We arrived late Friday night after encountering some heavy rain showers on the drive North. Sarah's grandmother offered to let us stay at her home in Spanaway. Her house is on the banks of Spanaway Lake and has great views of the water.
Saturday morning we met up with Tessie's former co-worker Josh for a Southern breakfast at the world famous Southern Kitchen. Tess and Josh weren't crazy about the food, but I really enjoyed the whitefish, grits and freshly squeezed lemonade. Josh travels the world in some kind of financial-advisory position that I still didn't understand even after he explained it twice.
After breakfast we met up with Sheila and Craig for another breakfast (in case you were counting, that's two meals before noon). Sheila was a co-worker of Tessie's while she lived in Tacoma. Craig and I got along great. He has a car hobby too, and we had a lot of things in common.
After leaving the restaurant we drove out to Ruston to see our friend Bryan Ficiala. Bryan is in the process of moving into a huge custom home that he built with his own two hands. The house is gorgeous and has a great view of the ocean off of the master bedroom deck. After touring both of Bryan's homes, we realized that we had not eaten anything in the past 45 minutes and went to a restaurant on the waterfront for some clam chowder and quesadillas (how is that for a crazy combination?)
We then traveled a few miles to University Place, Washington to visit Steve and Cynthia Crosby. I had met them at our wedding in September of 2007 but I hadn't met their daughters Taryn and Isabella. Tessie attended Washington State University with Steve and Cynthia and Steve even went to visit Haines, Alaska with Tess after graduation. It was just like home with the company of young kids and good friends. The Crosbys have a very comfortable home and Tessie and I both commented afterwards how happy their family seems to be.
Luckily we ate another delicious meal at the Crosby's house so the pure discomfort of bloated stomachs kept Tessie and I wide awake all the way back to Spanaway where we stayed the night.
In the morning we ate breakfast with Sarah's family. I had previously met Sarah's mother and grandmother but was able to meet her father, brother and her brother's girlfriend while at the restaurant. After breakfast we hit the road again for the long drive back to Boise.
I had intended to take some photos of the city and of our friends but for some reason forgot to take any. So enjoy the one and only picture that I took of some boats in Tacoma. Thanks to all of our friends for showing us such a good time. My only regret was not eating more while I was there. The next time I come up, I plan to put the "eat" in SEATTLE.
