Seattle Post 1: Flying Well, Eating Better

Our plane trip from Burbank to Seattle on Wednesday went very well. The girls stayed occupied with coloring, books and snacks.

On Thursday, Uncle Bill had to work and Aunt Patty offered to stay home with the girls so Stace and I could have a date day. We had a fabulous lunch at the Yacht Club Broiler - if you're ever in Silverdale, Wash., we highly recommend it. We enjoyed delicious clam chowder, crab cakes and a seafood salad with lobster, fresh crab and giant prawns. Oh my. Then, we went shopping to get ideas for redoing our bedroom and maybe buying a new couch or sectional.

On Friday, Cora had her wintertime beach experience, collecting clams and oysters that we had for dinner tonight (Saturday).

 It may have been cold and wet, but when you're five, it's no bother to go harvesting your food.

On Friday we celebrated Cora's birthday (again! Lucky girl!) with Aunt Patty's amazing strawberry shortcake. This was after two types of homemade soup and this cheese-and-onion soda bread that Stace loved so much, he was considering leaving me for it.

Today, we went to Stokes Auction, a monthly event with all sorts of interesting things to peruse and bid on. Uncle Bill and my mom grew up going to auctions with their dad, so this was a blast from the past for them.

This time around, there weren't any cars for Uncle Bill to buy to flip, but we did go home with goodies. See the crockery I'm holding? I thought it would look great in the display cabinet in our kitchen, and I set my limit at $20. We got it for $7.50! Later, we saw similar pieces for sale online for a lot more, so that made me happy. Maybe I've found a line I can try to collect? (If you look at the link, the pitcher looks the same as the one we bought, but the plate we have is more round, not scalloped. We also got a matching spoon holder.)

Here was tonight's feast - salmon caught locally by a friend of Bill and Patty's; clams and oysters from the local beach; homemade gnocchi, bread and pesto; and pasta. It's hard to say goodbye to Patty without having gained five pounds!