Seattle on Sunday

"The sun is gone, but I have a light", Kurt Cobain

Alina and I borrowed a relatives car and drive into the frosty city of Seattle Sunday morning. So frosty, in fact, we had a few yards of skidding on ice on the freeway! (breathe deeply).

We met the France family at a local bakery which is partly owned by my cousin Scott. It's called, "Macrina Bakery" and supplies many local businesses with breads and pastries. We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast, coffee and tour of the bakery.

Afterwards, my mom, dad, Alina, and myself, went to Mars Hill Ballard, where we met cousins of Alina. The worship band was incredible and Mark Driscoll did a great job of wrapping up the gospel of Luke and addressing generosity in the church.

When church was finished, we introduced my parents to Pike place, where we walked through the markets, saw guys throwing fish, French bakery, and the first Starbucks.

Alina and I finished our evening with Kevin and Nicole (Alina's cousins) t a place called, "Country Buffet", where I "ate my face off". Buffets may need to be outlawed...

Wedding

Family, food, fun. We had a great time at Tim and Lisa's wedding Saturday. Lots of pictures to come.

After the wedding, we headed to Gasworks park for a view of the city at dusk. Then we weathered the cold downtown to a pub called, "Local 360", where all the ingredients come from local businesses 360 miles around Seattle. Alina and I tried PB&J bon bons and pig belly (yes, it was gross).
We had a great time talking and talking.

Departing for Seattle 2011

"Then I proclaimed a fast there... that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods." Ezra 8:21

We are leaving for Seattle for 5 days to attend a wedding, be with family, and just get away!

Here are 3 traveling tips that we used (or should have used) when preparing for a trip:

1) Partner up: If you travel with someone else, get on the same team! Communicate about expectations. A trip can be a bonding or abrasive time, depending on the your partner-pal.

2) Pray: Ezra fasted and prayed for a safe journey for his family and luggage! Maybe his had a bad experience with missing baggage...

3) Plan Ahead: Check online, print out tickets, clean the house, bring snacks, empty the fridge, fight, and pack well before your departure! You don't want any loose-ends as you walk out the door ;)