Day 2: Settling in and setting sail

So why are we in Seattle?

Because for Mema and Pappo’s 50th anniversary,

We’re cruising to Alaska!

We got to board nice and early this morning

Which gave us plenty of time to hang out in the hot tub

And Enjoy the view

We decided to try out a new cruise line—Norwegian.

And check it out—we’ve got water slides!

We were disappointed to learn we could only go on the tube slide—

You have to weigh 120 pounds to go on the body slide.

Apparently, people get stuck a lot.

After walking the ship from top to bottom,

We met back in our rooms for the push off

See you later, Seattle!

And now,

It’s off to dinner.

We didn’t understand the dinner procedure for Norwegian

And missed our seating time.

They managed to get us all near each other…

But at separate tables.

Dad and I had an intimate dinner, just the two of us!

The ship has all sorts of cool outdoor spaces,

Especially on Deck 8, the Waterfront.

It was too beautiful of an evening not to hang out for a bit

Then it was time to dive into the beverage package

And find our hangout bar for the week—

A brewery with over 20 taps called The District

Mom was SO excited to go to her first Silent Disco

As were Kurt and Dad

We decided to head to the Local,

The all-night restaurant on the ship

It was a bit of a…debacle trying to get food.

We ordered wings and pretzel bites (it was a limited menu)

And nearly TWO hours went by without any food arriving.

When Pappo wandered by and heard our predicament,

He had a few choice words for the restaurant manager.

Low and behold, our food suddenly arrived…

But we thought it was best to call it a night without our pretzels.

We had one last task for our first day at sea…

Decorating

What do you think?

Can’t miss it!

We thought we were so sneaky…

But Pappo decided to call it an early night in the casino

And we got caught.

Oh well.

He was still surprised.

 

Day 1: Seattle’s Best

Time to get up!

We have a plane to catch!

And thanks to an early flight

And a 2 hour time change,

We have a very full itinerary today

Designed by our very own Jackson.

After checking into our hotel—

The very cute Staypineapple Hotel Five—

We set out in our walking shoes for a big day.

First up,

The Amazon’s Spheres, 

which happened to be a block from our hotel

Then it was off to Pikes Place on the Waterfront

There were SO MANY flowers!!!

We were disappointed that the fish-throwing was over for the day

But had fun checking out all the

 fish and seafood and the most delicious cherries and nectarines

We had ever had.

Just around the corner was the famed Gum Wall.

Um, kinda gross

But we left our mark with cinnamon gum

(We’re the flower in the middle)

Then we strolled the waterfront

And grabbed a water taxi over to Alki Beach—

Or at least we were in the area of the Alki Beach.

We decided to stop just off the ferry to watch the fisherman, 

enjoy a few drinks

And do some rock throwing

It was a nice fiery of Seattle

A Seattle Group Picture!

We rode back to the other side

And while half of us grabbed an Uber to the Needle,

Us Reeds, in true Reed fashion, set out the 2 miles on foot

Because who doesn’t like some public transportation?

Made it!

We tried to get everyone in,

But we didn’t quite fit

Guess what?

We found a lovely bar,

Right under the Needle

Not a bad resting spot

Then we grabbed some dinner

And hung out in the super cool hotel lobby.

There were games and free drinks and cookies

and SHUFFLEBOARD!

What a great kickoff to our vacation!!

Nice planning, Jackson!

Many excellent adventures start at an airport pool

Oh, friends.  

Only an epic adventure could involve a styrofoam cooler.

And a swim in a hotel pool

With all the boys

And a 3 person tower

Make that FOUR person!

The Reeds, Woods, Klusmeyers,

And Donnellys?

Something amazing is coming…

 

SUPing in LS

After all that SUP time in Minnesota, 

We were jonesing for a bit more.

Mom planned a whole day—a bike ride around the park,

A stop at the “lake,”

And dinner on the patio.

The biking was easy.

The SUPing was hard!

We spent most of the time

Sit-down paddling (SDPing?)

Because the boards weren’t very well inflated

Ok, so maybe Tucker accidentally let some air out of Dad’s

But still.

It was still a good time!

I mean, come on!

We’re paddle boarding!

 

What a season!

This Waves season seemed to fly by faster than most.

But it was a successful whirlwind!

At our end of the year party,

Coach Grey (who we are sad to hear is stepping down as head coach!)

Called me up for High Point

There were a lot of us this year!

Then each of our age groups were recognized.

Tucker and the 8 and under boys:

An individual ribbon (9th breast) and a relay (6th) ribbon.

Good champs for him!

Me and my 9-10 boys

A ribbon in everything I swam!

Relays 4th and 5th and

13th back, 4th breast, 10th IM

My goal was a 1st in something or 2nd in everything

Depending on the day you asked.

I suppose I didn’t hit that,

But who can be disappointed with this?

Wes and the 13-14 boys

No ribbons

But a lot of PRs

And Jack and the 15 and over boys and girls

A 6th place relay and 12th place backstroke.

Not too shabby.

A great end to a great season

 

Because why not?

We’ve been so busy with all the other things,

Our Summer Bucket List has barely been touched!

So off to Main Event we go!

Everyone likes to bowl!

Maybe someday we’ll get good at it…