Portland and Seattle

I started writing this entry 2 days ago and though I thought it was saved (safe!) it appears to have disappeared, so we'll try again- the story picks up where I left off two weeks ago:

CD, Craig, Catherine and Robyn

After all the camping adventures in No.Cal and Oregon we headed to Portland to see Robyn. We arrived a little early and hung out with Christian and Josephine for a couple of hours before Robyn could get off work.
We met her and Craig at the Farm Cafe for a really nice dinner. We tried almost every wine on the list before picking a bottle. The food was tasty and full of surprises (that's not a clam! it's a stone!) and the conversation plentiful.

Monday we walked around Robyn's neighborhood in search of coffee. Not only were we rewarded with great coffee, but awesome Cuban food. We caught up with Jason who was also free for the day and hung out at Dots for a cocktail before heading to the movies (it was raining!) We saw "The Namesake" which is based on a book that both Robyn and I had read for bookclub. We all agreed that it truly portrayed the hardships, not so much financial as emotional, of immigrants to the US. We all cried and loved it- recommended! That evening we ate Ethiopian food before heading to Craig's for a killer game of Scrabble.

Tuesday meant back to work for Robyn, so after getting coffee at Crema along with some delicious baked goods (I loved my cornbread biscuit with mushrooms and manchego cheese) we headed north to Seattle. We waited until the morning rush hour had died down and cruised up. We arrived around 1pm and headed straight to Bambino's for more coffee. Then we dropped in on Shelly and Charlie. King Charles is now 9 months old and getting ready to start crawling. Ruby the beagle was extremely excited to see us- we had missed her too! That evening we went to Chupacabra with Chris, Berger, Jason and Jess for some Mexican food and margaritas, of course. It was our first meeting with Jess and it was a good one. She is smart and funny (pretty much how Jason had described her)- very enjoyable company! Stefan (with whom we were crashing) joined us a bit later. We went home pretty late, but hopefully didn't wake up Sarah.

Jess and Jason

Wednesday we had a relaxing breakfast with the Lanimals and later headed for lunch with my ex-coworkers. We ate some tasty tacos and drank cold beer at Agua Verde. That place is always packed, especially because it was a sunny day! That evening we had plans to go to Bothell to watch the season finale of Lost with Brandon and Molly. We watched it at Brandon's sister Rachel's house- it was ideal: big screen mini theater and great food (not to mention the Lost lovers/fanatics).

Brandon and Molly

Thursday we gladly did our duty and had lunch at Thai Tom's (no visit to Seattle is complete without a date at the counter of Thai Tom's). It was nice to spend more time with Jason and Brandon. That whole afternoon we chilled with Hyewon and Mike and little Emmy. She's a little darling! She's only six-months old, but full of personality. That evening, Chris and Shelly had asked their friend Jill to watch Charlie while we hit the town. Sarah joined us too for a great meal at Volterra followed by a big group gathering at the Pig 'n' Whistle. It seems to have become the best meeting place for us when we are in Seattle, the fact that it is within crawling distance from Stefan and Sara's house is also a plus. They were so wonderful to let us stay with them- their house is newly painted and looks great!

Friday was a slow start, but I managed to get up to have coffee with Jen and Chris who had recently been in Europe. I was eager to see their photos and hear some stories- and catch up on their lives in general. Hyewon came over later and we got some coffee and a chance to talk- it was lovely to have some girlfriend time. The previous evening's crew managed to gather for some tasty chinese food. She joined us for the Firepot's (dare I say it) hangover lunch. It felt like a family affair with both Emmy and Charlie in high chairs probably wondering what the adults were up to.

Hyewon, Emmy and Charlie

At some point I realized that I'd better be a trooper and join my work friends for the usual Friday afternoon gathering at the Fiddler. The Fiddler is a great hangout in Wedgewood; preferred for its proximity to Sandpoint/NOAA , loved for its great choice of beers on tap and delicious pizza! On our way back to Greenwood we stopped by to visit with Elysebeth. It is always wonderful to see her- plus we usually go for walks!

The week was so exciting and loaded with people that CD and I stayed in at Stefan and Sarah's (they had left for the weekend) that evening.