Victoria

We went to Victoria with our friends Shane and Julie to all run in a half marathon and enjoy a couple of days of R&R.

Here we are, shortly after the run, enjoying a couple of pints at a local pub.

Enjoying some wine in the hotel room while playing cards.

We even felt well enough after the run to walk to the gym the next morning to work out.

Unfortunately, Shane hurt his feet badly enough in the run to ultimately need a wheel chair later the following day. Being the good friends we are, we found enormous enjoyment in making fun of him!

Especially when Cory had not yet figured out how to push the wheel chair successfully over the curb and ended up dumping Shane on the ground!

We discovered our new favorite breakfast spot. The Blue Fox Cafe! We can hardly wait to return next year. Best breakfast food ANYWHERE!

What is worse than a couple with matching BRIGHT ORANGE shirts?

TWO couples with matching bright orange shirts!

Salt Lake City

We drove (yes, I said DROVE) to SLC in September. 14 hours in the car with a bad back and 2 toddlers and we all survived! We had not been back to SLC in a number of years so it was fun to visit with friends and family we had not seen in a long time. It was a great trip!

The girls were amazing little travelers. We stopped a couple of times along the way to run off some energy and perform some exercises.

We did learn that Sydney does not like having a fly or any kind of bug inside the car. And I mean REALLY does not like it!


We managed to see a number of friends and family in SLC.

Cory's college friend Scott and family.

Cory's college friend Steve and family.

Cory's college friend Teressa and friend Roger.

Cory's college friend Xan and family

Cory's family

Shelby's family

Shelby's uncle Lee and his cool bike!

Cousin's Lexi and Bri with Siena and Sydney (talk about trouble!)

Great Grandpa Stewart chasing his dog around the yard.

Siena with Grandpa Stewart and Great-Grandpa Stewart

Cory was sure to get a couple rounds of golf in. Here he is with his uncle Tim and Poobah (his grandfather.)

We were fortunate to be able to stay with Cory's aunt Martha and uncle Tim the entire TEN DAYS we were in SLC. I can't believe they were able to put up with us for so long! Honestly, "Resort Hadden" was better than any place we could have possibly stayed. Especially since the girls had;

their own playroom,

their own indoor trampoline,

and a great "catty" (as they called it) who let them feed her and only occationally tried to bite them!

The girls also got a chance to swim in Teressa's pool. Sydney is amazingly comfortable in the water. No life jacket for her!

Cute picture of Siena and Teressa

Siena spent the entire 14 hour drive back to Seattle watching movies on the portable DVD player. She loved it!

Although it did eventually tire her out!

Evergreen State Fair

Siena got to go to the Evergreen State Fair with her friends, Emily and Zoe. She really enjoyed the rides and spent all her time on them!

Ross Lake

In August we went to Ross Lake for the first time. Our good friends, Julie and Shane invited us to join them and we had a blast!

These are the cabins we stayed in on the Lake.

Cory did a lot of fishing in the sun,

and in the rain!

At least he had some success!

And so did Shane and Julie!

We also managed to get in a little hiking.

Pretty Girl

When Sydney decides to wear some jewelry, she likes to wear it ALL!

North Cascades Hike

Cory went hiking with our friend Brian in the North Cascades. And despite the bad back and bad knees between the two of them, they survived!

Picnic at Greenlake

We enjoyed a nice picnic with the Grandparents at Greenlake. Siena and Sydney thought it was particularly fun to all sit on the ground to eat!

The girls also had fun chasing the seagulls in the park.

And Sydney always enjoys climbing!

Seattle City Chase

Cory and Shelby participated in an event called the City Chase in August. We were given a list of clues for 14 different challenges located all around Seattle. Our mission was to complete 10 challenges and then get to the finish line. We could run, walk, or use the metro bus system to get around. The day started out looking a little gray and rainy but it turned out to be great!

We could also call anybody and use the internet. Our friend Sarah was our hero for the day! She was on the phone with us many times during the chase researching trivia questions online and helping us find the right bus to catch. Thank you Sarah for all your help!

Our challenges included walking on a tightrope, an obstacle course, and sketching a nude female model! (Can you guess which of those was Cory's favorite?)

We came in 27th place out of about 150. Not too bad for a first time! Although we were lucky and avoided the rain during the day, when we left the post-chase party and headed back to the car, we got caught in a downpour! We didn't think the heavy stuff was going to come down for awhile!

We were able to take full advantage of the kids being away for the evening with Grandparents by going out to dinner and a fantastic chocolate dessert!

We even managed to go out to a club with friends. That's right. We are crazy!