Travels with Ari – Days 11, 12 – Ari and Ann

Ari here:

I was feeling a little ‘off’ (different water?) and Mom was doing stuff with Erin so I mostly slept under the covers all day on the 11th.

Then on the 12th Mom packed us into the car and we drove to my Aunt Markay and Uncle Jim’s house. I wasn’t sure what to do with myself after not being in the car for a week, so I walked back an forth across mom and looked out the windows at the car for most of the drive wondering where we were going and how long it would take. “Are we there yet?”

It’s less than 1.5 hours to Markay’s but Mom insisted on finding a Starbucks on the the way to collect her free birthday beverage. She finally succeeded after a couple of stops, but it made our drive a lot longer. I guess she needed coffee to keep driving. I finally crawled under the seat and took a nap!

After we got to Markay’s house, I spent all afternoon, evening and even much of the night exploring the whole house, smelling the cat and dog that used to live there and trying to get into closets that were closed. One of the best parts is the window my mom’s bedroom that is at my eye level. I can sit there and watch the horses and birds. Or I can jump up onto the bed and into an upper window and be up high. I like it here! Mom says she will try to get a photo of me looking out the window before we leave.

Ann here:

My birthday was June 12 and my brother-in-law’s June 11. Erin outdid herself by preparing a birthday meal for the 4 of us. On the 11th, we shopped at Pike Place Market for scallops and vegetables and a few other things. It was VERY crowded now that people can be out.

June 12 dawned sunny and beautiful. First Erin and I did a video call with my other daughter, Sarah and her family, complete with them singing happy birthday to me. Then we packed up and went to a deli bar to pick up some lunch sandwiches. It turned out to be a Minnesota themed bar. It felt like Midwest hospitality.

We drove separately (Erin had to go back to her home to get ready for work on the 13th) to Eatonville, WA where Markay and Jim live in the country. . Markay and Jim have a couple of horses and a stellar view of Mt. Rainier. Here’s how it looked on the 12th. It is a very peaceful, serene setting.

Erin put on her chef hat and created an amazing meal for us. Here are some photos:

And for desert!

Here are the birthday “kids” and the Chef. Note the spiral decorations hanging in the background and flowers too.

Here are a couple of the gifts I received:

Ari here again:

Mom also got a set of window screens for the car so I can’t jump out of the car window again on our way home! But I think I can sneak underneath them and still get out, ha ha!