2008

Where​ did you begin​ 2008?​
At home


Were you in schoo​l (​anyti​me this year)​
No

Did you have to go to the hospi​tal?​
We had to take Emma to the emergency room at Children's in January for a high fever and possible pnemonia


Did you have any encou​nters​ with the polic​e?​
An unexpected knock on the door at 3am one morning because of a license plate issue on the Fairlane. Still not sure if it was a mix up or our license plates were actually stolen.


Where​ did you go on vacat​ion?​
Mexico in February, San Francisco in May, Portland a few times over the summer, Priest Lake in August and Vancouver BC in August


What did you purch​ase that was over $500
Layers samples


Did you know anybo​dy who got marri​ed?​
Andy & Jeryln got married on September 6th in Portland


Did you know anybo​dy who passe​d away?​
No


Did you move anywh​ere?​
No


What sport​ing event​s did you atten​d?​
None


What conce​rts/​shows​ did you go to?
None


Where​ do you live now?
Seattle


Descr​ibe your birth​day.​
Dinner with family and friends at El Camino then hit a few bars in Fremont with friends.


Did you get any tatto​os or pierc​ing?​
No


What'​s the one thing​ you thoug​ht you would​ never​ do but did in 2008?​
Flew first class to Mexico, flew first class to San Francisco
Ran a 10k in Vancouver BC


What has/​have been your favor​ite momen​t(​s)​?​
anything Emma related! Crossing the finish line at the Nike Human Race 10k, cozying into my leather reclining seat in First Class on my way to a weekend away in San Francisco


Any new addit​ions to your famil​y?​
No


What was your best month​?​
February- Mexico was a blast, August- vacation at Priest Lake and running the 10k


Who has been your best drink​ing buddy​?​
Eric!


Made new frien​ds?​
Quite a few


Favor​ite Night​[​s]​ out
the oh-so-rare date night


Any regre​ts?​
No


What do you want to chang​e in 2009?​
I'd like to finally lose the 40lbs I've been talking about for 2 years


Over all how would​ you rate this year ?
7


What would​ you chang​e about​ 2008?​
Spent less, saved more​


Other​ than home,​ where​ did you spend​ most of your time?​
Just home really


Have any life chang​es in 2008?​
No


Chang​e your hairs​tyle?​
Got bangs in April- bad idea, went darker, cut off a few inches


Get a new job?
No


How old did you turn this year?​
23


Do you have a New Year'​s resol​ution​?​
Lose 40lbs, save more/spend less


Did anyth​ing embar​rassi​ng?​
Probably


Buy anyth​ing new from eBay?​
Some clothes for Emma



What was/​were your favor​ite purch​ase[​s]​?​
The new washer


Get marri​ed or divor​ced?​
No


Get arres​ted?​
No


Be hones​t - did you watch​ Ameri​can Idol?​
No


Did you get sick this year?​
Not until now


Been snowb​oardi​ng?​
No


Are you happy​ to see 2008 go?
I guess so


Been naugh​ty or nice?​
A little of both


What are you wishi​ng for in 2009?​
For Emma to potty-train and get rid of the binky, to lose 40lbs, run the Seattle Rock N Roll Half Marathon


I Tag: Katrina, Cheryl, Allisun and Tiffany

i love this kid

Snow Day!

Princesses warming up after playing in the snow.

Trying to make a snow angel!

Izzy asked Emma to be her best friend!

If You Have 7 Minutes...

If interested . . . Copy and paste this to your blog and bold the ones that you HAVE done.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea (on a lake actually)
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie/commercial
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House (I stood outside the gate . . . does that count?)
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous (Harry Connick Jr.)
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

edward cullen anyone?

Yes, Twilight mania is in full swing and I am right in the middle of it.  Thanks to Theresa (a mom in my mom's group) for loaning the book to me.  I started it last night and already can't get enough.  I'm like an obsessed teenager!!  I should be done with it in a few short days and then will hopefully be seeing the movie this weekend.  This book is amazing!!

Emma's First Halloween Party

Emma attended her first Halloween party at Katrina and Isabelle's house.  Katrina always hosts great playdates for the kids and this one was fabulous as always!  Unfortunately we weren't able to stay very long since we had such a busy Halloween night planned, but Emma had lots of fun!  

Layers Winter Collection

Introducing

Layers Clothing Winter Collection 2008

I am so ecstatic about this collection!  It is definitely my favorite so far.  The entire collection is 40's inspired and each piece is unique.  I really hope to have great sales with this line because I just can't get enough of it!!

And now for my typical sales pitch...

Interested in hosting a catalog party?  Receive all the benefits of a trunk show, without the hassle of getting all your busy girlfriends together.  Simply hand out a catalog and order form to all your friends, give them a few days to pick their favorites, then return the order forms to me.  You'll receive a FREE classic tee just for hosting and, if total party sales are $200 or more you'll get 10% off your Layers order!!

Want to order online?  Visit LayersClothing.com, place your order and don't forget to enter partner code 454 at checkout!

There's so much more on the site, check it out here.

Eleanor $35

Black, Burgundy, Natural

Penelope $34

Cream, Amethyst 

Florence $38

Chocolate, Brick, Amethyst, Mustard

Greta $65

Black

Fiona $52

Cream,Charcoal,Maple Sugar

Jillian $38

Burgundy,Black

Louise $65

Cream & Black

Carmen $28

Pewter & Red Floral

Ruthie $33

Black, Plum

Kids For Obama

Katrina and Izzy

Emma was a little grumpy towards the end and wasn't happy about being in the stroller.

Izzy showing Emma the rock she found

Looking up in the sky for all the balloons that got away

Pumpkin Patch Day

Emma was a little overwhelmed by all the pumpkins!

Relaxing in the wagon with all the pumpkins and a much needed popsicle!

There's a good one over there!!

This weekend we headed east to Carnation for a visit to the pumpkin patch.  It was a perfect fall day for some pumpkin picking.  My mom and Bill were also able to join us which was an added bonus, extra pumpkin carriers!  Eric packed us a great lunch and by the time we got out to the farm we were starving so we quickly set up our picnic.  We enjoyed sandwiches and pasta salad under a big tree on the grass.  After lunch we hopped on one of the wagon's that takes you out to the field of pumpkins.  We were able to get on the one wagon that is horse drawn and Emma thought that was the coolest!  We found a few great pumpkins before hopping on a tractor pulled wagon to head back in and hunt for some baby pumpkins in another field.  Emma loved picking out the baby pumpkins!  She calls pumpkins "Pumpkin Pie" and of course a baby pumpkin was "Baby Pumpkin Pie". So cute!!  We all had so much fun and came home exhausted from all the pumpkin patch action!!

new website

Check out my new site: http://web.me.com/alexpayne/The_Paynes/Welcome.html

the mac is back

Last October we purchased a new MacBook. It was an early Christmas present to ourselves since our first Mac had up and died...well, more like a slow, torturous death before finally crapping out. The excitement over the new Mac was simply euphoric. Built in webcam?! Photobooth?! iMovie?! The accessories to this new computer were overwhelming! Soon I was making movies of Emma, taking funny pictures on Photobooth, and just enjoying the new addition to the Payne house. It was wonderful. We sailed through the holidays, uploading all our Christmas photos to the new computer, not to mention all the pictures we took with our new camera. Then January hit. The new year was brought in with tears and sadness as one day we watched, almost in slow motion, as our sweet little MacBook succomb to a spilled domestic beer, courtesy of Emma- our beer swigging 2 year old, and sadly myself as I was the one who left the domestic next to the computer. A mistake never to be made again. We rushed our lifeless MacBook to the Genius Bar but unfortunately it could not be saved, and our warranty clearly stated that beer spillage was just not covered. Despite our sadness, we atleast had the use of Eric's work laptop. But it wasn't the same.
Fast forward 9 or so months. Eric has been told by his boss that they'll be needing the work laptop back soon. So I scrambled and finally my dad agreed to bring back my old computer that he had been using. An emachines desktop- I know, I cringe-but it would do. We would have to move some furniture around so as to have a place to put the huge desktop. As we're cleaning out drawers to move the furniture Eric comes across our departed Mac. Just out of curiosity he plugs it in...it whirs to life. Hooray!!!!!!!! After nearly a year of being comatose, it's alive again!!! All our files, pictures, music and videos fully intact. It was a miracle! An unbelieveable miracle. So now, I blog, happy again from the Mac. Welcome back Mac :)

goldilocks

After blow drying Emma's hair the other day (yes, I said blow drying) I decided I needed to document how sweet she looked. Don't get me wrong, she always looks sweet. But her hair continues to get longer and curlier and it can be hard to keep it looking anything but nest'like! She has the most beautiful hair and I just couldn't get over how adorable she was looking. I'm so obsessed with this kid!!!

virginCamping

This weekend we ventured over to Eastern Washington for some CAMPING!! We headed to Sun Lakes Resort, which is just a few miles from Coulee City (i.e. Grand Coulee Dam). As far as camping goes (from the very little that I know), the campsites were all so nice and the resort perfectly outfitted for us virgin campers. They had a great beach and a nice pool area, as well as RV sites and small cabins to rent. This was my first time camping, as well as Emma's and I have to say, we had a blast!! Eric of course has been camping many times so this was old hat for him but we all really enjoyed ourselves. We were invited by awesome new friends, Chris & Cheryl, as well as a few of their friends and our other awesome new friends Steve & Sherry. Steve & Sherry have Stephanie who is Emma's age and they seem to get along pretty well which is nice. They roamed around the campsite as mom's and dad's enjoyed cheap beer and fold up lawn chairs! I of course am so awesome that I managed to take absolutely no pictures!! How ridiculous is that?! We had so much fun though and hope to go back next year and stay a few days. It was great to get to know our new friends a little better and have some relaxing time in the sun. Thanks Haney's for the invite!!

baby boo is growing up

game night and good company

Last night we had some new friends over for a wine and game night. Sherry is in my mom's meetup group and we have become fast friends. Her daughter, Stephanie, is 2 and I thought it would be great for Emma to have a new playmate. So it was really nice to have Sherry and her husband Steve, along with Stephy, over. Emma and Stephy played so well together!! We also had our good friend Yancy over. It was so nice to see him, it seems like we just don't get together enough. We had lots (maybe too much!) of yummy wine, snacks (Caprese Salad, my fav) and played one of my new favorite games, Loaded Questions. I highly recommend this game, it is so much fun and a great way to get to know new friends. I'm anxious to host another game night soon!

favorites

phad see iw
-thick rice noodle in a special soy bean sauce with broccoli and bean sprouts-

running
-with girlfriends, in the early morning, with my nike plus & ipod, with emma in the jogger. i love to run-

seinfeld
-every night, on tbs at 5, always makes me laugh-

sesame street
-snuggling in the morning with emma, watching elmo's latest shenanigans, number of the day-

wine tasting
-i love a good glass of wine, especially white, crisp-

watching emma dance
-she has the cutest moves and i love to hear her say "c'mon mommy, dance!"-

summer is on it's way out

As we approach the end of August I become more and more ready to welcome Fall. I'm ready to close up the windows and put the blankets back on the bed, put away the shorts and tanks and pull out the jeans and sweaters. I love living in Seattle because we really have all four seasons. Now, despite my complaining about the rain come April, I really don't know if I could live anywhere else. I love Seattle.

We have had such a great summer. The weather has been, for the most part, really nice. We even had a couple days into the 90's, and on one particular 90 degree day Emma and I discovered the community pool in Magnolia. We had so much fun (along with hordes of other people) splashing around and cooling off.

For the Payne family, summer starts with birthday's. Eric is first on the 3rd, followed by Emma on the 9th and myself on the 13th. Eric is one year away from the "dirty thirty" as he turned (quietly) 29 this year. We celebrated with a small dinner of grilled pizzas among both sets of parents. I also picked up some of his favorite beer from Trader Joe's which I know he enjoyed.

Emma celebrated birthday number two this year with family and friends as well as a Bee Movie theme- her favorite movie of the moment. We grilled, ate a cake in the shape of a beehive and opened present after present. By the end of the day, she was exhausted and we were surrounded by torn birthday paper- truly a successful party!

And lastly, we celebrated my birthday at El Camino in Fremont with my mom and Bill and some friends. My mom and Bill were nice enough to keep Emma for the night following dinner so Eric and I and our friends hit up Fremont for some bar hopping. It was so fun to have a night out.

For Emma, summer has really been full of growth. She is now singing her ABC's, counting from one to twenty, dancing and singing up a storm (she loves to sing Michael Buble's Mrs. Jones). Her blonde hair is now to the middle of her back when wet and a mess of curls when dry. I love her hair and with the acception of a few bang trims, have no plans of cutting it anytime soon. She has really developed such an amazing personality. She is so funny, constant entertainment and a total chatterbox. She can carry on a conversation with anyone- a stuffed animal even!
We are slowly introducing potty training. At the moment she doesn't seem too interested but I want her gradually get familiar with the idea. She has two potty seats, as well as some pretty awesome Elmo underpants. Wish us luck!
In the past year Emma has really gone from baby to little girl, and I'll admit I do miss the baby stage just a little; especially now that she has started asking "why" and "what" all the time. BECAUSE I SAID SO! The terrible two's have definetly started, and I hear that three is even worse. Yikes!

In July my friend Christi and I teamed up to throw my mom a surprise birthday party. Christi and her husband are living in India right now and their trip home to visit coincided with my mom's birthday so it really worked out well. We reserved the party room at her condo building (they own a unit that they are renting out while they're abroad), Bill was in charge of cooking all of the food and Eric responsible for the wine. We had a great time and a good turn out of guests; my grandparents were even able to make it up for the party. She was truly surprised- especially since I am a terrible secret keeper! We really pulled it off and had a blast!!

Just as summer was getting underway I signed up for a beginning runner's class. Now that Emma is two I really can't call these extra lb.'s baby fat anymore because she really isn't a baby anymore. Now it's just fat! AHH! The class was held at Greenlake every Wednesday morning for 8 weeks. And the best part- it's all moms with strollers! Beth Baker is a great running coach, an awesome cheerleader for first time runner's and a great motivator. I met a couple really great mom's that I'm sure will become longtime friends. Cory is a mom of two- a one year old and an eight year old, as well as one on the way. She started the class at 15 weeks and is now around 25 weeks. By the end of our 8 weeks together I was almost having a hard time keeping up with her! She's supermom! Cheryl is mom to Vincent, who will be 1 in September. Cheryl is a great runner and was seriously kicking butt by the end of class. She claims it's the FiberOne bars she's been eating. Maybe I'll try them! Also, her freckles put mine to shame.

Cory started a mom's group which I quickly became active in. There's a meetup scheduled for almost every day of the week, as well as mom's night out's and lots of running meetups which I love! I have met some more awesome women. Cheryl and another great new friend Sherry and I have taken up running (sort of- just getting started) on the weekends early without the kids. I really enjoy our running together. Sherry is quite chatty while running, as I'm huffin' and puffin', and keeps our minds off of the miles, which I love! I am really looking forward to getting more and more connected in this group. It's so nice to finally be meeting other families with kids.

Overall, summer has been good to us, and I'm looking forward to a new season of new adventures and experiences.

vancouver

Next weekend Eric and I are headed to Vancouver, BC for a weekend away! We were originally going so that I could run the Nike Human Race 10k, but since I've injured myself I won't be running it. We already had our hotel reservation so we figured we should go anyways and enjoy a nice weekend away. It will be nice to have a kid-free weekend! We took a trip to Vancouver before Emma was born and had a great time so I'm really looking forward to going again. We'll be staying in the same great hotel, the Sheraton at Wall Centre. I can't wait to take a nice long soak in the jetted tub and do something I haven't done in a long time- SLEEP IN!!

The views from this hotel are absolutely stunning!!

On Saturday we'll be visiting the public market at Granville Island, which neither Eric or I have been to. I'm sure we'll have a nice leisurely lunch and stroll around before heading back for an afternoon nap before dinner out. I can't wait!!
No plans as of yet for Sunday, probably just wandering around and enjoying each other's company.

3.85

The other day I found $3.85 in change in Emma's mouth. She's found the change jar and apparently likes the taste of money...oy

Priest Lake

Tomorrow we are headed to Priest Lake for 9 glorious days in the sun!! My grandparents have been going up to Priest Lake since the 50's. They started out camping with my mom and aunt. Just before my cousin and I were born they purchased 'the cabin'. After many a remodel it is more of a house than a cabin. They now spend most of their time at the lake and are gracious enough to give us (my parents, eric and myself and emma, as well as my aunt and her boyfriend) a week to ourselves. I love spending time up there, lounging in the sun and swimming in the lake. And I'm so happy to share it with Emma. Hopefully she will love it as much as I do!

Here is Emma at the lake last year:

toilet play

You know you've achieved official mom status when you don't hesitate to pull a bracelet out of the toilet- put there by none other than your sweet little angel child. At least it wasn't my toothbrush.

sunbathing

emma, getting her sun on, with the help of some spf of course! disregard the beverage ;)


checking in on the sprinkler

bad karma?

oy vey! first of all, a warning, this post might possibly become littered with expletives...ok, not most likely, it will. the expletives will help in relaying the frustration of this week. read further if you don't mind a few F bombs here and there.




Monday- Met up with the mom's group at Bothell Landing for a 3 mile run, led by the awesome Cory, who is currently 23 weeks pregnant! I know, she's superwoman, seriously. And of course her not quite 1 year old Elizabeth is adorable! I met some great new mom's and got a fabulous run.

Tuesday- I dropped Emma off at my mom's and headed off to an appointment with my dermatolagist for a follow up on my sun/heat allergy. As I'm nearing downtown, WHAM!, rear-ended while stopped at a light. No real damage to the Element, just a few scratches. I was too nice to the old lady who hit me, realizing later that I shouldn't have told her it was ok and that I wasn't mad. I was mad! Damn woman hit my car! PAY ATTENTION PEOPLE!! She's lucky she wasn't going very fast.

Wednesday- Somewhat of an overcast day which put me in a mood. Emma and I went for our run at Greenlake with Beth (running coach) and Cory. Both Cory and I were totally dragging ass and not feeling the run. My legs were killing me. But we managed to run ALMOST the whole 3 miles so that was a pretty good accomplishment. I was proud of myself at the end for sticking it out and finishing.

Thursday- Emma wakes up at 6am, already I can see this isn't going to be good because she has soccer at 10:30. We go by my mom's to pick her up so she can watch Em play soccer. We made it 30 minutes before extreme tired set in and had to get her home for an nap. Picked up her new Keen sandles, so cute, and were on our way. For how tired she was she really didn't sleep long enough. After her nap we played outside for a bit and more extreme tired set in around 6. Emma was in bed before 7pm and slept til 6am.

Friday (this is where it gets rough)- Meet the mom's group for a walk at Mill Creek Town Center. Pretty good turn out of about 8 moms, all with kids in tow. Emma is grumpy and not cooperating. This kind of behavior I like to refer to as "holy terror". Eric took the Element for work today so I am stuck with the shiteous Nissan that is so hard to get Emma in and out of, not to mention the jogging stroller doesn't fit in the trunk so I have to wriggle it into the backseat next to Emma. We get there early and walk around. I let Emma walk so that she wouldn't be so upset about sitting in the stroller for an hour walk. We meet up with the mom's and I try to put Emma in her stroller and she has a complete meltdown, in front of the new mom's who I haven't met. Basically, she created a scene and was an embarassment. I was flustered, hot, and my muffin tops were peeking out of my shorts. FUUUUUCK!!! Very irritating. We get going on the walk and half-way through Emma is whining and begging for other kids' toys. I don't typically bring toys for Emma to have in the stroller because she just throws them on the ground. We finish our walk and all the mom's are standing outside Starbucks with their nice, sweet, well behaved little lads and Emma is full on flipping out. I let her get out of her stroller to walk around and she starts trying to steal the other kids' snacks and toys. Why didn't I feed her, you ask? Well, I did! I packed plenty of yummy snacks but she always wants what isn't hers, naturally. I try to pick her up so that we can go and she melts down, crumbling to the ground in a heap of temper tantrum hell. All the while I'm thinking "Eric is so lucky he gets to go work today!". Stupidly I forget to pack a binky and she is wailing for one. Eventually I get her calmed down enough with a bribe that we will head to the grocery store for a new binky. Why am I investing in new binkies when we are trying to wean? Insanity I tell you. I pay $6 for two overpriced binkies and we are on our way. By this point I am starving- teriyaki here we come!!! Grab some lunch and head to the car. More screaming as I load Emma up. Near tears as I try to shove the jogging stroller into the car- fucking hate this car I mumble under my breath, although really wanting to yell it out loud for all to hear. But also don't want my daughters next word to be FUCK. Shocking, I know. And now, the icing on the cake of shit, I step in gum that someone spit out next to my driver's side door. What damn idiot would spit out gum next to someone's car? On our way home, she of course falls asleep in the car, great...naptime is officially fucked for the day. And I was right, we get home and she sleeps maybe 30 minutes before hollering at me to come get her out. The house is a wreck, I am tired, Emma is grumpy.

Luckily the day is almost over. It's nearly the weekend and thankfully (thank you thank you!) Emma is going to my mom and Bill's tomorrow night so that Eric and I can attend a BBQ. Can't wait for a little baby-free time.

gotta run

This morning Emma and I headed off to Greenlake for a morning run. Despite our running class being cancelled for the day we decided to go anyway. I'm so glad that I did. I had a great run and I finally feel like I'm crossing that line between "this sucks" to "this is awesome!". I already can't wait for my run tomorrow, which may be a little hard to fit in but I will figure it out. I'm ready to make running a priority in my life, for myself and it's a really exciting journey. I can't wait for the 10k at the end of August. I know that if I keep up the training that I'm doing now the 10k will be no problem at all- well, that may be a little bit of wishful thinking, but I know I'll be prepared. I'm so glad that I found Coach Beth, she is a great cheerleader, as well as all the gals in my running group.

I've also found a great new blog called Marathon Mommies and just reading a few posts this morning gave me that much more motivation to get out there and run.

STP

This weekend Eric and his friend Matt rode the Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic. They rode a total of 205 miles in two days, departing from the University of Washington on Saturday morning and arriving at Holladay Park in Portland on Sunday afternoon. I met up with them at Centralia College (the mid-point stop) to camp for the night before hitting the road again early Sunday morning. I am so proud of you Eric, way to go baby!! And thanks to Matt for making the trek out here all the way from Martha's Vineyard! You both did an awesome job, Congratulations!!

Day 1: Leaving from UW


Eric saying goodbye to Emma
































Matt and Eric, all geared up and ready to go



















End of Day 1- Camping at Centralia College, the mid-point of the ride, 100 miles in:

TIRED!






























Matt, surveying the HUNDREDS of tents













Day 2: Finish Line!


You did it!! Looking thrilled to be finished!