, but I'm enjoying the "memory refresher" as I pore over the photos and write the words.

Pike's Pop

Photos from a drizzly, overcast evening strolling thru Pike's Place Market in Seattle.

Miki Monkey

Photos from the jungle at Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, Washington. One of the bipeds looks a wee overdressed, wouldn't you say?

A Big Step

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Funny how her ability to walk down a flight of steps unaided is a major deal. And of course she decides to pull this off on her 2nd birthday.

Bye for now...

The 5 of us spent the day in Victoria on Miki's birthday this year; the big two point oh! Seeing my mom & dad interact with their grandchild for the first time in 7 months really made it obvious how much Miki has changed in two years' time.

It was a great day; the rain stopped soon after arriving and we had a nice lunch in the warm solarium of Swans. Miki even got a sparkler-topped bowl of vanilla ice cream to celebrate the day.

Birthday Ice Cream

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We went to Swans in Victoria for lunch on the day Nana & Pop had to depart for Seattle. In celebration of her birthday, the waitress brought Miki 3 scoops of vanilla ice cream with a 4th of July sparkler sticking out and well, sparkling.

Bud & Gabby

Great grandmother Nanny and Aunt Dianna sent Miki a great book for Christmas this year and Miki absolutely adores it. The text is simple without being "childish" and the artwork is rich and vibrant. She demands I read it to her every morning before work and every evening after work. Of course I don't mind one bit. Mama spied her yesterday sitting on the couch, she reading Bud & Gabby aloud to her stuffed white bear.

BLT Queens

Once again Mama cranked out some awesome loaves of bread the other day, both gluten-free mind you, no small task when you're trying to make bread without the "bread"! One was honey quinoa and the other was cinnamon raisin. We made blt's for dinner on the quinoa bread with a side cup of homemade brocolli and brown rice soup. Awesome and hearty.

Miki got into the act too, she loves to spread her own mayonaise (soy-based nayonaise, to be exact) on the bread.

Super Bowl Couch Potato

In anticipation of Miki's grandparents, who will be arriving later this week to celebrate Miki's 2nd birthday with us, E and I used it as an excuse to attack some neglected cleaning chores. I even ripped all the cushions off the couch to get at the upholstery!

Sans cushions, Miki seized the moment to bounce around and flounder amongst them while we flipped the tv on just toward the start of the Super Bowl halftime show. Very shocking finish; my condolences, Dad. Anyway, just the sound of the game in the background brought back lots of old memories for me: grandparents, cousins and aunts and uncles either gathered at our place or one of my uncle's homes, eating shrimp cocktail and placing bets on each quarters' final score. I can vividly see that 12"x12" white cardboard scoresheet that my dad so devotedly graphed each season. In some ways, and for lots of American families I would guess, the Super Bowl gatherings are a stronger family tradition than Thanksgiving!