Well Mike (I know it says Meghan posted the last one, but it was Mike, he just couldn't remember his password to get in here!) mentioned our year had been harmless. Not exactly sure what he means by that but if I had to use one word it would be busy. Good busy, fun busy, traveling busy, moving busy... This past year has flown and we are now (I've been informed) old married people. =+) After we all met up in Moscow for the big fiesta in July of 05, we lived and worked in Boise for two months, moved to the Seattle area and lived with some very generous friends for a month, and finally then settled into our own apartment in Mill Creek, about 20 miles north of Seattle. Mike has been working at Boeing for close to a year, I spent a REALLY long stretch of months searching for a job, myself, sanity, what have you, and finally fell into a job teaching Spanish at a private school in Bellevue.
-I love it!
We have done lots of fun things too in that span, but I figured I'd summarize quickly or we'd be here all day. The Tulip Fest earlier this spring was outstanding and any and all of you are welcome to come visit us whenever you like, but if you come when the tulips are blooming you'll be in for a real treat!!!
Mike took a mountaineering course through Boeing this spring that was incredible and he has oodles of photos of the magnificent views (or the foggy ones) he's seen from the various trips he's taken up mountains all around our area. Just a couple weeks ago he headed up Mt. Rainier but I should really let him tell you all about that...
I've been wallowing happily in photo albums and my new job for the most part. I've been lucky enough to get to visit friends and family fairly regularly this spring/summer, gettin' out of Dodge when Mike was off scrambling up mountainsides to pop in on the unsuspecting. In April I buzzed over to Moscow to watch Peter in the main U of I theater production, which was hilarious! (Everyone be sure to watch Home of the Brave with Samuel L. Jackson when it comes out next year, you might just see Petey who was asked to be an extra!) For Mother's Day we enjoyed a visit from Mike's mom and stepdad Dan, we saw the sights, did some shopping, some glass blowing, and learned to make sushi! A quick Boise trip at the end of May was fantastic, I got to visit J&J, see Karin and Scott's cute new house, watch hours of Dark Shadows (the 90s version of course), and witness a couple of truly inspiring thunderstorms.
Amazing photo by Scott to come...
In June Mom and Dad came to visit for my birthday and we had lots of fun visiting the Mac N Jack's brewery in Redmond-yum! I got a new digital camera, and it's way too much fun so beware! We also had a blast, in June, hanging out at home and with Webb and Emily who are only a few minutes away. Mike and I got out hiking and exploring a beautiful area north of us and found some fun lakes and mountains. We rafted some class III-IV rapids on the Wenatchee River too and it was awesome, we're going back for more mid-September!
July has been, and continues to be, a whirlwind of fun activities! The week of the 4th, Dartmoor (my school) was closed so Mike and I headed east, stopping first in Moscow, to celebrate my dad's full time return to the faculty at the UI Law School after 6 years as associate dean. You made it Dad, and you kicked butt! Oh and my parents know how to throw a party!! Whew.
On our 1st anniversary we got up early in Moscow, not as early as planned though, and drove to Helena,Montana. Why Helena you might ask? Good question indeed! There really isn't much IN Helena even though it's the capital of the state. We pulled in around 4 on a Sunday and thought perhaps we had missed a turn and ended up in a ghost town. We quickly called a mountaineering friend who happens to be FROM Helena and was there visiting family for the 4th, desperate for some human contact. We had a nice dinner and visit with Pete and then took a quick walking tour of the outdoor mall before he headed back home and we went in search of some overnight accomodation. We had all our camping gear but since it was about 9:00 by this time we weenied out and settled for the Days Inn. The next morning we got up early and headed northeast from the city to find the Spokane Bar Sapphire Mine, which was our actual goal in this whole excursion to the area. We spent the entire morning digging and sifting through gravel in search of great riches and actually found a decent sized (7.14 carats) sapphire! That afternoon we again spent driving, back west to a ranch just outside Whitefish where my brother Mike is working currently.
