Seattle, Only for the Weekend

Joey's company has been changing out locks for LDS churches all over the place and I was excited but really jealous when he told me that he'd be going to Seattle to do some churches in the area (actually in the Bellevue area). I couldn't even believe it when he somehow worked it out for me to go up with him the weekend before they started, which also happened to be the weekend of our anniversary! I know, this post is about 2 months late. They had a LOT of product that needed to go up as well as a lot of heavy tools so he had decided to drive his truck up there. We dropped Duffy off at school (Aimee would pick him up later) and Maisy with Grandma and headed out. I HATE the drive to Seattle, just like I hate all long drives, only this one happens to be longer. I get carsick and usually have to take a Dramamine which puts me right to sleep. I was pretty proud of myself that I stayed awake the entire ride! While eating at a Denny's in Baker City, Oregon we decided to drive to Portland for the night instead of going up through Yakima. The last minute decision made us both remember our pre-kid, carefree days when we used to make spontaneous travel decisions all the time. It was a beautiful, fun drive into Portland at night and we were even able to say hi to Joey's cousin Kristi who lives there. We stayed in a corner room with floor to ceiling windows and we had a fantastic view of the city and the river.
The next morning we left early and made the 2 hour drive into Seatac. We were staying at the Cedarbrook Lodge in a suite (I got a killer deal online!) and I will never stay anywhere else if I go back. It was an amazing room with a great view of a nature reserve. They have the best customer service and free ice cream, malt balls, etc., what could be better?
Our first day there I kept telling Joey that I needed to meet my friend Crystal downtown for lunch at 1. I said I couldn't remember the name of the restaurant but I had Mapquest directions to get us there. We went all over downtown following the directions and I think he truly thought we were lost for a while there. He was saying, this place must be right on the lake. When we pulled up to Kenmore Air instead of a restaurant I told him "Happy Anniversary!" We weren't really having lunch, I had actually pulled off a surprise for his anniversary present and was taking him on a seaplane tour, which he's always wanted to do. I could tell he was so happy and shocked and excited, it was probably the best present I had ever given him. After the couple who was on the same flight was loaded up the pilot said he could use a copilot and I thought Joey was going to die! He kept asking if it was ok for sure that he didn't sit with me, but why would I be upset that he got to ride in the front seat? I thought it was great! The tour was so amazing, taking off from the water and seeing all the sights of Seattle. We flew right between the tall buildings of downtown and the Space Needle, flew over the sound, saw Bill Gates' house, and a bunch more. It was really the best and smoothest flight I'd ever been on.
For the rest of our weekend we revisited all of our favorite places in the area: we ate at the Fisherman and watched a snowboarding exhibition from our table, which was crazy to see right on the piers of Puget Sound! We hiked to Snoqualmie Falls, where Joey had the biggest breakfast I had ever seen! We visited Pikes Place and bought a beautiful bouquet for $10. We went to the horse races for the first time at Emerald Downs, and hit plenty of Starbucks.
We had our anniversary dinner a day early since I was leaving at 9 that morning, so we got dressed up and went to Maggianos in Bellevue. We sat in a corner by ourselves and had a really nice, romantic Italian dinner.
The whole trip was the perfect way to celebrate our 8th anniversary. We got time to really enjoy just being with each other and doing the things we really love to do.