The smoke has cleared and we are clear to resume outdoor activities…and so we have. It actually started getting much better on Friday night. After finishing wishing my wonderful mom a happy birthday, we checked our phones again to see the lovely news that we were in the “moderate” zone. And so we went outside and played in the backyard for a bit. Reese looked almost shocked when I asked her if she wanted to go outside.
Saturday wasn’t the most beautiful day, presenting cooler temps and gray skies with rain right as Bryan began grilling, but we could go outside and that was enough for us. We had our weekly pancakes and then Bryan and I took turns going out for a run. Reese got her turn in when we all left the house for a walk to get cookies at our cookie window, which we shared in their outdoor seating patio. Reese is pretty firm on her selection: the birthday cake sugar cookie that comes with sprinkles and white chocolate chips. It wouldn’t be my first choice but it is actually an amazing cookie! We returned home just as Lottie and Sarah were coming over. We spent the night grilling and cooking and drinking wine. The girls played like they usually do and all seemed much more right with the world.
Sunday morning again started overcast and was that way through the morning. We set out for Lake Washington Boulevard for another family bike ride along the still-closed-to-car-traffic stretch of Lake Washington. This was Reese’s nap so we decided to do another lap on the closed and flat road to extend our trip. About half way through the ride the skies had opened and presented a beautifully sunny day to us.
We arrived home to just under a 20-mile bike ride and Reese was ready to play. Once showered, I made some nachos for our first Hot Mamas get together with Carina, Eliana, and Marion who came over to enjoy the toys and drinks in the back yard. Bryan got ready to go hang out with Luis, catching up over beers of their own. After about three hours of playing with 18-month-old (but the same size) Eliana, Reese was apparently so tuckered out she fell asleep on me at no later than 6:30 pm watching the Seahawks game. She hasn’t done this in ages and it was so sweet. I don’t think her nap was the best and even after transferring her to her bed she proceeded to sleep until after 7 am this morning. That meant that Bryan and I had the rarity of several hours at night with a sleeping Reese. We finished the Seahawks game with a frozen pizza and wishing today wasn’t a Monday.
But it is Monday and I’m already ready for another weekend. I’m so happy that the smoke is gone and we can go back to outdoor activities. However, I feel like I didn’t get to say goodbye to summer properly with the last warm days being taken away by the smoke. I’m still working on being grateful for the fall and hopeful for fun fall activities.
Chelsea
Evolving in the Emerald City 