Family Vacation July 2022, Edmonds, WA

We had family come in from out of town and we all stayed at this beautiful home in Edmonds. I was very excited to walk in and see the piano. I sat down and played Disney songs for almost an hour. There was also a half court in the backyard and I shot a few hoops.

This outdoor kitchen was fantastic. (File this under: if I ever have the resources, I want one of these!)

Neat stool:

The backyard had a pool and hot tub. It wasn't warm enough outside to use the pool, but a few people in our group used the hot tub. If we had the house for this upcoming week, I'm sure we would've been in the pool every day...

I got to read a bit. I'm reading a book by Nedra Glover Tawwab that I highly recommend called "Set Boundaries Find Peace". I'm taking my time going through that book as there is a lot to absorb and I find myself going back and re-reading sections to make sure I am really understanding what I'm reading.

The book shown below, "The Last Time I Lied" by Riley Sager is my last Sager - I hope he writes more soon! I have really enjoyed his other books. When I finish this one, I'll let you all know which one is my favorite!

We celebrated my father-in-law's 60th birthday. These cupcakes from Pinkabella were delicious!

The view from the backyard was spectacular... I loved watching the sunset. I love being by the water because it's so relaxing and peaceful. The mountains are good for my soul, but so is the water.

I want to make a painting from these photos.

You can see a little hummingbird in this photo:

View from one of the rooms:

On Wednesday, we went to the Olympic Game Farm and part of the experience was honestly kind of a bummer. There have been some obvious changes there and it's not quite the same wholesome feeling experience anymore. They took down the Disney sign at the entrance too.

It was fun to see all of the babies and getting to feed the animals as we drove through. I love that they come up to your car and stick their heads in.

There were a lot more bears which was weird because there isn't more space for them. I was definitely thrown off by the lion and tiger and pack of wolves they had in small cages. It seemed like they were well fed, but it was uncomfortable seeing them in such small enclosures. I just feel bad for them. I don't know the story behind the cats and wolves, but I now know there is a lawsuit for having the big cats in those kinds of enclosures. Different groups have gone in there and tried to rescue them and offer a better environment for them and have been turned down. I really don't want to judge until I know all the facts, which I may never know. I'm sure the pandemic hurt the farm a lot, like it has so many other places. It still wasn't the most savory thing to see.

I am a big animal lover and while I completely pulled back from all of my volunteer and service activities to recharge my battery and narrow down my commitments to something reasonably balanced, I feel like I want to get involved with something related to animals again when the time comes.

Here are a few baby pictures from the farm:

And here is one of the bears, just so over it.

This was outside of Ono Poke Too and a florist shop in Kingston. A little bush area with seating inside. So cute!

We went down to the Edmonds Waterfront on Friday after enjoying brunch at the Rusty Pelican.

Here's the whole group on Friday night:

And here are a few garden details...

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Even though I got sick on Wednesday night and ended up in Urgent Care on Thursday and have been recovering (I'm ok now), I am very thankful we got to see family this week. I think that was the most important thing!

Side note: I can't believe how fast summer is going by! Slow doooowwwnnn, please! Last winter was too long. I am doing my best to savor every moment of these long days and sunshine as much as possible.