seattle...

I was so thrilled to have us all back together again...

On our first day together we drove into Seattle. Chris & I had been to Seattle back in 2008 when we went on our Alaskan cruise with Hal, Jenny, Craig & their cousin Debbie. Washington is one of Chris' favorite places so we were eager to share it with the kids. First up was Pike Place Market...

Shortly after this picture we had lunch because as you can see, one of us was a little hangry...

What a difference a meal makes...

The rooftop where we ate had amazing views of Elliott Bay & I couldn't help thinking of Grey's Anatomy & with all the ferry boats. "It's a beautiful day to save lives..."

Pike Place is famous for it's flying fish. We took the kids to see the fish mongers throwing the daily fish, some to be caught & wrapped & others to be thrown back. It's a crowd pleaser.

We headed down to the equally gross & intriguing gum wall & made our contributions...

We had already purchased tickets for the Space Needle & in order to make our visiting window we took a pedicab from Pike Place. It was cozy but we made it work...

Behind us is Fisher Plaza & the building that is used as some of the Grey-Sloan Memorial Hospital exterior shots from Grey's Anatomy.

Seattle has some amazing architecture. From old buildings, residential areas, outdoor markets to the Space Needle...

The Blue Angels happened to be in Seattle the day that we were there. We heard them screaming by & I was able to catch this shot just as they flew overhead...

The Space Needle was originally created for the 1962 World's Fair. It has changed a lot over the years & is quite a bit different from the last time Chris & I were there. They have renovated the inside & the upper level has an outdoor observation area...

& they also removed the revolving restaurant, replacing it with rotating a glass floor. It offers "floor-to-forever" glass so that you can literally look straight down see unobstructed views all the way around. 

In addition to the Space Needle we also visited the Chihuly Garden & Glass...

When Landon was in third grade I did an art lesson for his class on Dale Chihuly. Chihuly has created so many amazing blown glass sculptures & usually uses a team approach when it comes to creating his works. One of his more well known glass sculptures is the ceiling of flowers at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas.

There are eight different galleries at Chihuly Garden & Glass, each one completely different from the last...

When I asked everyone what their favorite part of the trip was, Chris said Chihuly Garden & Glass. It is a pretty spectacular exhibit & I would totally recommend it if you are in the area. 

We had some difficulty finding gluten free restaurants but I came across one in our search that ended up being incredible. It wasn't in the greatest part of town & we didn't have a reservation but they were nice enough to squeeze us in before their next set of reservations. So we finished off our day with an exceptional dinner where Landon enjoyed "the best gluten free fish & chips of his entire life."