The Goeth-Stroms do Seattle

Good evening!
I am rounding out this Saturday night catching up on the blog since technically I'm a week behind! We have been very busy with visitors, work and business travel over the past few weeks, so last week's entry is a week late. 

Last weekend we had the pleasure of hosting some out of town guests. Our good pals Steph and Katie Goethke had been planning for months to come out and join us for a visit in Seattle. As if that wasn't exciting enough, little sis Jamie (aka "bones") made a last minute decision to come join as well! When the Engstroms and Goethkes get together, it's always a recipe for a real good time. Our families are so close, we've just gone ahead and given ourselves a hybrid nickname...the "Goeth-Stroms." 

We had quite the busy agenda while our guests were in town, trying new restaurants, exploring different parts of the city, whale watching, hiking, strolling the farmer's market...the list goes on! I have to say the hike was one of my favorite parts. I took the day off and led the ladies through the woods on the trail to Wallce Falls. It was a misty but beautiful day in the forest! Steph was a real trooper, making the best of it even with an injured foot. Although I think I overused the phrase "we're almost there, it's just around the corner" a few too many times for her liking : ) Here are a few pics from our journey on the trail. 

 Stumps for everyone

  The "action shot" to show how athletic these two are

Saturday we got up early and drove North to Anacortes to do a little whale watching. It was a brisk day on the water, very gloomy but that made for great conditions to spot whales and other marine life on the water. We spent five hours out and about cruising near the San Juan Islands in search of our finned friends. After several chilly hours we were able to locate a few different pods of Orcas! It was amazing to watch them in their natural environment, hunting and socializing with each other. We even saw a few spy hops! 

This little duck was cold

A few other pics from the weekend...

We were sad to see our visitors leave, we had such a wonderful time having them here! Hopefully they got to see the variety that we've come to LOVE in Seattle - tons of neat city spots to check out with just a quick 30 minute drive to amazing wilderness in almost any direction. We are falling more in love with our new home each week we spend here as we continue to discover new experiences. 


Miss you all, take care. 
Cheers!
KP