Ella tries her first lollipop

Look at that big smile!

Best friends forever

The friendship between these two little girls is so pure and innocent! They love nothing more than to chase each other around and shower one another with kisses and other displays of affection.

Sneaking in a quick kiss

Making their own bug jars to house their beetles, frogs, and butterflies

Giving Ella a quick pat on the head

Helen and her little guy

We spent a lovely morning at South Coast Botanical Gardens with Helen and her sweet little boy. I especially loved the secret garden pathway, with light filtering through the pink blooms and arched branches shielding us from the hot sun of midday.

Seattle is such a vivid, colorful city! As we walked through downtown, we were surrounded by colorful murals lining alleys, trees with their trunks painted bright, bright blue (strangely reminscent of dr seuss), and more lively shop stalls than I could count. Since it didn't get dark until close to 10p, it was easy to lose track of time wandering around town.