A Week in Pictures: 19 April - 25 April

4/19 - Donald and Hannah worked on a pretty big project Sunday.  Hannah cut all the English Ivy off the back wall of the house and Donald dug out most of the roots.  The ivy had grown to cover the brick completely since we moved in 9 years ago.  It became too much and out of control.  Now its time to decide what to add in its place.

4/20 - Hydration!  Working hard to drink more water these days.  I don't love water, but I think it loves me, so I'll keep doing it.

4/21 - And a good reason to drink more water...hot yoga!  Sweating in a 105 degree room while trying to stay upright on one leg requires a great deal of H2O!!

4/22 - Jenelle's new leotard for dance class - she LOVES it! (Does anyone notice how dark her hair is getting?)

4/23 - Coming home from Ivan's track meet in Cle Elum.  About...oh...15 minutes from home Jenelle decided she needed a break at the rest stop outside of Selah to use the bathroom...and run around like a crazy person!

4/24 - Friday was a short day for Ivan and Jenelle at St. Joe's.  I took them to Get Air (a trampoline park) and on our way through downtown we came across a demonstration against sexual violence.  LOVED seeing all the men walking down the street with high heels on.  The theme was "Walk a Mile in Her Shoes".

4/25 -Yes!!  All renewed and back in my hands in time for an awesome trip we'll be taking in May!

Deception Pass State Park

Back to spring break...

After Jenelle and I spent the day looking at tulips, we took very short trip west to a place called Deception Pass State Park.
Deception Pass itself is a strait that separates two islands on the west coast of Washington.  It has a neat history.

We spent some time along the beaches in the area...

Then we went to the actual pass and bridge.
This view is looking eastward.
It was absolutely gorgeous!

They were doing work on the bridge, but we were still able to walk across from one island to the other...and then back again!

Beautiful but extremely deadly waters below...you can see the fast tidal flow and whirlpool from above.
A local person told me that people come from all over the world to commit suicide by jumping off of this bridge.
She said it happens weekly.
So sad.

I love looking at landscape like this, especially here in the Pacific Northwest, and think about the times when the only people who were here were the Native Americans.
And this is what they would see with no bridges and cars and mass of humanity.
Perfection!

A Week in Pictures: 12 April - 18 April

4/12 - Nope!  Not dog poop!  Science fair experimenting.  Jenelle and her friend Emma are making "plastic" with milk and vinegar.  Trying it with chocolate and white milk.

4/13 - Monday morning post work out breakfast...a slice of the neighbor's birthday ice cream cake. Super healthy!!

4/14 - St. Joe's band concert.  One of the last.  Ivan (trombone player on far left) can't wait to get rid of that instrument! (poor picture - my camera phone doesn't like zoom!)

4/15 - Wednesday afternoon carpool peeps!

4/16 - My guy running hurdles!!

4/17 - For over a year now, I've been making a meal each month for a place in town called Rod's House.  Its a safe house for homeless teens. They can come and get warm, get a meal, clothes and food to take with them.  I was shocked the first time I went there.  It's in a horrible neighborhood.  These are the homes that are across the street.  Another burnt home right next door.  I thought about it later and realized that the house is located right where its needed most.  Maybe soon I'll post a picture of Rod's House.  It's sweet and yellow and clean and warm and I believe it provides a much needed respite for these kids who've lost their way.

4/18 - A weekend walk with this beauty!

A Week in Pictures: 6 April - 11 April

4/6 - Easter morning and you KNOW he's not going to be left out of the activities!  (More about the strange hat in another post)

4/7 - Spring break is over and its time to get organized and ready for the week.  Love how coffee tastes in the new mug Hannah brought me from Paris!

4/8 - I'm waiting for Hannah in my usual spot outside of Ike.  It's really strange to think that when school starts next fall, I won't be doing this anymore because she'll be driving.

4/8 - Ivan demanding breakfast!  Actually just a poser waiting for his waffles to pop out of the toaster!

4/9 - Lilacs from the backyard!  The smell is out of this world!!

4/10 - After Easter sale on eggs!  I prefer the ones on top!

4/11 - It's not officially spring until Donald has to fix something with our irrigation system.

Too Many Tulips???

NOPE!

I didn't think it was possible...and now I know for sure!
There is no such thing as too many tulips!

So as I promised, I'm going to post so many tulip photos that you may decide that YOU don't like them anymore...but probably not.

You've been warned!

We started our road trip on Sunday morning and took an obligatory selfie before we head off!

Once we arrived and figured out where we were going, we drove the "tulip route".
There were some stop and go moments as cars moved in and out of the different nurseries.
Jenelle is a perfect travel companion for me.
She's never in a rush...doesn't mind detours or asking for directions.
Just happy to be on an adventure!

She took this cool picture of a barn while we were at a stand still.

There were so many of these Dutch barns around.

We chose to stop and spend time at a place called Tulip Town in Mt. Vernon, Washington.
This is pretty much your first impression!
Aaaahhhh!

My camera fingers were going crazy!
Jenelle was patient as long, in her words, as she was taking the pictures or having her picture taken!
Haha!
I did take a few of her!

The white tulips are her favorite!

The photographs that follow are the best of what I shot and I hope you enjoy them!
I'm currently working to close down my Etsy shop that sold lavender items and I've opened a new shop where I will sell my photography.
Many of these photos are listed and if you see one you really like, head over to my shop and let me know!!
Click here to see more!

We ended our visit to Tulip Town with a walk around the gift shop and a chocolate waffle cone for this gal who loves life...and chocolate!!

The next day we head out towards Whidbey Island to see a place called Deception Pass.
Stay tuned!