Bonus Coverage

FISHERMEN'S FEST: I usually take weekends off from blogging, but we went to the annual Fall Fishermen's Festival at Fishermen's Terminal today, and I want to report it now instead of waiting until Monday, as I typically would. Because come Monday, we're going to the Puyallup Fair, and I know that will be a big gnarly blog post all by its lonesome.

Fishermen's Terminal is just at the foot of our hill, within walking distance. I think this is our third year attending the festival. It's something we look forward to every year. Fortunately all the kids' past favorite features were there. Our first stop was the bouncy house, er, ship: Mutiny on the Bouncer. (IMHO, they should have called it Mutiny on the Bouncy.)There, CJ and Annabelle were able to jump, slide and, most importantly, pummel pirates. From there, we went to the spin art booth. In years past, it has been Frisbees that the kids painted. This year, they had jigsaw puzzles, which the kids thought was a nice twist.

Here's Annabelle's finished puzzle:We also visited another favorite attraction - the build a boat booth. The kids spent more time than ever there this year, each with very specific ideas about their boat design.We toured the LOVELY steam ship Virginia V. This beautiful steamship was built in 1921 by Anderson & Company of Maplewood, Washington. She's constructed of old-growth fir. On March 9, 1922, she was launched and then towed to downtown Seattle for the installation of her engine and steam plant. According to the ship's Web site, "On June 11, 1922, the Virginia V made her maiden voyage from Elliott Bay in Seattle to Tacoma down the West Pass. She continued to make this voyage nearly every day until 1938." This vessel is absolutely gorgeous. I hope we can take a cruise on her some day.

And we were one of hundreds and hundreds on hand to say goodbye to J.P. Patches, a beloved Seattle icon. The area around the stage was PACKED. This was our "view," and you couldn't really hear him, either. But at least we were there to say goodbye. Sitting atop Christian's shoulders, CJ yelled hello and goodbye to the Emerald City's #1 clown.
We also got to see "Wizard," one of the stars of "Deadliest Catch." It was all fun and it was all free! (We did make a donation to the Fishermen's Terminal Memorial.)

And last but not least, the kids each got a chance to catch a real live (and now dead!) trout!

There's a nice overview about Fishermen's Terminal on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_profilepage&v=8_Sf-Hu74V4