First Time for everything!

Two weeks ago at our Tuesday Night Bible Study, Brian invited us to join him and Melissa at Paradise at Mt. Rainier. Several of us said that we’d go, so on Saturday morning (March 1) we loaded up my car and Brian’s and headed to the Mountain. For more pictures, you can check out my link (on the right) to Brian and Melissa’s website.

Don’t Brian and Eric looked relaxed and ready to build an igloo?



They opened the gate at Longmire about 5 minutes after we got to it, so we were some of the first vehicles up the road to Paradise. We had lunch at the visitor center and then started getting things ready to hike out to find our perfect spot. Eric decided that he needed to supervise things from above:



After snowshoeing for a little bit, we came to the perfect spot for our igloo. Kristin, Brian, and Eric start to clear the area.



Eric and Brian work on getting the ice blocks cut out of our quarry, which later became the center area of our igloo:



Here’s the trail that we blazed to our spot. The trail goes off to the left through the tree clearing.



At one point during the afternoon, Melissa headed back to the visitor center to warm up and cheer up little Abee. They came out awhile later to spend a few minutes with us, but then went back again.

There were some cool shadows from the trees, so I tried to capture the beauty of it:



After getting several levels up on the igloo. Eric had an idea to build an arch over the doorway. It stayed up for a few seconds after Kristin and Michelle moved, but then someone touched it and it fell down. Because of the short lifespan of the arch, I got the only picture of it:



After the arch collapsed, we used our poles to support the entryway. Michelle, me, and Kristin take a break from shoring up the walls:



We ended up having to move our quarry, so here’s Eric taking a break at the new one to pose for a picture:



By this time, we realized that the bigger ice blocks work the best, so Eric and Brian were trying to cut the biggest ones they could, while still being able to carry them:



Since I had some time, I was playing around with one of my favorite pictures from that day. This is the original picture:



This is the same picture in Black and White:



This is that same picture in Sepia:



Since we knew we didn’t have enough time to finish the roof before darkness set in, we decided to hike up the hill next to us to see if we could get a glimpse of the Mountain. Checking out the view are Michelle, Kristin, Eric, and Brian:



Here’s the view that we had:



On the ride up to Paradise, Eric told Michelle and I that he wanted to do some tree jumping and here he took the opportunity to try it:



This wasn’t his best landing, but he still sunk in the snow a little:



After hiking or sliding back down the hill, we took a few pictures of the igloo, before we had to destory it. Brian and Eric are admiring their handiwork and contemplating their next moves:



Action shot of Eric throwing an ice block to destroy the igloo:



I took still photos and Michelle took video as Kristin, Brian, and Eric destroyed our igloo:



After all their hard work destroying it, they needed a quick break before heading back to the cars:



Once we got back to the vehicles, we hightailed it out of there, since they closed the gate at Longmire at 7 pm. We wanted to have dinner, so we stopped at a great little place not too far out of the Park, called the Copper Creek Inn. We had a great time and can’t wait to go again and to finish our next one.

TNBS

Our Tuesday Night Bible Study (TNBS) loves to get together, whether it is Tuesday night or during the weekend. We wanted to do some fun things during the Christmas Season, while also helping those in our community. Our first activity was to put some gift bags together for the Boys & Girls Club. To put a fun twist on it, we decided to go as a group to the Dollar Store to buy all the gifts. Before we left, I had to take this really cute picture of Abee (Brian and Melissa’s sleeping baby):



Once we came back, we got to work getting the bags together. Left to right are Brian, Michelle, Nate, Eric, Melissa, Kristin, and Danae:



We were able to make 28 gift bags and it turned out to be evenly split with 14 boys and 14 girls bags. Here are the ones for the boys:



Here’s Michelle and Danae with the girls bags:



Our next get together was a White Elephant Gift Exchange on Wednesday, December 19. I was out sick from work that day (at the start of my now 4 weeks of being sick), so I may be a little fuzzy on some of the details. We did play a game of “Name that Tune,” but I can’t remember if the guys or the girls won. I’m sure someone will remind me though.

Have to say that I was curious about the definition of a White Elephant (besides it being an animal), so I decided to look it up.

From Webster’s Dictionary: n 1) A rare whitish or light-gray form of the Asian elephant, often regarded with special veneration in areas of SE Asia. 2) a. A rare and expensive possession that is financially a burden to maintain. b. Something of dubious or limited value. 3) An article, ornament, or household utensil no longer wanted by its owner. 4) A conspicous failure.

I was laughing when I saw the different definitions and I’ll let you decide which fits with what gift. This picture is of Nate trying on his funky new glasses that were a part of the gift that he selected. I don’t think he ended up with them though. Peering over his shoulders are Kristin and Adam:



Eric was happy to get some gift certificates to Baskin Robbins, but I don’t think he ended up with them at the end:



Mike was back home for Christmas, so he joined us for our party. He chose the gift that I brought, which was a hollow cone shaped thing stuffed with lots of candy. He was able to keep it, but it had less candy when he left:



Brian selected a gift that turned out to be little wooden puzzles that are very complicated to put together, let alone explain what they are. He did end the night with them and I know that he was still trying to figure the puzzles out when we got together on Saturday.



Charlotte opens her gift with Eric looking on. It was an airplane with a santa that came off to reveal some goodies inside:



It took a long time, but Kristin finally unwrapped her gift to reveal two books on CDs. I know she didn’t end up with them, because her roommate, Michelle, took them away. Here’s proof that she had them for a few minutes:



Now the party could begin with the party favors that Danae opened up:



Adam ended up getting a football, thankfully the guys didn’t start playing in the living room, since there wasn’t enough room:



Lastly is Tom and the teddy bear that he got. I don’t think he left the house with it though:



Somewhere in there I was able to select a gift. Since I was taking the pictures, I don’t have one of me. I got some sparkling blueberry cider and two glasses. After opening all the gifts, we all just sat around, talked, played ping pong, ate, and talked even more.

Our next get together was that Saturday night (December 22). We were going caroling at a retirement community in town and then going back to Brian and Melissa’s for our First Annual Soup-er Fest (not sure if we officially named it or not). Anyone in the group could bring soups/chili/stew and we’d vote on who had the best. We were joined by Melissa and Michelle’s parents, Hildred and Clair, who were here for Christmas from Utah. Brian and Kristin’s brother Steven also joined us before he headed to their parents place in Idaho. As we started to gather at the retirement community, I took this really cute picture of Abee in her little Santa outfit, which her Great-Grandma knitted:



Last year, Brian, Melissa, and I, along with our old Bible Study group came to this same place for caroling, but we walked up and down the hallways singing. I actually liked this time better, because we stayed in the dining room, sang, and then got to spend quality time with all those who had joined us. Left to right are: Brian (with Abee), Michelle, Kristin, Melissa (Hildred hiding behind her), Steven, Lucas (in front), Tom, Eric, and Clair.



A close up one from left to right are: Brian (with Abee), Michelle, Kristin, Melissa, Steven (back), and Lucas (front).



The rest of them are left to right: Hildred (back), Melissa (front), Steven, Lucas, Tom, Eric, and Clair.



While hanging out with the residents, Abee was with either her parents or her grandparents. She was enjoying the attention, but she eventually got really tired and hungry. A great picture of her after a long night:



After caroling and visiting, we went back to Brian and Melissa’s place to get ready for our Soup-er Fest. To pass the time, Eric (front) joined Tom (back) on the piano for a great performance:



We then dug into the soups. Getting ready to chow down are left to right: Tom, Melissa, Michelle, Clair, Hildred, and Eric.



Kristin’s trying to decide what to have, Steven’s getting ready to pick something out, and Clair knows what he wants:



For some reason, everyone decided that there was something more interesting in the living room than the food. Here’s the backs (and some profiles) of: Steven, Melissa, Hildred, Michelle, Clair, and Kristin.



There were lots of different soups and I better not try to name them all, since I know I won’t be able to:



After trying them all, we scored each one and then they announced the winner. Eric was the winner and I’m not even going to try writing what his was.

Answers to the Questions

Sorry I didn’t get this on here sooner, but with a second trip to Michigan in about two months and Thanksgiving, I’ve been busy. So, how do you think you did? Check these answers out.

1. What is Katie’s real name?
a. Katrin

2. Who is Katie’s favorite Mariner? Outfielder Jeremy Reed (#7) -- He was only with the M’s for part of this season (the rest was with the minor league Tacoma Rainiers), but has been with them fulltime for several years. I even got his autograph when Mom and I went to Spring Training last year. :-)

3. Does Katie prefer Colgate or Crest? Crest

4. M & M Plain or Peanuts? Peanuts

5. Where was Katie born? Vancouver, Washington

6. What type of car and color is Katie going to buy? Dark Blue Mustang Convertible with a black top, but I’m also looking at a BMW 3-Series, Volkswagen Eos (World’s first hard top convertible with a sunroof), or the Toyota Solara. All are convertibles.

7. (T/F) Katie’s first born is going to be named ICHIRO? False

8. Katie plays what position on the softball team? Catcher

9. (Problem Solve) Katie has 1st row tickets to see the Mariners, but is on the worship team that Sunday - What is her excuse for missing church? Actually, I wouldn’t miss church. I know how to exchange the tickets. :-)

10. What college did she attend and what was her major? George Fox University--International Business and Economics

11. The name of Katie’s childhood pet was?
a. Snowball (who was actually my brother’s dog, but I loved her anyways)

12. Katie’s favorite fast food is?
a. Subway
c. McDonald’s
--Either was fine with me, since I love them both. For those who really know me, you should know that I don’t like pizza.

13. (Hypothetical) Katie wins the lottery, what does she do with the money?
a. Gives Mom and brother a little bit
c. Buys a car and travels around the U.S. as a Mariner groupie
--Of course I’d give my family some, travel, buy a new car, give to my church and other charities that I love.

30 Years and Counting

Ok, the long awaited birthday posting is finally here. You gotta give me a break, I’m now 30, so I'm allowed to go slower, right? My birthday was Saturday, October 6, but we celebrated it with several events during the week leading up to the big day. On Saturday, September 29, I went to a Mariner’s game (my last one of the season) with my co-worker, Debbie. It was her first time at a game and we had a blast. She’s more into hot rods and drag racing, so she’s planning on taking me to the track some time (hopefully when it’s warmer). I was also at Friday night’s game. You can read my last post below to see more pictures from both games.

Now, back to Saturday’s game. During the 2nd or 3rd Innings of all M’s games, they have birthday and anniversary messages up on the big screen. well, I’ve never had my name up there, so Mom thought that it would be great to surprise me with a birthday message for me. Debbie knew about it and spoiled it, because she was making sure I was watching the screen. I had put my camera away, because I was going to go grab a snack, but Debbie stopped me and told me I had to watch the messages. She had her camera trained on me to get my reaction to it, but the stadium lights were reflecting off my glasses and it didn’t turn out well. Since we didn’t get a picture of my birthday message, here it is:

“Happy Birthday! Congrats Katie on your 30th. Love Ya! Mom, Elliot & Yvonna”

Here’s a picture of me in my Mariner gear (I didn’t have my M’s pants on though). This was taken before the game when Debbie and I walked around the stadium. As you can tell it is after we went into the team store. I did buy a bunch of great things, but I also shoved my jacket in there, so the bag looks really full:



I don’t usually take pictures of this creature, but couldn’t resist. Here’s the Mariner Moose:



Surprise!!!

On Friday, October 5th, one of my Small Group Bible Studies that I’ve been a part of was supposed to be having our last meeting together. I knew that they’d do something to me, since last year for my 29th birthday they gave me a “With Sympathy” card, with messages about how sorry they were that I was in the last year of my 20s. They told me to watch out on my 30th, so I was prepared for something. I went over to Steven and Pam’s house knowing that my group was going to do something. When I pulled up their driveway, I noticed that there were too many cars for our group, even if each spouse had their own car. Pam then came out to meet me, which she’s never done before, even when we scrapbook together. She then held the door open for me as people started singing to me. I noticed that most of my Tuesday Night Bible Study was also there, along with several others that I’ve known for many years. Several people who weren’t there did talk to me at church on Sunday.

The biggest surprise was that my brother showed up. He lives in Oregon and Mom had told me at dinner that she had talked to him just before I got home from work. Elliot had driven up his truck, which I hadn’t seen when I drove up. It’s hard to miss his huge truck, but it was dark and I couldn’t see the Oregon license plate. Yvonna was coming up on Saturday mid-morning and then they were driving back after my birthday dinner Saturday night.

We had a great evening. We ate, I opened some gifts, ate some awesome chocolate cake, had some great conversations, and then those of us who were left after all that played “Shout It Out.” Enjoy some pictures from that night. Thanks to Mom and Melissa for all the pictures. Mom was not there right at first, but she came a few minutes later. Brian and his sister, Kristin, dropped by our house to pick Mom up. I guess they actually saw me turning the corner, so they knew the coast was clear.

I came into the house while they sang Happy Birthday:



Not long after that, people started to get hungry, so I started the food line. Here’s Mary and I after we got some of the great food (Mom--notice the veggies):



My brother and I:



Elliot and Sue:



Mom and Jack:



Steven, Kim, and Pam checking out the food:



Juanita, Kristin, and Michelle:



Dave and I (I’ve known him for almost 30 years):



Jack, Kristin, Brian, Kelly, and myself (I didn’t count, but I don’t think there were 30 candles on that cake):



I finally get to blow out all the candles. I got them all out in one breath. Leah, Brian, and Kelly are looking over my shoulder:



I then got to open the gifts:



Here’s Bill, Chris, Steven, Dave, Kelly, and Pam watching me open my gifts:



Here’s Kelly, Pam, Kim, Jack, and Elliot watching me open my gifts:



At the end of the evening, Steven and Pam’s daughter, Madeline, wanted to be like me. She’s my little buddy, so I was happy to have her join me. She gave me a great gift too, a little beanie bear. Here’s the two princesses:



Many thanks to those who put this evening together. Thanks to Pam and Steven for hosting the party. It was a blast and made me feel so loved by all who came and those who couldn’t be there, but later gave me good wishes.

During the party, those who attended filled out a questionnaire to see how much they knew me. Thought I’d give those who couldn’t be there a chance to actually see how much they know me. I’ll post the answers in a week or two. For those who actually read this and know me, you can send me your answers via e-mail if you want to. If you were at the party, you can try it again and see if you get a better score. :-) Here’s the questionnaire:

1. What is Katie’s real name?
a. Katrin
b. Katherine
c. Katyana
d. Katerina

2. Who is Katie’s favorite Mariner?

3. Does Katie prefer Colgate or Crest?

4. M & M Plain or Peanuts?

5. Where was Katie born?

6. What type of car and color is Katie going to buy?

7. (T/F) Katie’s first born is going to be named ICHIRO?

8. Katie plays what position on the softball team?

9. (Problem Solve) Katie has 1st row tickets to see the Mariners, but is on the worship team that Sunday - What is her excuse for missing church?

10. What college did she attend and what was her major?

11. The name of Katie’s childhood pet was?
a. Snowball
b. Calvin
c. Katie’s Kitty
d. Griffey

12. Katie’s favorite fast food is?
a. Subway
b. Pizza
c. McDonald’s
d. Snacks after church
e. None of the above

13. (Hypothetical) Katie wins the lottery, what does she do with the money?
a. Gives Mom and brother a little bit
b. Does nothing
c. Buys a car and travels around the U.S. as a Mariner groupie

How do you think you did? You’ll just have to visit again to find out. By the way, the winner at the party got to have a picture with me. Here’s the winner:



Jack was so sure that he’d get every question right. Turns out that he missed a few, but he tied with his wife, Sue, for the most correct answers. Have to say though, that of those at the party besides Mom and Elliot, Jack and Sue have known me the most. In December, they’ll have known me for 30 years. Jack also knew my Dad and his family back in Michigan.

Here’s two quick pictures of our family birthday dinner. We went to Budd Bay Cafe, one of my favorite restaurants on the Puget Sound. Mom and I:



Elliot and Yvonna: