Turkey Day, 2011

Another day of overeating and good times. Thanksgiving was much quieter than ususal this year. Usually, if all of Glenn's family shows up, we have over 35 bodies. This year only 13. Nancy's son, Jason, and his wife Kathy, graciously hosted our small gathering.

Morgan was pleased with his headress and dried potato necklace from school. The potatoes are supposed to look like teeth. It's pretty beleivable.
Me, about to dive into one of the desserts I made. Brownie Chocolate Chip Cheesecake. Yum!! I'll try to share the recipe soon.

Nancy's daughter, Shari, played a rousing game of Uno with her nephews and Morgan.

I did some shopping on our hosts' computer. JCPenney had their Black Friday deals online already! I avoided the crowds, the early morning and got free shipping. What more could a person want?!

The adults played a rousing game of Twenty-one/Thirty-one. Shari took our money!

And a grand time was had by all!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy this special time of preparation for Christmas. God bless!

Seattle--Zoo Memories

Oops! Found a few more zoo pictures! Imagine that.

Our kids are hooked on those machines that press an image onto a penny. We've done them a couple other places. I tried to argue they'd lose them, but they have a special place to keep them. Well, how can I to argue with that?!!


You pop in your money (two quarters and the penny), chose the design you like and turn the handle.

And, voila, out comes a smashed penny! Here a mama giraffe nuzzles her baby and it says Woodland Park Zoo. One of the kids wondered if it was legal to smash a penny. Must be. Don't turn us in if it's illegal. Okay? Just saying.

The kids also wanted to do the photo booth, but their cheapo mom said no. Cousin Wendi stepped up. They really got a kick out of it.

And they had this handy dandy screen on the outside of the booth, so cheapo mom could watch the fun unfold!

So, I think that may be the last of the zoo pictures, but you can't hold me to that. I'm just keeping it exciting.

Seattle--Troll

There's a crazy-big troll statue under a bridge in Seattle that we had to check out. It didn't hurt that it was a free attraction!
It's funny, but sometimes the free attractions seem more interesting to the kids than the spendier ones!

Troll sitting.

This was the end of day three in Seattle. We were all tired and cold. John and Wendi were very good sports about taking us wherever we wanted to go and doing so with a smile! They're the best hosts!

Seattle--Underground

Seattle has an area of downtown with underground passageways that we toured with John and Wendi. The story goes that the original downtown was built right on the tide flats and so was notorious for flooding. After a big fire burnt all the buildings to the ground, it was decided to regrade above sea level. This was going to take a few years, so in the meantime, owners rebuilt their businesses knowing the roadbed would be built 12 to 30 feet higher than the original road. They planned to eventually use the upper floor as the entrance.

We also heard in great detail about the trouble with the gravity-fed sewer system that drained into the bay and backed up daily with high tide. Fascinating, no?


On the tour, they take you down to where the original sidewalks were. They pointed out these "skylights" that were installed in the new sidewalks so there would be natural light in the passageways.

This is a display of one of the original "pipes" used for the original water system. Rustic.

And then there was the gift shop at the end of the tour. Not sure what a horse head mask has to do with underground Seattle, but Nicole couldn't resist. And, or course, if she can't resist trying it on, I'm not about to resist taking a picture!

Already Been Chewed

Yup, as in ABC Gum. It's called the Market Theater Gum Wall, and it's in an ally near Pike's Place Market. The theater patrons began sticking their gum to the wall in 1993. According to Wikipedia, the theater employees scraped it clean a couple times before it was deemed a tourist attraction in 1999. It was deemed the 5th germiest tourist attraction in 2009. There's something to brag about.

In some places the gum is several inches thick and it's 15 feet high and 50 feet long. It's often used by wedding photographers. Can you imagine? No, I don't think I want a picture of myself in a wedding dress in front of a gum wall.


One of those things that's interesting and icky all at the same time!

Maybe no wedding dresses, but a good opportunity for a family pic! Not something you want to stand too close to for pictures!!! Ewww!

No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed!

Downtown Seattle was fascinating.

These guys were good. They even had CDs of their music for sale. They were outside of Starbucks.

John and Wendi took us to the very first Starbucks store. It was founded in 1971. It's a tiny little store and the line takes up the entire building, so there are no tables. They treated us to yummy hot cocoa.

If you ever go to Seattle, you may notice there is a Starbucks store on almost every street corner! John and Wendi said you have to be very specific when you're meeting someone at Starbucks because there are so many!

This guy was, by far, my favorite street entertainer!! He was singing a very funkified version of "No More Monkey's Jumping on the Bed." He had bells on one foot, clackers on the other, a harmonica, guitar and hula hoop! After I snapped the picture, I took notice of the signs in his guitar case. It was open for donations, of course, but the signs read SALE 50% off donations! He even has a website there for true fans. EmeryCarl.com, in case you're interested.