Betsy's September Visit

Betsy came to stay with us for a week in early September.  We spent two nights in a cabin on Sequim Bay.  The weather was gorgeous for her entire visit (of course it's been beautiful in the northwest since mid-July). It was a really great visit and of course we did lots of paddling.   

Mom stopped by to see Betsy.  She made Betsy a beautiful cedar and grass basket!

 Eric showing Betsy how it's done.

Incredible sunsets on Sequim Bay.

The "Boat House" cabin that we stayed in.

Nothing like a morning campfire to warm your toes.

Carmen's cute paws in the sand.

View looking south from our cabin.

Carmen with her Auntie Betsy and Eric.

Another amazing sunset, this one looking out at the Straight of Juan de Fuca.

Betsy on Sequim Bay.

Eric and I dipped out into the straight from Sequim Bay where the waves and current were strong.  You can see Mount Baker and Protection Island behind Eric.

Last day at the cabin...then we went to Cresent Lake before heading back to Oly.

The water of Cresent Lake is so clear and aqua blue!  Breathtaking.  Yes, I jumped in and it was so refreshing.

Carmen the gorgeous (photo credit: Betsy Miller)

Paddling Boston Harbor.

Paddling Budd Inlet.  Yep, that's Betsy paddling in a nice skirt.

Carmen and Betsy got lots of snuggle time!

Myles-Era Family visit

Ronna, Kira, and Ethan came to visit us for a few days in August.  We had a really great time just hanging out, going to Sand in the City, walking downtown and seeing Oly's new Percival Landing, eating at King Soli's Reef, spending a night at the farm and seeing some of the Era family, and of course paddle boarding at Boston Harbor.

Kira and Ronna on SUPs and Ethan in a kayak.  We went to Gull Harbor, which is a decent paddle, especially for beginners.  Kira did amazingly well.

Kira and Ronna.

Yes, we finally made it to Gull Harbor!

A northerly wind picked up and it was apparent that we weren't going to get Ethan's rental back in time if we didn't hurry.  So I jumped in Ethan's kayak and towed him back Boston Harbor on the SUP I was using (the old heavy windsurfer).  Boy, I was tired... Ethan still owes me a back massage.

Ethan tried SUP when we got back to the harbor and did well.

At the farm.  We walked down to the river, enjoyed Dad's veggie soup and fruit pies, relaxed in the sun, and played a really fun game of nerf-gun tag at dusk.  The next day, Aunt Barb, Uncle Jerry, and cousin Tiffany came by to visit.   It was a short visit to the farm, but loads of fun.

Dad and me.

Now that's a happy family!

Corgi Paddle

In August I took my friends (Chris and Sarah) out for a couple paddles on Budd Inlet.  They both took to it pretty quickly.  On one of our paddles, we paddled to our friend Steve's house on the water near Priest Point Park.  He had just gotten two new corgi puppies.  Paddling, sunshine, cold drinks, friends, and corgi puppies: Best day ever!!!

Chris (near in photo) and Sarah on their boards.

Just what you need after a good paddle: puppies and beer.

I wish Carmen would ride on my board like this little guy seems to want to. We are just going to have to get a puppy so we can teach it to ride on the board.

Oh precious puppies...

What more can I say?

Blessed Bingo

Bingo, one of the best dogs in the world, passed away this summer. Bingo was truly amazing.  Most of our training for Carmen was modeled after Bingo.  He lived a full and awesome life.  He will never be forgotten.

Bingo with owner John earlier this past summer.

Summer Yard 2012

With all the sunshine we had this summer - our yard turned out beautiful.

Early summer

Our second-year snap dragons (they over-wintered) were amazing.

Carmen in the flowers.

Rose bush in the front yard.

New garden that Eric made in the front yard where we planted 4 varities of blueberries.

Chemex

We made our love of coffee a science. We got a Chemex (pour over). It makes delicous coffee, of course there is a whole science behind this simple brewing process.

Dad's Birthday

Eric and I took Dad to the LeMay car museum in Tacoma for his birthday in July.

Summer SUP Adventures

This summer was full of many Stand Up Paddle (SUP) adventures for Eric and me around the Sound, especially since we had amazing weather and I have a lot more time since I no longer bike race.   I'm posting a few pictures here, but many of our adventrues are posted in Eric's new SUP blog (see the link in our blog links list).  Eric also started teaching SUP to folks in the local area. 

We had many sunset paddles - usually after work.

We got lucky one evening and were able to ride some great wind waves by Priest Point Park.

My longest paddle was around Squaxin Island from Boston Harbor: 15 miles and approximately 4 hours of paddling.

Bull kelp forest near the southern end of Squaxin Island where the current gets moving.

One of our favorite paddles is a 1-hr round trip from Swantown north to a boat called "Tarry Not".

Here I am learning to turn my board quickly by getting way back on it.

Eric's family, Mom (Vickie) and I went in a board for him for an early 40th birthday present.  He got the Laird - Bark 14 ft board.  He loves it!

Just some of the amazing widlife we see...

 Some low tide treats...

Right after jumping off my board into the sound.  In the summer Budd Inlet gets pretty warm.

August had a blue moon, so we did a night paddle to commemorate it.