Independence day at our beloved Doe Bay!

In my brief time back home Ayla and I made our traditional trip to Doe Bay.

Sweet, sweet Doe Bay. 

Home of my twenty-second birthday celebration and pre-Norway resting spot.

Landed a cozy campsite on the water.

We enjoyed a long evening in bathing pools with a view of the islands.

Followed by a loooong dinner in the Doe Bay Cafe.

Probably one of my favorite restaurants of all time.

We were joined by some local friends.

Vegetables from the garden. Fresh fish from the sea. Fruit of the island.

 

The Eats:

Arugula cherry salad with pickles onions and goat cheese.

Fresh Salmon.

Garlic, artichoke, pine nut and roasted shallot pizza.

Wine.

Salted chocolate mousse. 

Greek yogurt custard.

Best meal I've had all year.

Followed by skinny dipping and a twelve hour sleep under a fat full moon.

Woke up late in the morning to a sleepy Ayla asking

"Rach, were YOU with me when I got my backpack fixed in Denmark?"

Yes. Yes I was.

I love Ayla. We have the best adventures.

Sunshine. Sails. Soaking. Sauna. Sweet. 

Oh, Doe Bay does breakfasts too. 

Looooooove.

Brioche french toast filled with sweet goat cheese and pecans, 

smothered in strawberry rhubarb compote.

And blood orange mimosas.

Happy sister date.

Ferry home. 

I didn't know how much I had missed the San Juan Islands.

Returned to Bellingham and met up with the folks.

We celebrated Independence Day the traditional way.

Beer and fireworks.

Surrounded on all sides by drunken neighbors blowing up stuff in their front yards. 

Glad to be back in the states. 

The neighbors also set off beautiful floating lanterns all night long.

A huge orange moon rose up from the lake and presided over the explosions.

We drove to Grandma Janet's and watched the city fireworks from her porch.

Favorite quote of the evening:

"Hey! I am driving! You are going to damn well enjoy this Fourth of July if kills ya!"

Ha.

Happy 236th Birthday 'Merica!

She's leaving home.

I went to see Moonrise Kingdom at the Pickford.

Highly recommend, it was absolutely adorable.

Upcoming shows at the Pickford:

Preview for a Norwegian film.

Mist. Pines. Norsk. Blonde. Fjord. Moss.

It made me feel...homesick?

It was immediately followed by a romantic comedy 

shot in the San Juan Islands.

Perpetuating the homesickness.

Maybe I travel too much?

Or maybe have too many places to call home.

Feeling uprooted.

Bellingham, it's not you. It's me. 

Boulder, I'm coming for you.

Adventuring on!

The City of Subdued Excitement.

I dated Bellingham for a week.

Hiked with Becky in the luscious, green Chuckanut Mountains.

Visited Lettered Streets Covenant Church and received hugs upon hugs.

 Ran ten months worth of errands. 

Shared stories and tan-lines with Nicole.

Rediscovered the Bellingham Farmer's Market.

Took a nature walk through Whatcom Falls with the sibs.

Got one scoop of my favorite Mallards ice-cream.

Lemon liberation!

Breakfasted at Old Town Cafe with Grandma Judy.

Planned a road-trip across the United States.

Spent an afternoon on the bay with the clan.

Decorated Kelly with sea creatures.

Made a short notice dinner at The Cabin.
Chevre frittata. Farmer boy skillet. Mimosas. Banana bread. Fruit. Tea. Biscuits. 

New friends. Old friends. Surprise friends!

 Diederik Bron carved out a visit for us while he was in town. 

Worship. Stories. Fellowship. Norwegian worship songs. Singing. Fumbled lyrics. Playing. Learning. 

Sharing. Laughing. Big hugs. Teary hugs.

Hellos. Goodbyes. 

A perfect welcome home.


 Bellingham is a mossy fairytale.

On the downside, my fish is died while I was in Norway.

My dear parents froze him in a block of ice.

Free night in Frankfurt and surprising the PNW.

36 hours. Zurich to Seattle.

Zurich. Train. Stuck in Germany. Cancelled flight. 

A free night in Frankfurt? We dig it.

We were standing in the lobby of the airport hotel when I started blabbing about how maybe 

someone would met there future spouse and it would all be worth it.

"You know, Sarah? Look at all these people mingling,

 how magical it would be if they hooked up and got married. 

Like 'If it wasn't for the delay of flight #6048 I never would have met Frank!"

Someone overheard us and started snickering.

So, we took to speaking Norwegian to each other.

At which point, Mr. Snickering American asks

"Du snakker Norsk?"

Pardon? A Norwegian speaking Washingtonian. Who knew, right?

New friend (but don't worry, he's taken)

We also met and befriended a lost French 16-year-old exchange student.

Dinner party at the hotel with new friends and complementary beer.

Our lost French friend requested cigarettes for her stay in Seattle,

which led us to make a brief exploration of Frankfurt at midnight.

Ran into a very rowdy bachelor party who sent us back on our train with leis.

10 hour flight. Spanish conversations about observing Greenland from the air.
Landing in Seattle.

***

I had not told anyone I was returning back to the States.
 Everyone was expecting me in July.

Big secret!

Russell, Grace's BF, took me to surprise my sister, Grace at work. 

She had no idea.

 She screamed and cried and almost dropped a stack of dishes.

10 months worth of unreceived hugs ensued.

Then I started to cry when we went grocery shopping.

Much to the amusement and boisterous laughter of Grace and Russell.

But seriously, I've never been so happy to see Swiss Chard in all my life.

Picnic in the orchard. Kombucha. Watermelon. Snuggles.

 Beach. Re-introduction to the Pacific Ocean. Culture shock.

Oh, how I missed my dear sister!

Grace's boss let her have the next day off so she came home with me.

Russell drove us to Bellingham.

I walked directly into my parent's house and burst unannounced into the living room.

Mom screamed and threw her hands in the air. Kelly laughed.

They were quite surprised.

Laughing. Hugs. Tears.

Kelly passed me a big margarita and said

"I'll see you in the morning" 

I love that man.

Jetlag, stories, falling asleep snuggled next to Grace in the spare bedroom.

Home.