Weekend Fun: Bonney Lake, Pumpkin Patch, Canadian Friends and Elton John at the Tacoma Dome

Friday, October 14th

We wanted to do something fun with Ben's mom and sister, so we planned on going out to Bonney Lake for a partial weekend to hang out and go to the pumpkin patch.  Trish thought that would be a fun outing and looked forward to it.  We hammered out all the details earlier that week.

That Friday I logged off of work and started getting ready.  I packed up a duffle bag full of clothes--you just never know what kind of weather you're going to get in October, especially the autumn part of the year in the Pacific Northwest.  Of course, whenever we have something planned for after work, Ben has to work late because of dumb people.  I'm convinced that "they" just must know or sense we were busy after work.  Well, something happened and kept Ben at work until 6 p.m., both he and I were irritated.

Doug had the day off and he promised me that he would take our garbage to the dump.  He came home around 5ish and lost a lid to our garbage can on Carpenter Road somewhere.  I was annoyed but we had planned on getting rid of those cans soon since they were broken.  I helped him unload them and put them in the backyard.  Afterwards, I laid down and took a half hour nap while I waited for Ben to get off work so we could go.

I had my alarm set for 6 and as soon as I woke up, Ben called me to let me know he was on his way home.  Ughh, finally.  I dinked around for a bit--fed the kitties, scooped the cat box and made sure the house was picked up.  He finally rolled in, changed his clothes, I got him motivated to get ready to go, threw our stuff into the Edge and headed out.  It was almost 7 p.m. and I was hungry. 

The only good thing about leaving this late on a Friday is that we didn't hit any traffic the whole way to his mom's house.  A little more than halfway there, we called Wendy about possibly making our 2022 ornament I had an idea for.  She and Walter have been doing a side business for about a year now making jewelry and wood crafts and selling them at craft fairs around the state.  She said that's probably something they could figure out.  She told me to get them a mock-up of what we wanted it to look like and they will see what they could do.  We thanked her as we pulled into the Bonney Lake Fred Meyer.

We arrived in Bonney Lake around 8ish and stopped by the Fred Meyer to pick up some s'more's makings for dessert and syrup for the next day's breakfast.  I grabbed some drinks as well.  We paid and got to her house around 8:15ish.  We unloaded the Edge and brought in everything.  She had made chili and cornbread for dinner.  I remembered to bring a bag of our Fritos with us to mix in with it.

While we ate, weird Halloween movies played in the background and yes, Amy has seen these several hundred times over the years and the one that was currently playing, she's probably already seen three times since October started.  We helped Trish clean up after dinner and she went outside and got the fire pit going.  It was mid-October, and the weather was very ideal, especially for hanging out outside.  We gave Amy a hard time about the word "flue" and asked her what it was.  If you don't know what it is, you probably shouldn't be quoting movies that say it.  She got mad at us because she didn't want to admit that she didn't know what it was.  We told her it was okay to ask when she didn't know something.  Ben added that we all ask questions when we don't know the answer pretty frequently.  We were trying to show her that it's okay not to know and to ask.

It actually got cool outside enough to where it forced me to wear pants for the first time since the 4th of July.  I threw on some sweatpants and met Ben and Trish outside.  It took a lot of convincing to get Amy outside to partake.  She did eventually after some heavy persuading.  Ben wanted to play a game while we roasted marshmallows and changed the rules just slightly so instead of normal songs, we did Disney songs instead...a way of including Amy and her expertise on all things Disney.

We had a great time hanging out in the backyard chatting, s'more's making, playing the Disney music game and making fun of each other.  We stayed out until about 11 and then helped Trish put the stuff away.  We went inside and started getting ready for bed.  I don't like going to bed smelling like smoke, so I got in a quick shower and Ben did eventually before he got ready for bed too.  We ended up going to bed around 1ish.

Saturday, October 15th

The next morning, I got up around 9:30ish, got ready and headed upstairs to see if Trish needed help with breakfast.  She gave me some jobs to do while she worked on the waffles.  I turned college football on because Amy wasn't up hogging the TV quite yet and Ben was still downstairs on his phone.

I helped her set the table and I yelled at everyone to get up because breakfast was done.  We had waffles, bacon and eggs and it was delicious.  

The other day, Lauren messaged me to let me know she and her family were going to be in Rainier for the weekend and that I should come by.  I messaged her back if it would be okay to stop by this afternoon when we got home from Bonney Lake, and she eventually wrote me back stating that it was okay to come by at that time.  We finished eating, helped Trish clear the table and we all got ready to go down to the Spooners pumpkin patch in Puyallup.  We haven't been there since 2015.  For some reason Amy decided she was going to wear boots.  We told her that it is too dry and warm outside for there to be mud.  She seemed to think there would be mud and didn't take our word for it.  I wanted to ask her when did it rain?  But I didn't.  She wore the boots anyway.

We piled into Trish's Tucson, and we drove down the hill into the valley.  I sat shotgun.  Once we got down the hill and to the intersection to cross the Valley Highway, it got crazy.  Sooooo many people were out getting their pumpkins.  They were probably there to get their stuff done before all the sports started later on that day.  Plus, it was a very hot day for mid-October--80 degrees!  I can definitely tell you that I've never worn shorts to pick up my pumpkin.  This was the first.  You could still see the smoke haze in the air from all the wildfires.

We found a place to park, grabbed a nearby vacant wheelbarrow and went inside to the craziness.  We searched a couple rows for the type of pumpkin we wanted.  I ended up grabbing two, Ben found one he liked, Amy got two...one for her and one for David and Trish found one she wanted to bring home.

I ended up buying a couple tiny ones and a white pumpkin for Trish at the little farm stand within the patch.  We found one of the many weigh stations, weighed them and paid at the little booth.  We wheelbarrowed them back to the Tucson and drove back up the hill to the house. 

We unloaded the pumpkins, ours went into Ben's Edge and theirs went on the porch.  We went inside and hung out for a little bit and started watching the Mariner game.  We packed up our stuff, changed the sheets and pillowcases downstairs, thanked Trish for having us over (she was going to work to put in a few hours) and we started out towards home.  There was virtually no traffic on the way home which was nice.   

We got home around 3:30, unloaded the Edge, put the pumpkins in the front yard and I got ready to go onto Rainier to visit with Lauren and her family.  Ben hung out with Josh while I was gone. I got to their house around 4:15 and I really couldn't remember the last time I was at their house...it had to have been sometime in 2014.   I wanted Lauren and her mom to meet Ben.  I knocked on the side door and was let in.  They were watching the Mariner game and it was still on.

We caught up for a little while and shared what we've been up to the past few years.  It's been since Lindsay and Justin's wedding in 2018 was the last time we physically saw each other, and the Mariner game was still on.  

Justin and Lindsay arrived with Wes about an hour after I got there.  We all visited, and the Mariner game was still on.  Since it was a nice day, Lauren suggested that we walk around the block, like we used to when we were kids, so avoid disrupting everyone inside watching the game.  While on our walk, talked about various things, reminisced about the times we were kids wading in the river nearby and all the crazy things we did in the yard.  It sure helped that Lauren had a birthday in the summer.  We got back to the house and stood in the yard chatting some more.  Lauren's son came out to tell us that the game is still going on.  Wes started growling so it was time for Lindsay and Justin to take him home.  We all went inside and said our goodbyes.  The game was still going.

I stayed and visited with Donna in the kitchen while she and the kids ate dinner.  The Mariner game continued going.  We didn't think it was ever going to end.  We really needed that first game to keep our momentum going on Tuesday when we lost 8-7.  We had the lead and let them come back.  Then on Thursday we let them take the second game from us 4-2.  The current game being played would keep us alive for another day.  

At the top of the 18th inning the Astros hit a walk off homerun, and we couldn't get it done in the bottom half of the inning.  We lost the game 1-0.  Bummer, but at least we broke a 20-year playoff drought when we beat the Blue Jays last week.  We sat at the dining room table and played rummy and ate Donna's famous ice box blueberry pie before the kids had to go to bed.  I did not win rummy, but Donna savagely beat us all.  I stayed until about 10 p.m. and before I left, I told Lauren to let us know when she would be in Rainier again.  I went home, took a shower and got ready for bed because the next day would be just as busy.

I do regret not getting any photos while I was there.

Sunday, October 16th 

I set my alarm for 9:30 so I would have enough time to eat a small breakfast, grab my spooky wreath making stuff and to make sure I had my glue gun.  I always bring Fritos and cheese dip when I go over to "Paint Day" at Nicole's house.  Both are gluten free, so it makes it easy.  I got ready to go and by about 10:30, I headed over to Tumwater.  I like to be there early so I get the good parking spot in front of her house.  I had her change the start time from 1 to 11 a.m. because I had something to go to that afternoon/evening.  Everyone seemed to be fine with it. 

I chose to do a whimsical candy corn theme instead of the spooky wreaths.  Mom was also supposed to come but she had forgotten about her quilting retreat at Camp Cascades the same weekend so I told her I would make her a wreath as well.  I also made sure I brought my money to pay Nicole for the extra supplies.  

I was pretty much the first one there, so I found a place at her table to set up my stuff and my glue gun.  I bought several things over the course of October from JoAnne's, Michaels and Hobby Lobby.  I got out my snacks and put them on the table and chatted while everyone else arrived.  We pretty much ate snacks, got our work areas set up and we had to figure out how to keep Wes from crying and wanting Lindsay to hold him all the time.  

We got started.  Nicole wrapped our wreaths in either black or orange tule, depending on what kind of decorations you brought with you.  I started with the one I was going to keep.  I wasn't sure how I really wanted it to look so I just kinda figured it out as I went.  I worked on the first one while everyone else worked on theirs.  It was fun to see how creative people go with theirs. 

I got my first one done and started working on the second.  I knew I needed to finish soon because I had another event later on this evening.  I couldn't dilly dally.  I started coming up with a plan for my second one, the one I would give to Mom.  I looked at my supplies and came up with an idea and went with it. 

I'm glad we did wreaths for this craft day since time was not on my side and these seemed to be going quick.  We were all pretty much wrapping up our projects around the time I was supposed to be getting ready to leave. I quickly cleaned up my area and crammed my stuff into my bag.

Before I left, we got some group pictures of our wreaths.  They all turned out fantastic!

I thanked Nicole for hosting, threw my stuff in the Escape and headed home. 

Earlier this year, Mom found out about Elton John's farewell tour (which started in 2018 but was pushed back in 2020 because of Covid) and she wanted to go see him.  It also happened that he would be at the Tacoma Dome on her birthday.  So, she bought tickets for her, me and Rhonda.  They were not cheap, and we paid her back as soon as we could.

Doug didn't have to work the next day so we asked him if he would drive us up and pick us up, so we didn't have to park the Escape.   He agreed to.  I asked Mom when we were going to go, and she said Rhonda wanted to leave at 5.  We both though that was a little late for something this huge.  Mom called her and they chatted about changing the time.  I knew there was going to be traffic, plus it's Tacoma and I-5, which is notorious for traffic and back-ups. 

We talked Rhonda into leaving at 4:30, so she met us at my house at the agreed upon time.  We hopped in the Escape and Doug drove us to Tacoma.  I haven't been to the Tacoma Dome since the 2000 state basketball tournament.  There was really no reason to go back until Sir Elton John graced us with his presence!  

Traffic wasn't bad until we could see the Tacoma Dome from I-5.  I was so glad I wasn't driving.  We were on the off ramp for like a half hour.  We even watched a woman pee from her car with the front door ajar. I guess she couldn't wait!  We creeped up a little bit more each minute.  Then I was like, Doug...just drop us off here and we can walk.  Then you could just turn left up there and head home on South Tacoma Way.  He liked that idea and so did Mom and Rhonda.  We got out and I told him I would text him when to come get us.  He told us to have fun and drove off.

We walked the short distance in the horde of people and made our way to the gate.  One of the gate workers told Rhonda her bag was too big and needed to purchase a locker.  We were disappointed because some of the other people attending the concert had bags bigger than hers and were being let in.  Hmmm. We walked over to the lockers and asked for help because everything was done on the phone and it wasn't super user friendly.  We eventually figured it out and got her stuff secured inside.

We found a line to stand in.  There were so many people!  Was the Tacoma Dome going to be big enough?  Maybe they should have had it at Lumen Field or T-Mobile Park?  Probably.  As we snaked around the area to go through security and scan our tickets, it was not organized very well.  This was way too many people for this huge of an event and venue.  We finally got through everything, got our tickets scanned and found out where we needed to go to get to our seats.  Mom wanted a selfie of us and the stage.

We walked down to the seats, and they weren't a bad view!  We hung out and waited until the concert started.  Good Morning to the Night played in the background while final preparations were being done.  Mom and I were telling Rhonda about the last Elton John concert we went to back in 2008 (while Erika was in college) during Mom's Weekend in Pullman and how they had to have it two nights because tickets sold out fast.  

Elton John finally came out promptly at 8 p.m. and got a standing ovation.  This man was amazing at the piano and another national treasure (even though he is English).  I grew up listening to his music when kids my age in the late 80's/early 90's weren't.  Him and Queen were my favorites.  He addressed everyone before he opened with Bennie and the Jets.  Behind him were music videos and as the concert went on, we learned that he was chronologically showing us his life through each song.  Some of the videos were weird but others were put together well.  He stood up after every song and bowed for us.

His next songs were as followed:

• Philadelphia Freedom
• I Guess That's Why They Call it the Blues
• Border Song (dedicated to Aretha Franklin)
• Tiny Dancer
• Have Mercy on the Criminal
• Rocket Man
• Take Me to the Pilot
• Someone Saved My Life Tonight
• Levon
• Candle in the Wind
• Funeral For a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding
• Burn Down the Mission
• Sad Songs (Say So Much)
• Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word
• Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me
• The Bitch is Back
• I'm Still Standing
• Crocodile Rock
• Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting

Then we had an Encore:

• Cold Heart (the music video was a fun Claymation mixed with animation characters)
• Your Song
• Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

He addressed us once again thanking us for being fans of his throughout his life.  He said it was an amazing journey through music and making people happy.  He said that it is time for him to spend time with his family instead of doing tours. He said his last US concert will be at Dodger Stadium on November 20th.  His final concert will be in Stockholm, Sweden on July 8, 2023.  He wished us health and love, prosperity.  He told us to be kind to each other and bid us farewell.  He bowed, waved while another standing ovation was given.  This man was a true master at his craft. 

As we got ready to leave, Hold Me Closer (featuring Britney Spears) played through the sound system.  I had texted Doug just before the encore.  He was almost in Tacoma according to his last location he shared with me.  I told him we were just leaving the dome and could meet him wherever was easiest.

We walked down the road away from the chaos and I told him where we were.  He did see us, turned around, pulled over, turned on the hazards and we hopped in the Escape.  

We drove down South Tacoma Way until we reached a spot where we could get onto I-5.  We drove through a dark spot, and it noticed that my headlights looked weird...like they weren't on.  It freaked Doug out but I know the Escape and it looked like the lights weren't on.  Hmmm, I am going to have to figure it out the next day.  We just wanted to get home because we all still had to go to work the next day and it was pushing 11:00.  Rhonda and Mom still had to drive home. 

We got back to my house and told everyone it was fun and to see them later.  I told Mom to text me when she got home.  I got in a quick shower; Mom texted me that she got home safely and then Ben and I went to bed.  The weekend was super busy and now it will be slowed down by the long work week.  I am so excited for my upcoming vacation here in a couple weeks. 

Next Adventure:  The Third Worst Day of My Life:  Losing My Grandpa Dennis