My story about ALWAYS FREE attractions in the Seattle area, in the Sunday Seattle Times! No magical tickets to pounce on, no specific day of the month, no pre-planning required for these fun adventures. Here's a link.

The Space Needle gets all the glory (and the tourists) but I love the Smith Tower observatory. Better value, better story.

Open air observatory on the 35th floor of what used to be the tallest building west of the Mississippi. Smith Tower remained the tallest building on the earthquake-prone West Coast, until the Space Needle was built in 1962.

While the Space Needle is mod and recently renovated, the Smith Tower is old school glam. It has Mexican onyx-lined hallways and birdcage elevators. It also has carved Native heads and faux chinoiserie as decor, which probably wouldn't fly today.

Tickets are less than half the cost of the Space Needle. We came for the views, and stayed for dinner. There's a school-night deal (Sun-Thurs) where you get $10 off your $20 restaurant bill.

When I left my job at MSN to be a stay-at-home mom, I would never have imagined it'd lead to a new beginning writing about kids’ activities.

As my kids have grown, I’ve graduated from covering splash pads and story times to family-friendly travel. I know someday they won’t want to go on adventures with me. And that’s ok. Right now, in this chapter of our lives, it’s pretty awesome.

The March/April issue of Seattle's Child is all about West Coast travel. I researched all the best things to do in San Francisco and San Diego. Spoiler: completely different vibes, we loved LOVED them both.

March/April digital issue here:
https://issuu.com/seattleschild/docs/seattle_s_child_the_travel_go_west_issue_marc?fr=sZGVkYzc3MzgzNTQ&mc_cid=b36791414c&mc_eid=8067ef6813

A parent’s guide to family-friendly San Francisco
https://www.seattleschild.com/a-seattle-parents-guide-to-family-friendly-san-francisco/

Top 9 things to do in sunny San Diego:
https://www.seattleschild.com/top-9-things-to-do-in-sunny-san-diego/

So that's why they call it the golden hour. Finally on the other side of the Big Dark, sunset at 6:05 p.m.

The brothers behind Secret Congee* are up to something again. This time, they've turned Ginger & Scallion into a khao soi bar. There's only one thing on the menu, and that's the point: to do one thing, and do it well.

Their khao soi (pronounced like "cal soy") recipe comes from northern Thailand; it's a coconut curry based soup with all the fixins. Warmed us up nicely on a crisp day. The seared duck was our favorite.

Cute neighborhood spot, on 65th in Ballard, where it starts to turn into Phinney Ridge. Definitely worth checking out!

* Secret Congee is SO GOOD. We got Thai meatball, cod and beef and kimchi. Youtiao with condensed milk dipping sauce is always a good idea.

Senior moment at The Dolar Shop: I admired our server's perfect Mandarin, surprised that he'd emigrated from Taiwan when he was 1.

Me: So you came over in the '90s?

Server: How old do you think I am??! I'm 21.

Me: Huh. My SCARF is older than you.

So weird to think that someone born in the 2000s is a full-fledged adult now. My scarf was a graduation present in 2002 (!), so it could be driving, voting, drinking.

P.S. The hot pot was delicious.

I'll admit I'd walked past the Boat in Little Saigon many times but never gone in, because every time I look in the windows, the restaurant is full of white people. Nothing against white people — my kids are half white — but it's generally not a good sign in an Asian restaurant.

Well mea culpa! Their pho, at their sister shop across the parking lot, is transcendental. Pho Bac is a THREE TIME-James Beard Award finalist (hence all the white people?) which sounds fancy, but really it's comfort food at down-to-earth prices.

The owners are two sisters who are uplifting this struggling neighborhood, one $15 a bowl of pho (+$1 for the large) at a time.

I turned my soup slurping into story research. Here's a link: https://www.seattleschild.com/seattle-soups-spots-thatll-warm-you-up/

When Joseph was little, we'd walk down to Lake Union and spend hours watching the seaplanes taking off and landing. It was a total bucket list item to go up in one of Kenmore Air's seaplanes. We went for a scenic flight over Seattle and it was an unforgettable experience. The ride was so smooth, like butter, and amazing to get a bird's eye view of our city.

Evening commuters at Colman Dock.

Two billion people around the world are celebrating Lunar New Year, and even though I grew up with the traditions, I never knew WHY we do these things. Why do we wear red? Why do we have lion dances? I asked cultural experts in Seattle for this Seattle Times story.

Here's a link: https://www.seattletimes.com/life/culture/what-to-know-about-lunar-new-year-traditions/

Happy new year!

I took a walk through Bell Square, which is all decorated for Chinese New Year. Nearly every store displayed New Year's merch or at least something red or snake-themed in its front window. It's capitalism, I know, but also representation.

A weekend full of Chinese New Year activities! The boys loved getting red envelopes filled with chocolate coins. 

I tried convincing him legal tender is better, but Paul prefers counterfeit currency. That he can eat.

When you look up and there's a guy walking down the street with someone standing on his shoulders!

Mak Fai lion dances through the Chinatown-International District. There was a some kind of football game on, so not a lot of people, but that meant I got a great view and a great parking spot. The neighborhood lion dances are my favorite part of the New Year's celebrations. It's like lion trick or treating, only with firecrackers.

Celebrated Chinese New Year with this feast at Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐 Lincoln Square. You know it's a fancy place when it's super dark inside (seriously, why do restaurant designers do that??). The Kurobuta pork xiao long bao is always a good idea, along with its variations (Kurobuta pork and crab, Kurobuta pork and truffle). This time we also tried the chocolate and mochi xlb, it was like biting into a chocolate fountain. Not pictured: DTF's bubble tea game was on point too, with warm and soft boba.

Lunar New Year celebration at the Seattle Asian Art Museum in Volunteer Park. VP always fills my bucket: art, kids crafts and two lion dances!

What a miracle the rain (mostly) held off! Loved the crowds and energy at the ID's new year celebration. I wrote about the event for The Seattle Times: https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/events/seattles-cid-lunar-new-year-celebration-2025-one-of-its-biggest-yet/

Would YOU drink from this fountain?

(This toilet has never been used as a toilet, according to the sign.) Kids were delighted by the new exhibit at the Gates Foundation visitor center which is all about POO.

Open Wednesday-Saturday, free admission.

It's oyster o'clock! Oyster happy hour at Elliott's Oyster House on the waterfront. $2.50 oysters, 2:30 - 4:30 weekdays. Through Memorial Day.