Seabrook

Last year we enjoyed a weekend on the coast with some friends from high school & called it a reunion of sorts 'cuz our husbands had gone while single right after their missions. Except this time the wives were included & we stayed in a million-dollar beach house:) Our buddy Jeremiah Shakespeare (who served with Chris as AP in TX) is pretty much second in command over that project (sorry I don't know your official job title Speazy?!) so he hooked us up, together with the nice cottage rental lady, for a great deal to split amongst four couples. We had such a great time that we wanted to schedule again, but it's become even more popular of a destination a year later & our group changed somewhat=>other Parkers (Chris' cousin Chad & Kyla), Gehrings (Stefan & Molly) & Birds (Zac & Sherida), so latter guys still Curtis pals & we love their wives anyway:) We missed those who couldn't join us due to other summer plans & priorities, but totally understand & will have to plan ahead for '09. This year we ended up only having to pay for maid service following our 3-night stay thanks to a nice bishop from Woodinville whose home isn't even in the rental pool but he accommodated us:) Little did we know how great it would be to have such a fabulous place to shelter us from the stormy midsummer weather-ugh! Needless to say, we could see the waves from the window but the guys didn't even skim board this time:) Instead it was prime kite-flying weather; just ask Chad who nearly assaulted us on more than one occasion in addition to another group of innocent beach bystanders:) Thankfully Stefan & Zac had some more expertise to share & our lives were spared not to mention the borrowed kite is still intact!

















Chris thought it'd be cool to have bbq lunch on beach too, but we didn't account for wind & had to take advantage of extra layers-silly us! In fact we pretty much wore multiple sweatshirts the whole time...oh well!We decided to venture over to Westport & made the hour + drive since the ferry wasn't in operation. Somehow it hadn't been much more developed than Chris remembered visiting as a child:) but still fun to check out existing shops in case rain interfered with our other outdoor antics. Also enjoyed salt-water taffy & other random souvenirs along the way to make it somewhat worth our while...hey, can't fault us for being spontaneous?!We celebrated Sherida & Kyla's b-day with fancy dinner @ the Ocean Crest that night. We had a beautiful view of the ocean @ sunset & delicious meal albeit leisurely service! Apparently that restaurant has even been featured in Sunset magazine! The best part is we didn't have to worry about occupying our children or staying out past their bedtime (not that my boys have one, but other more disciplined parents appreciated that aspect:)!The ladies (Sherida, Kyla & I minus Molly 'cuz she was taking care o' Lana; don't feel too sorry for her 'cuz she still had a massage earlier that a.m.:)) took advantage of the cruisers & explored the metropolis that is Pacific Beach:) Probably not the safest idea on the highway, but hey! Took me over a week to recover from using coaster brakes on the hill, but I'll spare you the details of that minor accident:) Smiling through the pain...let's just say that I felt like I'd already delivered & leave it @ that-ugh! No wonder I haven't felt like I could water ski this summer if I can't even ride a simple bike?!Meanwhile the guys exercised @ Ocean Crest (who has hosted Apollo Ohno, but otherwise left much to be desired:) or went shooting in the forest (not to fear! no small animals were injured; they assured us that they only used inanimate objects as targets:) What trip to the ocean would be complete without a bonfire or two with uh, 8 pallets of wood & extra from Seabrook's firepits:) My favorite part were the s'mores & we're not just talking plain Hershey style! Once again Chad had a bright idea of adding some sparks, but we weren't the ones with fireworks if anyone asks. Let's just say that Screaming Mimi lived up to her name & more even after we thought she was done & threw her in the fire-uh oh!


















Since I didn't have to hurry back to Primary in Puyallup ('cuz I was released after whoppin' yr. & am back with YW), we visited the Ocean Shores Branch over which Jeremiah is currently president. That enabled us to spend extra afternoon with Shakespeares & their cute girls We caught up that evening with our boys who had already flown south to Lake Merwin with Shaws-thanks grandpa & grandma for another great weekend o' childcare! Chris drove all that way so he could drop me off & say "hi" to 'em before returning to work himself while we played for a few more days! Thanks honey for the round trip!
All in all, we couldn't have asked for better company, food (especially 'cuz we took turns with planning/preparation) plus fun & games regardless of the weather:)