It seems to take me about three fourths of a year to really select what I consider the best pictures from last year. Finally I have culled 25 shots out of 3916 to come up with these.
August 25, 2004
August 22, 2004
Wedding
We attended a very elegant wedding on Saturday evening. Brad is a friend of mine from work and Amber is his newly wed wife.
The only rain we have had in weeks just happened to coincide with their ceremony, so things had to be moved in doors. However the wedding was still very nice. The ceremony was very moving, with poetry and song that made one realize the true sanctity of marriage.
Afterwards everyone fraternized at the bar, while the wedding area was reconverted into a restaurant so we could eat. I was able to catch up with all my Pixar friends from the bay area, we even met some of Amber’s friends from Tacoma.
The dinner was exquisite and as Karen noted some of the best conversation she has had at a wedding reception. Which is saying a lot given our introverted nature. Just goes to show that Brad and Amber must have spent many hours working on all the fine details, like assigned seating at the dinner tables.
Finally the cake was cut, and the dancing and partying commenced. However since we had a babysitter awaiting our return our carriage turned back into a pumpkin and we had to depart in a hurry.
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Sabbath
Today we rested and played. It’s harder than it sounds. As a new parent, it seems that the things I have to do have doubled and the time to do it in shrunk. The to do list seems much more imperative these days.
The day was full of blessings. The first was the ability to sleep late. Sara has been waking us up early. On Saturday, we awoke at 6am! Today, we were able to convince her to snooze with us till 8am. I made chocolate chip and blueberry (not combined) whole wheat pancakes for breakfast. Sara had Cheerios, oatmeal and prunes. She’s been working on finger foods for about a week and enjoys cheerios best of all.
Church was a new experience. This was the first time I lead Children’s Church for the 2-4 year olds. In the summer, the regular teachers take time off and parents fill in the spaces. I was apprehensive. I know how to deal with babies, but 2-4 yr olds are still unknown territory for me. There was not need for fear. There were 4 adults and 3 older children (6-11) helping out by the beginning of service. We only had on 3.5 yo. All of a sudden, we had an influx of 8 kids. We built fortresses and destroyed them with exploding bunnies, made crosses out of popsicle sticks, read a Bible story (Naaman & Elisha) about owies, and fellowshipped over pretzels. Sara joined us for the end of church and was admired by the kids.
We bid farewell to Lynn Baab, a good friend and wise pastor, who’s headed to University of Washington for more learning. Sara was restless, having not taken a morning nap. We got to see a friend’s new house. Then we headed home for a long family nap (much needed). We called parental units and reconnected with Atlanta.
Sunday dinner was enchanting. We had a perennial favorite, a salad showcasing peaches, from the Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver. The salad mixes golden sweet peaches, prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella, mint, greens with a lemon olive oil dressing. The mint adds a refreshing mix that contrasts with the tartness of the lemon, saltiness of the prosciutto, and sweetness of the peaches. I rounded it off with a prosciutto, mozzarella, roasted red pepper pizza on rosemary ciabatta. Sara stuck with cheerios.
We walked down to our local Scoop for decadent ice cream and were treated to a rainbow after a weekend of rain.
Some postnotes…
Last Sunday, we celebrated Indiana’s 1st birthday. Sara got to wear a dress I wore as a baby. She had so much fun playing with all the other babies about her age.
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August 14, 2004
Wyoming Trip I: Travel days 7/17-7/18
After much work and frantic packing, we left early on Saturday morning 7/17 7:40am. Traveling with an 8-mo-old was my biggest anxiety about this trip. While not easy, it wasn’t as bad as I expected. Sara slept most of the 5 hr trip to Spokane as the green of the Cascades faded into the dry desert of eastern Washington. Wayne and I listened the fascinating short stories of I, Robot. Asimov uses human interest angles to draw you into his exploration of life with robots. Most of the stories are interesting twists on the 3 laws of robotics and commentaries on ethics. I used to listen to Asimov stories on tape while traveling west w/ my parents as we’d drive from Atlanta to Wyoming. It was odd to do it now in reverse.
We gladly stopped in Spokane for a nostalgic lunch. We found Rocky Roccoco’s Pizza Place. This is an old stomping ground of mine from college days in Madison, WI. The pizza is reminescent of Chicago style with square pieces, a sweet tomatoe sauce, and a chewy crust. The cheese and sausage have the right amount of greese. Rocky Roccoco stands in photos all over the restaurant in a white suit, round sunglasses, and white hat looking like a cheesy mofia guy. I spent a lot of afternoons eating pizza at this joint on State Street in Madison.
We walked along the shores on the Spokane River at the Riverfront park in the 85 degree heat.
Sara got to eat her lunch.
Then we rode the carousel from 1909 along with a wedding party. Sara was scared at first, but perked up when one of the carousel operators came over to coo and goo at her.
We drove into Idaho and finally to Montana, stopping at a Super 8 in Missoula at 6:30pm. We were exhausted. We watched some TV, ate P&J sandwiches, and took an evening walk at a local shopping center to get a frappicino, read Sara some bedtime stories at the Barnes&Nobles, and admire a red sunset.
Sunday 7/18
Woke to the smell of sage after an evening thunderstorm. The smell hit my olfactory nerves and brought memories of past trips. While I live about as far west as one can get (apart from Alaska and Hawaii), I will always think of Wyoming and Montana as “the West”. It seems like a wild, untamed place while Seattle seems like the “Northwest”. We were on the road by 8:15 am and stopped for breakfast at a Montana reststop where the railroad spike that joined the east and west railroads was hammered. Sara sat in the grass while we ate apple walnut bread.
We lunched in Bozeman at the Grantree Restaurant having brunch food while a waiter entertained us with tales of his 4 kids and Sara let everyone know she had a voice. We entered Yellowstone and stopped at this reststop by the Madison River. Sara watched elk eating across the river. It was a contrast from the last time I saw this land 3 years ago and covered in snow.
We arrived at Colter Bay campground at 5:45pm, set up camp, and reunited with my parents. We just barely beat the storm. Mom whipped up some ham and cheese wraps while the rain beat down on our dining tent. We slept well.
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