Goodbye Winto

A few weeks ago Doug and I spontaneously decided to buy my cousin’s car. Turned out to be a fantastic decision because it meant we got to go to Seattle on a weekend trip! We’ve been thinking for awhile that it was probably time to upgrade from my ’92 mint green Honda Accord that’s been with me since I learned how to drive (whom I love dearly) and Gloria’s car seemed like a great fit.

We bought plane tickets to fly to Seattle from Boise- there was no turning back. JT was in Rexburg for a couple of days to meet with a client so I convinced him to go back to Boise a day early so we could ride with him (and not have to drive two cars back from Boise). We had a great time eating licorice and Cafe Rio and catching up in the car. He dropped us off at Meredith & Chris’s house for the night. The time went by way too quickly but it was so good to see the two parents-to-be even if it was only for a few measly hours. Poor Mer had to take us to the airport at an hour of the day that no one should be awake let alone an 8-month pregnant girl! Thanks again for the ride Mer, we definitely owe you.

Gloria picked us up at the airport and we headed to the house they’re staying in. She tried to explain that it was amazing over the phone, but I didn’t realize fully until we saw it for ourselves. Gloria, her husband Wayne and baby Norah are moving to Ireland this month so Wayne can get his PhD (awesome!) so they are staying in her uncle’s house until they take off. Check out this view:

We spent the morning/early afternoon enjoying each others company over vegan cuisine. And, I got to meet cousin Sarah for the first time. Where have you been all my life, Sarah? It was so nice to catch up with the Seattle cousins, I’ve missed you all! It was great to get to know James and Wayne a little better. Well scratch that, it was great to get to know everyone a little better! We loved spending time with the Gages.

After another visit that was far too short we headed to visit Doug’s infamous buddies: Brett and Crandall. I honestly wasn’t even sure if these guys actually existed; I’ve heard about them so much over the years but never met them so I was starting to wonder… but they are definitely real. We had a blast eating Thai food and playing Settlers whilst constantly laughing. We even got to snuggle Brett and Lauren’s cute dogs that night :) I’m glad to know these guys aren’t only real, but all they were cracked up to be in the stories over the years. Again, our time was too short.

At this point I thought the trip had met the maximum amount of goodness a weekend trip can have, but I was wrong again. On the way home we stopped in Kennewick and got to finally meet the one other infamous/mysterious person I’ve heard about since I married Doug: cousin Adam. Doug and Adam spent a month together every summer growing up, thus producing countless stories I’ve heard over the years. The timing worked out perfectly to meet up with Adam, Edit and baby Mura for lunch. Such a cute family. We loved talking to them and hearing about their awesome jobs.  I know I’m starting to sound like a broken record, but again, our time was too short for this visit as well. If we learned anything over this trip its that we need to get to Washington again soon to spend more time with everyone. Thanks to all for making our weekend excellent.

As you might’ve guessed from the title, yesterday was the day we finally said goodbye to Winto. A sad day indeed. Winto, you will be missed!