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False creek.

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Vancouver

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Second lunch at creperie. First lunch was sushi.

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Vancouver from north van

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On train to canada

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Joey in new coat with xmas tree at beach. It was a broken branch from the snow.

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Jess at xmas

Jess with bass

Snowy day

We have about 10-11 inches at our house.

FW:

I got up on the roof and threw snowballs at joey without a coat

snow day

Snowy Emerald Downs before Sunrise and our snowy street just after Sunrise.

Will it ever stop snowing?

Joey in new ski mask and the backyard before the big blast hit

Jess with trumpet Dec 16th concert

Jess' Winter Band Concert

December Snow

Pictures from the Dec 14th sunrise with snow around the Nyland house. The old basketball hoop in the woods must have been from an old ranch house that has been gone for many years. It reminds me of the lamppost in Narnia. The only things that live there now are a lot of coyotes and rabbits. I followed their tracks on my little walk this morning. More pics on my flickr site.

Meg is in New York on business

In NYC this week for 3 days. It is rainy and cold, no snow. I have a
teeny tiny hotel room, but it's got a little balcony, this is the view.

Jess made Chicken Cordon Bleu for dinner

Yum!

Cathedral Ridge Pinot

Meg and I liked this Pinot. Not sure where got it or how much it cost but it was good.

Birthday Weekend

Well, my birthday extended into the weekend. On Saturday, we went to the Star Lake Tavern for an informal birthday get together. It was a great time. On Sunday we had a family birthday party. My birthday is the 2nd, Ann's is the 7th, Paul's is the 10th and Meg's is the 19th. I was very happy with all my birthday presents. I got a new ipod, a biking jacket, a backpacking stove, and a gift certificate to REI. I will need to get a new backpack at REI for xcountry ski trip with Joey next month.

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Cell phone pic of the foks at the Star Lake Inn on Dec 6th

Birthday party

Restaurant Review- Guido's at the Cliff House

The 4 of us went to Guido's for my 40th birthday dinner. The Cliff House has the fancy restaurant upstairs, (which was empty at 7pm on a Tuesday night), and they also have their "bistro" downstairs (Guido's) along with a bar. The views of Tacoma are still cool but the food isn't as expensive as upstairs. I really wanted a good cheesburger and it is tough to find one in Federal Way that isn't a chain restaurant or a bar.

We started with garlic bread and some some wings. They were OK but they didn't give us much of either. I ordered the cheeseburger which was exactly what I wanted. It was really good but the fries were just OK. I was hoping for homemade fries but I am pretty sure these were frozen. Joey had a BLT salmon burger which was pretty good but the salmon was a little overdone. Meg has a steak that had a lot of steak sauce on it but she said it was pretty good. Jess had a chicken piccata pasta dish that was pretty good. Prices were $12 for the burger to $16 for the steak which is a really good deal. I think we will probably go their again. It feels like a fancy restaurant but it really isn't and the prices are reasonable.

Thanksgiving Wine Trip

Meg and I spent Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving tasting wine in the Yakima Valley. It was a special deal where we bought a wine glass and a bracelet for $20 each and then we didn't have to pay any wine tasting fees at most of the wineries in the valley. Many of the tasting rooms had special deals on wine and free appetizers. We went over Chinook Pass on Friday morning and had 5 hours for tasting on Friday. We made it through 9 wineries on Friday and had the whole day on Saturday and went through 11. The most interesting place was Blackwood Canyon on Red Mountain. The winemaker does things a lot differently that everyone else and we spent almost 2 hours talking to them. We also really liked Kiona Vineyards on Red Mountain. We might buy grapes from them next year for our own winemaking. We spent a lot of time at the wineries in Rattlesnake Hills. We went to 10 of them so we got a free wine glass. Sunday we came back over White Pass. Good beautiful drives both ways. Stayed both nights at the Howard Johnson. Big king bed for only $68. Next time we want to go with a couple of other couples and drive together. Next special weekend in Yakima is Valentines day with the wine and chocolate event.

The Boys Adventure

Jess, Joey and Bill went to the Museum of History and Industry and then walked around the UW.

Boys at uw

Nyland Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving with Bill's family in Tacoma. Sarah brought her knitting.

Jess at Comet Falls

First Blog Entry

I am starting a blog! How about that! I don't really know why but it is the day before Thanksgiving and there isn't anyone at work. It is hard to run meetings and workshops without anyone here. So...what is coming up in the Nyland household....
Tomorrow is the fabulous Thanksgiving Dinner at Nana's house in UP. Meg is making the turkey.
We will leave the boys with Nana or Gerrit and they will take them to the beach house on Friday. Paul and Kara will pick up the boys Saturday morning and take them back to our house for some prime nephew bonding time.
Meg and I will be traveling to Eastern Washington on Friday morning for a 2 night wine tasting adventure. We will drive around Yakima and TriCities and learn more about our latest hobby- winemaking.
On Tuesday, I will be turning 40 years old. Not really having a party but we will have a get together on Dec. 6th at the Star Lake Inn.

Other upcoming events:
Meg's 39th birthday is Dec. 19th. Not sure when we will celebrate it because we have a cub scout pack meeting that night.
Christmas will be at the Beachhouse with Ann, Paul, Kara and Kara's family.
Jess, Joey and I taking the train for a 3 day adventure in Vancouver. BC on December 29th.
Joey and I are taking a snow shoe or Xcountry ski adventure to a cabin near Cle Elum for a weekend in January. We are going to have to learn how to ski before then.
Jess' boy scout troop will be coming to the beach house at the end of January.
Jess hasn't decided what to do on his birthday yet.