Bittersweet

Jeff, Julie, JoLynn and Gary

Jeff and Julie drove to our house, Wednesday evening. Three hundred miles across the state, uneventful, but long drive for them. Thursday (Thanksgiving), started the day with coffee and hanging out. Julie and I went for a 5 mile walk in my neighborhood, went to beach via the public access. Photos of the beach with Nicole, Jeff, Gary and myself sitting on the cement step (posted "More Photos" 10/5/08) The weather for the walk was dry, cloudy, a bit of a nip in the breeze at times, great walking conditions for Julie and I with Meggen, our dog. We were enjoying the scenery on the beach, I saw another dog coming down the trail. Julie, myself and Meggen move down the beach to give the dog and it's people room to come down the stairs. So, here comes, 2 adults, 2 kids, 2 dogs and 2 goats down the trail, they walked the other way on the beach. At the same time, Julie and I say "Nicole would have liked to see the goats for a walk on the beach". A bit more time, enjoying the view, then we head up the stairs and walk back home.

For Thanksgiving dinner, we had an evening meal with prime rib cooked by Jeff. Green salad by Julie, garlic mashed potatoes by me, fruit salad by Jeff. Gary was in charge of setting the table. We had our fill of dinner, then lounged all evening.

On Friday, my treat for Jeff and Julie was a massage by my friend and massage therapist, Gina.

Both Jeff and Julie loved their massages. I loved the time, just hanging out, waiting and knitting.

After the massages, we drove through part of the valley saw snow geese and trumpeter swans, both spend the winter, here. A short stop in LaConner, was kind of rainy, so we didn't linger. Then, the rain stopped for a brief visit at Bayview State Park, one of Nicole's favorite beach (photos in October, Bayview State Park). We lingered until the rain started up, again.

Friday evening, we went to the Chuckanut Manor for the seafood buffet, (photo at the beginning of this post). Lots of good food.

Jeff and Julie drove back home, today. Again, a long, safe return to their home. I went to Anacortes for a sock knitting class. The weather is rainy and gray, today.

So, this is my 50th post, wow, 50 and long, chatty post, today. I called today's post "Bittersweet", as it is good to get together, but also, Nicole and Jeff came here for Thanksgiving in 2004 and 2006. Jeff came in 2003, too. So, some memories for Jeff rolling around in his mind over the days, with visits to Bayview State Park. All part of the road of healing a tiny bit at a time.