The Smiths' Stories: 4th of July Visit to Washington

For the week around 4th of July, I headed north back to Washington to visit with family and friends. I spent the days leading up to the 4th couch-hopping from friend to friend in the Puget Sound area. I spent a few days with old college friends Jen, Jake and their 2 girls. It was soooo fun to get a little baby-time as well as be reminded how many questions an almost 5-year old asks! I then had a wonderful dinner out with Sabrina and her new beau, Brian where Sabrina and I were "devastated" when we weren't carded while ordering adult beverages. Too bad our MUCH-YOUNGER waiter heard us grumbling and proceeded to tease us about it all night.

The next morning, I was off to see some old Shipyard friends for breakfast, lunch and a night out at the Clearwater Creek Casino. I really enjoyed catching up with everyone and hearing all the gossip I'd missed in the last 2 months. Too bad I walked away from the casino with nothing but the stinky smoke smell in my clothes. Maybe I'll hit the jackpot next time?

After the friend- and fun-filled days, I was super excited to get on the road to Ocean Shores, WA where I was going to meet up with my parents, BOTH brothers and a few of the extended family for a rockin' 4th out on the beach. Due to several hours of HORRIBLE traffic, I was forced to hit up the Indian Reservation myself (without the help of my pyro brother) to pick up a stash of illegal fireworks. I ended up with a box of goodies that weighed 70+ pounds and therefore badgered the guy at the booth into carrying it to my car for me! (Am I a big *girl* or what?) We all finally made it to the hotel in Aberdeen and I was able to visit with my immediate family, grandmother, two uncles, an aunt and 5 cousins!

On the actual 4th, my parents, brothers and I watched 2 of my cousins compete in the Firecracker Duathlon @ Elma, WA for the 2nd year in a row. Ben did a fabulous job! Unfortunately, Jake's back tire blew out at the start of the biking leg and he was forced to run, not only the remaining portion of the biking leg, but also the last running leg. We figured out later than he probably biked 2 miles and ran a total of 14 miles!

The entire clan then headed out to the beach where we set up camp, a fire and the loveliest potty tent you've ever seen! We all dinked around waiting for darkness to fall. Unfortunately, the thick fog didn't allow us to see very far up and down the beach and therefore, the show wasn't nearly as impressive as it was last year. We still had fun watching my pyro brother blow up our stash and see the idiots around us going to town!

I headed "home" to the Tri-Cities with my parents the following day and spent most of Monday hanging out with my brothers before I had to drive back to Seattle for the night. I spent my last night in WA chatting into the wee hours with my good friend, Heather.

Thank you to everyone whose couch I crashed on!!! The week was so much fun and I'm looking forward to visiting everyone again soon! The weather was amazing and I got my fill of green trees, sparkling blue water and snow-capped mountains. However, what was waiting for me in El Paso when I returned home? 100+ degree temperatures that have not gone away YET! Oh well, at least I have a very pronounced flip-flop tan on my feet...