{"id":5946,"date":"2015-12-31T07:06:17","date_gmt":"2015-12-31T11:06:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/?p=5946"},"modified":"2015-12-31T07:06:17","modified_gmt":"2015-12-31T11:06:17","slug":"what-we-did-on-our-summer-vacation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/svecho.com\/?p=5946","title":{"rendered":"What we did on our Summer Vacation"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Well, we are a bit out of date order here (since someone got way behind in posting) but it is time to take a look back at our amazing summer in Washington.<\/p>\n

We left Grenada in mid August and returned to the island on the 1st of November. The highlight, of course, was Sarah and Kristi’s wedding in October, but we did a bunch of stuff before and after too.<\/p>\n

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As we arrived in August, first order of business was get settled into our long term hotel room. Last year we moved from place to place and it was a little uncomfortable so this year we decided to book at Home2<\/a> for 6 weeks.\u00a0 We found the place easy to live in and quite convenient.\u00a0\u00a0 I did learn a couple of things: First, that if you stay longer than 30 days there is no sales tax on the rental.\u00a0 This is an automatic 10% savings.\u00a0 Second, if you book an extended stay with the manager at the hotel rather than the internet for longer stays you can often negotiate a lower rate too.<\/p>\n

The weeks flew by as we caught up with the kids, did a little sightseeing, and took care of some deferred maintenance.\u00a0 We are learning that being gone for a year leads to a multitude of Dr. appointments that need to be accomplished.\u00a0 Eyes, Teeth, Heart, GP….you get the picture \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

We were able to spend a bunch of time with Brian in Darrington and joined him on a river trip<\/a> too.\u00a0 Also, we had a wonderful dinner with our friends Dan and Kellie whom we had not seen since the Salmon River trip a year before.<\/p>\n

For October we had rented a house on the shore of Lake Whatcom.\u00a0 We wanted a nice big house for wedding visitors and events and this place was perfect.\u00a0 Mom, Bill and Julie, Aiden, Shaye, Meagan, Maureen, Emi, and Lisa all stayed and it was just great to spend time with everyone.<\/p>\n

As the wedding date approached our days continued to fill with new visitors and events.\u00a0 It was so nice to spend time with everyone.\u00a0 Just before the wedding we had a little cruise on Bellingham Bay.\u00a0 It felt good to feel the ocean under our feet for awhile!<\/p>\n

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Of course, the wedding was the highlight of the entire trip!\u00a0 It was held at a venue called the Moon Mountain Lodge<\/a>.\u00a0 I’m not sure how Sarah and Kristi found this place, but what an excellent spot!\u00a0 Although only about 15 miles from Bellingham, the lodge is way up a mountain trail and really in the middle of no where.\u00a0 It was warm and comfortable and really a perfect spot.<\/p>\n

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The ceremony was performed at a beautiful grove back up a trail in the woods.\u00a0 We were surrounded by majestic trees, birds, wind and even a hint of rain.\u00a0 It was an incredible setting.<\/p>\n

The party was outstanding and, even though we stayed until closing time, the event seemed to be over in minutes..\u00a0 It was great to meet Kristi’s family and all of Sarah and Kristi’s friends from all over the country.\u00a0 We were so happy to see all of our family and friends too.\u00a0 All too soon the time slipped by…we wished we could have spent hours with each of you!<\/p>\n

Words can not fully express how much it meant for all of us to see everyone!\u00a0 Bellingham is an awful long way from anywhere and we want to give a huge THANK YOU all who visited both in person and in thoughts.\u00a0 We love and appreciate you all.<\/p>\n

We did decide that since we plan to spend some time in Washington each year that it might be a good idea to look for some property.\u00a0 As the weeks passed we spent time looking at condos and exploring different areas.\u00a0 We really like Bellingham.\u00a0 If is a fun city with lots of energy and things to do.\u00a0 Our search was successful and we found place on Bellingham bay just on the edge of downtown.\u00a0 Coincidentally, it looks out over the marina \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 It needs a bunch of updating, but the view and location are perfect.\u00a0 The place is unfurnished now, but we ordered some furniture before we left so we can move in for a while next year.<\/p>\n

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So, we had an outstanding summer.\u00a0 Spent a little time on chores, a little time on\u00a0 sightseeing, had the joy of seeing so many of our friends and family that traveled so far, and best of all a bunch of time with our incredible kids Brian, Katie, Sarah, and Kristi.<\/p>\n

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