A new place of escape.

Down at one of our favorite places: Teddy Bear Cove. You first drive along Chuckanut Drive which follows a ridge that runs along the coast. A twisting drive through the thick green trees, a precipitous drop on your right. If you are not looking for Teddy Bear Cove, you'll likely never find it. And the walk down is almost treacherous. A snake path designed more for mountain goats, or to keep the less adventurous (and non-nudists) away.

First picture is a miraculous shot of Esmé looking docile in her car seat. This has nothing to do with the Cove, but it was a good shot, and she is picturesque and photogenic.

Second is Jude running, if you didn't know. Shows the backside of our trusty Subaru, and a glimpse of the ocean through the tall pines.

Last is a shamelessly posed shot atop the rock looking out over the Cove. I planned the sailboat coming into view.

Enjoy.

The Dragon Wagon, Kettle Corn, and those Ubiquitous Peruvian Panpipe Players

Hello and more pictures for you all. This is "The Fair" series. We went to the Northwest Washington Fair up in Lynden and had a grand old time. I mentioned this outing in a previous post. It was Jude and Ezzie's first fair and they enjoyed themselves immensely. Lots of animals. The swine being the most forgettable - we were foolishly imagining a lot of "Wilburs" but they were just stinky and gross. Even Esmé came away saying "pig poop" while holding her diminutive nose. The goats and sheep were just lovely and compared to the truffle-sniffers, clean. I personally loved the beautiful draft horses. Such magnificent creatures. The bunnies were also a big hit. We'll have to get some someday.


Jude petting a darling kid. We had the distinct privilege of watching some goats being milked. That's cool stuff.


Mei-Mei looking tough on the Kobelco digger. They had lots of these utility vehicles set up just to look at and admire. Fun.


Look quick at the bottom for Jude living it up on the Dragon Wagon. He's wearing red.

Tidal crabs, part deux.

Jude exemplifying his best crab-catching maneuver.


A successful catch!

A short time on the tidal rocks poking around for crabs.

Yes, that's Jude giving us his best crab impersonation.


And, right again, that's Esme' practicing for the photo shoots that will accompany her superstardom as a rock drummer.

Dang, but those kids love popcorn.

Fresh kettle corn at the fair is an unparalleled experience. So sweet (and salty) and good. Oh, Ezzee was chowin' it the rest of the night. But Jude on the other hand... he took one bite and got a little hostile. He's a supertaster you know. Popcorn (in his superior estimation) should not be sweet. Only salty.

Here they have it the right way in the safety of our home.

Weak stomachs beware!

Eeeeuww! Bloody toe. Jude inflicted this upon himself while playing soccer in his sandals. Instead of losing it, he went home and took this picture. The blurred effect is part of the shot but it perhaps not a bad thing.

The kids just having fun, chillin', being kids, just loving on each other... blah, blah...

Two selections from atop the Sehome Arboretum...

Mé was running away as I took this. Yeah, I know: brilliant comment. I love how naturally she takes pictures. Just wait to see what else we got.

The second is taken from atop the lookout tower. You can see the harbor of Bellingham through the tree. I believe the hill and tower combined are about 500 or 600 feet up, so it gives a good view. This little gem is attached to the university (Western Washington) and is directly across the road from us. Cool, huh?

Yeah, Elise and I went through our more recent pictures...

This one made the cut because, I mean, come on. First of all, well taken, My Love. Jude looks classic and beautiful. And what is this he is framing? Yes, a yarn creation concocted out of his sweet little head. This kid is going somewhere. We are in the midst of a game of Monopoly (the Star Wars Saga edition) and he is easily beating me. And that is with magnanimously granting me 400 dollars for nothing. Anyway, enjoy this pic.

I'm not sure how best to do this...

I love these two. Don't worry, Ez, you'll get your due. I'm constantly overcareful about not preferring one kid or the other. It is nice that both are such strong personalities and that one is a boy, and the other is a girl. Also, since the boy reminds me of narcissistic self and the girl reminds me of the older girl whom I worship, it is difficult to prefer one over the other.

Quasi-smiles

I centered this picture on my computer desktop in a sea of milk chocolate brown. The decision to encase it in that color obviously has to do with the sepia-tone that I converted the picture into. After that was all done, I liked it so much I wanted to share it with all of you. Jude is of course as charming as ever. He is immaculately photogenic. I'm not sure about my self with my rockstar cum zoolander quasi-smiles. I do like the fact that you can see my wedding ring and the cool deskmug I'm holding. You should all check out the lyrical description about berry picking placed by my wife in the last post (look for "anonymous"). I suppose there will be more pictures to come. Just be patient already.