Finally

We have been in Northwestern Washington for 4 days without a single offer of Starbucks...  And quite frankly, Ruby was getting tired of the wait.  Well, at long last at the very end of day 4, we ventured off alone to historic Seattle and found our way to the Pike Place Market and the ORIGINAL STARBUCKS!!!!

Well, the shop is tiny.  (I guess the demand wasn't so high in '71, and today there is just no where to sit.)  The line was out the door and the place was just a buzz with devotees paying homage.  You can see that Ruby is trying to garner some attention here as she has picked out the perfect mug for me to take home as a reminder of a truly perfectly made ToffeeNut Mocha.

Ahhhhh!

Ruby Plays at the Joneses

We had one more play time with the Joneses before leaving Bellingham, and Ruby got in some play time with Tyler. (It was his only real day off during our visit.)  Tyler was tossing his girls in the air and Ruby had to get in on the action.  You can't really blame the girl, the other six kids had been having all the fun for the previous day and a half.  Seriously, you would have thought those 6 kids were 30 kids on a roller coaster if you had measured the excitement.

Mason and Micah made quite a connection.  Merritt became Eden's entertainer.  And Asher and Molly were fast friends, sharing stuffed animals and so much more.  (What more could Asher want?  Molly was someone to mother and someone to play with all the little girl things that she is nearly growing out of...)

Well, Ruby had to get in on this last bit of action and being the oldest of the girls (circa 1950), she had to prove that she could fly higher than the rest of them too.

We shared a last supper with the Joneses, gave hugs all around, and waved a tearful good bye.  I didn't hear Ruby or Molly crying, but the boys in my car sure did.  They really did have a wonderfully fun visit with some terrific friends... AND SO DID WE!


PS.  Sorry Tyler for showing off the bald backside of your head so many times in succession.

Ruby Sneaks off Again at the Joneses

One more stop before the family reunion - visiting Tyler and Dusti Jones who recently moved to Bellingham, WA.  Bellingham is an incredibly delightful community near the water and just below the Canadian border.  The Summer weather is cool  The area is lightly wooded.  The company: fantastic!!!

The wild flowers around the area are very cool, and evidently the "pitter-patter" and delighted shrieks of 6 children proved too much for Ruby.  (Interestingly for me, though north western Washington is obviously inhabited by an environmentally concerned populous, who love, LOVE, LOVE their natural setting, it has not escaped the stain of trashy human disregard for both environment and community.)

Ruby spotted this abandoned lounger on the side of the road near the Joneses apartment and took off to relax and enjoy the local flora and fauna.

Sunday Afternoon, it's off to visit more friends:  the Volz family who are in Federal Way (just south of Seattle) while in the US for a few more weeks before heading back to their vital work in Uganda.  

Thanks to the Joneses who made this stay possible for us and so very fun!!!

Ruby Hits the Pool

We began our vacation time at the World Mark Resort at Angels Camp in California's Gold Country.  The resort was fantastic.  We had a fantastic time.  The Resort had a wonderful pool (a large pool - a kiddie pool - an amazingly large spa) and the kids loved swimming there, but Ruby hated the crowds.  The pool was usually fairly crowded, but all of the guests were very well-natured and it was no problem for everyone to swim and play together.  Along with the pool the resort rec. room became the most popular attraction of our stay in gold country.  (Rhonda and Bruce loved the caverns, the exploration of Railtown, and a all-too-brief stop in historic Columbia - all very near by.)

Each morning, I got up earlier than the rest of the family to take advantage of the resort gym.  (I want to continue my my progress toward better health management.)  On the last morning of our stay at the resort, I looked out the window of the gym to find Ruby alone at the pool, enjoying some alone time.  She seemed quite satisfied to relax with a refreshing drink in a lounge chair.

Thanks to our good friends who generously shared their time-share points with us to allow us these personal days of refreshment and relaxation on our journey to Seattle for the family reunion.  We really appreciate you.

Ruby's Road Trip Days 1&2

For the ride on our first day, Ruby couldn't just lay down with the rest of the inanimate objects in the cargo area of the van.  She peeked up and looked over Merritt's shoulder for the whole ride.  When Rhonda caught this shot, it looks like Ruby may have been coveting Merritt's Fedora and moving in for the grab.

Molly has accepted Ruby as a sister and plays with her like the boys play with one another.  Here's a little Barbie time they shared this evening.  So far they don't argue quite like the boys, so we'll see if it's really like a sibling relationship.  Although Molly is still wearing her swimsuit from an afternoon by the pool, Ruby didn't join us for the swim.

On our way out to the Yogurt Factory for an after dinner treat, I caught this paparazzi shot of the Molly escorting her friend into the shop.