Showing posts with label Yakima. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yakima. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Moving...it never gets easier...

10:43 AM

You may or may not know that my family had been living in a rental house in Yakima since we moved here while we were looking for a house to buy. I have a whole lot to say about house hunting, but I will save that for another day. We finally bought a house a couple months ago, and so we moved.

For some reason, I was under the impression that moving across town would be easier than moving across the country. That is just not true. In fact I think it is harder. Because when you move across the country, you tend to take a few day, maybe a week or two to just move. Your total focus is on the details of the move. When you move across town, you have to do all those moving details AND keep doing normal stuff-hubby to work, kids to school, dance, rehearsals, sports, etc. 

Although I did not realize HOW hard it would be, I did know it might be tough, so we planned our move to happen during the kids spring break. Which really just made for a crappy spring break full of stress (and 2 sons with birthdays that essentially got ignored). 

And almost 2 months later I am still not unpacked, and still cannot find where the movers (yes we hired movers) put stuff-I can tell you they did not put things in the rooms they were marked to go in. UG! Wes and I have been having trouble with our bed since they put it together, and late last night when Wes got home after a long day on call, we realized they did not put it together correctly AT ALL, and we had to pull it apart and fix it before we could go to sleep. Double UG!

So right now, Beckee's deal is that she has a lot of unpacking to do still! I have no advice, nothing profound to say, just wanted to say to all my friends, family, readers who have been through an in town move before-KUDOS to you! I am impressed that so many people do this without missing a beat. I on the other hand have missed months of beats...but I guess I'll just keep pushing along and hopefully I will be motivated enough to get through all these boxes soon! 

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Thursday, February 2, 2017

Foodie Finds in Yakima AKA When a self proclaimed foodie moved back to town...

10:24 AM
One of my favorite things about going back home to visit Utah is the food options! Seriously, there are restaurants in Utah I dream about. In fact, just about everywhere I have lived or frequently visited has foods I crave. When I visit certain places, I literally have a mental food check list for the visit. 
(Thanks "Oliver!" for expressing my feeling about food so well!)
Knowing my excitement for food, imagine how difficult it was for me to move to a small town where there were only a few food options. Don't get me wrong, Aberdeen has some excellent gems in there, but there is a limited supply. And honestly, in a small town, you can go to the place you crave during normal business hours and find a little sign that they are closed today for just about any reason from a family emergency to a good fishing day. 
Now, although Yakima is not a huge city, it is much bigger than Aberdeen, and as such, it has a lot more options for eating out. I know, I know, I am trying NOT to eat out, but maybe that is why all the good food is on my mind. There are local gems I am discovering as well as chains I am grateful to have close by (Arbys! Arctic Circle!). I thought I would share a few of these foodies fave places to have access to in Yakima! 
My Yakima Foodie Finds!
First up, a few sit down restaurants that as far as I know are local (these are mostly sit down restaurants that are maybe a little spendy. Perfect places for a special night out):
  • Zesta Cucina: This is one of my favorite place right now. I love, LOVE their Crab Cakes served over amazing risotto! Plus any restaurant that serves me warm bread with vinegar and oil on the table to start wins my heart! :) 
  • Kyoto Sushi and Japanese Steakhouse: AND this is my other favorite place. You can get sushi, kitchen items, or have them cook on the table for you (Or any combination of the three). I crave their crabmeat salad! YUMMY! There is something for everyone here.
  • Carousel French Cuisine: Wes and I happened upon this gem one night shortly after moving to Yakima. The building doesn't look like much and you could easily walk right past and never know it's there. But Oh my goodness! It is awesome food. Not cheap, but I loved it. I am excited to go back again sometime soon! (PS, this is the only French restaurant I have ever been to so it was extra special for me!)
  • Second Street Grill: This is more of a sports bar feel place with great food. Lots of options-huge menu, and for those that drink, there is seemingly unending alcoholic options (well, it seems that way to this non-drinker anyway). 
  • Xochimilco: Looking for some great Mexican food? This is my favorite place here for that (so far). Everything is really yummy here. I have tried the fajitas and one of the salads. Both were awesome!
  • Abby's Pizza: I am not sure if this one goes here or in the next category because they will deliver to your house, but they also have a restaurant you can eat at. All I know for sure is my kids LOVE their pizza and think it is the best! They also have lots of other menu items, so I can order something I can eat as well. 
  • Cowiche Canyon: OK, I almost didn't put this one here because they have BLOWN it with my husband to the point that he won't go there now. We go there for the appetizers mostly-they have the best Guacamole I have ever had that was not homemade. But out ultimate favorite item, the one that kept me going back was their Grilled Artichoke appetizer. It is Ah-mah-zing! BUT, even though it is still on their menu, the last two times we went there the server has very snottily told us they no longer serve it, at least for a while. UG. If they get that back, I might return. If you go there, the only Entree I ever eat is the Prawn and Avocado Salad, and my husband only likes their Roasted Prime Rib entree. 
And these may be chains/fast food (meaning multiple locations either locally or nationally), but I am so glad they are here:

  • MOD pizza: My families favorite food for sure in Yakima. The kids request MOD pizza almost every day. Here's the thing that's so awesome about it. You customize your pizza in a similar way to how you customize a sandwich as Subway. They grab a crust and you choose EVERYTHING from there, then they wood fire the pizza for your eating enjoyment. Now, I don't eat pizza (it sadly makes me sick), but they have a delightful option called a pizza salad. They wood fire up a crust which you can eat like bread sticks and make a salad fully customized by you, then serve the salad on the pizza crust. It is heavenly! This is a MUST try place in Yakima as far as I am concerned. Probably the first place I will take visitors when they come to Yakima! 
  • Jimmy Johns: National sandwich chain know for being really fast. Add to that how GOOD it is, and it is a family fave! 
  • Papa Johns: I admit that since we do not currently live in their delivery area, we have not utilized this option yet, but I LOVE that it is here!
  • Arbys: National chain famous for roast beef sandwiches. I have missed Arby's terribly. Yeah for a close one! 
  • Arctic Circle: A favorite fast food joint from high school. I would drive through and order a Lime Rickey and fries with fry sauce fairly often growing up. So glad to have one nearby for the first time in my adult life! My kids are finally discovering the joys of fry sauce!
  • Sonic Drive In: When we were trying to sell our house in Omaha, we would eat here during Happy Hour quite a lot. I absolutely love their Hot Dogs-Chicago Dogs, and New York Dogs are my faves. Add to that a fully customized drink and tots and this is a happy girl. 
There are some good treats here as well (but I am in search of more options for my sweet tooth):

  • Boehm's chocolates: I bought a bunch of local treats here for my brother's mission farewell (he lived in Utah and was called to serve his LDS mission HERE in Yakima!). Lots of yummy treats to choose from here.
  • Johnson's Orchard: I have only bought apples here, but I hear their pies and baked goods are amazing. I am afraid to try them as I am certain it will ruin all my weight loss goals...
Places on my MUST try list (based on recommendations:
  • Waffles Caffe: I have not had the pleasure of going here yet, but Wes went with one of our kids on a father/son date here for breakfast a couple weeks ago and they haven't stopped talking about it. So it is on the short list.
  • Creekside West: I have no clue why I have not been here yet since it is close to home, but I hear it is awesome. 
Any other places I need to add to my list or go check out in Yakima?
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Sunday, January 8, 2017

Top Five Family Fun for Yakima...So Far...

11:00 AM
Once again, as I said in this post, I often wonder where the locals really hang out in the places I visit (or when I move to a new place). So, I am going to share my top five local hang out spots from the places I have lived.   I posted about Omaha, Spokane, Scottsdale, and Aberdeen so far. Today's city is I am JUST discovering, so this list will likely evolve over the years, but for now, here is my Yakima list! 
Top 5 Yakima
After my husband did a fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, AZ for a year, he took his first "real job" post-training in Aberdeen, WA. We spend 3 years there. Then last year my husband got an amazing job offer in Yakima, WA, and we moved here summer of 2016. We are really just discovering this area and have so, SO much more to explore, so this list is what we have found and loved so far! 
1. Get Air 
What is it? A trampoline park
My experience with it: We have gone here as a family a couple times and a couple of my kids have been invited to parties here. 
Where is it? 1015 E Lincoln Ave, Yakima, WA 98901
What can you do here and what does it cost? There are trampolines, foam pits, basketball courts (trampoline basketball courts), and more. They have birthday rooms as well. Current prices can be found here. 
2. Skateland 
What is it? A skating rink
My Experience with it: Very limited. My younger daughter went to a birthday party there and I was there for about 10 minutes picking her up, It is on this list because my daughter LOVED it and cannot wait to go back! It looked like a lot of fun and we will be planning a family fun time there soon! 
Where is it? Actually in Union Gap at  2506 Old Town Rd. Near the Mall. 
What can you do here and what does it cost? I know you can skate there, and there are a few arcade games. Check out more info on their site here.
3. Cowiche Canyon trail
What is it? Hiking trails
My Experience with it: We have hiked a few times up on the trails. It is great hiking. Our kids did great the couple times they hiked with us here. 
Where is it? The trail head locations are in different spots, so look here for the directions to the trail heads.  
What can you do here and what does it cost? Walk, bike, or ride horses on these trails. Kids and Dogs welcome, but they warn to make sure your kids follow the rules and make sure you clean up after your dogs and keep them leashed. Cost-FREE! Yeah! 
4. Akin Center Theatre
What is it? A Theater/performing arts center (plus a center for dance, drama, and music classes AND a preschool). 
My Experience with it: My oldest 3 kids were just in The Secret Garden in October (my middle son played Colin Craven) and my 4th child was just in The Nutcracker in December, That 4th child also takes dance classes there. 
Where is it? 1610 S 24th St, Yakima 98902
What can you do there and what does it cost? Go watch a show! Or take a class. This is a small but mighty community theater that also educates kids in the arts! As a former high school drama teacher I LOVE that! Check out their site and see what they have going on. 
5. Sarg Hubbard Park on the Yakima Greenway
What is it? A park on a larger walking trail
My Experience with it: My husband and I love to walk on the trail around here and this is a park our family loves. We walk here fairly often.
Where is it? 111 S 18th St, Yakima, WA 98901

What can you do there and what does it cost? Play at the playground, walk the trails, feed the ducks on the pond. Just enjoy the area! (If you like Pokemon Go, there are a few Poke Stops around the park and a couple gyms.)
And speaking of Pokemon Go, if you like to play, here's a bonus tip: Downtown, in the area surrounding The Second Street Grill is a GREAT place to play-lots of Poke stops, gyms, and Pokemon spawns. 
I am looking forward to finding more places to hang out in Yakima! For now though, these are our favorites! 
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Monday, January 2, 2017

Christmas Adventures 2016 (for 2017 adventures)

10:31 PM

For an explanation of our Christmas Adventures from last year check out this post, for the report of how the 2016 adventures went read this, and if you want to read about a specific adventure with the VIP experience at Universal Studios (including Harry Potter land) make sure to check out this post. 

And now that you have done some homework and read all that, I will tell you about the Christmas Adventures we opened on Christmas 2016 for adventures to be done in 2017. 

Before I do though, you should know that my husband has 3 weeks off this summer during the time the kids are out of school. We knew we would be planning vacations for those 3 week. We decided those 3 weeks (ie vacations) would be 3 of the adventures. We also wanted 2 more adventures so each of the 5 kids could open one adventure. This year each adventure had a large manila envelope attached to a small wrapped present. The kids were told to open the present, guess the adventure, then open the envelope to see if they had guessed right.

Adventure 1

The picture above shows the present/hint that came with this envelope. Can you guess what the adventure was (this one is pretty vague, so I bet no one will get it)? Here's the answer:

For this adventure, each of the 5 kids gets to plan a one on one "date" (thus the calander hint, full of dates) with mom and a one on one date with dad. This may seem like a small adventure, but it is a big deal. It tells our kids that we will make time for each of them individually. One of the dates has already happened. Our middle child and Wes went on a Poke-walk (playing Pokemon Go) for about an hour in the morning on Saturday (Wes used his phone and our son used my phone), then they went to breakfast together, then on another Poke-walk for about an hour. Planned by our son and he couldn't have been happier with it! I will update you on the upcoming 9 dates! 

Adventure 2

Based on the picture above did you guess the next adventure? Can you see that the hint was a book on Washington state? Here's the adventure to go along with it:

So, as I mentioned, we moved to a new city this year. So adventure 2 is a monthly family activity to discover a local adventure. These will include things like skiing and going to the local trampoline place. Maybe local fairs/carnivals, etc.

Adventure 3

Adventure 3 came with the book above as a hint. I bet you CAN guess this one:

I titled this one as "History has it's eyes on you". We plan to go to historical sites in Washington DC, and to visit my brother-in-law and his family. This adventure is one of our summer vacation adventures.

Adventure 4

Honestly this is a biggie. Can you guess what is is based on the hint above? It is one of the vacations for this summer, and it is combined as a gift to the kids AND to my parents and Wesley's parents. 

As pictured above, it is a "Big Fat Beach Family Fun". You can see we put that it will be a trip to California with my parents (XiaXia and Papou-that's Greek for grandma and grandpa) and Wesley's parents (Grandma and Grandpa). This is another one of the summer vacation weeks.

BUT I have to tell you something. On New years eve as Wes and I were planning this trip online, Wes had the idea to surprise everyone again and upgrade the trip to Hawaii! We found a great deal on a vacation package to the big island of Hawaii and we're going to take our kids and both sets of our parents there instead of California! 

As this was a Deals blog for many years, I want to share that part of the switch was because it was a deal. The accommodations (beach houses or hotels) were comparable between Hawaii and California. Air fare was more to Hawaii. However, if we went to southern Cal as planned, we were going to do Disneyland and Universal Studios, which are expensive. We found a vacation package at Costco Travel (great prices there by the way) for the Big Island of Hawaii that made it great! And Wes and I love the Big Island! So we are excited about that! 

Adventure 5

Can you guess this one?

If you guessed this one, congrats, you are awesome! I cannot find the picture that says what it is, but it's a "choose your own adventure". The kids get to pick the last summer vacation (within a set of rules pictured above of course, and pending approval of the parents that will be paying for it), Once they pick the destination, I will help them plan it, shop around for the best deals and get the whole thing ready to go. This one may or may not work. We shall see if the children can work together or not I guess! (If not I guess Wes and I take over). Here's to hoping it works!

As you can see, we have a FUN 2017 to look forward to! In addition to these fun things, Wes has a few times this year he will be going to Continuing Medical Education conferences and I get to go with him (thanks to our moms who will be coming to Yakima and taking care of our kids), plus we are celebrating our 16th wedding anniversary in May by going to NYC to see Hamilton (I bought the tickets last summer). 

This blog will probably look like a travel blog this year, but I will try to just keep letting you know what my deal is in other areas too! 

To sign off, I want to wish you all happy adventures in 2017! Happy New year! 



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