The tree is down, the Christmas music has been put on pause, the sugar cookies have been eaten…the holidays are over. But gosh, they were good while they lasted, and we fared pretty well last month in the art of tradition-keeping.
Juliette and I have made a thing of a “Downtown Christmas Day”, using one of our days off to hit the Westlake Carousel and the surrounding holiday sights. How many more years do we have before the magic of merry-go-round wears off? At least a couple, I hope…
And to warm up afterwards, hot chocolate and an Americano from the Starbucks across the street!
We decided to pass on the Fairmont’s “Teddy Bear Suite” this year but did venture into the hotel lobby to take a spin through the life-size gingerbread house.
And then once Juliette discovered the free candy canes there for the taking, there was another spin through the house, and another…
We visited Swanson’s Nursery one Sunday after church to check out the reindeer and the Christmas train and Santa. Juliette’s not really the type to hop up onto Santa’s lap, but the rest of it was a hit.
And cookies! So many cookies – sugar cookies and raspberry thumbprints and ginger snaps and cranberry coconut bark… Jules and I are in charge of bringing sweets each year when we head down to Portland, and we take our job very seriously.
This was the first year we’ve headed to Bellevue to see Snowflake Lane, which was crowded and crazy but exceedingly festive.
And…fake now! I mean, really – snow bubbles and baton-twirling elves and All I Want for Christmas is You blaring over loudspeakers? It was too much. And I kinda loved it.
We spent New Year’s Eve Eve at Gene Coulon Park, checking out the Clam Lights. I like doing this one post-crowds, post-Christmas – after the excitement and busy-ness of the holidays, it’s nice to be in a place where all feels calm, all feels bright.
And then the beloved New Years Eve bonfire at Alki Beach! We did this a couple of years ago and jumped at the chance for a repeat when the Hickory’s said they were going to pick up a couple of bundles of wood and stake out a fire pit. The night turned out be windy and COLD, but the kids generated their own body heat by running wild on the shore.
Seattle is a far cry from Mexico, but apparently it’s no less fun.
We headed over to Jack and La Verne’s afterward for spaghetti and a sleepover. The kids were tucked into bed, a third bottle of wine was opened (then a fourth), and then, before the clock had even struck midnight…
Shane was surprisingly spry on New Years morning and agreed to meet up with Jason, Brian, and Nicole for the Polar Bear Plunge at Alki. Only at 9:58, with just two minutes before plunge-time, his peeps were nowhere to be found. He stripped down and gave Juliette a very tentative thumbs-up, clearly not at all stoked by the thought of doing this alone.
In one of the most dramatic reunions I’ve ever witnessed, at 9:59 these buddies found each other on the crowded beach and darted into the water together.
…and darted right back out.
I love this event. You can almost taste the euphoria as the polar bears come back to shore, squealing and hugging and shivering. And while I’m not about to go running into any 45-degree water, I mooch a little off of everyone else’s high, welcoming the New Year with joy and excitement and a sense of adventure.
Hola, 2018. It’s good to see you.