My Seattle Times

I went to Seattle June 8-13; I flew from Denver to Seattle on United Airlines. I got to see lots of family and friends while I was there. My Great Uncle Hart came from Portland with his daughter Diana (my dad’s cousin) and her husband Don. Hart is 92 and doing great and I want to be like him. We walked all over the city (in the rain) and he really kept up!!! Diana and Don arranged the trip around a Seattle Mariners game. They were there the whole time we were. Then we saw other family members and friends throughout the time.

We flew out Wednesday and I got to ride the cool train at DIA, which I love, a lot! My flight was delayed so my mom and I wandered all the concourses. If you ride that train, drop me a comment and let me know if you got the man or the lady on the train. I will do a full review of my flights later, but United is always good to me. We got there around 5 pm and went to our hotel, the Seattle Marriott Waterfront. By the time we got there, we had dinner, unpacked and went to bed. We were ready for our big adventures.

On Thursday, it was raining a lot, but I didn’t mind because I got to see Steve and Marcy. They drove down from the Tri Cities to meet us for lunch; very nice of them because it is a 3 hour drive each way. Steve was my dad’s best man and they have known each other a long time. I love you both! Please come visit Colorado soon.

After lunch, Diana, Don, Uncle Hart and my family walked along all the waterfront and decided to go to the Seattle Aquarium because it was indoors! Don had to move his car, so he missed it, but we had fun. The aquarium was really cool. I was really relaxing in there. There were lots of exhibits and the colors and the water made it really relaxing. I really liked seeing the octopus they have. It was amazing to see him move around the tank. After the aquarium, we went back out in the rain and walked to an ice cream place that was attached to a fish restaurant. I started with ice cream and then finished with a crab cocktail. By the time we were done with this, Uncle Hart was kind of tired. We walked over 10,000 steps already and I was tired too. It was after 6:00, so we went back to the hotel and had some dinner.

On Friday, I spent the day with Mom and Dad. My dad had a meeting in the morning, so my mom and I walked along the water and looked for rain ponchos. Turns out, they are very hard to find in Seattle. When he was done, we took a ferry to Bainbridge Island. It was not as rainy as Thursday and just rained a little off and on until we were ready to head back to the city. The ferry was very accessible. I couldn’t go on the top deck, but they had decks on the front and back that I could go out on. There was plenty of room for me to move around within the ferry.

Bainbridge Island is really quiet and nice. We got off the ferry and were able to easily walk to the main street. We had lunch at a neat bistro and sat outside (reviews to follow). The weather was really nice while we were here. After lunch, we kept walking and did some shopping. Still looking for rain ponchos; we bought plastic garbage bags instead. They had a really nice market and we bought a few things. Then we got stuff for my dogs and my friends at some little boutiques. We finished by getting coffee and pastries before we had to go back on the ferry. It was pouring rain on the ride back, but it slowed down by the time we got back. We walked along the water and ended going into a restaurant along the pier for dinner; it was called the Crabpot. After dinner, we went back to the hotel for rest. We got over 18,000 steps that day (my mom is counting).

Saturday was a big day for seeing people. My Great Aunt Mary, Uncle Dave, Aunt Kristen and my cousin Moira drove from Portland to meet us for lunch. Kristen and Moira stayed for the Mariners game that night. My dad’s cousin Christina and her husband David met us for lunch and so did LeAnn and her son JJ (my dad’s second cousin and son). It was a big, fun group. This is the group in the photo at the top. I love this group!!! It reminded me of what family really means. Please come visit me.

We ate at Ivar’s for this lunch and the first one with Steve and Marcy. Great place for big groups.

After lunch, some of us went to ride the Seattle Great Wheel. One bonus of being in a wheelchair was that my group got to go to the front of the line and get loaded into the cars. We could not all fit together, so I went with Mom and Dad and the other 6 got into another car. It was cool to see the city from up there! It was fun and easy for me to get in and out of.

After this, we walked on to the ballpark for the Seattle Mariners vs Boston Red Sox baseball game. There was a little bit of teasing my dad since he is a Red Sox fan. Our friends that used to live in Colorado, but now live in Seattle went to the game and we were able to visit with them for a few innings. I didn’t get a picture with Shawn and Amy, but I really do miss them. (I hope I get to go back and see their house there soon. It sounds cool.) We left the game before it was over because I had to walk back to the hotel and it was getting late.

On Sunday, Diana and Don went to another game, so we went to the Pikes Place Market and did lots of shopping and eating. It is a very busy and crowded place. I really liked it, but it old and not very easy to get around in a wheelchair. People were coming from all directions, it felt like. But there was a lot of cool stuff there. I bought presents for friends and family and got some things for myself. We had coffee and snacks and had lunch at a biscuit place. It was a lot of fun. That night, Diana, Don and Hart met us for dinner at our hotel. Thank you Uncle Hart for buying my dinner. After dinner, we packed and got ready to leave tomorrow.

On Monday, we had breakfast at the hotel (like we did everyday) and headed to the airport. It was a good travel day. We had a nice lunch in the United Club Lounge and a good flight. I got to ride the train at DIA again and then see my dogs. Mary Kate took great care of them while I was gone.

This was a great trip with lots of great visits. Thank you Diana and Don for getting it started and arranging the baseball game. Thank you everyone who came to see us. It was a huge deal for some to get there and I really appreciate it (so do my mom and dad)!!! I loved seeing everyone and hope we get to do another trip soon.