For the first time, we scored a couple of first class seats! The kids have to be 6 or older to qualify for first class, so we could only get 2 seats, and Dave was kind enough to let Jackson and I sit up there for the first half of the flight. Jackson was in love with the screen and the real glasses and the snack. Now he demands first class every flight. We have to remind him to just be grateful when we get on a flight!
We arrived in Seattle late at night (2 am our time) and crashed in a slummy hotel just north of the airport. No problem, it had 2 large king sized beds, a kitchenette (which we didn't use) and free breakfast which is the only thing our kids need to be happy. I crashed putting the girls to sleep and Dave flee asleep with Jackson. We both spent the night uncomfortably being kicked in the back by our children. We usually help them fall asleep separately and then move them... note to self.. ALWAYS move the kids together!
At 5 am I was up (it is 8 am our time) I started using my phone and next thing I know my 3-year-old is next to me and in the most motherly voice said, "Its not time to use your phone, Its TIME to be in bed!" I promptly obeyed and headed back to bed with her. She feel asleep for another hour until everyone started waking up around 6:30. I am always proud if my kids sleep past 7 or 8 our time. When I was a young and inexperienced traveler, I would stress and worry about the amount of sleep my kids got, now I know that tired and not well rested kids are just part of the first days of travel and I try not to stress about what I can't change and try harder to be prepared to help them through those tired times.
- You know your living in a high class motel when you can only shower from the belly button down!
We started the morning where everyone told us to go, Pikes Place Market. I must not have done enough research, because I expected only a fish market with workers singing and moving all over the place ('FISH" business book anyone?) But really it is a multilevel giant mall, with portions of it being in open air on one side of it. We really struggled finding the center famous part of it.
- Mini Donuts for breakfast (because the toast and jam and muffins at the hotel weren't enough carbs to start the day)
This picture is a great memory because the kids were all sorts of worried about these fish here, they wouldn't approach them and they kept asking if they were dead. I assured them they were and told them to get in a picture with me. They reluctantly joined me, but kept their eye on the fish. Then right before the picture this fish in the background jumped up! Scared the kids (and me) to death. The kids went screaming and crying away as the stranger with the phone snapped this. Turns out the fish is attached to a chain and can be pulled from the other side of this display. We had all sorts of fun with it later on (after the tears were dried).
- I finally convinced one of the kids to touch a fish.
- Rosie the Bronze piggy bank found around the area.
- The gum wall (right down the stairs from the fish market) was gross! I thought I would really like it, but I was grossed out. Luckily,.my kids are old enough to NOT TOUCH when I commanded it!
- We all left our mark. The kids just liked that we got to chew gum!
- We wandered down the hall of the market and Dave found some German Brats we bought by the link, so we tried every kind. Jackson of course ordered the Italian one. Our hotel had a grill so we planned on making it for dinner that night. We also bought some king Salmon to complete the random meal.
- Seattle was so interesting! We found art pieces, waterfalls, sculptures etc all around the city.
- Behind Pikes Place we wandered down to the waterfront. It was beautiful and there was ping pong, the giant ferris wheel, the puget sound and the aquarium if interested. There was also a really cool blue path that I thought would be fun to bike if the kids were bigger.
- This was part of the waterfront and the building the the back is the aquarium.
- Another interesting sculpture. Always something fun to look at here!
Parking in Seattle was expensive. We stayed just 2 minutes over 2 hours and had to pay $12, just to drive somewhere else and pay some more. We parked at the "locks' and realized the kids and I were really hungry. The place to eat only had fish and chips and I wasn't sure how that would go over with the kids, but they loved it! It always makes me a little nervous to take my picky eaters to new towns so I pack a lot of snacks, but I love finding food they will eat!
We then headed through a nice little park to see the
Hiram Chittendom locks where the ships enter and it fills up or lets out water to move them from one lake/canal to another. We were there just in time to see a few boats rise within minutes. The kids thought it wasn't real, so it was fun to try to explain it.
Unfortunately, we missed the salmon swimming upstream season by a week, but there are windows into the canal so you can see the fish trying to jump up the stream to get back to their nesting ground. We saw a few fish swimming around.
We headed across the canal to
Discovery park. I didn't realize that during the week you have to check out a parking pass to go down to the beach and lighthouse. There are only 8 parking passes! One was expected back within 45 minutes so we decided to wait. There was a fantastic kids play area with puppets, tunnels and a few other things to look at and do. It was a perfect down time for us and the kids. The parking pass came right as we were ready to go and we headed out to the Puget sound for some tide pools.
The water was coming in. I didn't see much of anything in the tide pools, but the kids liked exploring. We walked around the lighthouse and it was much colder and windier around the point. There were some great views and the kids always love a beach.
We headed back down town for
Seattle Center. Here you can find the children's museum, the space needle, Chihuly glass garden, the international fountain (seen below) and lots of art and gardens to see and explore. This international fountain was amazing. Look at the little people next to it. Even though I had researched it I thought it was a small splash pad. It is HUGE. The fountain is choreographed to music so it is unpredictable and exciting. One sound the fountain sent water spraying SO high I got wet sitting above it and a hundred yards away. It was so entertaining and fun. Despite the weather being mild (inour humble Texas opinion) the kids were delighted to get soaked and run and play. Such a great time was had here. 
The space needle was a bit underwhelming. It wasn't nearly as high as I thought it would be. The cost was astronomical though, so we passed. We went into a eatery to find a restroom and in the process saw a lunch area with a bunch of places to eat. There were giant games set out to play for free. Giant scrabble (complete with beanbags for participants, connect 4, chess, checkers and other games). I wish we had time to stay and eat and play. Looked like a blast (for free too!). We met a balloon guy and left the center with happy kids, ready for a rest. 
- Our knight in shining armor tames the fire-breathing dragon for dinner.
Salmon, brats, chips, grapes, pickles and juice. I LOVED having our own space to enjoy dinner together without having to get on the kids for perfect restaurant behavior. This was the perfect end to our day. We really wanted to swim, but it was late (and even later in TX) so we headed to bed with visions of Seattle city in our heads. This time we split the kids up to fall asleep and then moved them together for the night.
In all of our travels, we've found that we don't enjoy the city scene as much as others, so we tend to hit the main sites in a day or two and call it a success. There were many family friendly venues we could've visited, but we felt like we got a great overview of this city in full day of adventures and we were ready to take a road trip out to Olympic National park in the morning.
