Seattle

Our Washington Trip continued:

After we saw the lock between Lake Washington and the ocean, we saw the Space Needle.



















We also visited Pikes Market. You can buy all kinds of produce, food, fish, and flowers plus many other things.

At a famous market, you can see the employees throwing big fish to the customers!

Here is a UTube video link of the flying fish.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1snLxJUGDqY




There were many flower shops with huge bouquets of flowers for very low prices.





















Then we walked around a really beautiful garden in the middle of the city.

































































Later we ate fish and chips, then wandered along the beach. There were lots of people playing on the narrow beach, but no one in the water. I asked Greg's uncle why, and he said the water was very, very cold - too cold for swimming. We took some pictures of the sunset.

Locks in Seattle

Continuing on about our Washington trip...

After Glen's wedding, after visiting the dam and fish ladder near Wenatchee, we said goodbye to the rest of the family and Greg and I continued on for a fun and beautiful vacation. Click to supersize these pictures. They are of BIG things, and you get a lot better feel for how it looks when you see the full sized pictures.

Here we are at the lock between a huge lake and the ocean in Seattle. The doors at the lake end of the lock are opening. They have a white railing along the top, because when they are closed they are a bridge to the other side.

The lock doors on the ocean side are closed.

When the doors are open all the way, boats enter the locke and are tied to the side.
!




























Many boats entered and were either tied to the side of the lock, or docked next to the big boats and were tied to them.

The doors on the lake side are closed now, and the water is lowering. The ropes that attach the boats to the sides have to be long and loose to allow the boats to sink as the water lowers.



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When the water has lowered to the level of the ocean, the ocean side doors open and the boats go out. As soon as they all leave, a line of boats who were waiting on the ocean side begin to come in. The whole process takes about 30 to 40 minutes.

It was very interesting to watch!

Breakfast and Fish Ladder

The day after Glen and Sarah were married, our family, Jessica, and Greg's parents and family went to Smitties for breakfast. We had a great time there.

Then we all went to a dam just north of Wenatchee. We saw the fish ladder, and went down into a place where we could see the fish under the water, going through the fish ladder. I always thought that the fish had to jump up each little waterfall on the fish ladder, and some do. But the ladder also has underwater openings so the fish can just swim through. We saw some really big salmon swim through. We also saw a museum in the dam.

To see the great pictures that Amber took of both our Smitties breakfast, and of the dam and fish ladder, click on Amber's blog link to the right.

The Wedding

Glen and Sarah's Wedding

03 Aug 2008
Wenatche, Washington

The wedding took place at Ohme Gardens in Wenatchee, Washington. It is a beautiful garden at the top of a hill overlooking the Columbia River. The pine trees cover most of the garden making quiet and shady.


The gardens meander over rough road stepping stones down steep slopes covered with ground cover and flowers.

As you come around huge rocks you are surprised by beautiful pools and waterfalls, and spectacular views.


































I took this picture the day before the wedding. It is the setting for the wedding before the chairs were set up.













The bride and groom and chaplain stood on these steps during the wedding.










We arrived at the gardens and reviewed the program.












Eric and I just before the wedding.

















Alex and Eric













The wedding was in a little shady glade surrounded by tall pine trees and green and flowery hills sloping up on three sides.

The bridesmaids:
Laura, Amber, and Heather

Catherine was the flower girl. She had been shy at the wedding rehearsal, but for the wedding she mustered up her courage and walked right up the aisle with the little ring bearer doing just fine

But just before the end of the aisle, the little ring bearer became overwhelmed and tossed the ring pillow at Glen's feet and ran to his mother.





Glen and his groomsmen.












Here comes the bride! She looked beautiful.














Sarah and her father.














As Sarah came up the aise, she looked up at Glen, her beloved.






Sarah's mother is to the right looking very happy.




The chaplain, and Sarah and Glen stood on wide stone steps just above the lawn.






The chaplain gave greetings and advice.




Bob Pinsker, Lisa's finance, played a violin solo, "The Swan." He also played the piano for the other music during and before and after the wedding.





I did a wedding reading. You can read it on this blog.

















Listening to the program.












Exchanging rings. Glen put Sarah's ring on her finger. But when Sarah tried to put his ring on to his finger, the heat and excitement of the day had made his hands swell a bit, and she couldn't get it on. He just palmed it and pushed it on later.







The chaplain pronounced them man and wife, but forgot to invite them to kiss! They did that later several times however!









The recessional. Amber looking beautiful and Alex looking very dashing!











Cecil, Amy, Sarah, Glen
Joyce, and Greg











We did a receiving line just outside the little marriage lawn.













I think they are in love!













A beautiful picture of the newly married couple in the garden.










The reception was in Cecil and Amy McKinney's back yard.

I love how the candles add sparkle to the wedding cake.

The guests were seated at round tables under a white canopy on the lawn below the deck.


















Cutting the cake.














Another picture of the cake and lights.









Bob played some romantic music to add to the atmosphere.




He also played music that we could dance to!


It was a beautiful wedding and reception.

Wedding Reading

This is the reading I did for Glen's wedding. I will be writing more about the wedding when we get the pictures sorted out. It was beautiful!

Marriage

Our Heavenly Father loves us. He created marriage and families to give us joy. He has given husbands and wives the responsibility to love and care for each.

Today, you stand here, convinced that your love is greater than any problem you could ever encounter – and it is! Love can conquer all.

When frustration, difficulty and fear assail your relationship - as they threaten all relationships at one time or another - remember to focus on what is right between you, not only the part which seems wrong. Look into the eyes of your sweetheart and remember how precious they are to you, and work out problems together. In this way, you can ride out the storms when clouds hide the face of the sun in your lives - remembering that even if you lose sight of it for a moment, the sun is still there.

Learn the wisdom of compromise, for it is better to bend a little than to break.

Believe the best rather than the worst. Be positive and cheerful. People have a way of living up or down to your opinion of them. Treat your spouse as if they are already, the person you want them to be.

Recognize and show gratitude daily for the both the little and the big things your spouse does for you.

Learn the lesson of the sand: When you squeeze a handful of sand, it escapes through your fingers, but if you hold it gently in your hand, it remains. Love means giving your husband or wife some space to be themselves, and some time for their own pursuits.

Keep your relationship fresh –find reasons to laugh together -leave little surprises for one other – write love notes - have fun together.

Remember that every marriage takes three people: a husband, a wife, and God. Pray together daily. Practice faith, repentance, and forgiveness. Strive to become a little better every day. Bring out the best in one other.

If each of you takes responsibility for the quality of your life together, it will be marked by abundance and delight; and as you grow together, your love will grow too, and in 50 years you will look back on this day as the tiny bud of your every blossoming love.

The Dress is Finished!

Well, I finished the wedding dress! I also sewed a blouse for Amber and finished a skirt for me. I think the clothing for the wedding is done! I will take pictures at the wedding so you can see how it all turned out.

4th of July

We had a great 4th of July. We relaxed in the morning (or in my case, I sewed on the wedding dress.)

Then we got together in the afternoon for entertainment such as games like water pictionary (drawing pictures on the driveway with a water bottle) and water balloon v0lleyball. The younger people also went ice blocking (sliding down the hill on a block of ice.) We had a great dinner of barbecued ribs and chicken, chips and dip, corn on the cob, watermelon, and root beer floats. We watched the fireworks over the fairgrounds from our usual place on the hill. It was a fun day.

Glen, Alex, and Eric are off to go backpacking in the Sawtooths. Glen sent me a picture on his cell phone when they got to Red Fish Lake.

Hope you enjoy the pictures of our celebration plus the pretty things in our yard. Notice the pink flower on the pea plant. I wonder if a sweet pea seed got mixed in with the other seeds. I think the pretty white flowers are syringa. They smell like orange blossoms.