adventures at home

who would have thought that my first picture from home would be this:


i certainly didn't. neither did my brother or sister-in-law.
while playing in their basement with my nephew, i heard a scratching sound. when i looked up, i saw this not-so-small baby skunk in the window well clawing at the window. i called my mom downstairs to take a look and she made the phone call. the one that interrupted my brother and sister-in-law's 5th wedding anniversary celebrations. a few minutes later they were home to take care of business. just a few minutes after that, we all left. the skunk didn't. after spraying in the window well, my mom and i packed up the kids and took off to grandma's house. we had to strip and wash EVERYTHING, rob had to buy a new shirt at the bay before going into their movie. happy anniversary!

meanwhile, while my nephew was fast asleep, i had a few minutes to catch a few pics of my niece...

in ben's own words "she's a cutie". ridiculous cutie.

when ben woke up, mom and dad arrived for dinner. then it was time for some brother-sister cuddle time...

saturday morning found us all on the side of soccer field cheering on one cute 3-year old. what fun. sporting the coolest muscle shirt around, and non-other than the "run-faster shorts", it was time for ben to strut his stuff...

and spend some time with his ladies...

and of course with his aunt.

when ben was done, he was sure to let me know.

he even put my lens cap back on. while i was still shooting. enough of soccer, time to go home and start the real chase!

a seattle saturday night

how do you spend a saturday night in seattle?

when you are trying to wrap up a year's adventures in one night?

start out at Barrio...

definitely order the guacamole.

and margueritas.

maybe a little more guacamole...

then hop in a cab and head across town.

to daniel's steakhouse.

for happy hour.

when happy hour's over, time to grab another cab.
or friend willing to give you a lift.
and head to the martini bar.
what's the name of it you ask?!?
not too sure...
but definitely worth the stop!

friendship

once in a lifetime.
if you're lucky.
that's how often a truly great friend comes along.
a beautiful person, inside and out, one who gets you.
for me, it happened nearly 11 years ago.
in a regular run-of-the-mill university dorm, i met her.
and to this day, whether separated by land, water, borders, or now continents, it doesn't seem to matter.
she is still the most fabulous friend a girl could ever have.
and i am the luckiest girl in the world.

i will miss you loads, les, but 9 hours time change won't matter a bit!
it never has...