More time visiting Battle Ground Washington with family - 2022/07/11-20

We're in Washington and the whole Flowers family is here!

While we've got everyone together we should catch up on some celebrations we've missed. Like birthdays! Pie is always better than cake. We sang Happy Birthday to 5 different people before eating pie. 

Today we're celebrating Pop Pop's birthday! And he's got a very special gift. Jessica is an artist and she's been drawing little characters for years. 

My mom commissioned her to make a drawing of the entire Flowers family. 

Looks beautiful Jess! That's all of us. 

Since everyone is all together, it's a great time to get a few family pictures. 

Of course we'll have to line up and try to match Jess' drawing. 

And then some pictures of each family. 

At night, we were treated to a firework display in downtown Battle Ground, while we were cozy and warm in the hot tub on the deck. 

We got through a lot of puzzles. 

There's lots of places to hang out in the house. 

Can't move until the kitty decides to vacate the lap. 

The littles had a fun game where Pop Pop pulled them around on a blanket around the deck. 

Look at that smile.

Let me tell you, there was no shortage of treats while we were there. Jon made some cheese bites, similar to the ones I made a few months ago. 

But his were better. He used queso fresco cheese and baked them right after blending the ingredients together. I used cheddar and let it sit for a while before baking them. 

On one of the nights, Gram and Pop Pop offered to watch all 7 of the kids and let the rest of us go out on a date night together. 

We chose to go to Salty's Waterfront Seafood Grill, right on the Columbia River. 

And we're going to use it as a time to celebrate my birthday! 

It was a good time hanging out. 

And the food was delicious too! No seafood, thank you, but a nice thick burger and sweet potato fries will do very nicely. 

Salty's even brought out a piece of raspberry cake for us to share. It was great! 

Since we're right here on the Columbia River, it gave us a great place to go for a walk after our meal. 

There's even a walking path towards Mount Hood. 

The path even overlooks the airport that my brother flies out of. Earlier we saw Jess' parents when they visited briefly. Our timing worked out that we saw their airplane take off while we were on our walk! 

Now that we've walked off a little dinner and made some room, I think we can go for a little bit of dessert. 

I've always said pie is better than cake, so let's go to a pie shop! Shari's Cafe is all about pies! 

With so many pies on the menu, we can sample a little bit of everything! Like Strawberry Rhubarb, Lemon Creme Dream, Deep Dish Washington Apple, Peanut Butter Chocolate Silk, Tropical Coconut Dream, and S'Mores Galore. 

Quite the variety of choices. Megan insisted that her Peanut Butter Silk with crunchy peanuts and Reese's Peanut Butter cups was the best. 

Though I think we all know the Tropical Coconut or Lemon are the best. 

Jess took a little bit of everyone's leftovers and made this creation. 

Another reminder that she's an artist. No Jess, I do not want to try a bite. 

It was a lovely night out. Great to be able to hang out together.