Spring Break

My homestay students have been on spring break this past week. Toshi headed south to California; Ezra headed East to Lake Chelan. Tae Woong stayed home and studied for his PSAT test that he has to take next month.

It's been grey skies, drizzling rain and shivering cold all week. But today it seemed as if some magical fairy dust had been sprinkled over everything during the night because, we awoke to a beautiful, sunny, cloudless sky.

A day like this is not to be wasted, so Tae Woong and I set out to do some exploring. We headed north on I-5 and then exited off to Chuckanut Drive--a road built in the late 1800's--that winds along the forested hills next to the Puget Sound.














Tae Woong at one of the lookouts along Chuckanut Drive.

Our destination was Fairhaven--a quaint but thriving town near Bellingham, Washington.

There were many sailboats out in Bellingham Bay...














...and people in Marine Park.














The afternoon sun danced in silver sparkles on the water.

We ate our picnic lunch at the park.














Then we took our time heading back home. We stopped at RoozenGaarde in Mt. Vernon, Washington. They are famous for their tulips and daffodils. Today the daffodils were in bloom. The tulips will be blooming in another week.















The RoozenGaarde windmill.





















There is nothing more beautiful than acres of gold shimmering in the sun.














They have many varieties of daffodils. I think this one is my favorite.














But I like this one, too.

Enjoying our break from the rain, the warmth of the sun and God's beautiful handiwork,

Love,

Homestay Mama

The Mountains are Out! Day 2

When the mountains are out, they don't stay out for long. So I spent most of today chasing them with camera in hand, because, the rain clouds are already forming out in the Pacific Ocean and will be rolling in tomorrow, obscuring all this beauty again, for awhile.

So, here are a few more pictures to entice you to come visit our Evergreen State.

The following pic was taken from a residential area facing the Olympics and Puget Sound to the west.

The neat thing however, is that I don't have to drive down to the water to get awesome views of the mountains. They are visible right in my hometown when I'm out running errands. For example, here is a view of the Olympics from one of our main streets.

This next picture is taken in the city where I do most of my shopping. From this overpass, I can see the Olympics to the west towering over the main street in town.

Now by simply pivoting in the opposite direction, this is the road to the mall and the Cascades to the east. Believe me, it's nearly impossible to keep your eyes on the road when the mountains are out!

And finally, I drove to a city farther north to get a sweeping vista of the Cascades. It took 6 photos end to end to capture the range as far as the naked eye could see. But the total range stretches even farther in both directions. Here are just 3 photos out of the 6.

Feeling certain that I'm living in God's Country!

Love,

Homestay Mama