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When our first child was born, my wife and I realized we were way overdue in putting together an estate plan and drawing up our wills. We asked around among local friends who had recently made a...
When our first child was born, my wife and I realized we were way overdue in putting together an estate plan and drawing up our wills. We asked around among local friends who had recently made a similar decision, and found a strong consensus opinion that Jim Flaggert of Davis Wright Tremaine's Seattle office was the guy to talk to.
When we set up an appointment, Jim sent us a package of materials to help us prepare for the meeting. This isn't a required step, but completing the materials thoughtfully means Jim doesn't have to charge you while he uncovers this basic information.
When we went in for our consultation, we found Jim to be both extremely knowledgeable and easy to talk to about what can be difficult topics - family, money, death and fairness among them. Rather than look for complex - and therefore more expensive - approaches, Jim counseled us to keep things as simple as our goals will allow - reducing not only our legal costs, but the difficulty of resolving our estate when the time comes.
As a skilled attorney in a top-tier local firm, Jim's services aren't cheap, but both I and my wife felt that his expertise, thoughtfulness and sensitivity to client needs were well worth the price.
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The Pocock Rowing Center -- named in honor of local boatbuilder George Pocock -- is the undisputed hub of Seattle's community rowing culture. The boathouse was funded by local donors and sits on a...
The Pocock Rowing Center -- named in honor of local boatbuilder George Pocock -- is the undisputed hub of Seattle's community rowing culture. The boathouse was funded by local donors and sits on a prime spot at the south end of University Bridge, just west of Eastlake.
The center is the home of several local rowing teams, but also welcomes individual members on a monthly subscription basis. Once you've been checked out for swimming and basic boat handling skills, you'll have access to a wide range of recent vintage shells, from singles and other small boats all the way up to racing eights.
In addition, the center also includes a well-outfitted training room, with all the weight machines, free weights and (best of all) C2 ergs you need to keep your speed up.
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Bob Picot is a family-owned marine upholstery firm located on Boat Street in the University District. They specialize in weather-resistant fabric designs, including dodgers, boat covers and...
Bob Picot is a family-owned marine upholstery firm located on Boat Street in the University District. They specialize in weather-resistant fabric designs, including dodgers, boat covers and upholstery (they also make the tubular metal frames for dodgers, so if you need a full replacement they can do the whole thing.)
They've been in the same location forever, and have been in business since 1948, so they must do a pretty good job (they may well deserve a stronger rating than the 3 stars I assigned, but I haven't worked with them myself).
If you use them and like them, please write your own review so I know how it turned out.
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I've worked with Kristie Burrill on a number of personal and household sewing projects, and she's always done a great job, on time and for a very fair price. Her main expertise is in clothing design...
I've worked with Kristie Burrill on a number of personal and household sewing projects, and she's always done a great job, on time and for a very fair price. Her main expertise is in clothing design and alterations, but she can also create or modify drapes and window coverings in a wide variety of fabrics and styles.
Her shop is easy to miss - it's a corner location in the bottom floor of an apartment building on 10th Avenue, just up the hill from Roanaoke Park. If you're coming from the Eastside, take the Roanoke exit, turn right on Roanoke, and right again on 10th - she's located at the light, on the left-hand side.
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So my wife and I just had our first baby (a healthy, hungry boy). And while we knew we had a lot to learn about the basics -- keeping him fed, rested and diapered while getting enough sleep to...
So my wife and I just had our first baby (a healthy, hungry boy). And while we knew we had a lot to learn about the basics -- keeping him fed, rested and diapered while getting enough sleep to function -- we didn't realize how soon we'd face another new-parent challenge: finding quality, car-seat-friendly restaurants in our neighborhood.
Our search has only begun (and I'm open to suggestions if you have any to share), but the Elysian Tangletown (near Greenlake) is an early winner.
Baby or no baby, smoke free bars are (surprisingly) not that easy to come by in Seattle. Add to that a nice selection of locally-brewed beer, a solid and well-executed "bar food" menu (think burgers, salads, fish & chips, etc.), and an easygoing, neighborhood feel, and Tangletown stands out as a worthy destination for anyone. But Tangletown also offers the pefect combination of well-spaced tables, a steady hum of conversation and understanding waitstaff who won't even raise an eyebrow when your little bug is raising a fuss. If you need to get out of the house and want to take your newborn with you, Tangletown is a great pick.
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As a life-long cyclist, I love how bike-friendly Seattle is. Not only are there great trails and bike paths all over the place (hooray for the recent East Lake Sammamish trail victory) -- there are...
As a life-long cyclist, I love how bike-friendly Seattle is. Not only are there great trails and bike paths all over the place (hooray for the recent East Lake Sammamish trail victory) -- there are also excellent resources for cyclists on every kind of budget.
One of my favorite local stops is Recycled Cycles, near the UW Medical Center on Boat Street. These guys sell both used and new bikes and accessories, with a strong focus on bicycle commuters. As a used-bike specialist, their stock varies considerably, but they're always one of my first stops when I'm looking for anything from a new bike to parts and accessories (like second-hand Burley trailers).
If they don't have want you need on hand, they're very plugged in to the local cycling community, and can probably help put you in touch with someone who's selling what you're after.
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Whether you're building software or houses, there are three variables you care about -- time, cost and quality -- and you generally can't get what you want in one area without sacrificing in...
Whether you're building software or houses, there are three variables you care about -- time, cost and quality -- and you generally can't get what you want in one area without sacrificing in another.
When my wife and I went looking for a general contractor to remodel our basement, we knew we didn't want to spend a ton of money, but we also knew we wanted it to be a high-quality job. And with a new baby on the way and in-laws who live 5+ hours away, we wanted it done fast so we could offer a comfortable place for our out-of-town visitors to settle in for a while.
Enter Tomas Alva. Tomas came highly recommended by some good friends in the neighborhood (both Judy's Book members, I should add). He had just finished a major home remodel for them under similar conditions (their baby arrived in January). The only caveat they offered was that Tomas was -- to put it politely -- "time-challenged". That is, he delivers great, high-quality work for a very fair price, but he does so on a slightly unpredictable schedule.
We knew (a) that we cared more about quality and cost than time, and (b) that we couldn't have all three at once. So we took our friends' advice and hired Tomas for our project.
Now it's true that we're a few weeks behind where Tomas thought we'd be. And our baby has arrived with dust still flying in the basement. But because we knew that going in, we couldn't be happier with how things are turning out.
Tomas and his crew of freelancers are doing excellent work, finding great deals on materials (which they're passing on to us), and coming up with creative solutions that go above and beyond what we asked for. Not only that, but Tomas and all his crew are incredibly nice, thoughtful people -- the kind of folks you'd want as neighbors, not just hired hands.
So the next time you need a general contractor for a small-to-medium home remodel, I strongly suggest you give Tomas a call. As long as you know -- and accept -- that your schedule is likely to slip, I guarantee you'll be delighted by his work and prices.
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Every expecting couple has a different idea about the ideal conditions for childbirth -- this review is probably the best fit for those who've had (or expect to have a risk of) medical complications...
Every expecting couple has a different idea about the ideal conditions for childbirth -- this review is probably the best fit for those who've had (or expect to have a risk of) medical complications with childbirth -- NOT the "natural" or home-birth-oriented.
That caveat aside, I can't say enough about the quality of service my wife and I have received at Swedish Medical Center (the Childbirth Services division, on the First Hill campus). With their considerable help, we delivered a healthy baby boy (our first) last Friday, and were released to go home just yesterday.
Our choice of Swedish began well before last Friday, with a referral to their Perinatal Medicine Dvision. This is a 7-doctor OB/GYN practice that specializes in higher-risk pregnancies. For the past 9 months, we've received absolutely stellar care from this practice. All the doctors we've seen in this practice are close to our ideal: top-tier professionals, completely at ease with both the scientific and the human sides of pregnancy and delivery, and warm but no-nonsense communicators.
Much of our satisfaction with Swedish is due to the incedible support and preparation they offer to expecting parents in the months and weeks before labor begins. In addition to our regular doctor visits, we were encouraged to participate in a series of well-run classes on everything from labor and delivery to breastfeeding and infant care. An equally-well-run patient orientation program made sure we knew where to go when labor began, and that we were pre-registered and able to walk right in to triage and delivery without a delay.
That last part turned out to be critical for us, as my wife's labor was a fast one. We arrived at the hospital at 7pm and -- after a bit of a scramble to rally our team of doctors and nurses -- delivered a healthy baby boy at 9:22pm. For those who've been through the experience, you can imagine what kinds of complications can crop up in such a fast delivery, and we were very happy to be in a medical facility (as opposed to a home birthing situation) that could take whatever action was needed to protect the health of both baby and mother.
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Portland's Pearl District is a shining example of the re-urbanization trend in leading American cities. Over the past 10 years, this industrial neighborhood has attracted a remarkable diversity of...
Portland's Pearl District is a shining example of the re-urbanization trend in leading American cities. Over the past 10 years, this industrial neighborhood has attracted a remarkable diversity of stylish shops, high-end restaurants and loft-style residential buildings.
Bluehour was among the earliest outposts of style and good eating in the Pearl, and has retained its position through consistently great food coupled with a high-style modernist atmosphere, and a correspondingly fabulous local crowd.
The menu leans Mediterranean, but with a ligh "international" touch. A fresh menu is printed daily, but classics like gnocchi with black truffle and seared scallops with bacon are reliable favorites. A full bar is also available, making Bluehour a welcome stop for a late evening drink. And if you stay out late, a recently-added brunch menu might help take the edge off.
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Emmanuel's is well-known around Seatle as the go-to firm for careful cleaning of antique and oriental carpets, but they're also a great resource for more prosaic household cleaning needs.
It...
Emmanuel's is well-known around Seatle as the go-to firm for careful cleaning of antique and oriental carpets, but they're also a great resource for more prosaic household cleaning needs.
It doesn't have to be a priceless heirloom (or even a rug, for that matter) for Emmanuel's to deliver superior cleaning services at a fair price. As their name implies, they clean upholstery -- slipcovers, drapes, etc. -- as well as oversized cotton and chenille rugs that are too big to fit in your home washing machine.
If it's big, dirty and made of fabric, take it to Emmanuel's
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