The Weatherman

We drove up to Alderwood Mall and picked up our new dinnerware at Pottery Barn.  We are going with Sausalito collection - sapphire is the color.  This afternoon Nate took a 2 hour nap (very long for him) and Zach went over to Dominics for some fun.  Otherwise, it was relatively mellow.  I vacuumed and cleaned up around our house.  Here are some pictures I took today.

Nate on the swing after his 2 hour nap.

A (dead) dragonfly…he never moved so I believe he had just croaked.

Bees on lavendar.

So, my bad service day continued…I had very poor karma yesterday.  We dropped the boys off at daycare at 3:15pm and then Steph and I headed out for some dinnerware shopping - since we are remodeling the kitchen, we also decided to replace our dinnerware.  We really had no luck finding what we needed (Pottery Barn has the closest match).

After our shopping we headed downtown and had drinks at Cellars Restaurant - very nice bar with a very friendly bartender.  We spent about 90 minutes there and had a very enjoyable time.  Next we went over to Brasa to meet up with some friends for dinner.  We had a drink in the bar and then sat down at our table.  The restaurant was not very crowded, relatively quiet, but there was music playing throughout.  The table to my left had a young, quiet couple - never saw them talk to each other - so either fighting, eavesdropping or both.

Anyway, we haven’t spent much time recently with John and Kim (who have similar aged kids to Nate and Zach) so we had lots of catching up to do.  Being parents, we naturally talked about our kids quite a bit and their antics and funny stories.  Eventually, Steph and I were going through our Where’s The Poop story (see further down in blog) and I was in the middle of describing how I found Zach standing upstairs naked with a poopy diaper in one hand - when the guy in the table next to me interrupted the story.  He explained, in so many words, that our discussion was repulsive and inappropriate since he was trying to eat his dinner.  He explained that us talking about poop while he was eating was not acceptable and asked that we change the subject.

Ouch!  Flashback to my comment earlier - he and his significant other were quiet - either fighting, eavesdropping, or both.  I think we know the answer…clearly it was both.  Unfortunately, I was speechless…I couldn’t finish the story since I didn’t know how without using the word poop.  Maybe, if I said ’shit’ that would have made it alright.

So we continue along our merry way with different conversation (not about poop)…the whole time we kept dropping unapproving glances their way.  Anyway, they finally left and went into the bar area.  Now for the other shoe to drop.

The hostess, in a not so professional tone, stopped by our table to explain that our conversation was inappropriate and multiple tables had complained.  WHAT!  Multiple tables!  We were asked to quiet down and change the subject.  Also, you could tell she did not personally approve of the topic - which was mostly about our kids…not necessarily about poop.  Once the shock and absurdity wore off, we felt kind of proud.  It’s been awhile since we’ve annoyed such a large group at a restaurant (think back to nights at Spat’s in Berkeley during Steph’s law school days).  Since the hostess was absolutely rude about it, we felt challenged to push the limit.

Actually, we basically ended up talking about which tables could have possibly been annoyed by us.  BTW, there was a couple behind us with a screaming kid who was much louder (definitely making it tough for us to hear each other)…I wonder if they got shooshed?   Supposedly, a couple had sat at the table to my right (never saw them sit there - neither did Kim) and they eventually moved away…so I assumed they complained.

Shoe number 3 is about to drop.  Next the manager comes over to talk to us.  Un-F*ck-ing believable…I swear we were not loud and at this point all we were discussing was how crappy this place was.  The manager was much more professional, explaining that some patrons were complaining about conversation and how loud we were.  We asked that she reseat us in a more appropriate place…even the bar area would be fine.  She agreed to reseat us after we finished our appertizers which had just arrived.

We completed our appertizers and they moved us into the completely empty bar area…yes, a nice restaurant in belltown has a completely empty bar at 9pm on Saturday night…that should tell you something about this place!  We asked if we could be loud and obnoxious and they said ‘yes’…we had clearance to discuss poop all we wanted in the bar area.  The irritated hostess stopped by to see how we were doing.  So we asked who complained…she said 4 different tables filed complaints and she was personally offended.  Oh My God!  Amazing.  All this because we told some kid stories in normal voices and they contained the word poop.

Anyway, we finished off our meal, dessert, and coffee in the bar area.  I do want to point out that our server was awesome!  She never complained, she was always professional, always had a smile, and eventually shared her kid’s poop story with us.  She got a good tip.

It goes without saying that we will never go back to Brasa again.  If you can’t have normal conversation in a normal volume level - than what’s the point…unless you are fighting and/or eavesdropping.  We definitely give this place a thumbs down on service and atmosphere.  Food was hit and miss.  Some plates were very good, like the Paella, others like the pappardelle were not very inspiring - in fact, John didn’t finish it.

This morning Zach (my 3 year old) and I went down to a local West Seattle restaurant at 9am for breakfast. The place was relatively empty and we took a seat next to the window.

We got our menus and I noticed that the kids menu didn’t have much in the way of breakfast food…and no where was there listed any fruit. Ok, so not overly friendly for my kids. Anyway, I digress. I ordered Zach PB&J sandwiches (they cut them up into slices) and I ordered french toast with a side of bacon and coffee. BTW, they had no crayons (rare to not have crayons at a restaurant that seems to be for families)…they didn’t have children friendly cups either but our waitress improvised and provided apple juice in a coffee-to-go cup.

After ordering one other gentleman showed up and was seated near us and he eventually ordered. After no more than 10 minutes, Zach received his PB&J. I continued to wait for mine. BTW, I never asked to bring Zach’s food early. 5 minutes went by and the gentleman who showed up after we ordered received his meal. After another 5 minutes (10 minutes since Zach received his food) Zach was finishing up his meal and getting ancy and I had yet to receive my food.

I called over the waitress and asked for my food to go and explained that she gave us Zach’s food much too soon. Now that he has finished, I won’t be able to peacefully eat my food with him running around. She proceeded to get my food to go and check…albeit at a leisurely pace. She comped my french toast (which wasn’t very good to begin with - not sure the batter was completely cooked). We left and returned home where I ate my breakfast.

Here it is…better late than never…

Well, the weekend ended quieter for some…I went down with a stomach issue (not Mike) that put me out of commission Saturday evening.  We hung out at the house and all, except for me, enjoyed Mike’s top rated chicken burritos (I was bummed).  Mike also made peach cobbler - which I tried.  It was yummy.

Today we were all tired or hung over (Jan).  We spent the morning eating Mike’s southwestern egg, sausage, and tortilla bake.  It was awesome!  The drive home was uneventful…I fortunately did not have to make any bathroom stops and the boys allowed us to drive nonstop.  We would have made record time if it wasn’t for the horrible traffic from Olympia through Fort Lewis and again in Tacoma.  Now we are home for another week of kitchen upgrades.

Nate making some burritos.

This is the RC Jeep we picked up at ToysRUs

Nate hanging in the yard.

Zach getting airborn on the neighbors trampoline.

First - Mike and Jan now have a blog - Check it Out.   Warning:  May not be suitable for all viewers.

Well, since our kitchen is out of commission, we travelled down to Eugene for the weekend to hang with Auntie Jan and Uncle Mike (Jeep). We arrived just after 6pm last night and spent the evening drinking rum…at least Mike, Jan and I. Steph had vino. This morning, everyone except Nate, was up by 6:45am. Yes, even Jan was up!

Mike promptly removed the soft top from the Jeep so we could drive around and enjoy the sun. The trip was to the coffee shop and butcher. Zach loved being in the Jeep. Second trip was to ToysRUs for the following cool toys:

• A rocket…Yes, a real rocket with a large explosive in it. We have yet to fire it.
• A remote controlled jeep
• 3 styrofoam gliding planes
• An Elmo remote control
• A handprint keepsake (don’t ask)

We had lunch at Mcmennamins North Bank - lousy service and OK food but you get to sit along the river. After words we went to the park where Steph and Jan rode the teater totter, Zach ran around on the jungle gym, and Nate sat in the swing. Mike and I launched glider #1 - we are now expert pilots after flying the original glider in the 50mph winds of Lake Chelan. Back to the house and we played with the RC Jeep and then everyone had nappy time.

Zach playing with water at the park.

Nate starting to melt down in Jan’s lap.

Mike watching the glider return to him in a loop d loop.

Steph stepped off the teeter totter and let Jan crash to the ground.

A quick kitchen update…base cabinets are in, canned lights are wired, and all other wiring is run.

Upper cabinets and tools being stored in our dining room.

Base cabinets.

They are making good progress - even a little ahead of schedule…so they should definitely make the scheduled completion date of August 7th.

I met our project manager/contractor assigned to our project today.  He showed up at around 9:45am and we stepped through a bunch of checklists for the next 45 minutes.  Today he laid down a protective floor covering, he moved in his tools, and basically demo’d the whole kitchen.  All of the cabinets have been removed as has the dishwasher.  I have some picutres from before the demo (haven’t took pictures of the kitchen yet today).

Just to make today even more interesting, the boys’ daycare was closed so daddy was very excited to hang out with them all day.  Well, not really excited…more like scared.  Trust me when I say that work is much easier than watching a 1 year old and a 3 year old.  So to make the best of it we went to Endolyne Joes for lunch (best french fries in West Seattle if you didn’t know) and then I took them to the Zoo.  Now this was dangerous since we didn’t leave the house until almost 11am.

The zoo was great.  Zach ran around the whole time with Cars backpack on checking out all of the animals.  I think he liked the elephants the most - at least that was his favorite today.  As for the backpack, we picked it up on Sunday so Zach could carry around his own stuff.  He seems to like it a lot.

Pre demo picture.

Second view of kitchen pre-demo.

Zach at the zoo.

Zebras at the zoo.

Zach’s favorite alphabet.

Bee in the yard (for those who know me, my lens had a min focus distance of 1.5m)

Nater on the swing.

Next up for the kitchen - complete the demo tomorrow, new appliances arrive tomorrow (to be stored in the garage), and the electrician will be here on Wednesday and Thursday working on the canned lights, plugs, and switches.

Kitchen starts between 8am and 9:30am tomorrow morning. It is empty! We completed clearing it out today and finished picking up what we need to live without kitchen (paper plates, paper bowls, etc).

Also, I picked up Autopano Pro for building panorama images. FYI, panos don’t show well in the blog, so click through on the image to see a bigger version.

This is the view from our backyard during our vacation in Chelan.

You can see the lake in the center of the photo far below our house.  We were about 1500 feet higher than the lake.  For those familiar with Lake Chelan, the lower right portion of the lake is Waputo Point.

As for the pano software, I tried out about 5 different ones…I definitely wanted more auto software that did a good job with the blends.  Autopano Pro, although it costs money, seemed to be the best fit for me.  Overall, the easiest software to use (although the GUI has some oddities that took getting used to - maybe I should RTFM).

Our kitchen remodel starts Monday morning.  Today we emptied out our kitchen, donated our plates, bowls, and glasses to goodwill, and setup a make-shift kitchen (ie, microwave) downstairs.  We’ll need to work a little more tomorrow to clean out the final items in the kitchen and move stuff from our upstairs fridge to the garage fridge.

We are excited but not looking forward to not having a kitchen with our 2 little boys.  Interesting times ahead.  Nate and I went down to Bed Bath and Beyond to look at new plates/bowls/cups.  I’m excited to replace what we had with something more suited for our needs.

We had dinner tonight at a local Mexican restaurant then we went for a walk at Lincoln Park…here are some photos.

Nate was tired during the walk.

Looking toward Coleman Pool.

Large freighter heading north.

Looking north along the park (same spot I took the header image from a few years back).

Tall grass along the water.

Above all this we saw the local bald eagle in his nest.  Unfortunately I didn’t bring my new lens so I couldn’t get a closeup.  Maybe next time.

Yep, where is the poop?  Nate was asleep in his crib.  Zach was in our bed watching Little Einsteins.  Steph and I were downstairs watching a recorded showing of Hopkins.

While downstairs we heard Zach running around upstairs, but we were not too concerned since this happens every night.  On Hopkins, things got really sad (a 2 year old with a heart issues came into the hospital)…I was done and went upstairs to check on our boys.

This is when the fun began.

Zach was standing in living room with his diaper in one hand and his pants in the other.  He was naked with poop smeared down both of his legs.  Yikes!

I brought him into his bedroom and began to wipe him down.  Knowing I had him but no poop, I yelled into the baby monitor…”I need a little help here…Mom…We have a poop problem”.  I was so loud that our neighbors heard (I found out later).

I got Zach into the bath and noticed that he tried to use both his porta potty and the big, adult potty.  Both of which were covered in shit!  Steph began to clean those off and found shit on the living room floor and our couch.  So, of course, she cleaned those off.

Basically, Zach practiced his potty training all over without supervision…good job…but hopefully, next time, he can get some adult supervision.

Clearly I’m not the best photographer of people…since my photos are lacking candid shots of family and such…Here are a bunch of photos that Steph took…

I’m not dirty.

Elton John…eat your heart out!

Auntie Jan and Zach on the boat.

Napping Nate…Daddy passed out!

Here is the link to all photos…link.

Quick update on the weekend…We went to the West Seattle Summer Fest…Zach still through a fit at the bounce houses like last year, however, this year he actually got tired and walked around relatively calmly after playing for 15 or 20 minutes.

It was warm (mid 80s) this weekend so Zach and Dominic ran through our sprinklers on Saturday night, and then they (including Nate) played in Dom’s pool on Sunday night…so they kept cool this weekend.

Between arguments with Steph (yes, things are a little stressful after watching the kids for 2 weeks) I got tons of gardening done - lawn mowing, removed some plants, planted new plants, and laid out some new mulch.  We also packed up 14 bags of clothes and shoes for Goodwill and cleaned out/re-orged the garage.  So a lot of stuff got done.

I kicked Steph out of the house today - she needed some time away from the boys…I didn’t even hit her with the towel today like yesterday…small improvement, but an improvement nonetheless.

That was the theme coined by Zach during our vacation at Lake Chelan. Whenever we’d pull into our parking spot, Zach would yell out ‘We Made It!’. Also when we pulled our boat up to the dock, Zach again exclaimed ‘We Made It!’. I believe it had something to do with my driving/steering - maybe a little to wild for him.

Now, about our vacation. It was awesome! We had hot weather, lightning, windy weather, and just plain nice days. The house was huge and very kid friendly. The best part about the house was the wrap around deck, large grassy yard, and awesome pool. Plus we had plenty of land to run around and play catch with our giant styrofoam plane.

We arrived on Wednesday afternoon (2.July). We took a grocery shopping run to stock up on food supplies. Jan and Mike showed up at around 11pm. I had to go rescue them as they got lost trying to find the place. In all fairness, we were 6 miles up from the lake off on a dirt road plus the road names had changed recently so GPS systems were out of date.

On Thursday we started drinking by 10:30am (actually, this was the theme everyday) - we had lots of alcohol to finish since we had 3 bottles of Tequila, 3 bottles of Rum, a bottle of vodka, and a bottle of gin…that isn’t counting the wine and beer. We played whiffle ball that morning then Mike and I drove down to Wenatchee to pick up Lin who flew up from San Jose.

The pool was cool on the first day since the heat pump had shut off but the pool boy showed up and got things running normally (it was 84 degrees for the rest of the trip). That night we had a chicken dinner…well most of us had a chicken dinner. Mike went down with a stomach ailment for the evening so he didn’t eat much. During the night there were several lightning storms in the area - since we were up above the lake and had a tremendous view, we could lightning to the east, south, and west.

Friday was the 4th of July and of course, Nate’s one year birthday. We opened presents, baked and ate his birthday cake, played in the pool for hours, drank heavily, and went out to dinner. We went to the Hungry Belly which was basically your typical diner - nothing special but we didn’t know. We finished off the evening watching the fireworks over Manson Bay in Lake Chelan - we watched from the comfort of our deck.

Saturday and Sunday were lounge days around the pool. Plus we spent numerous hours playing with a giant styrofoam plane - throwing it around the yard - this was by far the big hit toy for Mike and I. Saturday night was crab and steak night - yummy - except Jan went down with a stomach ailment during the night but she jumped back quickly the next morning. Lin flew home on Sunday afternoon after spending 3 days playing with the boys.

The big highlight on Monday included a trip to Banjo Creek Farms where Zach and I went through the petting zoo feeding and petting goats, ducks, rabbits, horses, cows, chickens, and turkeys. Zach was a little freaked out but I thought it was cool. That afternoon, Mike took Zach and I on an offroading adventure. We took the jeep on a 27 mile trek on the forest service roads high above Lake Chelan - we had tremendous views all around and saw some amazing wildflowers.  Zach was a real trooper…a few times we thought he might be car sick since he kept making some weird noises.  But he held tough, at least until just after dinner where he vomitted over the kitchen table - poor little guy.  He bounced back quick.

On Tuesday, we rented a boat on Lake Chelan for 2 hours and cruised up the lake to catch views of the Cascades to the west.  Nate fell asleep within minutes of the boat leaving the dock - so he doesn’t like riding in a car but he seems to like boats.  Zach had a blast sitting in the bow letting the wind hit him in the face at 30 mph.  Dad didn’t even crash the boat.  There was a ton of debris in the lake (ie, logs and other wood debris) which kept you scanning the water - hitting one of those logs could create a slight problem.

The rest of our final day was spent relaxing in the pool…and drinking.  The drive home today was quick…Auntie Jan and Uncle Mike are staying here tonight in order to break up their drive back to Eugene.  And now for the photos.

Panoramic showing view from our yard.

My best lightning picture so far!

Our driveway.

Having fun on vacation.

Zach at the petting zoo.

One of many views from our 4×4 adventure.

View from backyard.

I’ve post my favorite pictures in my gallery - go here.

My first shots of lightning ever!  Yeah, they are are crappy, but this is my first attempt to capture lightning.  Besides, the storm is pretty far south so it’s not like this lightning was very close.

We got up to 88 degrees today.  Right now at 9:45pm it is still 74 but with tons of clouds and a definite threat for thunderstorms moving in.  Here is a shot of Nater hangin by the lil pool in our yard today.

Last night at 10:15pm, Zach and I cruised out onto our porch and sat outside for 30 minutes watching cars, people, and animals.  I was amazed that he sat in his chair next to me for 30 minutes without getting up.  Anyway, it was a father/son bonding moment.

Today we had a high of 86 at our house…a bit shy of the official 91 at SeaTac…but still a wonderfully warm day.  We took the boys to the wading pool at Lincoln Park.  Zach and I spent about an hour in the water - very relaxing.  I started the day on the water with a 6:30am kayak run with Tom…Nice way to start the day.

Yesterday, a group of us at work went to the 73rd floor observation deck at the top of Columbia Center tower in downtown.  Here are some shots showing our wonderfully clear day.

Looking NE toward 520 floating bridge.

Looking south over I5 toward Mt Rainier.

Elliott Bay and the Olympics.

Looking south towards our office and the stadiums.

What an amazingly beautiful place!

Well, not really. Tomorrow will be 7 seconds shorter than today…not much in the grand scheme of things. But summer is here which means the days get warmer but the nights do get shorter. You can find all of the details on Weather Underground:

http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=98126

Here in West Seattle, I can definitely see Nautical Twilight. The rise is at 3:35am and the set is at 10:47am…not much darnness - about 5 hours worth. I love it. We’ve been sleeping with the blinds open so I can see our daylight start. This has been a little rough this week with the full moon glaring at us all night.

I captured these photos of a Seattle skyline sunrise right before heading out of a morning of kayaking on the Duwamish.

I even got a bird to fly through the photo!

A wider shot including the pier at Seacrest Marina.

A thirsty Nate.

The other day our team at work went on the Argosy Locks Cruise…what fun.  It starts in Lake Union next to Kenmore Air, cruises through Lake Union, out the ship canal, through the locks, around Magnolia, and ending up at the Argosy doc on the Seattle Waterfront.

View from Seacrest Park while I wait for the Water Taxi

Space Needle from Argosy boat on Lake Union.

Looking back at the locks as we exited.

Shilshole Marina.

Well, we kept pretty this weekend again.  Friday evening we held a BBQ at our house for Steph’s work…we had around 15 people over for a potluck - we supplied the burgers, hot dogs, and refreshments.  But the big story for the weekend was our one night of camping at Millersylvania State Park - about 10 minutes south of Olympia.

First, Millersylvania is a beautiful park and campground situated amoung a primarily Douglas Fir forest and bordering on Deep Lake (don’t think it’s very deep).  We had two adjoining campsights (the other site being used by the Alessi’s).  We packed up the van on Saturday morning and left home at 12:30…We were checked in just before 2pm.

The only painful part of this trip was the amount of stuff you need to bring camping when it involves 2 kids.  So we had our huge Kelty Green River 6 tent, the queen size air mattress, a single air mattress, and the pack-n-play.  We had enough room in our test for another queen size mattress!

We took a walk to Deep Lake where the boys ran around the little beach touching the water.  Zach did fall in - about 3 inches of water.  He got soaked and I think a little scared from his mishap so we had to hurry back to camp and get him changed.  The night was cool (Olympia got down to 37 which tied a record for this date), but the boys slept well.  Mom didn’t sleep since dad kept snoring (he was drunk).  The morning for dad was rough with his hangover.  But the boys jumped right into their playing routine.  We packed up camp and left at around 11:30am (home by 12:30)…then the unpacking started.  2 to 3 hours later everything we put back and things were cleaned up.

Lots of work for such a short trip…but we had a good time.

Palace de Arthur

Minutes before Zach fell in.

Looking out over Deep Lake.

Canoeist on Deep Lake.

Looking up from our campsite.

Random picture of Nate about a week ago…funny laugh.

And for the movie…This covers Memorial Day weekend with Jan and Mike, setting up the tent in our yard, camping, and post camping fun with the kids - It’s a long one.

We had another busy weekend for the Arthurs.  We didn’t travel far but seemed to move around a lot…trip to REI, trip to the grocery store, running, walk to coffee, morning trip to Seward Park, lunch in downtown, trip to pickup firewood, trial setup of our new tent, walk the dog, clean, and cook…it all adds up.

Before I forget, here is a picture from Zach’s birthday party that Steph took.

Rare moment on film where they are together.

While I was picking up firewood, I was able to take a quick shot of this racoon.  He wouldn’t look down since he was sleeping.  Jim kept throwing wood in the vicinity (absolutely far enough away to not even come close to hitting it) and finally the lil guy popped his head up.

Raccoon in the tree.

Zach at Seward Park

Looking over Lake Washington at Seward Park

Smith Tower in downtown Seattle (we ate just up the street at Collins Pub).

Now onto the tent…the thing is huge.  We bought the Kelty Green River 6.  It has floor space of 13.5′ by 9′ and an 80 square foot vestibule.  Center height is around 6 and a half feet.  I was able to get a good portion of it setup on my own but definitely needed help to move it and setup the rain fly.  It is a sweet palace.  We are going away for one night of camping next weekend - the first camping night with the boys - it could be interesting.

Today we cruised around a small portion of Seward Park along Lake Washington.  Wow, what a beautiful park.  It is amazingly untouched with beautiful forests and paths throughout.  I definitely want to head back and go running around there.

A quick comment about the firewood - Jim, friend of mine in Sammammish, lost some trees in the December 2006 wind storm.  He had cut up the trees into largish chunks last year and he has been splitting the wood over the last month - so I was able to pick up some (probably a fifth of a cord)…I agreed to pay $1.18 per cubic foot (don’t ask).

And now for one really annoying item.  As some of you know, Steph was at Whistler in early May for a conference.  Steph has an iPhone.  These two facts can really f*ck you over if you don’t turn off the data part of the iPhone.  We got dinged for $650 of data transfer fees…basically any email she downloaded on the phone incurred huge fees.  For example, one data transfer session for 6.2 MB (this could be one email with a largish photo) cost $94!  AT&T, those stealing bastards.  That’s ridiculous.  They have one page buried on their website that I found that discusses this.  I’ll be honest, even if I looked before she left, I may have not found it.  I need to call them, although, I’m sure it will just piss me off and I’ll get no where.