Our cats.

Rowen and Margot.
[Blue point Siamese and Turkish Van, both females under 2 years old.]

Olympic Peninsula part 3 - the rest!

I have been negligent getting the rest of our Olympic Peninsula trip posted, so I'm going to do one big last post with highlights from the remainder of the trip. We visited three more beaches and a gorgeous rainforest (Hoh Rainforest) before heading back to Seattle. The giant driftwood tree pictured was right outside of our cabin on the beach at La Push Beach.

(For the rest of my pictures from the Olympic Peninsula check out my Flickr album of our trip.)

Olympic Peninsula part 2 - Second Beach [in fog]

For the second part of our Olympic Peninsula trip we met up with some friends and stayed at in a cabin on the beach at the Quileute Oceanside Resort, located on La Push Beach in the Quilete Reservation on the west coast of the peninsula. La Push beach is pretty great, but a couple of miles down the road is a place even better: "Second Beach," a victim of some utilitarian naming scheme that completely fails to pay homage to its otherworldly beauty.

You have to hike down through one mile of temperate rain forest to reach Second Beach. The beach is very flat so water creeps up slowly toward you for dozens of feet with every breaking wave. Our first visit to Second Beach was shrouded in fog, which made it all the more glorious.

Second Beach will always be First Beach in our hearts. <3

Olympic Peninsula part 1 - Colette's Bed and Breakfast, Salt Creek Recreactional Area, and Lake Crescent

After our wedding we headed to the Olympic Peninsula to spend some time exploring the various beaches and forests in this gorgeous area. We spent the first two nights at Colette's Bed and Breakfast which is on the northern end of the peninsula along the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Colette's was really gorgeous - each room has a private patio and private ocean view area on teh grounds of the huge garden surrounding the building.

While in the area we visited the Salt Creek Recreation Area (a former military camp) and climbed around its rocky beaches. We also drove over to Lake Crescent, the second deepest lake in Washington. Lake Crescent is also exceptionally clear due to a lack of nitrogen which inhibits algae growth. We had surprisingly good coffee from the lodge by the lake and enjoyed some scenic beauty for a while before getting dinner at a local gastropub in Port Angeles.

We got married!

On September 14th, on a boat on the Puget Sound surrounded by our families, Dustin and I got married. My father was the officiant in his capacity as an ordained Dudeist Priest, and he scripted a fantastic ceremony that we really loved. My sister Maddie served as photographer, running around taking pictures and video using no less than three different cameras. I wore a Marimekko dress I fell in love with on the very first dress-shopping trip we took, accessorized by locally designed shoes and a handmade scarf and headband. Dustin wore an APC suit that he had tailored by some adorable old ladies in Ballard. (Both are investment outfits we hope to wear again and again in the future!)

Overall everything went wonderfully and we couldn't have asked for a better wedding. We had a TON of fun in the days surrounding the wedding as well, more on that soon!

Some photos:

















More photos on Flickr here.

sunset and Block Shop

We saw a pretty decent sunset at Carkeek Park this week. I have been wearing my new Block Shop scarf everywhere lately because it is the best thing ever. It will be the first of many, I predict... I already bought a totally beautiful coral-colored second scarf for my wedding, and beyond (check my Instagram). These scarves are designed by the Stockman sisters in collaboration with master printers in Bagru, India who block print each scarf by hand using natural vegetable and mineral dyes. Block Shop is using proceeds from these scarves to fund medical initiatives in the area.

brief update

The blog has been quiet for a while, but there should be plenty to come soon - we're getting married in a few weeks! On a boat! Then we're visiting the Olympic Peninsula (finally)!

Here are a few pictures including a couple of recent sunsets and a cat.