Literally the moment we said goodbye to all of our Thanksgiving guests, we started packing our bags for a short trip to Seattle. We had decided to do the Seatttle "City Pass," which entitled us entry to six different Seattle destinations: the Space Needle, a boat ride and harbor/locks tour, Pacific Science Center, Seattle Aquarium, Museum of Flight, and Experience Music Museum. Because we are cheap and like to get our money's worth, we squeezed in all six of these things into our 2 1/2 days in Seattle. It was fun - we all love to experience new things/places, but it was also a bit exhausting. It didn't help that I was super sick. I only survived by taking the maximum dose of cold meds and painkillers every four hours around the clock.
We chose a hotel on the south side of Seattle, right by a mall. We did spent some time at the mall one of the nights, where we ate at the cheesecake factory and the girls shopped at Forever 21.
That was also the night that we got stranded. As we were leaving the mall, the kids were fighting and irritable with each other and it was driving us CRAZY, so when we got in the car Dan began the process of starting the ignition but then paused to deliver a stern lecture about appropriate behavior. When he was done, he turned the ignition key the rest of the way and heard a
click, click, click. The battery was dead. We had drained the battery on the car by turning the key halfway and then waiting to start the car.
I called AAA and was told that they would get a mechanic to help us, but they were backed up because of the holiday and probably wouldn't reach us for two hours. It was raining and cold outside or we would have just walked the mile back to the hotel. Our options were not appealing - wait in the cold car or go back into the hectic mall that we had gladly left (and remember - I felt worse than lousy).
There were some fervent prayers said in the car right at that moment. And then something amazing occurred. We got a call from a AAA mechanic who just happened to be in the parking garage at the same mall. As soon as I hung up I heard Joseph say from the back seat, with all the fervor of a Southern Baptist preacher, "
It's a miracle!" Well, yes, it was a bit of a miracle or tender mercy. The AAA mechanic walked over to our car, tested our battery (it was dead, dead, dead), and replaced the battery within 20 minutes. And then we were on our way back to the hotel.
As I think about this experience, I'm not sure who gets the
blame or
credit for instigating this experience. Was it the kids for fighting and necessitating a lecture? Was it Dan for inadvertently draining the battery? Was it me for continuing to drive a van with a battery I knew was almost drained? I don't know, but we all learned some sort of lesson and were grateful it worked out so quickly.
We enjoyed the
Museum of Flight much more than we initially thought we would. Highlights included seeing how astronauts use the toilet. Fascinating stuff, really!
Touring a retired model of Air Force One, as well as other aircraft,
Sitting in the cockpit of a real fighter jet and looking at many warplanes.
And posing "hunched" like the astronaut suits on display.
This is a Mars Rover and a newspaper from Wenatchee (near where I grew up) from the day man walked on the moon.
Oh, and we couldn't pass up taking a family astronaut picture. . . (Look closely at Dan's face - it's the best)
Next stop, the
Experience Music Project, which is a museum right next to the Seattle Center and the Space Needle which celebrates "music, sci-fi, and pop culture".
Let's just say that this museum is . . . . strange. Exhibits while we were there: "
Can't Look Away - the Lure of the Horror Film", "Nirvana - Taking Punk to the Masses," "Worn to be Wild - the Black Leather Jacket", and "Jimi Hendrix hits London". The museum itself is built to resemble a smashed guitar from a vantage point above. It looks to me like a wad of used bubble gum.
Dan enjoyed the EMP a tiny bit and the rest of us liked it less and thought it was a little TOO Seattle for us. Brandon probably would like it a little more, as there were recording studios and instruments where you could record yourself making a demo. We did, however, find these styling leather jackets in the leather jacket exhibit.
And we jammed to some guitars in an explore area.
We bought tickets to see the
King Tut exhibit at the Seattle Center, which was very interesting and very crowded and does NOT have any mummies as part of the exhibit (the mummies are too fragile to tour any more). Joseph was disappointed about that fact, but we still learned a lot and enjoyed it. We also liked the IMAX movie about mummies.
The
Space Needle is always fun. We were unbelievably lucky to find one non-rainy day in Seattle in November, and we had a clear view from the top.
And we tried really hard to get pictures from the ground, but that is tricky. Aubrey took a good picture of the rest of us, by moving down a set of stairs, hunching low and leaning over a railing, and photographing us at the top of the stairs with the Space Needle behind.
Joseph took a turn as the conductor of the famous model train set in the
Seattle Center.
We paused to drink some hot chocolate to warm our frozen toesies
before moving on to the
Pacific Science Center, which is always wonderful (but our very own OMSI is even better!) Joseph and I especially liked walking through the butterfly room, where butterflies land right on your hands.
On our last day we saw the
Seattle Aquarium, which featured a scuba diving Santa (can you see him below?)
And then we headed down the pier to board our boat for a
harbor cruise/locks tour. I love this picture below - it really captures Joseph's ebullient personality. He didn't walk down the pier - he skipped enthusiastically.
Our beautiful girls!
By the time we were on the boat I felt REALLY awful, with fever and chills and terrible sore throat. Dan bought us some old-fashioned rootbeer so I could wash down my ibuprofen.
The view of the harbor was truly beautiful.
After about an hour we arrived at the Locks, where the salt water of the Puget Sound meets the freshwater of Lake Union. We liked seeing how they operate the locks. Our boat entered the lock and a barrier went up behind us to create a "bowl" which was filled with more water to bring us up to the level of the lake. Once we were high enough, the gate at the front was opened and we continued into the lake.
Can you see the difference in the water levels? Straight ahead is the lake and way below is the level of the ocean. By the time we moved through the lock, the water was at the same level. Many people were biking/walking over the locks when we were there, as it's a popular place to hang out and watch the boats and locks operate.
In Lake Union we saw the houseboat from the movie "Sleepless in Seattle" (one of my two favorite chick flicks of all time) and one of the boats from the show "The Deadliest Catch."
Our plan was to finish our day with a trip to Pike's Place Market, where we would see fish being thrown around and check out the famous "gum wall." But, by the time we finished our boat tour we were cold and tired and ready to go home. So, off we went for home, miraculously avoiding any end-of-holiday traffic!
The view of the harbor was truly beautiful. 
