Obligatory front porch Back to School pics, in order of departure…
Avery and Jacob heading out on Section J of the PCT, 75 miles from Snoqualmie Pass to Stevens Pass. The moms tried not to worry too much. 
They finished in three days!
Layla lucked out and got the best teacher, Mr. Harper!
We decided to tack on a trip to Munich for my birthday since we were already in Europe until the 26th. I’m so glad we did. It’s a birthday I’ll always remember! Here we are celebrating at Augustiner Beer Garden. The vibe there is SO Bavarian!
We bought Avery his first beer here
Don’t worry, that’s not a dark lager, Kieron opted for root beer
First meal in Munich at Zum Brunnstein
Our first meal in Germany had lots of sausage, sour kraut & German-style potato salad.
The Glockenspiel
Inside Hofbräuhaus, where Hitler gave speeches
Views from atop the Cathedral
Here’s what happened the morning of my birthday. We originally planned to go to Neuschwanstein on my birthday and Dachau the following day because who wants to go to a concentration camp on their birthday? Well, we had some trouble with the trains and ended up in traffic in a taxi, and arrived at the tour company literally one minute late. By then our bus had left without us! Fortunately, the tour company worked with us and was able to switch our tours so we could do the camp on my birthday and the castle the next day. I’m so thankful we were still able to do both, but it made for a somber birthday. I was on the verge of tears half the day!
Solitary confinement
Neuschwanstein! I love the crazy story about this castle and it’s creator.
Uncle Scott, same place, 44 years earlier!
1981
Don’t ask me what he’s playing!
Taking a carriage to the castle in 1981
I always thought this picture of me was taken of me looking out the little window at the top of the castle – but I just learned it is not! It’s from some other castle in Europe.
At Kinder Paradise, 1984
Downtown Munich. I love that my birthday falls on Pride Weekend
We stopped in Pompeii on our way to Sorrento and had a small guided tour of the ruins. It was incredible and sad to imagine the final moments of its citizens. If I’m being honest, we were coming off three days of tours in Rome and we were all tired, hot, “ruined out” and ready to relax. I think we all trudged through the tour, anxious to get to our hotel. It was however, interesting to learn that 1/3 of Pompeii remains uncovered, and to see what a city from that time really looked like.
Carriage tracks
A cast of a teenage girl
We made it to our hotel in Sorrento, the Hotel Riviera! Time to relax!
We liked the Beach Club!
Getting White Lotus Season 2 vibes!
Had the BEST dinner of our trip here at this little seafood restaurant!
A cool model boat in our hotel
We took a private boat to Capri one day. On the way, we stopped for a little snorkeling. Once there, we ate lunch, rode the chairlift to Ana Capri, got gelato and did a little shopping.
Here’s a cave we passed on our way.
We took the chair lift up to Ana Capri
At the top
Headed back down
Someone learned to shave on our trip!
Our favorite thing we did in Sorrento was a private cooking class with a local chef, Guglielmo (William), on his family farm, which has been in his family for more than 500 years! He picked us up in his Ape Calessino.
The farm included a veggie garden, lemon grove and animals. They produce olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Chef Guglielmo (William) is passionate about using only the best and purest ingredients. We made bruschetta, gnocci, and chicken piccata.
We made Kieron’s favorite, gnocci!
Jonathan helped make chicken
Avery helped make the bruschetta
With his wife, Maria
For dessert – lemon sorbet & limoncello
Barrels of balsamic
Last night in Italy
We spent three very busy days in Rome. Upon arriving, we promptly went on a private walking tour to get our bearings and familiarize ourselves with the sights. The following day we toured the Vatican, and on our last day we toured the Colosseum, then did an e-bike tour of Appian Way and the Aqueducts. We saw some of the sights around town a couple times, so for simplicities sake, I’m keeping pictures from the same locations together. Rome was amazing – even cooler than I expected it to be. I loved being surrounded by so much history!
Spanish Steps
Campo Marzio
Trevi Fountain
Piazza di Monte Citorio
Colonna
Parthenon
Piazza Navona
Aqueduct in town
Borgo
Prati
I’m glad we toured the Vatican, but despite it’s opulence, I have to confess, it wowed me less than anything else. It was way too crowded and I felt like a sheep being herded through the entire time. It was clear the objective was to get as many tourists through each day as possible. The art was amazing, but the wealth was a little icky. I couldn’t help thinking how all that money could be spent in more positive ways. I also think it’s a shame that some pope insisted the naked people in Michael Angelo’s masterpiece be covered up centuries later. Also ridiculous that we still don’t have female priests or popes.
One of my favorite things was all the maps painted along this hall.
Piazza del Popolo
Terrazza del Pinico
Here we are at the Colosseum! Our tour got a little messed up by the travel and tour companies. They purchased a child ticket for Avery, who turned eighteen before our tour. Apparently the guy at security was having a bad day, because he wouldn’t let our group in until this was sorted out – and it was not as simple as paying $20. Our group got held up for a long time, then rushed through. The poor tour lady was so sweet to go over on our tour. She probably missed lunch that day to do it, but we still got an abbreviated version. It was okay with us, it was very hot out! Unfortunately, our tour did not include the underground portion. If we ever go back we’ll have to do that part. This was very interesting to see!
Roman Forum
Our last (and favorite) activity in Rome was a 6 hour, 26km e-bike tour along Appian Way. We rode through the busy streets, narrow trails, and even through some sheep! We stopped and toured some catacombs on the way, visited a number of parks, and saw much of the aqueducts. It was SO much fun and a great way to see more of the country!
At the Catacombs of San Sebastiano
These little green parrots were all over this field.
I thought the aqueducts were the most beautiful and interesting sight in Rome
Our tour guide was a sweet, outdoorsy 20-something. She knew the boys could only handle so much history talk, so she gave them permission to test the limits of the bikes at one of the parks while she talked to the grownups about the aqueducts.
Ciao, Rome!
After all the events and build-up, Commencement Day finally arrived. I thought I’d be more tearful, but I was bursting with pride. Congratulations, Avery. You earned this and we can’t wait to see what you do next! We love you so much!
Mount Si High School Class of 2025
Filing in
Dalton & Avery, buds since kindergarten
I ‘m so glad Izzey’s mom, Judith Milstein, was the one to give Avery his diploma. She and I were on PTSA together back in the North Bend Elementary days. 
He’s (sort of) on the jumbotron
Erika accepting her diploma
Us in the audience
We had early dinner reservations at a Thai restaurant in Kent Station, but unfortunately, despite our planning, Highway 18 traffic derailed our plans, as well as those of many other graduates and their families. Traffic was horrendous due to the diamond interchange project, and on this particular day, a State Patrolman decided to stand watch, prohibiting drivers from making illegal right turns. Clearly, this guy had no clue it was graduation and his being there actually made things worse.
Long story short, we ended up hungry, but with very little time before graduation. So once we were through the traffic, we stopped in Covington for Chick-fil-A. We needed something fast! I documented the occasion and we took some family pics outside since we were warned there wouldn’t be a lot of time between graduation and senior night check-in.
Fortunately, there was some time for more pics post-graduation! 
With Matthew Shandling
With Haley & Aliyah
Jacob & Avery
