Zoo Lights

Megan and Jesse came up and joined Matt and I for a trip to the zoo to see the "Zoo Lights" display this last Saturday. When we approached the zoo, we saw that there was a traffic jam up right at the entrance and so we made a quick turn and parked in the zoo shuttle lot about a mile away. We got there just as a school bus pulled up, so Matt got in line and we grabbed strollers and gear and met him just in time to fill up the last seats. It took a while to get through the cars that were being routed around to the shuttle lot, but at least it was WARM!

We hopped out into 32 degree weather, but we were prepared! We brought lots of warm clothes and three thermoses of hot chocolate. The walk down the rampway past the goats and the Northwest Path was covered in lights. They were all LEDs and were really bright! We looked out over the zoo at the overlook, and noticed that they had icicle lights in the conifers. They were beautiful.



We decided to go through the sea lion caves to see if anyone was out. They weren't :>, but when we came out on the other side, we passed the monkey exhibit, and moved out to the open theater where the majority of the animal lights were exhibited. The view was spectacular! We also stood in line to have an elephant ear. They are even yummier with hot chocolate and freezing cold hands :>



This alligator was really cool. His mouth opened and shut.



More critters:





This dragonfly had wings that appeared to move (as did many of the "moving" animal lights). However, because of how long my camera lens had to be open to get enough light to get a picture, all of the positions are illuminated in this picture.



The hummingbird wings moved too.



The lion was over by the new Serengeti exhibit.



We had hoped to take a train ride, but the cold temperatures and the line deterred us. We did get a picture of it as it passed by!



This snake was suspended over the pic-nic tables. He was BIG.



After we saw most of the lights, we stopped by an area where different musical groups were performing. In the pavilion they had this old train engine lit up.



Megan, Jesse, and Matt.



The lights lived up to the hype. I highly recommend it!

Spokane Rental and Caramels

Just a quick update. Matt has been in Spokane to take possession of the keys for the rental and to clean and prepare it for new tenants. We had some unpleasant surprises, the primary one being that the previous tenants chose to turn off the heat, and, in the below freezing temperatures of the last few days, all of the pipes were obviously frozen, as evidenced by the frozen water in the toilet bowls. Matt is going through the required processes to remedy the situation, and then cleaning today. Hopefully he will be able to return this evening before it gets too late, resulting in only two days of vacation from work.

Matt has enjoyed seeing Connie, Kai and Natalie. Thank you Connie for your hospitality!!

On a lighter note....I finally made the perfect caramels without the usual requisite failed attemps! Unfortunately, I was talking on the phone and multitasking, so I have no idea how long I cooked them, at what temperature I had the pan, or the general texture of the sample I took before I decided to turn them off. Oh well. Making caramels has always been a fun adventure at Christmas time. Usually it involves three batches - one so hard it cracks when you cut it (note time), one that is too soft (cut rows "bleed" together after you cut them apart - note time), and one that is just right (always forget to note time). Of course the last batch is made about the time that everyone has made themselves sick on the less than perfect caramels...

Team Member of the Month

Today I was pleasantly surprised to be given the October Team Member of the Month Award at work. Especially since I started in October. I knew my science degree and summa cum laude achievements would be rewarded at some point :> I really am flattered. I like it when my hard work is acknowledged.

Here is me in front of the fireplace with my bedazzled work shirt and scarf on, holding my engraved plaque. (It even has my name spelled right!)

Tessa and Baa 'Got Mail'

Yesterday, Tessa and Baa got mail addressed to them. They were VERY excited.

Inside they found...Christmas Hats! (With ear holes!!) Aunt Candy is definitely a FAVORITE around here! They were all smiles (of course, they are ALWAYS all smiles...)



For those of you who don't know Tessa or Baa, it's a LONG, long, long, long, (you get the idea) story.

Christmas Tree

This year Matt and I decided that we wanted to take full advantage of the size of the living room and the height of the ceiling when choosing our tree. We found a tree farm about 15 minutes away and went to visit Saturday morning, a few hours before I had to go to work. We parked the car at the top of a hill, and then asked where to find tall nobles. We were directed to go "past the house". Ok...so there was a road that led down the hill. It then forked THREE times, each fork creating one side of a triangle around the house, where each road then proceeded away from each of the others to the far corners of each field. Matt ran up the hill and asked again, and we were told to take the first fork. We found several trees, but this lot (along with most of the others) had been pretty picked over in the last few years and had relatively few trees, many of which appeared to belong in a Charlie Brown Special. Additionally, many of them were Grand firs that had been shaved into ugly cones with no natural organic shape anywhere! So Matt ran back up the hill to inquire again, and we were told to take the second fork. Where the fork branched off we passed a small pond and a bunch of bunnies that were in a small pen, under a tree, with NO ROOF.



Looked like a good place for a raccoon to look for dinner! They did have a hutch inside though, where am I sure they were secured at night.

This second fork led us to a bunch of 10-15 foot trees that had beautiful tops....and had blackberry canes intertwined through the bottom four feet of each tree! The bottom branches were also very wimpy, thin, and droopy. So Matt ran up the hill again. This time they said most of the best trees were on the final fork - ummm...would have been good information in the first place! Well, we continued to traipse through the red clay (which was caked all over my boots - and streaked on my pants due to the multiple times I caught me toes on a blackberry cane and almost bit the dust!!) looking for a suitable tree. We found one - with a sold sign on it. We also found a couple of others that were ok, but we now only had about 15 minutes, and the trees looked a lot bigger than 10.5 feet (our goal) and therefore were more expensive. So, we decided to return home so that I would make it to work on time, and come back another day. However, when we returned to the car, we noticed that they had put up a lot more recently cut trees in the lot adjacent to the cars. Since we had a couple of minutes, we checked them all out - but no luck. As we very sadly made our way towards the car I noticed a tree laying on its side that appeared very uniform - and tall. We used the tape measure to measure it and it was over 12 feet - a little too tall (and we didn't want to pay for the extra feet). However, when I had Matt stand it up for me (which was fun to watch as these are BIG, heavy Nobles) it was only about four inches taller than the tree standing next to it which was marked with a 10.5 foot sign. So...we took it!


However, we decided it would be too much for the RAV4 rental (someone rear-ended Matt and the 4runner was [is] in the shop) so we paid, tagged the tree, and then went home. I went to work, and Matt rented a truck to pick it up and bring it home.

When I got home from work, we both brought it into the house. It was HEAVY and I had the light end!! Once in the living room we realized we needed to cut off a pretty good portion of the trunk to make it fit (so Matt sawed away over the living room carpet!). Fortunately, that actually lightened the tree quite a bit and we were able to get it in the stand with little difficulty. However, when Matt started to cut the twine that was binding it we had a Christmas Vacation (Chevy Chase movie) moment - the bottom limbs sprung out and almost completely blocked the entrance into the living room! Yikes! Little full...lot a sap!



After releasing the entire tree, we decided that it needed a little pruning, so I reduced its diameter by about four feet, and now it looks great :>

We have started decorating and plan to finish tonight. I will post pictures of the final product - and a more flattering picture of my living room - tomorrow! (I was sewing and there was stuff everywhere!) As dollars are tight, the tree is our gift to each other this year, and we have greatly enjoyed its incredible aromatic scent (it permeates all of the rooms upstairs!!), and the lovely backdrop it makes for the twinkling lights are sparkling ornaments. As we sit in its shadow, we are grateful for many things, least of which that we live in the same house this year, and get to see each other every day. We look forward to enjoying the season together.

Thanksgiving

Fortunately, Matt and I were able to go Mom and Dad's for Thanksgiving Dinner this year - even with the vehicle mishap! Matt usually drives our 4runner to work, and about four weeks ago he was rear-ended. The impact smashed our bike rack into the back window/door, making it impossible to access the back. We use the back "entrance" to get Tillie and her crate into the car, so we have been unable to take her anywhere since! The car finally went to the body shop at the beginning of last week, and although they indicated it would be done long before Thanksgiving weekend, they kept moving the date forward for multiple reasons. We did have a rental during this time, a Mitsubishi Eclipse. You couldn't get a hamster in the back of that thing! So when we realized the truck wouldn't be done by Thanksgiving we had to contact the insurance company (twice) to get approval for an upgrade and then find a rental company that had an SUV!! Fortunately, Enterprise followed-up and got us a RAV4 so that Tillie could come along (we can't leave her at home all day!!).

We planned to get there in the morning, but ended up arriving around noon. I had started a fall table runner that I really wanted to finish for Thanksgiving dinner, so I spent the morning working on the binding and Matt cooked the pumpkin cake.



We did eventually get all packed and convinced Tills that the new car wasn't that scary. The traffic wasn't horrible, but took about an extra 20 minutes to get there!

Matt went right to work on rolls when we arrived, and Mom, Meg and I finished hand sewing the binding on the runner. Got it on the table just in the nick of time! It was fun to have Kristin, Paul, Meg and I together. We missed Katie and Will. Dinner was fabulous and everyone crashed afterward (except for Mom, Meg, Dad, and Matt who cleaned up dinner). After everyone's naps, the girls made magnets (a Craft Warehouse inspired activity), and then later I showed Megan some knitting stitche.



Later, Megan, Andy, Matt and I played some hearts and speed-scrabble. Mom and Dad went to bed early because they planned to get up at 3am in order to get to the coast for more hunting.

Having family close-by is fun. We have to make time for more family outings! Megan and I are already planning our spring camping trip....

Family Halloween Party

When Mom mentioned that Megan had suggested a family Halloween Party, I was excited! I decided that I would dress up as mom (you know, the big hair, nude colored lipstick variety) and decreed that we ALL should dress up! Amazingly - they listened! Check everyone out!



Andy is the ghost of Patrick Swayze, I was mom, Matt was a mad scientist (scarily, the only item he donned that he doesn't normally wear at work was the tape on his glasses), Jesse was a gorilla, Megan was a stoned hippy, Mom was....scary (Matt brought a plastic severed limb, and she kept acting like she was gnawing on it!!), Kristin was a vampire, (as I think was Paul - he had yellow eyes with a red ring around them!!), and Dad....Elvis - complete with the spray on hair. The funniest part of the evening was when we kidded him that the spray was meant for hair, not skin, and probably would leave a lingering black residue. Hee, hee, hee.

Here is a close-up of the three undead. (Check out the eyes!!)


Vampira ready to munch on her nephew.


Afterwards we all carved pumpkins (except for dad).



What a ghoulish night!!

Forest Park

Lest all of my readers think that Matt and I only go on outings to the Japanese Gardens and the zoo, I thought I would include pictures from our hike in Forest Park a couple of weeks ago. I was aware that there were hiking trails in the area around the zoo (Washington Park), but didn't realize that there were 5100 acres and over 70 miles of hiking trails in the adjacent area (north)! The park is relatively long and narrow, and follows the Columbia River on the other side of NW St. Helens Rd (Hwy 30). I found it interesting that it is the largest forested area within city limits in the United States. A main trail called the Wildwood Trail traverses the entire length of the park, and several smaller trails branch off and often form loops.

Our first hike was along Birch Path to where it connects to the Wildwood Trail, and then to the Leif Erickson and Dogwood Trails to make a round trip.


We had planned to make it a 3 mile hike, but due to a small map reading error, we ended up taking a 2 mile detour. It was worth it though! We saw lots of birds - primarily woodpeckers. There were little warbler-like birds everywhere, but I wanted to enjoy the scenery and plan to go birding on our next trip. We did see a pair of downy woodpeckers that were only about 15 feet away foraging for food. They totally ignored us, and we got a really good, long look. I like being able to bird without binoculars.

The day was pretty warm (over 80) but the entire area we hiked was densely wooded and the canopy kept us shaded and cool for the entire hike. We are looking forward to exploring more trails this coming winter. I want to have the lay of the land down so that I can bird for warblers and such in the spring!

Japanese Gardens and New Zoo Exhibits

Matt and I decided to spend an afternoon we had off work together at the Japanese Gardens and checking out the new exhibits at the zoo (the Serengeti!)

The day was overcast with just a slight chill in the air (very comfortable!) and perfect for photography. The gardens were relatively empty so we were able to get several nice landscape shots without waiting for long periods of time. The pictures below follow the pathway we took. Enjoy!

Main Pond


Iris Garden



Upper Garden Walk







By the exhibit building





We went to the zoo afterwards and really enjoyed the new exhibits.

Painted Dogs (COOL!!)

Cheetah

Hornbill

Lions


After we saw the new exhibits we popped into the aviary to check out the birds. This guy was singing at me from three feet and acted almost tame. The book listed him as (drumroll!!) a yellow-breasted STARLING!!!