A Blast from the Past

I found a bunch of old pictures on Vân's Nokia when I uploaded the Wallace Lake pictures. I don't think we've ever put these pictures up on the blog. So here they are. Vietnam and France 2011. I can't believe it's been a year since we left Saigon. We don't miss Vietnam at all, but we miss France a lot.

Botanic Towers in Saigon

What are you looking at? It's called a walker!

Voilà. C'est comme ça, mon amie!

Hey, do you know how to get out of here?

Aix-en-Provence

I can't reach the keyboard.

Mixing flour for mommy

On Our Way To Paris

Look, I got a broken toy for my first Happy Meal!

How do you say chicken nuggets in French?

I don't like it!

Fries. No, frites!

Mommy, you can't have my frites!

Beaune

Waiting for restaurants to start serving dinner

Paris

Eating - More mommy!

Wallace Lake - Gold Bar

With summer ending, we've been trying to squeeze in as many hikes as possible. This time, we headed East to Wallace Lake in Gold Bar for a 5.4-mile hike, round trip, with 1,100 ft in elevation.

The hike was not as challenging as Lake 22, but it left us all very tired at the end. Disappointment might have something to do with it. People told us to bring extra clothes because the water falls would spray us, and books showed us pictures of mist rising out of the water falls. But due to the drought, what we saw was a mere trickle. 

I forgot to bring the camera, so we used Vân's Nokia to take the pictures below. They're pretty low quality, but I'm sure they'll do.

You call that a water falls?

No more picture!

Smile, please!

Upper Wallace Falls - That's it?

Family picture

Paint 'em nails!

Vân and Sophie went shopping at Target for an hour. And what did they buy? Two bottles of nail polish and a tea set. Here are some pictures of what happened next.

Be patient. Let it dry!

Purple toenails

Blue and purple

 

Low Tide at Discovery Park

Last Sunday we went to Discovery Park for some light hiking, and it happened to be low tide. We saw barnacles, mussels, starfish and anemones -- and poked at a few of them. We secretly wished Sophie would grow up to be a marine biologist one day and do research somewhere in Hawai'i.

Low tide

That way!

Which one of these can we eat?

The lone barnacle

I don't know what these are

Starfish

 

Lake 22 - Gold Basin

We went camping again last weekend. This time we stayed at Gold Basin on the East side and did 2 hikes. The first hike was to Lake 22 -- 5 miles round trip with a 1,300ft climb. It was a bit rough because we didn't have proper hiking boots. But it was worth it. Sophie loved wading in the cold water. The second hike was to Lake Boardman. It was an easier hike, but we got lost. By the time we found the correct trail, we were too tired to continue.

New Tent!

Sleeping in Ergo during hike

View from Lake 22 trail

Lake 22

Smile!

Wading in cold water - with energy bar

River by Gold Basin

Bratwurst on a stick

It's cold!

Splashing in Lake 22

Wading in river

Boeing Picnic

Thanks to our friends John, Vui and (bác) Trung, we got to attend the Boeing Edge annual picnic at a farm in Snoqualmie. Sophie had a lot of fun, and she was really attached to Trung. Once in a while, she would ask to go to bác Trung's house.

Soda, please!

Bunny Farm

Clown and balloons

Photobooth

More Kids?!!!

I really can't imagine what my life would be like with three more kids. With the help of our friends' children, I can see that it is quite a handful. But the upside is that Sophie will have someone to play with. She adores Duy, Minh and Ai-Vy, and she asks to see them whenever she sees their pictures.

Sophie with Duy, Minh and Ai-Vy

You need four arms to juggle three kids!

Bouncy house - 1

Bouncy house - 2

Backseat Singing

We all know Sophie loves singing. And lately, she loves the song "Satellite" by the British boy band The Wanted. Every time we play this song in the car, she sings along really loud -- all the way from the backseat.

Potato chip can wait. I gotta sing!

Not done yet.

Paradise

We've been to Paradise...at Mt. Rainier. But we couldn't stay. Mount Rainier National Park was crazy during Labor Day weekend. We couldn't find a camping spot, so we just did a day hike. We walked through patches of snow, crossed a few streams and descended a mountain. It was worth the drive!

Walking to Paradise

Family picture before hike

Mid point - two miles left

Walking up the steps

Descent

Crossing a stream - with Sophie on my back

Mount Rainier National Park

Camping at Mount Rainier National Park was the best thing we did this year. The weather was perfect, and the view was absolutely beautiful. Sophie really enjoyed being outdoor with us. She was snoring through the night in our small tent. 

Campground

Relaxing

Two years vs. a thousand years

Silver Falls trail

It's cold!

Sitting inside a fallen redwood

Huckleberry trail - Sunrise, Mt. Rainier

Hiking all by myself

Picking "Oregon grapes"

Crossing bouncy bridge - Grove of the Patriarchs