yerba buena lighthouse

i got home from seattle and the very next day we sent alli off.
we were both lucky enough to be able to spend some quality time with dad.

kristi suggested we do some lighthousing, so we did! she'd wanted to check out treasure island for awhile, and it just so happens that there is a cute little lighthouse there. because it was a spur of the moment trip, i didn't do any research, so it wasn't the greatest lighthousing trip ever, and there was some definite trespassing on military land involved. 'tis the sordid life of a lighthouser.

the picture on the left is what the lighthouse actually looks like. the one on the right is what we saw. you can actually see it there between the trees if you look reeeeally hard.
ah well, it still counts.

a happy lighthouser, even with a crappy view.

nothing like a little trespassing and illegally parking with the babes. all in a days work.

these two loved running around and playing. they were so cute together.
as we walked all around the island we could smell the fresh smell of spearmint (yerba buena). sometimes heavy, but mostly just a light and nice frangrance.

gorgeous view of san francisco across the water.
gorgeous view of 2-year-olds right in front of me.

"give each other a kiss!"

awwwww!

see, they really do love each other. :)

the island was so beautiful.
the sun was going down and there were dozens upon dozens of photographers set up and taking pics.

awesome view of alcatraz island and what's that, yes, the light house. took me awhile, but i finally got the light flashing.
#worththewait

i love san francisco. from the first time i remember going there, back in 2000, i fell in love with it. such a cool city.

cute little postcard of the cute little island. definitely worth a trip out, and might i recommend a sunset visit?

 

it was a nice little lighthouse excursion.

but aren't they all. :)

a tale of three cities

so.
i was in seattle with daddy-o and we had a grand few days.

we blew the hospital, looked through old yearbooks and photo albums, and went lighthousing.

we played games and watched tv and napped.

we googled heart healthy recipes and experimented (by request) with heart healthy salisbury steak (tv dinner good) and bran muffins (sans flour, oopsie). t'was a good few days.

and i came home with a collection of g'ma and g'pa seagrove's classics to grow on and some nice photo albums to boot. sa-weet.

whilst i was living it up in seattle, laney was hanging with the 2-year old crew. group diaper changes are all the rage.

auntie alli - auntie of the year. we should all be so lucky.

 

quinney and laney have a little love/hate relationship. mostly love, but there were a whole lot of "mine!"'s thrown in there.

lanes loved the big pups. this sweet mckinley girl put up with a lot from this two-year-old. from tail pulling to chasing, that doggie is a saint.

homeless laney was calling me. such a serious phone talker, she is.

very dainty ladies eating their grilled cheese with forks. and don't mind the plywood wall, it's a work in progress.

these two are just a part of maxwell's fan club. he's got lots of fans. rightly so.

whilst i was in seattle, and laney in redwood city, the rest of the gang was chillin' in l-town.
also, i got a snapchat and lexi said "YAYYYYYYY."
i'm not the best snapper, but i've only got, like 2 snappie friends, and i birthed both of them.

cool kiddies.
so it turns out i was gone probably the worst (or maybe the best?) 2 weeks evah. out of the 9 days they should have been in school while i was gone, they only went 3, one a late start. oh poor laura.

the weather in maryland was b-a-d, bad. snow and more snow, and ice and more ice. i cannot say i was sad to miss it. my sister even asked if snow days were secretly really fun. i think it's 50/50, some are truly delightful, others, not so much. it's partly the not knowing, not being able to plan, and then too much of a good thing is never a good thing.

back on the homefront, frankly got a little burn while protesting a grilled cheese dinner.
nothing a little icy water can't fix.

addie-sox was sick one day too. do you sense a theme here? and a little finger wrapping... (;
 
buddies!

i.love.my.girls.
and random pics on phones.

she be a mad fashionista. and a cute one at that.

there's not a lot of hair showing, but what is is crazy. now that's impressive. :)

while we were gone, addie did lots of art, and took it upon herself to procure gallon sized ziploc bags, dig into the candy cupboard, and leave all of us notes and treats at our doors each morning. she is so precious!

 

now we are all back together and life is good. we've missed each other. the night i got home was so fun, it was late, but we all visited and told stories. then the next morning was like Christmas. everyone piled onto our bed and it was such a special time. looks like our little break was just what the dr ordered. :)

West Point light station

bonnie had never been to a lighthouse and it just so happened there were lighthouses to be seen! so one seattle day we took the scenic route (up rt 99) to north seattle to the west point light station.

doesn't my dad take the coolest pictures?

it's an old military base that now is a state park. but the coast guard still keep the light.

see the super photogenic satellite dish there?

i felt so bad having dad out there, it was soooooo cold and windy! he was a total trooper though!

hours of fun with the selfie stick! gotta get the iphone extender for mine.

bonnie ventured over the fence with me to look into the windows. there were some crazy huge machines in there. some coast guard stuff.

bonnie and anthony at their first ever lighthouse. she's hooked. she said she's totally going with me on the pacific northwest lighthouse tour i'll be doing some summer.

it was windy and bright and i am really bad at these. so there.

ever since touring north carolina lights with darlaina, i've had a total thing for the doors. they're all so unique and cool.

that is one cold lighthouser.

it was a cold but beautiful day. the water, the lighthouse, the landscape. it was awesome.

there was also a bald eagle flying around. he was bratty and went up this tower and wouldn't turn to us, but still pretty neat. bonnie had a moment with him. :)

i love the cliffs of the pacific northwest. and the huge ships and ferries in the water.
gorgeousness, all of it.
i love the difference in landscapes. there is such beauty to each unique area.

discovery park is a really cool place and i loved this cute little light.

 

 until next time, west point light.

Surprise Seattle trip

A few days before our California trip, my dad went into the hospital. After talking to my posse (Matt, my sisters, mom, and a couples trusted friends) and my mom graciously offering to fund my trip, I decided to fly up to Seattle to spend some time with my dad. I got there Monday night and Tom picked me up. I stayed the night on their deluxe ikea pullout, which was actually quite comfy. (:

Tuesday morning Bonnie and I headed up to the VA hospital bright and early. First order of business is always pictures. They gave dad a cool heart pillow that he got his doctors and nurses to sign.

After a few hours, including a delightful hospital lunch, it was time to go home. We did a lot of cuddling, tv watching, and picture looking. I also came home with several photo albums and a set of books grandpa and grandma Seagrove bought for their kiddos many, many years ago.

That afternoon Bonnie and I got to act as pharmacists and fill up dad's pillboxes. That also included going through all his meds and discarding expired pills. We sent this to the sibs with the title:

Caption contest!

The favs were:

"2 years in Vietnam and all I got was this lousy bag of pills."

"Meds: it's what's for dinner!"

"There are only a few placebos in there."

Aren't we a fun gang?

Dad had fun with his new diet, including a delicioso Waldorf salad made with Greek yogurt instead of mayo. He's so happy! (;

I decided to leave Delaney in California with my sisters so I could really focus on my dad. And since I was there with no baby, I took the opportunity to go to the temple early Wednesday and Thursday morning. On Thursday, Cami and dan met up with me and we did a session together (chantell was sick and mike out of town). It was soooo nice. 

#favplace

Dad did amazingly well for just having had major heart surgery. We ventured out one morning for a little walk. Slow and steady wins the race. (:

Yup, traffic. Took an hour to get from kent to the temple in Bellevue each morning. It's a crowded place!

I'm so glad I got to go spend time with my daddy. It wasn't a long trip, but it was good. Lots of downtime, lots of talking, lots of love. 

I'm so thankful for Matt supporting me in supporting my family. Grateful for my good friends for helping with my kiddies back home. Grateful to mom for helping financially. Grateful for my sisters for helping with d. Thankful to tom/Bon for housing and feeding me. And very thankful my dad is doing so well. 

It's so nice to pull together as a family. I am so blessed.