This will be a two part blog - the first part, the good; the second, the not so good.
Tammy and I landed at the Sea-Tac Airport a little after 9:30pm on Saturday, August 9th. After picking up our Turo rental, we drove to the Suncadia AirBnB in Cle Elum where we arrived around 1130pm. Jaclyn, Blake, and family had checked into the rental earlier that afternoon with the IL grandparents, Lizzy, Stas, and Illiya as well as Chad a little while later. Pizza was the dinner for all that first night and many a day's lunch until it was finished
Sunday, Jaclyn and family along with Tammy and I drove to Ellensburg and attended services at Liberty Bible Church which we found to be very friendly. A short drive away was Irene Rinehart Riverfront Park where we had picnic lunch and some play time. On the way home, Tammy and I stopped for a quick look through Thorp Fruit and Antique Mall. We rerouted from there to back roads due to an accident on I90 bringing us through the town of Cle Elum and a Dairy Queen purchase of Orange Creamsicle shakes and Dilly Bars. A steak dinner with potatoes was prepared by Blake which also lasted for a lunch or two. Ice cream was the dessert most nights along with cookies.
Monday started early as Tammy and I with Lizzy, Stas, Illiya, and Chad headed toward Seattle to catch a tour van to Mount Rainier. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the area with many interesting stories to tell. The tour of the park lasted approximately 5 hours with opportunities to get out and do some exploring. We picnicked at Sunrise Visitor Center and had a Blake prepared dinner of French Stew with lots of meat when we arrived home.
Tuesday was an unseasonably hot day as had been the previous two. What better way to cool down than to head to Lake Cle Elum. The actual lake was a ways from the entrance so you are able to drive on the 'sand' down to the water's edge. After driving most of the way down toward the water, I started to run into deeper sand; so we stopped for fear of getting stuck and waited for the others to arrive. Time passed and we saw none of the others. We also discovered we had no cell phone service while sitting there. The decision was made to drive back up to the entrance to see what happened to everyone. Apparently, the others were not interested in risking getting stuck in the sand so we parked at the entrance and walked down to the lake. Tuesday's dinner was hamburgers and fries prepared by Lizzy, Stas, and Illiya followed by a visit to a local park where Tammy and the grandgirls played Red Light Green Light, Mother May I, and Simon Says because the park itself was 'boring'. We ended the evening around the fire pit telling stories of past travels and adventures.
Wednesday was a quiet day. We stayed around the house playing basketball, shuffeboard, or foosball in the game room as we did most days during down time, making paper airplanes, doing a puzzle, and a visit in the afternoon and evening to a different local park that was 'much more fun'. I believe left overs were for dinner that night. Also, Lizzy and Stas had purchased a stuffed animal Pika while at Mt. Rainier for each of the three older grandkids. So after the kids went to bed, Tammy and I along with Lizzy, Stas, and Illiya made up clues that would direct them to the Pika's secret hiding place.
Thursday after breakfast, the Pika treasure hunt was held. That was followed by Tammy and I, Jaclyn and the grandkids, along with Lizzy and Stas heading back to Ellensburg for a visit to the Valley Play Museum. While the grandkids entertained themselves with all the various activities, we adults enjoyed drinks from the cafe. Back at the house, the grandkids devised their own treasure hunt for the adults. We made a chicken and pasta salad dinner for that night. The night ended with Tammy and I winning a game of Millenium Trivial Pursuit.
Friday everyone but Grandpa Kelly and Chad drove an hour through a mountain pass to visit Leavenworth. It's a tourist town of shops and restaurants all designed like a Bavarian village. The IL grandparents took us all out that evening to dinner at the Twin Pines Drive In for hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, fries, and shakes. We again played a game of Millenium Trivial Pursuit which Chad and I won that night.
Departure Saturday saw Lizzy, Stas, leave at 630am to take Illiya to the airport. The rest of us all left between 8am and 830am. Tammy returned home with Jaclyn and family to spend an extra week with them in Oregon. I took the IL grandparents to the airport with me for our flight home and what will be the second part of this blog.
Here's a link to a shared photo album of our Washington trip - https://photos.app.goo.gl/qFDrg7HczwfQa7N86
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