Fun daytrip with kids! Right next to the Bremerton ferry terminal, there a great park with big fountains and a FREE naval museum.

The naval museum has a cute kids play room on the second floor and friendly elderly volunteers. Not far away, there's a navy ship you can tour too, the USS Turner Joy (admission $22 adults, $15 kids).

Our favorite was the harborside fountain park. There are pretty sculptures, and a series of huge fountains that erupt every now and then. Are they submarines? Orcas? It's open to interpretation.

The last time I was in Bremerton was for a job interview at The Kitsap Sun in 2009, in the post P-I daze. (I did not get the job, which saved me from sleeping under my desk because final edition wrapped up after the last ferry!) Way overdue for a visit.

Nice little walk through the Theler wetlands in Belfair. It's a small reserve with a 3-mile trail with boardwalks over the wetlands. There's a tiny playground at the start, and cool birds to be seen.

Skansie Park is the core of the harbor and super cute to walk around. There's a fun seating area on the rooftop of the clean public restrooms. Free life jackets to borrow if you'd like while you're exploring the dock. I searched and search for the parking meter before I realized parking is FREE in downtown Gig Harbor.

This dog's got the right idea!

Compulsory playground stop. This is Gateway Park, recently renovated with a big zip line and a splash pad. Big covered pavilion and restrooms, too!

A ride on the ferry always feels like a tiny vacation.

Happy birthday! Officially a teenager!

The tulips get shorter every year, and the smiles are tougher and tougher to coax out of my subjects. (I settle for not frowning from the older one.) But I'll take these two to see the Skagit Valley tulips for as long as they'll let me. 

May is Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the month where I cram in as many stories as I can because that's the window when these stories will get picked up.

First up, here are 10 fantastic children's picture books by AAPI authors and illustrators in the Seattle area. Link to Seattle's Child here.

Here's news you can use: the best bubble tea in Seattle! Grueling investigative journalism with my research assistants, who drank a lot of bubble tea for this story.

Link to my story for Seattle's Child here.

Alderbrook Resort & Spa is less than 2 hours from Seattle, but wow, what a world apart. We spent two nights in the cutest little cottage overlooking the fjord. The views are killer, and the restaurant is to die for.

Suggested itinerary: Eat, relax, swim, repeat.

We were thoroughly spoiled by a stay at Alderbrook. April is Oyster Month, and Alderbrook has its own oyster farm and the executive chef is an oyster farmer. We learned so much about oysters and ATE so many oysters.

Here's a link to my story for Seattle's Child.