A night out in Richmond

Kyle and I got some time to ourselves this weekend and we spent it reliving a couple of our favorite Richmond memories.  First, we went to one of my favorite places in Richmond, Hollywood Cemetery. This cemetery is famous for housing the graves of Presidents James Monroe and John Tyler, as well as Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Confederate General Pickett.

 

This is a view of the James River from the cemetery.

You can take a look at the rest of our photos on our web gallery.

We also got to spend the night in the historic Jefferson Hotel.  The Jefferson is where my brother and sister-in-law work and it's also where we held our wedding reception.  It was great to revisit the memories of our wedding reception!

The Jefferson Hotel

What a great weekend of relaxation and strolling down memory lane!

-Stacie

Checking In

On Wednesday we arrived in Richmond, Virginia to spend the month of July with Stacie's family.  We're excited to be here and looking forward to seeing lots of friends and family we've missed since moving to Seattle.  Stacie's family has grown since we moved away from Richmond, we'd like to introduce you to Moses.

I'm only four months old...don't worry, I'll grow into these ears.

For those of y'all not familiar with Richmond, take a gander at this link.  Enjoy the 4th of July!

-Kyle & Stacie

Summer arrives...We move away...

Today was move day. After months of planning, scheming and dreaming we finally hit the road. Stacie and I are unemployed, sans vehicles and our house is unofficially rented. Saturday we loaded up our Budget rental truck (with a lot of help) and disembarked this morning for the 5 hour drive to Spokane. It was the me, Stacie and the dogs in a regular cab truck. So if this scenario doesn't sound too comfy, throw in the minor detail that the A/C was busted and temperatures reached 100 degrees. What we had here was a recipe for adventure! We spent most of the trip forcing the dogs to drink water (or pouring it over them in frustration). Thankfully, we arrived in Spokane with everyone intact- just sweaty and sun-burned.

The plan is to hang out with my family for a few days and then we'll jet-set to the good 'ol Commonwealth of Virginia on Wednesday. You know the protocol; no blog post is complete without a couple pics. Here's are a few shots of moving day:

Me & Deacon manning the truck.

Deacon & Mercedes getting situated. Tight squeeze!

-Kyle

A Farewell to the Northwest

This weekend Kyle & I went on our last hike in the Northwest (at least for awhile). We set out on Saturday morning with our good friends Natalie & Justin and their adorable baby Blake (click on the link to experience the cuteness of Blake). The weather was typical Seattle- cloudy with a chance of rain, but thankfully not too chilly! We attempted to hike 7 miles RT to Mason Lake, which is part of the Alpine Lake region in Snoqualmie Pass.

Here's a stream we came across on the way.

If you look really close you can see Mt. Rainier in the clouds.

After we hike about 3 miles we ran into some heavy snow and were forced to turn around. I am not exaggerating when I say the snow was probably piled about 8 feet tall and was completely impassable. I guess I'm not a true Northwester yet because I am still always amazed at so much snow in June. It was the first day of summer, but I forget this is not Virginia or Texas! Did I mention this is only 20 miles from our house! Mother nature is a crazy thing for sure!

Deacon & Merecedes love to lick the snow, so they were pretty excited about the road block!

Here's Kyle & Me at the top overlooking the Cascade Mountains.

The hike was a nice way to say goodbye to Seattle. And true to form- it started raining on the way down.

-Stacie

A Taste of Scotland

Usually one of the exciting things about traveling to a foreign country (at least for me) is getting to eat some of their traditional food. I have dreamed about eating pasta in Italy and fresh pastries in France. Unfortunately, Scotland does not offer this same level of excitement. In my research of the Scottish cuisine, I have found some rather unusual/unappealing foods.

Here are the most appalling:

Black Pudding (aka Blood Pudding) - this is sausage that is made by cooking blood with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled. Pig or cattle blood is most often used; sheep and goat blood are used also. Typical fillers include meat, fat, bread, sweet potato, barley and oatmeal.

Blood Pudding

Haggis- this is a traditional Scottish dish that includes sheep's heart, liver and lungs minced with onion, oatmeal, fat, spices and salt mixed with stock and traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach for about three hours. This is usually served with something called 'neeps and tatties'- sounds scary but it just means mashed potatoes and turnips. (note the placement of the Haggis on the tartan (plaid fabric)- nice!)

Haggis

If you ask me, those two dishes are enough to make me NOT want to move to Scotland. Although, everything I read about them said they are very tasty (at least the Haggis- I feel like any dish made out of animal blood should be illegal and certainly unhealthy). However, there are some things that I found that look quite yummy!

Here are the most appealing:

Fish & Chips (served with 'mushy peas')- I think we all know what this is. Mushy peas however is a different story. These are dried peas that are soaked overnight in water and bicarbonate soda and then simmered with sugar and salt until they form a thick green lumpy soup. This may sound nasty to you, but I am one of those people who like my vegetable cooked so long that they melt in your mouth- so I am fairly excited to try these peas!

The green stuff in the ramekin is the mushy peas

Scotch Eggs- this is a cold hard-boiled egg removed from the shell, wrapped in a sausage mixture, coated in bread crumbs and deep-fried.

Scotch Eggs

Deep-Fried Mars Bars- Kyle & I actually had this when we were in Scotland. They are very yummy, but filthy all at the same time. Similar to eating a deep-fried oreo or twinkie (not that I would do that...)

Deep-Fried Mars Bars

Bangers & Mash- Just a different name for sausage and mashed potatoes.

Bangers and Mash

Hopefully this post has not deterred you in wanting to visit us in Scotland! Also, I'd like to give the disclaimer that I have only partaken in the deep-fried mars bar so all of my opinions and facts are not based in knowledge or experience. I will be certain to update you and disclaim any statements that I have made once (and if) I try these things for myself.

-Stacie

Going Away Party

This weekend was our going away party and it was defintely a bittersweet party. Kyle's mom and sister came down from Spokane, so it was fun to have them there with us! I decided that since it was "our" going away party, we were going to have all my favorite treats- so I heard multiple comments about "I wonder who picked the food" (enter sarcasm here) when looking at the bowls of nerds, sour patch kids and m&ms (we did have other food too...). If you know me at all, you know I am a HUGE candy fan- and that can be putting it mildly depending on my mood! We also played one of our favorite games that we've learned since living in Seattle- corn hole. Our friends Dan & Jodi introduced us to this "Midwest" game (they both graduated from Purdue). The game is basically like horseshoes, only lots more fun, with a bean bag.

Here's a picture of some of the guys playing corn hole:

Deacon & Mercedes were on the lookout for any new party guests!

The party was full of cute little babies too! Our good friends Natalie & Justin brought their little boy Blake- he's such a doll.

Here's Kyle's sister Heather enjoying some Blake time:

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We're defintely getting sad to leave Seattle and have to say goodbye to everyone. Time is just flying by and I know we'll be gone before we know it! The Lord has blessed us here with such wonderful friends, I am excited to see how He will provide for us in Edinburgh!

-Stacie

Welcome To The Neighborhood

Okay, so we've secured an apartment and it's great because we're close to Tesco (groceries), the Business School, downtown Edinburgh, etc. So all of the practical logistics are taken care of. But the best part about the location is that it's in the shadow of this...

Leaving Seattle for an international adventure seems really exciting...but you don't realize the severity of some of the necessary sacrifices. This basketball season I'll be estranged from my beloved Gonzaga Bulldogs ...moment of silence.

I'll have to try to fill the void by jumping on the bandwagon of the local Scottish Premier League team, Hibernian, or Hibs (I think the proper pronunciation is 'high-bear-nian' with emphasis on the third syllable and keep it throaty!)

Our new apartment is 300 feet from the stadium so we should be right in the mix of the local fan base. I've heard stories about the Scots and their feverish dedication to local football clubs. Seems like all the ingredients are present:

*large city
*dedicated fan base
*endless supply of ale & scotch
*Priceless!

-Kyle