memorialium

Every memorial day since I can remember
I've visited the cemetary with my dad
in memory of my two grandfathers
who served in the Royal Canadian Air force in WW11
and also became dedicated United States citizens.

This year we added a trip to the Western side of this lovely state as a little nuclear family to see what Seattle and its environs had to offer us.

1. A lot of rain. But lovely all the same.

 little Ethan found a berry.

and proceeded to pose exactly like this

for five successive pictures.

:)

2. A pass through Forks, Washington (but we saw no vampires. nor wolves. nor particularly angsty pre-teen "dark romance" fanatics. thank the heavens.)

3. An authentic shop near Pike Street (Seattle) that eased some Middle Eastern homesickness and major falafel cravings.

I was so excited!

4. Rhodedendrons! Everywhere!! This beauty is the state flower of Washington, and we visited a rhodey park that housed bushels of rare and exotic species (brands? versions? breeds?).

5. A breathtaking skyline,

some quality time with my silly parents and brother,

the greenest, freshest, loveliest city I know,

and a much needed holiday.

Ethan told everyone in the elevator that we were going up

the "Empire Space Needle."

love, clouds, and the best chowder you'll ever consume,

banana

Indie Anna: An odyssey of sorts

Well of course I couldn't let Jenalee drive 2,000 miles alone...
So we and the sunglasses (always the sunglasses) packed up the puppies
and our sense of adventure.

...Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and finally we found Rapid City, South Dakota. And my belief that the state didn't actually exist was...proven wrong.There was much debate over who the second head was. It turns out he's Thomas Jefferson, though after we discovered that, Jena still thought it was Andrew Jackson...for a while.


Luckily we were able to get a nice biker gang from Arkansas to take our picture with "the boys".
Washington and Washington....get it?
Oh.... and Washington. And me. It was fun to find home in a strange nonexistent state.

This was our "we're-so-excited-we're-about-to-see-Mt. Rushmore-faces




YES IT WAS THAT EXCITING.










And I also found Hawaii, my future home.





One of my
goals for the trip was to find awesome old tourist traps. Mitchell, SD, home of the world's only Corn Palace and stuffed Native American, Zach, was perfect.

Minnesota welcomed us on day 2 with a lovely sign. We discovered the "m" in Minnesota stands for "muggy."

...But we also discovered Fairmont. The most adorable little porcelain Midwestern town. They had no McDonald's. but they DID have an opera house. And a lake.






























Jena and I read The Jane Austen Book Club in front with Buster, and Hazel slept soundly with the water in back.

Yep. still sleeping.Iowa, Illinois, and finally Indiana on day 3. We entered Jena's new home in "The historic "cottage home neighborhood" of downtown Indianapolis.

Her house was built in 1890.

And is adorable.

And this is the view from her front steps and little park a house away.

I loved it all. But mostly this store, "Save a lot." It, along with "Unique Thrift Store" really made the trip worth while.
Along with the Mad Libs
And Lame Deer, Montana
And the dogs
And the storms
And the crazy, friendly, midwestern people
And so many adventures I can't count them.

Energy drinks, postcards, and sing alongs,Anna

ROADTRIP!

This weekend was one of the best I've ever had.

Friday three friends and I forsook the gas prices, bought some caffeinated mints, and hit the open road for a little adventure to the westernmost part of the state.

It was so fun.







Kenny and Melissa built a lovenest in the back seat.





Josh tried to drive but I kept taking pictures.









We were so excited. We accidentally thought we were on our way to Disneyland.

Aaand finally we made it to Seattle. Where we discovered our long-lost brother, Jordan. He's leaving for Brazil for two years. For some odd reason. So we had to go stay with him.

...And Melissa worked her magic on him. Too.

























Oh. And me. Actually, I think everyone fell in
love with her at one point on the trip.





And SEATTLE was SO awesome!




















We made friends with people on the street and I got to see my childhood sweetheart, Carly.

(Even though we could only seem to take ugly awkward pictures...)

And the ride home was full of much joy. And snuggling of course.






















Did I mention I enjoyed myself immensely?

Love, rye chips, and hobos,
Anna