New Home, and Away

Sorry for the delay on posts--I suppose there hasn't been all too much to tell lately, just the daily ins-and-outs. Nathan is adjusting to his early morning work schedule (5 am, ouch!) The nice thing about the early shift is that we get most of the afternoon and evening together. We moved into our new place last week! Being able to do it gradually over a few days made it so easy and fun. A few small bins are sitting around and we're still looking for living room furniture, but it already feels like home. :) 

Here is Nathan sitting in our living room the day we signed the lease.  The kitchen counter is right in front of me.  I love the huge window--not much of a view, but lovely light.

We had a really great weekend.  On Saturday we went to see The Dark Knight, which we both really liked.  It was so exciting!  Heath Ledger was completely insane as the Joker and so good. I can't wait for them to make the next movie.  On Sunday we picked up friends Dianna and Kim and headed to Sequim, Washington, for the Lavender Festival!  I have very fond memories of Sequim from the first time I visited the Northwest with my family in high school.  Even in mid-August, as the lavender season was coming to an end, the land was so beautiful.  Since then I had really wanted to go back there with Nathan, so yesterday was wonderful! We took the ferry from Edmonds to Kingston and enjoyed the view on the drive up to Sequim. The weather couldn't have been better, a high of about 70 degrees as we walked around the festival. 

 

We spent the morning at the street fair where tons of vendors sold all sorts of lavender products, honeys, jams, and crafts from their farms.  I picked up a few bunches of fresh lavender and some absolutely delicious Raspberry Lavender jam.

Since we only had a little time, we passed on the lavender farms tour. However, I couldn't leave without stopping by Purple Haze, the farm my family visited some years ago. They had an admissions gate, so we stood by and took some photos of their fields. We could hear a band playing fiddles and see tents set up for trying lavender infused culinary wonders. (I think we'll buy the tour button next year!)

We loved this stripe of yellow flowers running through the lavender field! The variations of green and purple were so vibrant.

We had some extra time in the afternoon, so we headed over to Dungeness, only about 15-20 minutes northwest.  Dungeness is famous for its crabs, but we drove to the coastline to see the

 Dungeness Spit.  The Spit is a narrow strip of land that extends 5 miles into the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  

 

The ecolife there is very rich. Birds often nest there, and a park ranger told us they found a baby seal down the shore. Driftwood dragged in with the tide has collected down the middle, and all sorts of shells, rocks, and strange sea plants wash up too.

 

The tide was coming in, so the waves were really crashing. You can see the mountains in the distance. I am so grateful to live within a drive's distance from something like this. 

I have quite a few photos from our beautiful Sunday that you can see by visiting my Kodak gallery page. You may have to login or be invited to view the album, so leave me a comment with your email if you'd like to see more lavender and sea! I wish you all could have been there.