October Fun

October 2020

I'm glad I have this space where I can document pieces of our life. I hope my children will find it fun and comforting to come and read once they're old. I wish my mom would have documented parts of her life ... from her youth and young adult life. I would have loved to have seen things she was interested in back then, homelife and everyday outfits.

Carving a pumpkin can be such hard work but the end result is usually worth it (as long as one doesn't mess it up, lol).

My daughter's cat Lila was curious about the pumpkin smell, so she jumped on the table and began sniffing.

She gave the pumpkin a few licks and she was done with it. 

So, Riley hollowed out the pumpkin and Jacob carved it for him. Dad's are the best!

I like to make Halloween fun and special for my children. One of our favorite treats is a cookie cake. I make sure to buy one every time. 

And another family favorite for Halloween is ordering pizza and wings for dinner.

We had an early dinner so we could go back to a local pumpkin patch and do the corn maze. 

It was nice that it wasn't too busy. We started out quite sure of ourselves thinking that we would know which direction to take but .....

.... we soon realized that we were lost. We let Riley lead, so he thought it was hilarious that we didn't know which way to go.

So, dad had to take over leading. 

I on the other hand like to hang back a bit to take in the moment, look for bugs on the corn stalks, birds in the sky when they do happen to fly by, and as I rounded a corner I looked up and spotted Mt. Rainier. She's a giant!

Still lost by the looks of it. Ha ha!!

Eventually we found our way out. That was a fun time. It was now time to get home to get Riley ready to go trick or treating.

I don't recall what his costume was called but it was an ugly scary one. He was obviously happy with it. 

Oh, the jack o'lantern on the right was the one Jacob carved for Riley. It turned out looking good. Good job dad!

We walked about four blocks. Not many people were giving out candy because of the pandemic, but he got enough to be satisfied.

After we checked his candy and he ate a few we settled down on the couch and watched "It's a great pumpkin, Charlie Brown". A family favorite!

Memories, one of the few things that can never be taken away from us. Make lots of them (and document them).

They chose me from my brothers: "that's the nicest one", they said. And they

carved me out a face and put a candle in my head. And they set me on the doorstep,

and the night was dark and wild; and when they lit the candle then I smiled and smiled and smiled.

Out Doing Things We Enjoy

 April 2020

(Again, I'm glad I journal my days. Given we're now in Sept. 2023 there is just no way I would remember every single event, feeling or thought from three years ago.)

I love waking up to a cloudy or rainy sky. I can't help but to linger in bed, enjoying being cozy and warm. This Saturday was exactly like this. Felt so good. It was a chilly day. It's still quite cold in April here. 

We headed to Lincoln Park in W Seattle. As we arrived, we noticed the gate to the parking lot was locked. It's really unfortunate that officials choose not to accept facts. They don't want people gathering in order to help stop "the spread" but being outside in the open air is a good thing.  Although the parking lot was closed people found parking elsewhere. It was good seeing people out enjoying their day. 

Just being by the water is so restorative to one's well-being. Breathing in the fresh air and looking around the beautiful scenery is so calming. I can't help but to become full of gratitude about all that God has done for me and in our lives. I always leave spending time by the water in a better frame of mind. 

I want Riley to appreciate nature. To respect it. To enjoy it no matter the weather. I've noticed that when we spend the day out in nature, he's in a good mood. He forgets to complain about petty things. Skipping rocks and noticing wildlife is always a fun way to create meaningful moments while out in nature.

The ferry is always fun to ride and to just look at. It's so cool that WA has ferry boats. I think they're great. We lived in WA for ten years and we never grew tired of them. Not even when we had to wait an hour to board one.

We stopped for some doughnuts as one usually craves something sweet with a cup of coffee on a cold day. We didn't eat them right away though. We ate them after dinner at home.

Our final stop was at California Burrito in Federal Way. They have really good carne asada burritos although they sometimes have pieces of fat which I hate so before I eat mine, I open it and take out any fatty pieces, wrap it back up and enjoy. It's so much better this way.

We had plans on going to the beach, but Riley woke up with a cough, so we stayed close to home. Jacob took a back road that lead us near the Mt. Rainier area.

I love seeing green pastures and cows grazing. I've never experienced living the farm life but I would guess it's such a gratifying way to live even though it takes such hard work. 

Driving on an unpaved back road. I remember that Jacob was driving very slow on this road because he had just bought his car and didn't want the loose gravel to scrape the sides of his car. It took forever to reach the end of the road.

We kept driving and found snow. It was a pretty sight. The road kept going but we came across a locked gate. Back down we go.

I would say that half of our weekend outings consist of just getting in the car and going for a drive. A lot of the times what we end up doing happens spontaneously. These outings are just as much fun as a planned one. What's important is the memories we create along the way.

The simpler we make our lives, the more abundant they become.

Reflection Lake Hike

In August we visited Mt. Rainier but this time we hiked around Reflection Lake which is in the Paradise area. July and August is the most visited time of the year. Besides the Mt. Rainier views people also come to see the wildflowers. Lovely views.

We each had our water bottles and were excited to start our hike. We thought the trail would be an easy one around the lake at eye level but we were in for a surprise.

Riley's always so eager to get started and he tries to go ahead of us. When hiking in such trails we make sure to keep him right next to us.

There were wildflowers at almost every turn.

About five minutes into our walk there was a steep ascend. I thought that would be it but it wasn't. That was just the beginning of many ascended paths, lol. Oh boy! Riley was doing better than me. On about the third climb I had to stop halfway before my heart exploded.

We had no idea how long this trail would be but we knew that it looped which is a very good thing. At one point we weren't able to see nothing but the trail before us and endless pine trees. We thought we might have taken a wrong turn but we had already walked over an hour so we pressed on.
Most of the trail is a climb. Finally we could see glimpses of the lake, we were close. We were so relieved when we at last reached the top, almost two hours later. I couldn't get a better picture because there were people sitting all around so pretend that the dead tree is not there, lol.

Walking down hill was obviously quicker but your toes press to the front of your shoes which makes your toes all scrunched up and after a while that doesn't feel all that great.
Although it was a somewhat challenging hike it was fun and it felt good to have finished it. Got to admit though I like the views of Mt. Rainier and Reflection Lake better from down below. It just looks nicer.

Felt good to sit down after almost three hours. Once home I took a shower and then settled on the couch to watch a movie. It was nice to relax after an active day outdoors.


The following day we took an outing to the Des Moines marina. Complete change in scenery and weather. You know what I'm gonna say right? I love being by the water ... yeah, I'm very fond of the Puget and clouds. It is healing.

Sometimes having no itinerary is the best decision for impromptu weekend outings. If we're gonna stay close to home that's the best way to go but if we plan on being on the road for over an hour then it's wise to plan that outing so we can make the most out of our day.

Life is full of beauty ... notice it.

Washington's Highest Mountain

Well, we finally drove to and hiked Mt. Rainier.

The one thing that's fascinating to me is that on a clear day one is able to see Mt. Rainier from anywhere in the Seattle area. Whenever I'm out and about running errands I can see it. It's such a cool sight. One never grows tired of looking at it.

We took the Puyallup/Graham/Eatonville way. We came to a fork in the road and came across Alder Lake. Water levels are low. I thought all the tree stumps showing was kinda cool to see.

This is what it looks like most of the way ... with some cabins here and there and a few restaurants along the way.

After a three hour drive we finally arrived.

We found a picnic area and had lunch. The day was mostly sunny with only a few clouds hovering. It was hot down where we live and we thought it was going to be cool up here but it wasn't that much cooler.

There are trails all along the way. We saw lots of people pulled over on the side of the road to get a view of lakes and meadows.
The place we stopped at is called Paradise. This is also the area where the visitor's center and the Paradise Inn is located.

As you can imagine this place was packed. Thankfully, we found parking near the Inn. There were many cars parked down the winding road. I cannot even imagine having to walk up that far and still have to hike. I wouldn't want to do that.

Proof that we were here. How exciting!

We hiked the Dead Horsecreek Trail which is 2.5 miles long. We've hiked longer trails but given that this trail is very steep from the beginning it sure made it very very challenging to hike it.

Every single person that began hiking along side of us stopped to rest at one point or another. There is just no way to hike it without resting on a very warm sunny day.

I admire Nathan's will to carry his baby brother up this steep trail. Poor Riley was tired. At least he got to rest his little legs for the five minutes that he was carried.

We saw a buck eating some berries. We also saw a marmot {they are one of the largest members of the squirrel family, also called groundhogs}. They are commonly spotted in the area we were in. I wasn't able to get a picture of it, didn't want to get too close to it.

We stopped here. One can view a glacier at the end of this trail. We opted not to finish the trail because Riley was tired and frankly so was I. We're able to choose to do this because we know we can come back whenever Mt. Rainier is open. We are hoping to come back when it's cloudy. For me, those are the ideal times to go on challenging hikes.

There was a waterfall. Jacob took video of it and shared it on facebook. I can't believe how much snow has melted off the mountain.


Looking back. The opposite view from Mt. Rainier.

Hiking down this steep trail was just as challenging. Your legs begin to ache because you have to walk it with caution.
Thankfully we made it down without incident. My feet were hot and my toes were achy. I'm glad I brought my berks to change into.

Although challenging, it was a nice hike and I feel blessed to have hiked Mt. Rainier!! Such a very cool thing to have done!!