The Hazard Chronicles

Wednesday, September 6, 2023

First things first...I have missed a week. Last weekend, Rachel had a great getaway with her two besties. They hung out, saw a concert, celebrated the end of a summer well spent. She will write about this and share pictures. For now, however, I want to look in the most recent past to the visit from my parents this last weekend.

Originally we were planning a backpacking trip up the Washington coast and into the temperate rainforest that surrounds it, up a glacier, and culminating on a mountaintop. It would have been pretty spectacular. Due to a number of complicating issues however, the trip didn't happen. It'll have to wait for another day.

My parents still came up and we did local things; We played games, went on a great bike ride, stayed in Wallace, and explored downtown Spokane. We ate good food, from backyard barbeques to Mexican street tacos, and we saw a movie in the theater. It was a laid back visit and gave us plenty of time for conversation and reconnection.

This morning our kids all woke up and went to their first day of school. The air was a little bit brisk, and I wore a sweater to work. The sun was just starting to show itself as I dropped Evelyn off in front of the high school, though it had been light for some time already. In other words, Autumn is in the air. I love it.

Here are some photos:

We'll start with these first two, which are pretty sad. The bird is Aqua. Evelyn and Addy have had her for many years, and she fills their room with her song. She started acting lethargic pretty suddenly and it became clear that she wasn't doing so well. Her breathing got slower and slower. The kids took her outside and held her in the sunshine until she peacefully closed her eyes and stopped breathing altogether. It was a tender passing. Her music will be missed.

These next several photos are from the Hiawatha trail. The faster you ride, the dirtier you get. These three rode pretty fast.

My mom and dad have not had a chance to do this trail before. We tried once, several years ago, but got rained out. This time we had perfect weather and everyone stayed in great spirits the whole time.

So, these pictures are really out of order, but that's okay. We'll let it go. This is Rachel coloring Addy's hair pink on the day before school.

This is at a park in Spokane

A bookstore in Spokane

And here we are in Wallace. We spent the night there. We went out to lunch, we walked around town, and we had a pizza movie night. We played a lot of games, and Rachel, my parents, and I had appetizers on a patio while the kids did their own thing. It was nice. This is the picture that represents all of that.