Our Space Needle Date

We had a great date night at Seattle's most recognized landmark, the Space Needle!  The evening was absolutely perfect and we couldn't have asked for a better experience!  To top it off, Josh had checked weather several days in advance and decided that last night (Tuesday) was probably our best option for clear skies.  For February in Seattle, he truly picked the perfect time!  Not only did we ride the elevator to the observation deck, we also dined at SkyCity Restaurant, a rotating restaurant looking over the city from 500 feet above.  This is where we were able to enjoy the sights and flavors of Seattle!

The views were incredible!  One particular thing that we chose to do was make our reservations for the first dinner seating at 5:15PM.  That was the the best decision because we saw it during daylight, sunset, and dark!  Perfect!  

The food was great!  With tourist attractions, it's always a gamble if the food is good or not; however, we LOVED everything and we know why this restaurant received the restaurant of the year award a couple of years ago.  We shared crab cakes as an appetizer, Josh had filet mignon and crab legs and I had peking duck for entrees, and then we shared a dessert!  The dessert thing was pretty funny because Josh is all about some chocolate cake and I'm all about ice cream.  We weren't going to get a dessert at all until my wise-guy husband discovered the option where he could get a hot chocolate cake that came with ice cream!  ha!  And to top it off [literally and figuratively] they had Makers Mark ice cream!  Seriously!  You know this Kentucky girl was all about that!  It was really good......anyone know if they make this in Kentucky (or anywhere else for that matter?!)!

If you're interested, you can read history and fun facts of the Space Needle.  One particular fun fact that I will point out and I think is so cool:

"In 1966 11-year-old Bill Gates, now Microsoft chairman and co-founder, won a dinner at the Space Needle restaurant offered by his pastor. Gates had to memorize chapters 5, 6 and 7 of the Gospel of Matthew, better known as the Sermon on the Mount, and he recited the sermon flawlessly."

I think the following pictures can tell the story of our wonderful date night:

 

As you can see, we had the best time together as we enjoyed the Space Needle!  Here are some tips for those of you who might travel to Seattle and are thinking of doing this attraction.

1.  Do this attraction!

2.  Go for the gusto and dine at SkyCity Restaurant!  Yes, it's on the high-end of price, but it's so worth it!  So do what we have done and skimp and save in many ways, then go enjoy this place without restraint!  Trust me with this.....don't just go to the observation deck.  I promise that the views and experience in the restaurant are worth the difference! (and I am an extremely frugal person, kind of a tightwad to be honest, so trust me and do the restaurant too.....see #4 for further reason!)

3.  Make your reservations early.....as in days or weeks (in high tourist season) in advance!

4.  When you dine in the restaurant and spend the minimum (which is not hard to do), your observation deck tickets are included -- that's a value of $18 per person!  (which can go a long way toward your meal price)

5.  Depending on the time of year and the season, try to make your reservations where you get to see both daylight and dark while you dine.  Seriously.....this is one of the best decisions we made!

6.  They have daily specials (not cheaper, but a different and nice selection) that are not on the menu....which is what Josh ordered his meal from.  We didn't know this until we arrived, which is fine....but since I'm all about knowing info ahead of time, I would have called earlier in the day to ask what the choices were.

7.  Right now there is a $25 gift certificate (off a minimum of 2 entrees) for purchase on restaurant.com (after the coupon code I used, I paid $3 for it)....this definitely helps!  However, if Josh and I were going again we would stick to our usual behavior of sharing an entree when dining in a restaurant.  That is the only thing we would have done differently.....we would have split one entree instead of each ordering our own.  Add to that the appetizer and dessert, of course. Instead, they boxed up leftovers to go so I will warm those up for lunch today.

8.  It was also nice to go during a season where there are nearly no tourists in Seattle.  The place was not busy or crowded, so that was nice!

9.  The restaurant had a professional photographer come and make a picture of the table.  The cool part is that you don't even have to buy the picture from them.  If you want to order a photo you can or you can opt for the free email of your picture.  We did that and it arrived within minutes.

10.  The waitstaff was amazing!  They kept our drinks refilled and were very friendly.  Also, the waitress was so kind to take our picture multiple times.  On her own she came to us and said "The sun is setting, let me get another picture of you two!"  She grabbed my camera, put in on the right setting (on her own and without my instruction) and took the pictures!  I thought that was a very nice gesture!

*If you don't believe me and only care about the space needle for the views of the city and you absolutely refuse to dine in the restaurant......save your money and just go to the base of the needle to get pictures and then go to the Columbia center for the views.....Columbia tower is much taller so you can see more and it's only $5 per person.  But still, you should trust me and do what I already suggested! :)  

And since we have already been asked, this wasn't set-up as an early Valentine's dinner; however, I'm cool to go with that and say that we've already celebrated V-day!  That way we can just stay home since we return Friday night after nearly a month away.  :)

I am no tour guide, I am just really pleased with our evening and how much fun we had!  We knew it was a rare and blessed opportunity that we get to do this, so we took advantage of every moment!

Our trip is winding down and we have had a great time!  We are in awe of how blessed we are to share this opportunity together!  There are some things in our life that are far from perfect, but we have chosen to dwell on how we have been blessed by God and enriched through this experience!

SAD? Nope, just ready for Spring!

You've probably heard of SAD -- seasonal affective disorder.  Wikipedia defines it as this: "Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), also known as winter depression or winter blues, is a mood disorder in which people who have normal mental health throughout most of the year experience depressive symptoms in the winter or, less frequently, in the summer, spring or autumn, repeatedly, year after year."  

^{I don't have SAD, but man am I looking forward to Spring!  It seems like this Winter has dragged on forever and that's fine and dandy, but I'm so ready for some fresh air and not having to dress like an Eskimo.....so much that I met up with a friend yesterday to get pedicures and we chose bright colors for our ghostly-white toes!  My sweet Mr. P prefers Winter (he also loves my fresh pedi!), but his bride is quite the opposite.  Is anyone else ready for Springtime or do you prefer the brisk (and sometimes bone-chilling) days of Winter?}

The Joys of January!

I thought that January was supposed to be a slooooow month that's full of lots of "nothing."  

However, January has been a busy month for Family P!  

We started off celebrating the new year in not-so-warm-and-sunny Florida.  Although the temperatures were less than desirable, we had a great vacation and also celebrated two amazing years of marriage!

Mr. & Mrs. P on Vaca in Florida......the first time I've ever worn a North Face jacket on the beach!

We returned home to even colder temperatures, but enjoyed celebrating Papa's 81st Birthday.

Papa and Mom on his Birthday!

We also had a great time getting back together with my LBG Class for a social at Mariah's.

A few members from the great LBG Class of "09!

Then a snow came that nearly closed down Bowling Green!  Just kidding, but that's how we react to the Winter weather around here.  And I'm a perfect example -- I believe the world should stop til Spring!

Our snow-covered home

Then we celebrated MLK weekend (although I was the only one who actually had a work holiday on that Monday) in Banner Elk, North Carolina as we skiied Sugar Mountain.  Mom, Daddy, Keeton, Jason, Josh and I traveled together and had a great time -- with lots of yummy food too!

 

*Excuse the hodge-podge of pictures.....I did a terrible thing when I was "playing" with my new camera.  Long story short, I managed to delete a good portion of pictures from our ski trip and Josh's birthday.  Only my friend LL could realize the true severity of this situation and how my heart has a missing piece.  Grrrr!

And after the ski trip, we returned for Mr.P's Birthday the next day!  I had a great birthday idea for him, but weeks before his birthday he instructed that I better not even think about doing a party.  (This is sad news for someone who loves to plan such occasions)  However, considering that my man isn't into the party scene so much, I decided since it was his birthday we would do something more low-key.  I still had some element of surprise involved because he thought it would just be us doing dinner with our parents and brothers....but to his surprise, I did extend the invitation just a bit to more family.  Everyone had a great time, including the birthday boy himself!

My Mr. P with other Mr. P's -- his Dad & brother!

A local family was led to do something for the Haiti Disaster Relief, so I was pleased to get to be a part of their benefit event.  Since I work at the American Red Cross, I represented the chapter and the funds earned that are sent to Haiti.  The event was an evening of concerts featuring popular local bands.  The event raised over $13,000!  What a great way to have fun and support a worthy cause.  God bless the people in Haiti - I pray for their recovery!

Some of the ARC ladies working the tickets/contributions table prior to the concert. 

"Skip Bond & The Fugitives" was the last band performance of the night and the lead singer wearing this kilt earned $500 toward the Haiti Relief Benefit Fund!  Men of all ages will fall for a dare! :)

Unfortunately, my weekend plans did not include the sisterhood reunion in Lexington of many of my sorority sisters.  :(  I was so sad to miss this gathering but I definitely look forward to our next scheduled time together -- I plan to be there 100% -- it's not fun to miss out!

We did have a little delivery arrive at the bike shop that we picked up.....our new mountain bikes!  I know this picture appears upside-down, but it's actually the bikes hanging from hooks in the garage ceiling. (I failed to get a picture before they were hung.)  We took them for a quick spin, but it's so cold outside so we couldn't do it long.  We are looking forward to hitting the road (perhaps the neighborhood for starters) and burning some calories.

Our bikes stored in our garage.  Josh and Daddy hung the hooks and now the bikes fit perfectly!

Speaking of "burning calories," Family P has gained weight since "two became one."  EEK!  It came on slowly, so at first it wasn't a big deal.  However, we're both ready to take charge of our health and we're encouraging each other.  I've started back to going to the gym in the mornings before work.  Just a few days in and I'm already seeing a bit of improvement in my energy, alertness, and overall well-being.  Hopefully this trend continues and I don't burn-out as I previously have done.  I'm just thankful to have become concerned while it's still manageable.  It appears that I have gained about 8-9 pounds since we were married two years ago.  That might not seem like much over that amount of time, but it's bad news bears as far as I'm concerned.  Feel free to offer advice, tips, and encouragement!  I really don't have a bad diet, but my job requires so much sitting.....and I am certain that is exactly what has led to my gain.  I am doing cardio and strength training at the gym.  I'm no expert at all, just doing what seems right.  I feel like a "plan" would be great -- like a written workout of how many minutes for cardio, how many sets and reps, etc.  I need to do some more research in this area -- if you happen to know a good resource to share, I would appreciate it.  I know I could hire a personal trainer, but that is not something we plan to spend money on right now.  Mr. P also began his plan of action which also includes cardio and strength training.  This is not a New Years resolution, rather a decision that was important to make for ourselves.

I made this picture of the three remaining cupcakes left from Josh's birthday dinner.  For fun, I stacked them up and took a picture and then I tossed them in the garbage!  I'm not one for wasting food, but it was a smart decision to rid them of our home to help support our new health, fitness and nutrition goals.  If only it were always that easy to get rid of excess fat!  :)

Cupcake tower

The rest of this week and weekend remain fairly busy for us and the weather is calling for a big snow.  Oh geez.....I better join the rest of BG in stocking the pantry with lots of canned foods!  (Really.....I so need to do a grocery trip!)

Wishing you a blessed week!