Signs Along U.S. Route 2

Last Saturday we drove east on U.S. Route 2 in Washington State to meet up with family in Leavenworth, Washington.

When we stopped for breakfast in Gold Bar we saw these signs and more. My favorite is the Positively No Profanity or Dancing!

This sign does not lie. I wish the Big Bear was clearer in my photo.

As you approach Leavenworth you see the beautiful and powerful Wenatchee River.

Welcome to Leavenworth, a Bavarian like village nestled against the eastern slopes of the Cascades and right on U.S. Route 2.

Village Pharmacy

Starbucks Coffee, Bavarian style, with a small sign above the door.

This is my favorite sign from Leavenworth since our main reason to drive east was to see our son Dan and our daughter in law.

Hope you enjoyed traveling the U.S. Route 2 with us.

Linking up with signs, signs hosted by Lesley.

And back at home we are still working on some planter extension projects at this old house.

We received the sad news that our neighbor passed away last evening. Just one short month since she was diagnosed. Our hearts grieve for her children and grand children. Life is very unpredictable with no guarantees for tomorrow, even for the healthy. Make peace with God through Jesus Christ. He is the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by Him (Jesus). Hug more, love more, smile more, encourage more until that day comes.

Tuesday’s Treasures & ABC Wednesday…

Today is Flag Day in the United States of America and we treasure what the flag stands for at our house.

The Pledge of Allegiance

Officially adopted on Flag Day, June 14, 1924 (“Under God” Amendmant made by Congress in 1954)

I pledge allegiance to the flag

of the United States of America

and to the republic for which it stands;

one nation under God, indivisible,

with liberty and justice for all.

Off with your hat, as the flag goes by!
And let the heart have its say;
you’re man enough for a tear in your eye
that you will not wipe away.
~Henry Cuyler Bunner

I believe our flag is more than just cloth and ink. It is a universally recognized symbol that stands for liberty, and freedom. It is the history of our nation, and it’s marked by the blood of those who died defending it. ~ John Thune

Whatcom Falls Park

Mid May Dear and I had a road trip north to Bellingham via Chuckanut Drive to check out Whatcom Falls and the historic stone bridge.

President Roosevelt’s New Deal Works Progress Administration paid workers to move the Chuckanut sandstone arches from a downtown burned-out building to the park. In 1939 the sandstone was used to construct the landmark stone bridge.

Too bad about the fallen tree that had lodged itself into the falls. I’m wondering if it has dislodged and flowed downstream by now.

In the distance above the main waterfall was this smaller waterfall with some pretty lighting.

The parking lot with access to the stone bridge and the falls was a very short distance from this spot.

I’m linking up with ABC Wednesday started by Mrs. Nesbitt and administered by Roger and a team of ABC’ers.

W is for Whatcom Falls Park and for Waterfalls.

I’m also linking up with Tuesday’s Treasures hosted by Tom The Backroads Traveler.

Meeting Halfway…

…or Over and Back Again.

Our young marrieds planned a weekend trip meeting halfway with our DIL’s family and our family. At the end of this month they will have been married 1 year!

We all gathered in Leavenworth, Washington. Everyone else arrived on Friday and stayed till Sunday. Dear and I traveled over on Saturday morning and came back home Saturday evening.

Our family above and the whole crew below.

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One of the main events that was planned for the weekend was a river rafting trip for the brave amongst us.

Here’s the crew ready to go!

Our three sons pulling together!

While this crew were river rafting, Dear, Laura and I shopped about the town of Leavenworth dodging the crowds that flock to this picturesque Bavarian like town with the Cascade Mountains as it’s backdrop. I bought a few little treasures from the Russian shop, a free trade shop and a kitchen shop. We survived the Kris Kringle shop, too. If you love all things Christmas, this is the shop for you!

Dear, Laura and I enjoyed lunch at the Icicle Brewing Company while the rest of the crew enjoyed a barbecue spread after their river rafting experience.

We had beautiful weather on the eastern slopes of the Cascades while there was a lot of rain on our western side of the Cascades!

We all got together and enjoyed a potluck taco meal on Saturday evening and on Sunday morning the crew enjoyed a potluck breakfast together.

On the final morning of the weekend our guys got together for some miniature golf fun. Not sure what the girls were doing but I’m guessing they did some shopping.

So thankful to God for all these dear people that we get to enjoy life with. That includes all of life, the good, the bad, the ugly and the beautiful. Joy and sorrow with the comfort of the God who created us and loves us more than we can comprehend. Love one another, forgive one another, keep moving forward together with the hope of a glorious reunion with our Lord and Savior. Yes, and Amen!

HT: Rafting photos courtesy of Osprey Rafting Company.

Favorite Five on Friday

The Lord is good to me and my family. Last Friday I flew from Seattle to Southern California to visit family and friends while Dear traveled to Chicago for an Oncology Conference. When I exited the plane in Santa Ana, California, my sister Lana was at the gate ready for her flight to Seattle. She is a beloved passenger on Alaska Airlines from John Wayne Airport and her friends at the gate decided I was special because I’m her sister so they booked me in first class for my return flight to Seattle. Yes and amen to that!

Here’s my baby sister with her sassy new hairdo. I’m so thankful that she shares her flying privileges with me. She’s a million mile traveler with Alaska Airlines and she doesn’t lord it over the airline employees but treats them with kindness and love and that trickled down to me.

My brother Leonard, Lana’s twin, and my sister Vera met me outside of baggage claim to take me to lunch. Yes…my family is always there for me. We had lunch at South Coast Plaza before Leonard and I headed out to Neuvo, California to visit another brother and his dear wife.

Spending time with my dear old Pop (93 years old) and meeting my sweet little grand niece (5-1/2 months) was a treasured experience while I was in Southern California.

I also spent a few hours over lunch with my Russian Baptist best friend, Heidi. Upper left hand photo from 2016 and the rest from the 1970’s. We were marveling at God’s goodness to us in allowing us to survive some crazy choices we made.

My flight home in first class was very nice. Beautiful views of the California Coast with a nice meal and more great views of Mt. Rainier when we reached Washington State.

Home again, home again, jiggety jig! We are working on a new phase of our yard project putting a border along our front planter.

While I mowed and weed whacked Dear worked on digging out the trench to add the blocks for our new planter border. Woohoo! Hard work with us now sitting and wondering how we can manage getting up and down with our aching muscles!

Thank you to Amy at Love Made My Home for Five on Friday and dear Susanne at Friday’s Fave Five.

V is for Vera…

Vera is one of my older sisters. She was recently widowed and has moved into a 55 and over community not far from her old home. While I was visiting she had an open house to share her new home with friends and family.

Her manufactured home is open concept with 9 foot ceilings that give it a spacious feeling.

There are 3 bedrooms which include a large master suite with a walk in closet and large bathroom with a separate tub and shower. My younger sister Lana lives with Vera part-time when she is in Southern California working. Lana got to decorate her own room. Since Lana was in Washington while I was in California I got to crash in her room. My brother Leonard from Texas was also staying with Vera and he got the bedroom/office and the blow up mattress.

It was good to see some of our cousins and old friends during the open house. Vera used an old email list for her invites so if she missed you she apologizes.

It was a nice day and we set up tables and chairs in the carport. I did not get photos of everyone, oops.

On Sunday Leonard, Vera, and I met some of our family for brunch in Newport Beach at Sol Cocina.

Leonard and I got to meet our newest grand niece for the first time.

Ellie with her Baba, my SIL Kelly.

Later in the day some of my family gathered at Vera’s again for more food and fellowship.

I’ve posted this photo before but I love it enough to post it again, Pop (dzeda) and Ellie. My dear old pop made it out to Vera’s twice and he lasted for several hours which was good for him.

My pop with 5 of his 8 children.

Leonard and I managed to be with our pop for dinner at Kathy’s on Friday night, open house on Saturday, Dinner at Vera’s on Sunday and then we drove out on Monday morning to go out for breakfast with him and my sister Kathy and to say goodbye to him until we meet again. He got his 2 eggs sunny side up with hash browns, sausage, white toast and coffee and even though it was at Coco’s instead of Denny’s he said it was good. He also insisted on paying. He says he needs to get rid of his money. From breakfast we headed straight to the airport for Leonard’s flight back to Texas. I still had 24 hours left in California.

The fun just kept coming. After I dropped Leonard off I met up with my BFF from my Russian Baptist days and we had lunch and a few hours of catching up. Would you believe from this meet up I headed to the third restaurant of the day, Zov’s, to meet my sisters for dinner?

Kathy and I split our Kebob dinner and we all shared the dessert tray. Kathy, this could have been your late birthday celebration if my brain wasn’t completely fogged up by then! Oye!

When Vera and I returned home Dear’s brother and SIL stopped by for a brief visit since they couldn’t come to the Open House. It was good to see them face to face. BTW, Dear wasn’t with me in Southern California because he was working at a conference in Chicago.

I’m now home after flying first class and that’s a fun story all by itself. This post is way too long already. It’s good to be home and I thank God for watching over me and giving me valuable moments to treasure with my Pop, family and friends.

Since it’s Wednesday and ABC Wednesday is on the letter V this post will be linked up for V is for Vera! Thank you Mrs. Nesbitt and Roger with his team of ABCers.

An Interlude…

…a brief period of time that comes in the middle of something.

Spent some sweet time with the youngest in our family, my grandniece and with the oldest…

our pop with his youngest great granddaughter.

When I get home I’ll share a lot more of my time away from the regular routine of home.

She Flew the Coop…

…and is spending time with another flock.

Getting lots of hugs in and catching up with my brothers, sisters, pop and friends. Three states represented in the photo above, Washington, Texas, and California. Hope your weekend is going well.

Backing Up!

A few weeks ago we took a nice day trip north from our home. Our first stop early in the morning was in Edison where we had read about the Breadfarm. It was open and we bought some bread and pastries. We were amazed at the great variety of fresh baked bread! I was sorry about all the glare from the glass partitions that didn’t allow my photo to show off the artistry of their bread.

We asked here if they had a recommendation for breakfast and they told us about Tweets.

We ordered and had a seat with a wide open view to the street and the kitchen.

We were patient and waited for a conventional breakfast and an unconventional choice by Dear.

Eggs, bacon, and a salad and fruit for me and

a lamb burger for Dear. We were both pleased with our choices.

On the way back to our car to continue on in our journey we saw this store that wasn’t open, The Lucky Dumpster. I’m sure it would be fun to poke around in there. From this little one block town we headed back to Chuckanut Drive to continue north to Bellingham to visit Whatcom Falls.

If you live in the greater Seattle area and want to take a pleasant little drive to a destination with a good restaurant and bakery this is it.

I’m getting ready for my trip to Southern California wondering what to pack and making sure all the bills are paid before I take off. Looking forward to seeing friends and family. It sounds like it will be hotter in Seattle than it will be in Southern California. Glad I’ll be in the slightly cooler part of the U.S.A. Hope June is starting out well for you.

Tuesday’s Treasures

Chuckanut Drive, is state highway 11, which begins at I-5 exit 231 in Burlington, Washington. Traveling north, this is a favorite and historic entry into Whatcom County. For many miles the road hugs the shoreline, offering incredible views of passing bays, with islands in the distance. Completed in 1896, Chuckanut Drive was the first land access to the Bellingham Bay community of Fairhaven from points further south. Previous to its completion, the common access into the region was by boat due to an impenetrable carpet of ancient cedars growing from the mountains to the sea. At milepost 14, Chuckanut Drive passes Larrabee State Park, with access to beach, tide pools and trails. Encompassing 2,000 acres, Larrabee was the first designated state park in the state of Washington.

On this day that we drove to Bellingham and back via Chuckanut drive we chose the Oyster Bar to stop for a bite. We decided on some treats from the sea for our meal, oysters and salmon gravlax.

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Chuckanut Drive culminates in the Historic Fairhaven District, known for its Victorian-era red-brick architecture, quaint shops and restaurants.

I’m linking up with Tom the Backroads Traveler for Tuesday’s Treasures.

Today I’m heading north again to British Columbia to meet up with some of the Mennonite Girls to meet one of our favorite bloggers face to face in Chilliwack. I’ll share soon about the meeting with photos. We also are having a very warm day in the Pacific Northwest with predictions in the 80’s. Nice driving weather.

St. Joseph Church

The cornerstone for Saint Joseph Church was laid in 1868 by a group of San Antonio’s German Catholic Immigrants who wanted to worship and hear God’s Word proclaimed and celebrated in their own language.

Over the course of years the German Community constantly improved their Parish of St. Joseph and its buildings. In 1891, four bells with matched tones were purchased and consecrated. They were given the names of Joseph, Mary, Henry and Joseph, by their donors as was the German custom. The Gothic style building was without a steeple until 1898 when the now existing spire was erected to crown and complete the structure as it is today.

This was the second copy of Michelangelo’s Pieta I saw in San Antonio.

Then in 1902, the beautiful stained glass windows were purchased for the unbelievable sum of $3,000, from the Emil Frei Art Glass Factory in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.

Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as Way of Sorrows or Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers.

The Stations of the Cross are commonly found in Catholic churches as a series of 14 small icons or images. They can also appear in church yards arranged along paths. The stations are most commonly prayed during Lent on Wednesdays and Fridays, and especially on Good Friday, the day of the year upon which the events actually took place.

In 1945, a crisis arose when the Joske’s Department Store wanted to purchase the Church and Rectory and grounds and use the land for its expansion program. The parishioners, however, voted unanimously not to sell their cherished Church, allowing it to remain as a strong sign of their Faith in the midst of a secularized, historic and cultural environment. As a result, St. Joseph Church stands today and is known as the “Jewel in the heart of San Antonio” close to the famed Alamo, and encircled as it is by the new RiverCenter Mall, Residencies and Hotels.

The Church is the home of the world renowned San Antonio Liederkranz. On the fourth-Sunday of the month, the San Antonio Liederkranz (founded in 1892) donate their stewardship of time and extraordinary talent to express their Faith through liturgical song; a variety of hymns are sung in Latin, German and English, at the 11:00 a.m. celebration of the Eucharist!

When I visited this church on Saturday morning April 30th there were more people and activity than I usually find when visiting during my travels and site seeing. I didn’t feel comfortable taking as many photos as I usually do in beautiful churches like this. It sure would have been a great experience to be at the 11:00 a.m. service on Sunday of this weekend since the San Antonio Liederkranz would have been worshiping in song. We flew out on Saturday.

In Seattle style we are having a rainy Memorial Day weekend so far! I guess I’ll do indoor stuff like cleaning my dusty, cluttered dwelling! What are you doing?

I’m linking later to InSPIREd Sunday with Beth and Sally.

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Category Archives: Travel