Hello Seattle!

For Thanksgiving this year we wanted to travel somewhere we'd never been before. So we asked our good friend Jenni if we could crash at her place, eat her food, drive her car, and maybe have her babysit for us one night and she said YES! We had an absolutely fabulous time!

Parker has been talking about our airplane trip to Seattle ever since we purchased our tickets and Tanner appropriately played the song "Hello Seattle" by Owl City on the way to the airport.

When we arrived in Seattle we were surprised to see more snow on the ground there than we had at our house in Utah! (Don't worry, we came back to PLENTY)

The moment we stepped off the plane it was like someone had lit the best smelling candle all over the place! Washtington smells sooooo good! And, not to mention the mouthwatering smells coming from Jenni's kitchen when we arrived!

She was rolling out dough for the rolls and was so sweet to let Parker jump right up there and help. For Payton and Parker, it was love at first sight.

It was so cute when, after we'd been there a few hours, Payton said, "I really like Parker! He's my best friend in the whole world! He's funnier than I thought he would be!" and when we were leaving and Parker said, "I love you so much! I'm going to really miss you!" BFF

Soon, the Thanksgiving guests all arrived. There were about 10 adults and 10 kids. Everyone brought something delicious to share. Oh man, I have to stop thinking about the food. It was soooo good!! I'm drooling on my keyboard!

The little kid table

The big kid table

Everyone was so friendly, we really felt welcome! After dinner the parents all played games while the kids crashed in front of a movie.

Tanner and I purchased the Seattle City Pass to make our way through the sights. Our frist stop was the Flight Museum!

There were so many cool things to see and do! My boys were in HEAVEN!

And then we all went on a rocket ship to outer space! Don't you do that on your family vacations to Seattle?

Oh, and President Obama invited us on his private plane to chat about world issues. Such a nice guy!

After the museum we met Jenni and the fam at Pikes Place!

Well, first we got some yummy mac and cheese and crab sandwiches!

This guy kept us entertained while we waited...

After lunch Tanner and I took Parker to the Seattle Aquarium.

It was a fun, exhausting day! That night Jenni and Mark offered to watch Parker so we could go see Harry Potter! It was nice to slow down and actually spend some one on one time with my husband- doesn't happen that often!

Saturday we went to the Space Needle! Today Parker's teacher said that after he gave all his friends hugs and told them he missed them that he told everyone about the SPACE NEEDLE!

I'm not gonna lie, I was a little freaked out being that high up. But you can't beat the view!

That's talent right there. Snapping a picture all by myself which includes my entire family AND the Space Needle!

After the Space Needle we splurged and went to lunch at the Fishermans. It.was.phenomenol. I wish my Dad was there to share my salmon and clam chowder. Someday, Dad. Someday. :-)

We enjoyed a little R&R and watched the boats come in and out of the harbor.

Then we let Parker play around at the arcade a little bit and took him on the

merry go round.

We took the Harbor Cruise which probably would have been more fun if it had been warmer. But it was still a great way to learn about the city and see the beautiful sky line.

(Ooops, this is a night shot from the Space Needle....)

We took the monorail (Parker's favorite part of the trip) up to the Pacific Museum. It was packed but we let Parker play around a little bit. Our ticket to the museum included a free IMAX movie but when we sat down to watch it we realized it was about a middle eastern religious custom. Parker kept saying, "Look, Jesus!" Thank heavens he fell asleep shortly after it started. He would have been thouroughly confused.

We ended the day on top of the Space Needle again to see the city at night. Truly breathtaking!

Sunday we drove to Tacoma to see my very first friend Jana, her husband, and new adorable baby! Jake is in the army and they live on the base. It is an extremely beautiful area! She's going to LOVE living there!!! Oh, and she made us dinner! Jana is the best!!!!

Tanner took some family pictures for them and then Jana took a few for us! :-)

I love my friend!!!

That evening, on our way back to Jenni's house, we found this little private beach and went sea shell hunting. I think this was one of my favorite parts of our whole trip. We were there for maybe 10 minutes but that place was amazing and the sunset was gorgeous.

That night Jenni's little family and our little family went and visited one of Tanner's good friends from way back at Rick's! (Remember when it was Rick's and not BUY-I???) Clark and Tanner were roommates and Jenni was their neighbor. It was fun catching up and seeing Clark's cute kids!

Monday morning Payton had to go to school so I took a quick picture of the kids. Every morning Parker played with Payton from the crack of dawn until it was time to run off on an adventure. He LOVED Payton. I think they will be friends for a very long time. :-) And cute Sadie bug was sooooo sweet and smiley and cuddly and tickley the whole time. Such a little cutie!

We took a little drive around Washington, got some DELISH fish and chips, found Bill Gates house, drove across a cool bridge (on which Tanner hit a bird....) and explored some really nice neighborhoods.

We stopped off at this little park right on the beach and let Parker play around for a little bit. I wish I could explain to you the smell. Oh, it was like a slice of heaven. Soooo refreshing!

This is MY kind of park! This is right by Bill Gates house. Ya know, got my mansion, got my yacht. No biggie.

We flew out that night. Sad day. Our flight was a little delayed but not too bad. Parker was the BEST little traveler. I know I'm desperate for more children but traveling with one potty trained little boy is pretty awesome. I guess the point is that we CAN travel! :-)

Jenni and Mark were the best hosts. Jenni made us the most amazing food! I mean, I don't want to make you all green with envy, but we had citrus pancakes (made with ZEST and everything) with citrus syrup and home made from scratch blue berry muffins, OH! And the baked oatmeal with the fresh fruit baked right in... and that Sunday roast was unlike anything I've ever tasted in my life. Just one of Jenni's "super simple" recipes. I don't know how she does it with kids always looking and being perfect, and exquisite home (our bed was super comfy too!!!) and teaching music. She's one in a million. Thanks for making this family vacation one we will treasure forever!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!