HALLOOOWWWEEEN!

Enjoying my day off carving pumpkins. Apparently our neighborhood doesn't get many trick-or-treaters, but we are prepared! Plan to just lay low and watch scary movies. Io is going to be a warewolf this year....oh wait, I guess he already is half-dog half-human...or at least he THINKS he is!

Relaxing Weekend

Nothing too exciting this weekend. Saturday, we went grocery shopping, went to the gym, took a nap, rented movies... Today, we washed the cars, and went on a nice long walk with Io. Today was so beautiful. Hard to not be in the mountains on a crisp sunny weekend, but sometimes nothing beats a weekend of down time. The last weekend of light as we gear up for the end of daylight savings.....arrrrrgghh! The end is near!

The Uintas- We miss the aspens! Photo by Cory McCann Green

Halloween is coming!

Started decorating for Halloween. We were both out of town last year so this is the first time we've decorated. Starting to get our scary on, but it is still a work in progress!


Spoooooky at night!

Gorgeous day for Rainier!

Tammy and Paige came down last night so we could use our place as a launching point for a hike today. Very COOOLD, but crystal clear views of Mt. Rainier from Norse Peak. When we got to the trail head at 9AM, the temperature was only in the 20's at 4000 feet. At the top (3 hours later) it was only 35 degrees at nearly 7000 feet. Ahhh, but the wonderful sunshine warmed us up over a 2 hour lunch along with our fire log, mimosas, hot chocolate, smoked salmon, gourmet cheese and other goodies. Here are some highlights!

Rain, Rain, go away...

Fall has arrived in Tacoma. It rained all weekend. The next 5 months we know will be hard as the days get shorter, but at least this year we know what to expect! Yesterday was still warm and balmy, but today had that chilly crispness in the air that tells you fall is here to stay. Leaves are just now starting to turn. Thanks to the cool wet summer, there is already a pretty nice show of colors this year. Despite the "poopy" weather this weekend, we made the most of it. We drove up to Bothell to spend Saturday afternoon with Tammy and Paige checking out the Woodinville wineries. One of our favorite Chardonnays comes from a small family owned and operated winery: the Facelli winery. I went to the Facelli winery for the first time 2 years ago when I was in town for a friends wedding (before we moved back to the Northwest). We have so far made it a yearly event to buy load up on his Chardonnay for the year. Don't be surprised if Santa Claus brings some Washington wines to Salt Lake for Christmas!

Kelly and Barry mapping the route through old growth forest
on the way to Appleton Pass in Olympic National Park
(photo by Tammy and Paige Smith)