A Brief Getaway ~Mar. 17-19th

While James was gallivanting around Austria and Venice, we took a 48 hour trip down to Washington State for Spring Break. As soon as Scott got home from work Saturday afternoon, we piled into the van and took off. We didn't have much planned but knew that it would involve shopping at the outlet mall, watching movies in the hotel and eating a few nice meals out. Charles opted to stay at a friend's house along with Rosie, so we had our smaller family version, which is at least a bit more economical. (We can all fit in one room!) Nora enjoyed packing her "pack-pack" for the trip.

Our first night was in Lynnwood at the Embassy Suites hotel, along with every other Canadian family who had a child in organized sports. Must be the land of the tournaments or something, as the place was full of children in uniforms. This was especially evident in the very cold pool, which was a place adults would be crazy to enter. We retreated to the hot tub and over time I stealthily sat on the balls that kids were throwing from the pool to the hot tub and back. As the balls slowly disappeared, the game of being hit and splashed eventually stopped too. :) We were disappointed that movies were no longer able to be ordered in the rooms, as we are stuck there once Nora goes to bed. (So much so that we switched to the Holiday Inn in Everett for the next night.) Regardless, kids have a way of having fun in hotel rooms whether there is a TV involved or not...

We had hoped to go to the Seattle zoo on Sunday, but the weather just wasn't cooperating. We opted for a church service, lunch at Appleby's and Seattle Premium Outlet Mall instead.

Later that evening, we encountered a quiet, much warmer pool so that we all enjoyed swimming together. Instead of hordes of children on vacation, most of the hotel was booked with young gymnasts from around the world, competing at a nearby arena. Scott met Team New Zealand and Team Mexico later in the hot tub.   Overall, it was a much more relaxing environment than Embassy Suites. :)

Nora enjoyed being in the water, arching her back the way she does. She would do well to meet the gymnasts...

We had a late night out dining at the Outback restaurant, and were not impressed to see hail coming down outside.

Lewis and Thomas are good travellers and put up with a lot of "squawking" from Nora. They were glad they brought some movies to watch in the van, as the guys drove around a lot trying to get Nora to fall asleep. (That's when I would try to shop...)

For not having a suite the second time, the room situation worked out quite well. Nora's playpen fit into the coat closet area so that we had a half-wall separating our beds from her. We were able to watch a movie and enjoy our take-out desserts without keeping her awake. Everyone was happy in the end.

After posing with Mr. Frog, we headed home Monday morning after a bit more shopping and snacking. :)

A brief time of sunshine... there are pretty mountains here too, but I still think ours are the best. :)