Time Was On Our Side…

Wednesday morning dawned with no constraints and a promise of no rain. I picked up Katie at 9:34 and we drove to a park in Seattle that we had not been to before.

We parked and headed down the trail at Carkeek Park that would eventually take us to the waterfront on Puget Sound.

This reflection in the huge puddle had to be memorialized. It’s been raining a lot in the Seattle area.

When we hit the end of the trail this bridge took us up and over the railroad tracks to the waters edge.

Don’t disturb resting seal pups! We did see one seal in the Sound coming up every so often and diving again but no seal pups were resting on the shore.

This seagull was enjoying a rest.

Incoming!

Interesting clouds forming over the Olympic mountain range.

Back to the car we stopped to take a shot of this stone bridge covered in moss and ferns. Seems like we should see a woodland faerie.

We left Carkeek and drove to Ballard stopping at the famous Larsen’s Bakery. We bought some sweet and savory treats and then headed to Golden Gardens.

This stand of trees on the shore of Puget Sound made us park the car and come closer.

We drove away from Golden Gardens through Shilshole Bay waterfront and up into historic Ballard along the Ballard Locks. Getting back to Katie and Andrew’s we passed through Ballard, Greenwood, and of course Sand Point pointing at several restaurants we’d want to try.

Speaking of food, I posted my mom’s recipe for Goluptsi (stuffed cabbage rolls) on the Mennonite Girls Can Cook blog. Click over to get the recipe.

Waiting…

A season of waiting makes for introspection. Some is good and some is not so good. In the world of blogging right now I’m not so good at getting around to many participants in my favorite weekly memes. I will cut down on some so I can do better with others. It doesn’t sit well with my brain and my comfort to be a “hit and run participant”.

I use feedly to keep track of the blogs I don’t want to miss any new posts from. I hope to add more blogs to this site as I search out more faithful bloggers out there.

We are in the season of Lent and Dear and I have set aside something together that we enjoy on a regular basis for this season. So maybe this is a kind of Spring cleaning time in my life.

We are on the alert for the arrival of our little Addy. God knows the timing on this and we will be hitting the road post haste when we get that phone call.

If you don’t see anything new here for a stretch of days don’t get the wrong idea. Blogging and bloggers are near and dear to me. I’m not giving up. Here are some verses from God’s Word on waiting in the English Standard Version.

Isaiah 40:31:

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.

Psalm 27: 13-14

I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living!
Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage;
    wait for the Lord!

Psalm 33: 20-22

Our soul waits for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in him,
    because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
    even as we hope in you.

Psalm 130: 5-6

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
    and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
    more than watchmen for the morning,
    more than watchmen for the morning.

Isaiah 64: 4

From of old no one has heard
or perceived by the ear,
no eye has seen a God besides you,
who acts for those who wait for him.

1 Kings 2: 3

and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn,

Discovery Park Seattle

We woke up to a beautiful day on Friday November 6th and decided to explore a part of Seattle we had never been to before. Discovery Park is located in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood, and is the largest park in the city. Entry is free. The Discovery Park Loop Trail is a designated National Recreation Trail, 2.8 miles long with an elevation change of just 140 feet. It passes through both forest and open meadows, offers extensive views, good prospects for bird watchers, and can be hiked or jogged year-round.

We walked to the highest point on the Loop Trail. A sign points right toward a viewpoint near the old chapel that looks out over the South Meadow. What you see from this viewpoint is the Puget Sound, The Olympic Mountain Range and Bainbridge Island.

The little white World War II chapel perched on the hill at Discovery Park has been given historic landmark status and given a second chance to remain standing on a spot that overlooks Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. Before there was a park here, this area was Fort Lawton and it is thanks to the fort that this large park is available to Seattlites who wish to explore an urban trail.

While Fort Lawton was a quiet outpost prior to World War II, it became the second largest port of embarkation of soldiers and materials to the Pacific Theater during the war. The fort was included in the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list. Fort Lawton officially closed on September 14, 2011.

One of our goals while at Discovery Park was to see the light house on West Point. We stopped at the visitor center and asked about driving to the lighthouse and we were happy to learn that since we were 62 or over we could get one of 8 special parking permits to park at South Beach close to the West Point, otherwise we would have had to hike there. If we were prepared it would have been easy enough for us to take the South Beach Trail and walk/hike but on this day we were happy to drive.

The West Point Lighthouse has a Victorian-era Beacon. It was built in 1881.

North Beach on Shilshole Bay.

South Beach on the Puget Sound looking towards the West Seattle Bridge with Mt. Rainier barely visible. Squint and you can see it.

This last mosaic is a photo of South Beach with a couple navigating the rocks on the left of the photo. I zoomed in on my photo to get a closer look at them. When I took this photo I didn’t realize we’d have a nice encounter with this couple. They had hiked down to the beach. When we made it to our car and started back to the visitor center to hand in our parking pass we saw them starting their walk back and we decided to roll our window down and ask them if they wanted a ride back. They were happy to accept and we learned they had just arrived the day before to the Seattle area from Milan, Italy. They were here for a very short time to see their daughter who was attending a special course at the University of Washington. We were happy to share our experiences in Milan with them. They were navigating our city by bus and other public transportation.

We would like to visit Discovery Park again in the future to see more of the park in a different season.

I’m linking up to Mosaic Monday with Maggie at Normandy Life. Click over to see more mosaics from around the world.

We have enjoyed a quiet weekend with a mix of rain, high winds and a little sunshine. We were home mostly except for church this morning and have eaten all of our meals in. Why do I feel like I need a pat on the back for that or that you even need to know that? Hope you had a good weekend in or out!

Five on Friday and…

…Friday’s Fave Five.

1. My niece shared this photo of my Pop that she took while he was reading his Bible in his room at my sister’s home. He reads every night before he kneels at his bed and prays for all of his children and grandchildren and great grandchildren. This is a favorite blessing of mine. A Pop who loves the Lord and is obedient in his prayer life and Bible reading. He will be 93 on May 25th.

2. Our rhododendrons are at their peak and I am grateful that we have these established plants in our yard to enjoy. Rhododendrons are the Washington state flower.

3. My visit last Friday with my brother’s family in Austin, Texas is a favorite for sure.

4. My rosebud Azaleas are filling out and showing their glory this week, too.

5. On Thursday we took a ferry across the Puget Sound to visit dear friends of ours. We were able to catch up and have a time of prayer together as we all face our fleeting time on this earth. It was good to be together. How about this wonderful view they have from their home?

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Here in the U.S.A. and Canada we celebrate Mother’s Day on Sunday.

Linking up with Amy at Love Made My Home for Five on Friday and

with Susanne at Living to Tell the Story for Friday’s Fave Five.

Feeding 50 in Style…

What a beautiful cold day we had for Thanksgiving this year. We drove over the freeway and through the burbs to arrive at our dear friends Dave and Jody’s home overlooking the Puget Sound for our Thanksgiving day celebration.

In the main dining room seating for 21 or more…

In the kitchen nook seating for 15.

In the entry seating for up to 14 kids…

We started with appetizers…

We enjoyed meeting new friends and seeing old friends.

Our hosts daughter Jamie with our daughter Katie.

Dear was the master carver. Jody made a turkey in the oven and Dave smoked a turkey in his green egg. Jody also made “Deena’s Potatoes, and stuffing and gravy and her yearly traditional mushroom lasagna. Her soup starter this year was dairy free, roasted butternut soup and she made special potatoes for our son Josh without dairy. She’s a gem in the kitchen and in hosting huge parties!! Others of us contributed some other sides like yams, broccoli salad, spinach salad, corn bread casserole, and rolls.

Andrew and Katie…

Cousins, Jamie and Matt.

Our hosts Canadian nephew with his wife on the right and our son Josh and hosts daughter Lucy in the middle.

My sister Lana with her hubby Steve.

This little sweetie with her parents is the first grand babe of our friends Gregg and Tami.

My brother Tim and wife Letty.

Our host Dave with Dear.

The beautiful Puget Sound.

My friend Jan brought the dessert for our meal. This fun display along with 4 delicious pies.

Apple, Pumpkin, Berry and Banana Cream Pie!

We had a great time exchanging sentiments to each other on why we are thankful for them in our lives. I didn’t get photos of the annual turkey shoot that is such a treat for the children.

Hope you had a wonderful time, too.

High Winds Wreak Havoc…

On Saturday morning the rains came and then high winds began. Early in the afternoon when the high winds really whipped up we knew we had to go out and remove the patio covers before they and our supports were ruined. Shortly after the covers and any light furniture and decor were tucked away nicely the power went out. We were without power from two in the afternoon until seven in the evening. We were the lucky ones who had their power restored. Our kids still did not have power on Sunday morning. When we left the house for church on Sunday morning we saw some of the wind damage in our neighborhood.

Saturday was not a good day to travel anywhere and I’m happy we all stayed at home and rode out the storm. Katie and I worked on a jigsaw puzzle by candlelight.

My neighbors are now waiting for insurance adjusters to come out and survey the damage before they do any removal.

These examples were minor compared to other damaged property and some lives lost when trees landed on top of cars driving down the road. There are still thousands of households without power.

We are very thankful for the rain and that the high winds are dying down. Hope your weekend was more peaceful…

I’ll be linking up to ABC Wednesday started by Mrs. Nesbitt and carried on by Roger and the ABC team on Tuesday. H is for High Winds and Havoc!

July Photo Challenge 26-31

Joining Kati for July photo-a-day challenge.

Days 26 to 31

26. 9 o’clock

At 9 a.m. yesterday it was already 70 degrees. We knew we were in for another hot one!

27. Cloud

28. Blue & 30. Shapes

I love the blue on and the shapes of these pots and tea cups made in Russia.

29. Flip Flops

31. My own theme: Busy, busy, busy…

And that’s a wrap for the July photo a day challenge. Thank you Kati for the prompts.

Welcome to August. We are starting the month off in record breaking heat here in the Seattle area. I know I’m beginning to sound like a broken record. We don’t have any big plans for August. Tomorrow we’ll travel to Canada for a get-together. Later in the month we have a small group barbecue here. Dear will be working at our son’s home doing a remodel hoping there are no big surprises when they remove walls, etc. I have lots of before and afters to post on this old house. The latest are two windows added to the garage/shop.

What’s in store for you in August?

Kingston to Edmonds Ferry…

Dear and I enjoyed an overnight trip to Bainbridge Island last Friday to Saturday. On Friday we took the Seattle to Bainbridge Ferry to get to the island and on Saturday after visiting the Bloedel Reserve we drove from Bainbridge across the Agate Pass Bridge to the Kitsap Penninsula and took the Kingston Ferry across the Puget Sound home. Have I confused you yet? Here are some photos from our Kingston to Edmonds voyage…

If you look closely in the window you can see Dear smiling at me in his shades!

That’s downtown Seattle in the distance with the Space Needle to the right…

It’s nice to have a good ferry system so we can enjoy easy trips to the beautiful islands and peninsulas in our area.

I’m linking up to ABC Wednesday with thanks to Mrs. Nesbitt and her ABC team! K is for Kingston to Edmonds Ferry and KNOW!

Here’s my Bible Verse card for the letter M! Know…

Our 2nd Thanksgiving…

We are so thankful to be able to celebrate two Thanksgiving meals with two different groups of people. Our first Thanksgiving was not on the actual day set aside for Thanksgiving and it was small and sweet with just eight of us around the table.

For our second Thanksgiving on Thanksgiving day we traveled to Edmonds to our friends beautiful home on Puget Sound to enjoy turkey with all the trimmings with 46 of us all sitting at a table. Ha! The kids table, the young people table, and the old and wise people table!

It was a very windy day but the temperature was mild.

We were happy that Andrew and Katie could be with us on Thanksgiving since they missed our “first” Thanksgiving. Here’s Andrew, Katie and Bridget who used to live at this beautiful home before she got married. If you are on instagram you should check out Bridget’s creative creations at http://instagram.com/flora.forager/?modal=true

This dear lady on the right is the Matriarch of the family and is an amazing lady. This photo is of Mary and her daughter in law Brenda.

If you are enjoying Thanksgiving in the Seattle area today you might have scheduled your meal to be done in time to watch the game!

This is my Dear and my dear friend Jody. She is the hostess with the mostess! Dear is always called in to be the master carver of the turkeys (3 turkeys for 46 people).

Did I mention it was windy. My hair is flip flopping with the wind. But…what a view behind my hair!

Thanking God today (and everyday) for dear friends, good food, family, beautiful views, and new friends, too.

All Aboard!

I’m traveling back to Katie and my Amtrak Cascades train trip to Vancouver B.C. last Thursday before Christmas Eve and Christmas activities commence!

We had to dress with a few layers because the temps on this day did not stay above freezing for long.

We started our journey in Edmonds, Washington. For many miles the tracks are right next to the water and it felt if I leaned towards the window I could land in the water.

As we approached Everett, Washington I wondered if we’d see a battleship or an Aircraft Carrier.

I wasn’t disappointed.

I’m glad I don’t have to clean off that rust…

So many interesting things to see with my camera.

After Everett the tracks came inland and we got to see some rural views before the tracks bent back west to the water.

Looking back I caught a glimpse of Mt. Rainier and zoomed in to catch our famous volcano in the distance.

It was fun to see the views of Semiahmoo from the train. Dear and I spent our anniversary at the inn which is right next to that water tower.

Seeing Semiahmoo I knew we were very close to crossing the border into Canada.

White Rock, B.C.

The train station in Vancouver.

We were underwhelmed with the Christmas market that was our destination choice. Thankfully food is my love language and Finch’s Tea and Coffee House came to the rescue. We really enjoyed our baguettes and Lady Grey tea.

This was in Katie’s words a “Hipster” establishment. The menu was posted on the blackboards. They delivered most of the sandwiches on brown waxed wrap paper.

Betty from Mennonite Girls Can Cook made the scarf next to my nice big cup of tea for me and the really cool thing about it is that she included slots in the scarf that serve as hand warmers/slot pockets.

Speaking of that large cup of tea, we had to take our signature sipping tea shot!

We visited some antique shops in the Gas Town area of Vancouver and a fun shop called Old Faithful.

We walked back to the train station and boarded our train for our long trip back to Edmonds. We were very happy that there was a dining car on the train with several food and drink choices. The trip back was in the dark so it seemed slow and long to me. It really helps to be able to see things out the train windows that are interesting to make the trip seem shorter. If we do this trip again we’d like to spend the night and only travel one way each day. I do like the quiet stress free aspect of traveling on the train.

Well here we are with just a couple days before Christmas. How are you doing? I hope you are calm and collected and that you have time for joy and peaceful moments.

I’ll leave you with a quote from Corrie Ten Boom…

“When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don’t throw away your ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.”

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Tag Archives: Puget Sound