Ummm.

Umm, I just woke up and it's snowing. This is very unusual behavior.

One way to avoid the crowds.

With Thanksgiving over and our guests in tow, we drove into the mountains to the Bavarian-inspired village of Leavenworth this weekend. The drive there was interesting with our new Subaru crossing its first mountain pass with success. We were at just over 4,000 feet and it was quite a snowy wonderland.

Once there, Leavenworth instantly sparked the holiday spirit in us. The buildings were so cute all decked out with lights and garland. We visited the first outdoor Chihuly installation on Icicle Creek. We went into shops specializing in nutcrackers, ornaments, and giant Bavarian pretzels. Ended up eating a huge German meal that consisted of meat, meat, and more meat.

The Colts make the Onion.

Colts Claim To Still Be Undefeated: 'We Beat Ourselves'

Another use for ski goggles.

Shawn, during our furious Thanksgiving food preparation this evening, has found another use for ski goggles. Not only for protection against falling snow, they are now used for shielding eyes while cutting onions, as well!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A comfortable old friend.

A college friend, Rob, came to visit for a few days this week. We had a nice time hanging out, bar hopping, and hiking around Snoqualmie Falls. Rob particularly enjoyed Uwajimaya, our giant Asian grocery store, and finding random logs at the bottom of the falls. I spent time with him nearly every day for awhile at IU and hadn't seen him since our wedding, so it was really swell to have him around. Wish he didn't have to leave because now we are back to reality -- Thanksgiving meal planning and doing laundry. Ugh!

A Liberal's Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives

I, and my fellow signatories, hereby make these promises to you:

1. We will always respect you for your conservative beliefs. We will never, ever, call you "unpatriotic" simply because you disagree with us. In fact, we encourage you to dissent and disagree with us.
   
2. We will let you marry whomever you want, even when some of us consider your behavior to be "different" or "immoral." Who you marry is none of our business. Love and be in love -- it's a wonderful gift.
   
3. We will not spend your grandchildren's money on our personal whims or to enrich our friends. It's your checkbook, too, and we will balance it for you.
   
4. When we soon bring our sons and daughters home from Iraq, we will bring your sons and daughters home, too. They deserve to live. We promise never to send your kids off to war based on either a mistake or a lie.
   
5. When we make America the last Western democracy to have universal health coverage, and all Americans are able to get help when they fall ill, we promise that you, too, will be able to see a doctor, regardless of your ability to pay. And when stem cell research delivers treatments and cures for diseases that affect you and your loved ones, we'll make sure those advances are available to you and your family, too.
   
6. Even though you have opposed environmental regulation, when we clean up our air and water, we, the Democratic majority, will let you, too, breathe the cleaner air and drink the purer water.
   
7. Should a mass murderer ever kill 3,000 people on our soil, we will devote every single resource to tracking him down and bringing him to justice. Immediately. We will protect you.
   
8. We will never stick our nose in your bedroom or your womb. What you do there as consenting adults is your business. We will continue to count your age from the moment you were born, not the moment you were conceived.
   
9. We will not take away your hunting guns. If you need an automatic weapon or a handgun to kill a bird or a deer, then you really aren't much of a hunter and you should, perhaps, pick up another sport. We will make our streets and schools as free as we can from these weapons and we will protect your children just as we would protect ours.
   
10. When we raise the minimum wage, we will pay you -- and your employees -- that new wage, too. When women are finally paid what men make, we will pay conservative women that wage, too.
    
11. We will respect your religious beliefs, even when you don't put those beliefs into practice. In fact, we will actively seek to promote your most radical religious beliefs ("Blessed are the poor," "Blessed are the peacemakers," "Love your enemies," "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God," and "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."). We will let people in other countries know that God doesn't just bless America, he blesses everyone. We will discourage religious intolerance and fanaticism -- starting with the fanaticism here at home, thus setting a good example for the rest of the world.
    
12. We will not tolerate politicians who are corrupt and who are bought and paid for by the rich. We will go after any elected leader who puts him or herself ahead of the people. And we promise you we will go after the corrupt politicians on our side FIRST. If we fail to do this, we need you to call us on it. Simply because we are in power does not give us the right to turn our heads the other way when our party goes astray. Please perform this important duty as the loyal opposition.

I promise all of the above to you because this is your country, too. You are every bit as American as we are. We are all in this together. We sink or swim as one. Thank you for your years of service to this country and for giving us the opportunity to see if we can make things a bit better for our 300 million fellow Americans -- and for the rest of the world.

Sincerely,
The Undersigned

Christmas won't be coming early this year.

Bloc Party Cancels North American Tour

In other news, Heather tries furiously to get a refund on 4 tickets to 2 different shows because she has absolutely no interest in Panic! at the Disco.

Boo.

Also dealing with this crap: Holiday airfares surge

Spotted in Seattle.

• A rubber stamp reading "Fa la la la latte".
• A license plate frame reading "I break for lattes!"
• A crazy woman with a creepy, high-pitched voice declaring (directly to me, no less): "I went up the Spaaace Neeeeedle. I thought the elevator was going to come craaaa-shing down. I saw all the buildings."

It's here.

The rainy season. It has started. And the forecast is calling for something like five straight days of rain.

Get ready for my neverending complaints.

Tiny and sweet.

I got to meet Aubree over a short trip home this past weekend. She's a tiny, sweet, soft-to-the-touch, easy-going baby. Both my sister and Greg seem to be doing well, too. Erika doesn't even seem sleep-deprived, so to help out, I fed Aubree, held her, and even changed a poopy diaper. =)

Also took lots and lots of pics:
Shutterfly Album