Haute Route...Verbier, Arolla, and Beyond.

We skied.  And skied...and skied.  Into and out of white outs. Up and down mountains, and fueled by lots and lots of cheese and egg rosti (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%B6sti).

Quite honestly, I do not have the energy or desire to post the day by details of our trip.  So, for now I'm going to give you the shortcut by posting a few photos for you and then will also share the link to our guide, Nick Pope's photos.  Plug for Nick --- fabulous IFMGA certified guide located in the PNW.  I highly recommend hiring him for any type of climbing you want to pursue.

http://nickpope.zenfolio.com/p69243833

White Water Kayking

Over the past two weeks Will and I have been testing the waters, so to speak.  We took a white water kayaking class with NWOC http://www.nwoc.com/.  The class consisted of two days practicing paddling strokes on South Lake Union, two days at a pool learning how to 'roll' a kayak, and then two days on the river putting all our skills to use!

We had a lot of fun and made it down the river safely and with panache ;)

Will learning to roll.

Me putting on a dry suit.

Me, finally dressed and ready to get in my boat.
The biggest test of kayaking is getting all your
equipment on and getting in the water!

Not part of kayaking, but wanted to share a pretty photo
from a walk we took last weekend.  View is from Kerry Park.

Climbing...'Like a Boss'

Over the pass to Vantage we go.  Once again we headed out east to climb --- to dry ground and warm sun :)  Will tackled some routes this time 'like a boss' and I lead climbed a 5.9 'like a boss.'  Well, actually it wasn't super graceful I'll admit, but I did lead climb it.  Getting closer and closer to leading a 5.10 which is on my list of goals for the year.  

Saturday was super, super windy but still sunny.  We climbed at the Feathers and then headed out towards Sunshine Wall and the backside to hit a few routes.  We also ran into one of our guides from Mt. Rainier climbing this weekend.  After a nice, full day of climbing we cooked a classy dinner of grilled shrimp, asparagus and red quinoa before tucking in.  The next morning we woke up to a beautiful day -- sunshine, perfect temperatures and no wind. I made blueberry pancakes and we enjoyed a leisurely day before heading back to Seattle.

PS - The reference for 'like a boss' is from the Lonely Island videos.  Basically, it just means you rocked it.

Me making pancakes 'like a boss.'

 

Will drinking coffee 'like a boss.'

Happy Retirement, Dad!

I wanted to take a break from the snow for a bit and post a more recent trip.  After getting back from Europe, I took a few days off to go visit my parents in Alabama.  I needed some sunshine and warm weather!  Most important part of my trip was that my dad recently retired so we had a party for him!

Mom and I went shopping a couple of days, which of course included one of my favorite boutique stores, Private Gallery.  Other than that, I spent time hanging with the family, laying out in the sun getting a tan, and playing on the water.  The finale to the weekend was dad's party!  Mom and I spent time making decorations that were all centered around things my dad likes to do --- hunt and fish.

The big surprise of the weekend was that my brother flew in for the weekend as well --- mom and I kept this a secret from dad and Alan showed up unexpectedly and dad was quite shocked.  It was a lovely time and I always come back feeling relaxed, de-stressed, and with more color ;)  I miss my family already!

Alan looking pro.

Me...looking novice.