Weekend Thoughts

Ok so the weekend isn't officially over but I thought I would add some thoughts on it so far. First, Friday Ben had a talk with an Admiral on the phone. This means we might actually know sometime in the next 10 days if we get the job as the Admiral's Aide. If we do then we will be moving to Virginia in July. I know most people see moving as horrendous and stressful, but overall I get excited about a new place with new things to see and explore. I have not really visited Virginia at all so I think I would like a year or so there. It will be hard to leave Seattle as Jessi is here and the weather will finally be good by July but.... I have found some good teaching leads already.

The rest of the weekend has been rather relaxing for me. We have had sun even when the weather says rain so I have gone on some good walks. I decided not to overload you with more flower pictures but I had to show the ladybugs I caught eating aphids. I love this camera.

Friday night we did a spur of the moment BBQ with David, Jessi, Baby JB and ourselves. I added pictures of that. Don't think Ben is sad, he is watching The Three Amigos for about the 30th time and laughing AGAIN. I tolerate dumb movies more this year as most of his weekends lately are taken up with studying for the PE (professional engineering test) which is in about 3 weeks. I still won't sit through Dumb and Dumber but he can get me to sit through the rest of his library of ridiculousness.

Today I read books while poor Ben studied for the PE. We are off to a movie tonight to rest his brain and entertain mine.

Walk Home

If you look at the previous post you'll see how excited I was by the cherry blossoms on campus. On my way home I was still in awe of God's creation so I decided to just start taking shots of all the flowers that were out and about. These are just pictures from my walk home. Spring is here and it is spectacular. I also must mention that I was outside in a t-shirt which hasn't happened in quite some time. The feel of sun on your skin is something you take for granted in California.

Cherry Blossoms

The day I have been waiting for finally arrived, flowers and sun coexisted. We actually got up to 60 degrees today and the sun stayed out for a few hours. Add to this the fact that the cherry blossoms on campus were in full bloom and I was in photographic heaven. Ben even called me from campus to remind me to come down. It was a great atmosphere as everyone was celebrating the sun and flowers. Students were laying on the grass and playing Frisbee. Parents had their kids under the trees taking pictures. All the Asian students were competing for good shots with me. It was like a scene out of the movies. The blossoms are all over and slowly falling while you walk under them. I hope the pictures can capture the warmth and beauty of the day.

Happy Birthday Jessi

Friday was Jessi's 35th Birthday. It was very cool to be here to help celebrate. David planned two surprise parties. On Friday he had her come to a restaurant near our house where a few freinds were waiting. We had a delicious dinner and them came back to our house for games and cake. I have added a few pictures from our night.
There we are learning a new game that even Ben - the game hater - liked. I gave up chocolate for lent which made baking and serving and baking a chocolate cake a labor of love.






The girls.














Jessi and her freind Steph compared tummies and the Birthday girl.

First Day of Spring Break

Today is Ben's first day of Spring Break. He sure needs it. He had class, study groups, and finals from 9am - 9:30pm yesterday. We woke up to a balmy Seattle day of high 50's. We went down to the UW campus to see a ROTC commissioning ceremony. I brought my camera as spring is definitely about to jump into full bloom. These white flowers are everywhere. They look extra cool as they grow from brown dried up looking bushes with no leaves.






This is a study room on campus. Rather impressive for the US. You almost think you are in Europe.















Below are some of the famous Cherry blossoms. They are not quite fully out but they are already breath taking. There is also a shot of Ben in uniform. I always get worried that someone will say something anti-war to him as we are definitely not in a military friendly area.



















If you look closely at the last picture you can see Mount Rainer. It is not often that we have seen her, even though she is nearby and HUGE.

The art of cafe

Those of you who know me well know that I used to love Starbucks with a passion. When my brother-in-law heard that I was moving up here he went so far as to say that I was going home to the mother ship. Ben told me to do whatever I wanted this year so I decided to get a job in a coffee shop. I hoped to get one in Starbucks, but fortunately for me they didn't want me. I got a job working in a coffee shop that serves Cafe Vita. It is fabulous and all I crave now. Lucky for me I get free drinks at work so it is easy to support my addiction. I am also learning to do cafe art like the one above, which my coworker Chloe made. OK, mine doesn't look quite so good but I am getting there. I have to now confess that Seattle has totally won me over to the belief that Starbucks is lousy coffee. I am a complete coffee snob. I am not sure how I will keep this snobbery alive when I move next year and Starbucks might be my only option. I might have to give coffee up rather than drink bitter stuff that must be covered with sugar to be drinkable:). It just goes to show you that life can change you a lot!!

Spring is in the Air

I have never been so excited about Spring before. Of course that is probably because I have lived so many years where you can hardly tell it is Winter. Seattle is not known for hard winters but we have had a fair amount of snow this year. Add this to the weather they are known for, namely rain and gloom and you'll see why I had to go outside today and capture evidence of Spring. Flowers, buds, and leaves are everywhere. I am sure that in one month's time it is going to be incredible. I can even like the rain when I see what it is bringing to the area. I am sure you will see more pictures of spring as I am just way too impressed with God to keep it inside.