Regardless of your politics, today is a day to celebrate progress in America.  As I watched the election results come in (while sitting in class), tears streamed down my face.  I called my brother Hanns, and the first thing he said was, “I wish Dad was here to see this.”  “Me too,” I said.  Me too. 

I wish so much that my dad could see the day that a black man was elected president, not because of the color of his skin but because of the content of his character.  As my grandpa wrote to me in an email, “He is a statesman.”  Obama transcends race, and he provides a model of opportunity for every child of color in this country, and this world.  Today I am especially proud to be an American.

And I’m especially proud of my dad.  Because of the sacrifices that he and others made, we live in a more just and equal society.  Because my dad marched; because my dad sang; because my dad drove people to work and to the polls; because my dad went to jail for his protest–I live in a better America.  I pray that the same spirit of possibility and hope that drove my dad will grow in me, and that one day my children will say this country is more just and more equal because of what I stood for. 

My dad carrying the GA state flag in the March from Selma to Montgomery (March, 1965)

  

SCLC headquarters in Atlanta where my dad worked

 

At the pick-up lines, where my dad transported people to work who boycotted segregated buses in Montgomery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I don’t have enough free time to be blogging; I have to research a paper tonight and write another paper as well.  But I’m feeling the need to procrastinate.  It’s been more than a month since my last post, so there is a lot to catch up on.  Luckily life has been pretty consistent - all I do is schoolwork! 

The weather for this past month has been AMAZING.  Clear blue skies, crisp air, and gorgeous changing leaves that seem to be brighter and stay on the trees longer than they do in Maryland.  I know that the clouds will come eventually, but for now we are soaking up this beautiful weather. 

School is challenging, but mostly because of my limited amount of time.  I’m taking 17 credits (5 classes and a practicum) and I’m also a TA for an intro Public Management Course (Managing Politics and the Policy Process).  I’m taking most of my classes in the School of Social Work, so I miss a lot of my friends from the Evans School.  While I’m meeting lots of great people in social work, it is hard to manage so many relationships with my classmates.  The good news is that my studies are merging really well; I’m able to bring a lot of policy implications into social work studies, while also challenging my public affairs classmates to think more critically about issues of social justice and systemic inequality.  I like being a nerd sometimes.

I also like being a TA.  I graded the first set of memos last week (which was a hard and long process) and I’ll grade the second round this week.  I’m trying really hard to be helpful and approachable.  I’m sure some of the students have a difficult time liking me when I mark all over their memos (which they spend hours on), but I hope in the end they feel that it helped them be better writers. 

Life for Aaron and I has been pretty steady.  We have a good routine in place with saturday mornings (and some sunday afternoons) at the local coffee shop.  He bought a laptop so that he could come with me while I do work.  We’re finding creative ways to have “quality time” together, which is much needed.  This week he is in L.A. for a developer conference with work - his first work trip.  I’m excited for him to have the chance to interact with customers, and he will get to explain some of the specific elements of the feature his team just released.  He’s also going to get to spend a couple days with our good friend, Matt Guy! (Des, he told me tonight he wished he had called you and Jimmy, but didn’t think of it until he was there and had made all of his plans!)

This month I turned 27 years old.  Wow, 27. That’s the first time I’ve written that for my age.  I was blessed by so many wonderful calls and emails, and have yet to return most of them.  I know a general “thanks” is insincere, but I really did feel loved. 

Last week I put aside some of my work to hang out with friends.  On Monday I spent the day with Matt and Alyssa Sickle (friends from Navs at Maryland) who drove up from their vacation in Portland.  I showed them a few of the usuals: pike place, fremont, gasworks, the U-District.  Then we picked up Aaron and grabbed a always-amazing Indian dinner at Cedars.  It was so nice to catch up after such a long time; we haven’t seen the Sickle’s since before their wedding more than a year ago. 

This past Saturday we got together with a group of neighbors and friends that we know from a local house church to carve pumpkins for Halloween.  Tracie, Tony and Reyna came along and lots of other people brought friends as well.  We met at the local Boys and Girls Club (where our friend Rick works) and carved our masterpieces, lit candles in them, and voted for most original design.  I voted for Aaron’s MLB Philly pumpkin, but sadly he didn’t win.  My alien was cool, but given how obvious it was that I used a stencil I knew I was a long shot for the award!  It was a highlight of the week to meet more neighbors and hang out with people in our community. 

On Friday I’m celebrating Halloween by dressing up and knocking on doors, encouraging people to vote.  I’m excited :-)  I think my dad would be proud.

Well, my paper is still waiting.  I’ll try to be a little bit better on the blog updates, but I can’t make any promises.

I’ve been a bit anxious this week, as I know a lot of change is coming soon.  On a side tangent: One of my favorite memories from growing up was hanging out at Jessie Kinnahan’s house and sitting in the living room while she played piano (without any formal lessons - she just learned).  She would always play a song that went, “Change, now it’s time for change, nothing stays the same, now it’s time for change.”  I have no idea who sings the song or even the rest of the words, but I get that tune in my head whenever I feel like life is changing a lot.  Anybody know it?

Anyway.  This week marked my last day at Communities In Schools.  I’ve worked there for almost a year as the Communications Coordinator, and I was able to gain experience with publications, but also with writing a LOI and a Grant Proposal, which was really valuable.  It was a good year, and we all said goodbye over a good lunch at Mama’s in Belltown.  Oh, Mama’s.  I’ll miss my co-workers.

While I could see myself working for Communities In Schools in the future (in a different position), I know the next two years I’ll be focusing on gaining other experience.  I started my TA position this week, and so far it has been a lot more work than I realized.  I think it’s going to be a great experience, and I’m particularly excited about working with students (even though they are my peers, and many of them are a LOT older than me, which is intimidating).  And I’m pretty stoked about the free tuition as well.

Other changes are: the sun has disappeared and my back pain has re-emerged.  Coincidence? I’m not sure.  I’m trying to figure out if my back pain started because of more stress, bad weather, or a combination of both.  Either way, not good news.  Still, I’m determined to keep going to Yoga on Monday’s and I’ve been running on the new track at Garfield High School. 

I really miss those beautiful Seattle days.  I hope they come back before winter really sets in. 

Returning to school is bittersweet.  I start on Wednesday, and I’m excited to see my friends, to be learning and to be back on campus.  But I forsee a lot of sleepless nights, stressful days, and a lot of unopened mail at home.   When I go back to school, Aaron’s life changes drastically too - so I feel for him.  Still, I know that this too shall pass.

Sunday was a good day.  Saturday was too - I was pretty tired on Saturday because Mel and I spent a lot of time finishing up Reyna’s room (more pictures coming soon) and then we ran errands pretty late. 

Sunday I woke up at 6:30 in the morning to drive to Greenlake and run a 5K Iron Girl race with Alison and Beth.  My goal, which I met, was to run the whole thing.  My time wasn’t that great, but at least I kept running. Alison and I even decided to run a 10K next month.  Aaron said he’d come to this one, but only if I promise to train for it.

Beth, Alison and Me

When I got home, Aaron was still in bed, but awake and reading, so I took a shower, climbed back into bed and napped for about an hour.  Around 11am we left and grabbed a delicious hot breakfast at the Hi-Spot in Madrona (my new favorite breakfast place).  I had an omelet with spinach, oregano, tomato and feta. Mmmm.

Shannon

We got home around 12:30pm and I promptly climbed back into bed for a half hour nap.  Yay for naps.  I got up a little later, organized some stuff and waited for Shannon to arrive.  Then I introduced Shannon to some of Discovery Park (I got lost and couldn’t figure out how to get down to the lighthouse) and we picked a BIG bowl of fresh blackberries.  A lot of the bushes in the park had already been found out, but we discovered some a little off the path that were huge and waiting to be picked.  Do you know how much it would have cost us to buy the amount of blackberries we picked?  Probably close to $20.  I love Seattle in the summer - at least when it acts like summer.

Shannon and I went home and promptly froze the blackberries the way Mel taught me.  Then we got some fruit and salad together and headed to Pratt Park for a big BBQ get-together with a community group/ house church in our neighborhood.  We ate good hot sausage, salad, and watermelon and got to know some of our neighbors a little better.  It was a blissful day.

It’s been a while since I’ve written - my apologies.  No good excuse really, except the usual busyness of life.

After Glacier we took it easy for about a week, except that I started working a second job teaching students study skills, learning styles and brain preferences (left brain, right brain…though I’m not sure how scientifically proven all of that is, it is still fun).  It was a good experience for three weeks, but I was also working at Communities In Schools in the afternoons, so I was pretty busy.  Now that teaching is done, I’m working part time again at Communities In Schools until the quarter starts, when I’ll begin TAing for Public Administration.  I’m excited.

Aaron and Ethan on the Olympic Coast

While I was working two jobs that week, Ethan was still visiting us for a few days after the trip, and Aaron took off some time to spend with him.  I thought they’d be tired of sightseeing after a week in Montana, but they went all out.  They did a day long hike around Mt. Saint Helens, and then later did a day in Olympic National Park.  Despite all three of us getting salmonella poisoning from Chipotle (so sad), we had a great time with him, and he was a remarkably easy houseguest.  We tried unsuccessfully to get him to agree to move out here, but Aaron says he’ll keep working on it.  Aaron also took a bunch of pictures that he’ll eventually post to the picassa site - I just have to “remind” him to do it.

Before Picture #1

Before Picture #2

After picture - Reading Corner

Ben and Jenna in Seattle

The next week, Ben and Jenna came to visit.  I had a LOT of fun with them and they got to see some of the highlights, but it was a short trip and the weather was gross, especially for what is usually a good month.

Diablo Lake

Over the weekend Ben, Jenna, Aaron and I went camping in North Cascades National Park - one of the least visited National Parks in all of the United States.  The low tourism rate isn’t due to a lack of beauty, but accessibility.  The park is 90% wildnerness, and most of the trails are long, backcountry, and difficult.  The park is also strange because the Seattle City Electric company still operates primarily out of three man-made dams that were created before the land was set aside as a National Park.  With only a full day there and some delays in getting there, we just did the easy driving route, checked out the lakes and mountains, and enjoyed some down time at the camp fire.  

Because of the rain, Ben and Jenna didn’t see as much as a typical visitor would, but we still enjoyed a LOT of coffee shop conversations and just good chill time together.  I’m practicing taming down my visitor itinerary, as Aaron says I overdo it sometimes. 

For the next couple weeks I’m in preparation mode for school and the transition that comes along with it.  As Aaron, Allison, Jessica, Emily or anyone else who has lived with me would attest, I can get a bit stressed out with a lot of transition, so I’m doing my best to take it easy, plan, and prepare myself.

*Warning* This will probably be a long post.  I’ll do my best to break it up.  I’d suggest grabbing a cup of coffee to keep you awake through the details. 

Wow.  We did a LOT this past week, and had a GREAT trip.  Truly, it was fantastic.  Ethan flew in almost two weeks ago (more on his time here later) and then last Friday the three of us packed up the car and headed east towards Glacier National Park, where we met up with Aaron’s parents for a week-long trip.

The trip had a lot of highlights, so I’ll pick the top few for each area we visited:

ON THE WAY TO GLACIER

Day 1 started off with an incredible surprise.  Driving through the hot Washington dessert on I-90, I leaned against the window to take a nap and glanced at the car we were passing on our right.  I instantly recognized the driver as Shirley Davidson, mother of my best friend from kindergarden through 8th grade (Amanda Davidson), and her dad, Dennis asleep next to her.  The Davidsons were also good friends with my mom, and our families spent a lot of time together when we were growing up, until they moved away to Bozeman, Montana, before my 8th grade year.

After a little jumping up and down I told Aaron to pull up beside them, and stuck my head out of the car (at 75 mph), waved my hands, and yelled to get her attention.  After an initial confused look, her eyes got really wide, and she mouthed “Makeba!?”  We pulled over on the side of the road in the hot middle-of-nowhere dessert and talked about how crazy it was to see each other.  I hadn’t seen Shirley and Dennis in over 12 years!  I expected it to be difficult to try to catch up, but (props to Shirley) it turns out that they have been keeping up with our blog since we moved to Seattle.  They even asked how my back was doing.  After a little more visiting we got back in the car (and out of the sun) and headed our separate ways.  I was SO happy to see them after so many years.  And don’t worry Shirley, I’m planning a visit to Bozeman in the near future..

As part of our dessert experience we checked out a petrified forest (which wasn’t really a forest), and took some cheesy pictures with a giant dinosaur outside the souvenir gift shop.  Great fun.  After the long boring dessert we stopped for lunch in Spokane and quickly checked out Riverfront park.  I made Aaron and Ethan take a picture in the big Radio Flyer wagon before getting back on the road. 

To break up the trip, we stayed the night in the Northern Idaho Panhandle, in a town called Sandpoint on Lake Pend Oreille.  The lake was beautiful, and it was nice to see some more of the Northwest.  The next morning we headed Southeast into Montana and drove through the Flathead Valley area and Flathead Indian Reservation, which is home to the National Bison Range.  Armed with a zoom lens and two pairs of binoculars, we took the 19 mile loop through some pretty steep hills, and spotted two herds of bison, some antelope, and a few big horned sheep.  Toward the end of the loop we came upon a herd of Bison that were fairly close, including a lot of babies. 

WEST GLACIER

We stayed in West Glacier our first two nights at the park, where we met Aaron’s parents at the train station across the street from our hotel.  The first day we did an easy 4 mile hike to Avalanche Lake, which was fairly boring until the very end, when we were rewarded with some pretty amazing scenery.  The lake was a crystal blue color, and various waterfalls cascaded down the mountain surrounding the lake.  Not a bad place to sit and enjoy a PB&J.

The other highlight of West Glacier was the same evening, when Aaron, Ethan, Mom Greene and I rented kayaks on Lake McDonald.  The lake is huge, and over 400 feet deep.  We paddled out all the way to the middle and enjoyed the 360 degree views of forests, rocks and snow covered mountains.  It was a peaceful first day in the park.

LOGAN PASS/ LAKE ST. MARY

At 6am the alarm clock was a rude awakening, but it was important to get up to Logan Pass before the parking lot filled up.  We made it by 8:30 in the morning and joined a ranger-guided hike (3 mi) to Hidden Valley Overlook.  Ranger Bill was super cool (a retired science teacher) and led us through some thick snow fields, over a pass to an amazing viewpoint above several glacial lakes.  As we rounded a bend in the trail, I looked up to see a large white mountain goat directly in the path in front of us.  Before long we realized that they were all around us - we probably saw more than 2 dozen near the top of the cliff.  Along with the mountain goats, we spent time with two marmots, some ground squirrels, and a bunch of big horned sheep.  Later that day we went on a boat tour of Lake St. Mary and took a short hike to Bering Falls, before heading to Many Glacier for the night.

MANY GLACIER

Many Glacier was by far my favorite part of the park.  Our first day there, Ethan, Aaron and I got up early and caught a boat across Swiftcurrent Lake, hiked a 1/4 mile to Josephine Lake, and caught another ferry across.  From the boat dock we started what became a 10.2 mile hike to Grinnell Glacier and back.  The weather was amazing, the scenery was fantastic, and it was just a really fun day.  We hiked hard up the mountain along several ridges, until we came to the base of a snow field.  From here we basically hiked straight up until we got to a cliff that overlooked the 3 lakes we passed (Grinnell, Josephine and Swiftcurrent), and came right up to the base of the receding Grinnell Glacier.  The glacier was once connected to a larger glacier above it (called Salamander Glacier), but the two split a few decades ago, and more and more gravel-like rock is replacing what once was moving ice. 

We hiked all the way to the edge of the glacier but decided not to follow the group that walked out on it.  The melted parts of the glacier are forming a large lake, and through the broken ice we could see bright blue patches of water and a river forming underneath.  Between the edge of the glacier and the cliff were a herd of big horned sheep, who hung out with us for a while on the rocks.  The view was just amazing.

On the way back we went a little slower, but found the snow banks a little harder to handle on the way down.  We also learned that the little waterfall we passed under on our way up had turned into something a bit more powerful.

As we were rounding one of the last corners of the trail we heard some yelling above us, and turned to see a small Grizzly Bear walking up the path toward where we had just been!  Thankfully a ranger was in the area and was able to keep people back while coaxing the bear to move in another direction.

The next day in Many Glacier the weather was a little crappy, so we slept in and hung around until the afternoon, when we took the same boat ride with Aaron’s parents and walked to Grinnell Lake.  The following morning we decided to check Fishercap Lake (near our hotel) for moose before driving north.  When we turned the corner at the lake Aaron jumped and pointed, and ta-da, we had a moose sighting.  A small female moose was feeding right in the middle of the lake. 

WATERTON LAKES NATIONAL PARK

Waterton Lakes National Park is an International Peace Park with Glacier NP, but in Alberta Canada.  We drove up across the border, did a scenic drive to Cameron Lake, and then headed toward the Prince of Wales Hotel.  My favorite memory from my last trip to Glacier (when I was 13) was the Prince of Wales.  While it wasn’t quite as large as in my memories, it was just as impressive and beautiful, and the wind at the top of the peninsula was just as strong as I had remembered.

Before the trip I made reservations for “high tea,” so we got dressed up and took in a meal of finger sandwiches, sugar cookies, truffles, little cakes, chocolate covered strawberries, and of course the Prince of Wales tea.  Though it may have been a bit pretentious, I absolutely loved it.  And after Aaron’s mom said it was a highlight of the trip for her, I was even more glad we spent the money.

To burn off our sweets, Aaron, Ethan and I hiked a streneous mile up to the top of Bear’s Hump, which overlooks the Prince of Wales and sits at the very top of the valley.  I was panting by the top, but the views down Waterton Lake were incredible, and well worth the climb.

The next morning we took a boat all the way from the top of the lake to the bottom (called Goat Haunt).  When we landed we decided to do an easy 5 mile hike to the Kootenai Lakes.  After hiking through customs to the U.S. (how cool is that?) we had a long, boring and muggy trip.  The bugs attacked me. The weather wasn’t all that great, but once we reached the lakes, we forgot about our complaining.  At least four bull moose stood in the middle or on the side of the lake, with their heads buried in their lunch.  Every 3 to 4 minutes, one would thrust its head out of the water, turn to look at us, and pose for the camera with water streaming down its face and antlers. 

LAST DAY

Our last day involved a lot of driving, but we did make a stop at the Izaac Walton Inn, which is one of the original chalets built for the Great Northern Railroad.  This was a must-see for Aaron’s dad, and he was not dissapointed.  The hotel was covered with old pictures of railroad workers, visitors, and memories from days when the railroad was the only way to get to Glacier.

That evening we stayed in a somewhat run down hotel, but the pool made up for it.  We jumped in, raced, played around and acted about 5 years old for a straight hour.  I have a feeling we’ll all have good memories from our last night of the trip.

Now that we’re home, I’ve got to get ready for a busy month.  I’m starting work as a camp counselor in the mornings, and working my normal job with Communities In Schools in the afternoons.  I better go write my lesson plans for tomorrow.

I hope I inspired some of you to visit Glacier N.P.  There are only 25 glaciers left, and they are receding rapidly.  Most scientists think they’ll all fall out of glacier status by 2020.  I’d go see them before they’re gone.  And even without the glaciers, the park is beautiful, and well worth a visit.

CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PICTURES FROM OUR TRIP.

Wednesday morning was gray and cloudy, but when I checked the Mt. Rainier web cam, it said things would clear up by the middle of the day.  So I got in the car with my neighbor, Tracie, and her daughter Reyna, and drove south.

By the time we got to Tacoma things were clearing up a little, and I was so excited when we rounded a corner and Tracie said, “oh look!”  Though Tracie and Reyna have seen the mountain from the city, this was their first time visiting it up close, so I was really glad it turned out to be a beautiful day.

We basically did a similar route around the park that we did two summers ago when Patrick and Brianne visited: Narada Falls, Paradise, and Reflection Lakes.  The difference was that there was a lot more snow this time, since summer has come a little late, and we got a lot of snow in the mountains in late spring.

Despite the snow, the wildflowers that the mountain is famous for were just starting to come out.  I imagine they’ll be amazing in a few weeks or so. 

I had fun with Tracie and Reyna and was excited to have them experience the mountain up close.  It may be a bit over the top, but there is nothing I love more about living here than the mountain.  I still take a deep breath every time I see it on a clear day, and I would be happy just sitting in that crisp mountain air all day, thanking God for making something so beautiful and for keeping it (relatively) unspoiled.

When we were in the visitors center, I passed a display that showed writings about the mountain, and came across a poem called “Witness” that felt so true to me:

Sometimes the mountain
is hidden from me in veils
of cloud, sometimes
I am hidden from the mountain
in veils of inattention, apathy, fatigue,
when I forget or refuse to go
down to the shore or a few yards
up the road, on a clear day,
to reconfirm
that witnessing presence.

-Denise Levertov

Last week was our 3rd anniversary (which is just crazy for me to comprehend…I feel like we just got married!), so we took a short weekend trip to the Northern Oregon Coast.  I’ve heard that the coast was beautiful and had wanted to check out the town of Astoria which is where the Columbia River meets the ocean. 

On Friday we drove through horrible traffic and finally got to the B&B around 8pm.  The house was really cute and the innkeepers were friendly and helpful, which helped relieve some of the stress from the drive.  Pam, the innkeeper, also suggested we eat at the Urban Cafe in Astoria, which was a really good choice because they had amazing food that was also healthy.  I had the best halibut ever, with couscous, asparagus, grilled tomatoes, zucchini..mmm.  Sorry to go into the details, but it was good.  I think I ruined the “healthy” part with the brownie and ice cream afterwards, but it was worth it.

Astoria is a cute small river town, but it is famous for hosting a lot of movies, including the Goonies and Kindergarten Cop.  So that night we borrowed The Goonies from the innkeepers and watched it, then the next day we drove around and saw places from the movie.  Silly, i know, but it was fun :-) 

We found the Goonies house, the school from Kindergarten Cop, and then drove south down to Cannon Beach to see the “three rocks” that the kids line up to discover where the treasure was.   To see the haystacks we went to Ecola State Park up on a bluff and got some pretty amazing views of the ocean all around.  Thankfully the weather was beautiful and the sky was super clear.

After a few driving-related fights and a discussion about how I overplan and stress Aaron out with all of our busyness (we chalked it up to personality differences, but had a good talk to make up), we headed down the coast and stopped every now and then to see a beach or viewpoint.  On Saturday we stayed in the town of Wheeler, which is about 50 minutes south of Astoria, and on a peaceful inlet called Nehalem Bay.  I wasn’t expecting much from the Inn because it was inexpensive, but when we told the innkeeper it was our anniversary, she gave us a room facing the water.  We kayaked around the bay and then jumped in for a few freezing seconds.  Then we headed to the Tillamook Cheese Factory.

Tillamook is a big cheese and ice cream brand in the Northwest (named after Tillamook County Oregon).  The factory tour was self-guided and relatively unexciting, though we did get a few free samples, and we watched one of the factory workers drop a load of cheese on the floor and then kick it out of the way.  After the cheese factory we drove south along the coast, watched the sunset, checked out a very windy bluff with a lighthouse, and made our way back to Wheeler.

I’d say we finally got to relax and sit by the water on Saturday night, which was good after a busy day.  Later that night we went out to the car to get one of our bags, and realized how many stars we could see.  It’s amazing how the sky just brightens up when you are away from the lights of cities and towns.  We just stopped and watched the sky by the water, and thought how nice it was to be away from civilization for a little while.  Those are the times I really get the chance to think about the magnitude of this world and its Creator.  

It was nice to see a different part of the Northwest, and to see how much the terrain changes in just a few hundred miles.  I’d say that the Oregon Coast is more beautiful than the Washington Coast, though less rugged and wild.  Really, you should come visit us and see both. 

This week I’m working on relaxing and trying to do a better job of giving Aaron some downtime before Ethan comes next Tuesday.  Aaron is so excited to have two weeks with him, and a week with his family.  I’m really excited about our trip too - I just hope we don’t get too worn out.

We’ve had a busy weekend.

Our friend Shannon has been staying with us since our family trip and is settling into Seattle from Florida.  To get some exercise and help acquaint her with some of the scenery in Washington, we decided to try a somewhat tougher hike and climb to Lake Serene.  My friend Becca (from school) and her fiance Jason tagged along, and together we toughed out the 7.5 mile hike.  I’m proud to say I finished strong, but my body is still angry with me!

The weather was a bit iffy, but the hike was amazing.  It was steep climbing, but we passed Bridal Veil Falls, which was strong and amazingly wide at the top, and pretty and less strenuous at the base.  After the falls we basically hiked up the side of the mountain and got amazing views of the valley.  Finally we reached the top, turned a corner, and dropped down into a glacial lake.  The temperature probably dropped 20 degrees in 5 minutes of hiking, and all of a sudden we were surrounded by thick clouds and a half a foot of snow.  It was the most bizarre thing I’ve ever seen on a hike.

Most of the lake was frozen over, but parts had bright blue water showing through.  Mount Index also towered over the lake, but was hard to see through the thick fog.  Aaron kept joking that he felt like a unicorn was going to pop out from behind a tree because it just felt so eerie and magical.  If only it hadn’t been so COLD, we probably would have stayed longer at the top.

After a tiring climb down we headed home, showered and changed, and went to Beth and Carl’s to watch the fireworks over Lake Union.  The free food hit the spot, and we could see fireworks all across the city, from Kirkland, Bill Gates’ House, Bellevue, and Elliott Bay.  I got my fireworks fix and was ready to call it a night.

On Saturday we had a goodbye party for our close friends Luke and Katie, who are moving to Taiwan to teach English.  On Thursday we had a girls pizza night to hang out with Katie, and then all met together on Saturday for a final goodbye.  Luke has led our small group for the past year and has done an amazing job, especially considering how demanding his schedule and classes at Fuller were.  We’ve consistently met and eaten together for over a year and a half, and are going to miss the Birge’s a lot.

So this past week was filled with great Frost family reunion fun (that’s Keba’s family in case you were confused by the last name thing).  Aaron and I flew to BAUston and rented a CAH, picked up Teddy and Lori, and met the rest of the family on “the cape” - which Aaron says with a haughty manner while rolling his eyes. 

It turns out that Cape Cod was not as stuffy as we expected, and actually rather laid back and undeveloped.  We stayed in a B&B with 30 of my relatives (Aunts, Uncle, Cousins, Siblings) in Brewster, which was by the beach but very quiet and quaint.  It was really good to see all of my family members, and it reminded me how grateful and privileged I am to be so close to my extended family (especially considering how far away they are).

My Grandpa, in true Frost family style, planned lots of great events for us, but also kept a few days clear on the calendar.  We had a few planned all-family meals, a train ride through cranberry bogs, a 60th birthday party for my mom, a chartered fishing trip, a lobster feast and clam bake, and a family genealogy talk.  In addition to these “scheduled” events, we also spent a lot of time just relaxing at the beach, swimming, and driving around Cape Cod.  One day we drove all the way to the north tip to Provincetown, which was a beach-like version of Capitol Hill and a lot of fun.  It was a good place to walk around and people watch, and there were also a lot of small art galleries.

Another day, Aaron, I, Ted and Lori took a ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, and rented bikes to ride around the island.  We didn’t have much time to see the different towns, but I was surprisingly fond of what we did see.  It helped that the weather that day was beautiful.  Then, another night, Aaron and I checked out a Cape Cod League baseball game in Chatham, which is college level players, but with a like-a-high-school-game feel.  I think it was a highlight for Aaron and at least entertaining for me. 

After 6 days with family we headed off the Cape, and stopped in a little town called Sandwich along the way.  We spotted the Sandwich police, along with the Sandwich fire and rescue.  Luckily we enjoyed a good lunch of Sandwiches, without having any interaction with these public agencies.  It was a fun afternoon.

Finally we parted ways with Ben and Jenna, dropped Ted and Lori off at their hotel, and met up with our good friends from college, Brian and Sarah Bhuta.  We stayed three nights with them in Providence and were treated to some great food, good hang out time, a tour of all the sites in Boston, and a “Water Fire” display in dowtown Providence.  It was random, but also a lot of fun.

Thanks to my Grandpa (and whole family) and the Bhutas for such generous hospitality.  Even though we were far away from MD/PA, it still felt nice to be on the East Coast again.  Though we sure don’t miss that humidity!

Click here for a slideshow of pictures.