Could someone please give me their honest opinion about moving to Washington State?

I realize that the question that I asked is a very broad question. However, I have a dilemma. I currently live in Central New York. I'm considering moving with my husband and 2 young children to Washington State. I lived there in the past when I was approximately 18 years old for 1 year. However, at that particular time in my life I didn't have my driver's license and I was very homesick. So, I moved back to New York State. To make a long story short, from what I can remember Washington State is beautiful. Plus, there seemed to be a lot more job opportunities there than there is here. So, my questions are how high is the cost of living in Washington State? I don't want to live in Seattle but somewhere outside of Seattle such as Kirkland, or Bellevue, or Bothell for example. I heard that rent would probably cost me at least $1,000 per month. Is this true? Also, do you think that Washington State would be a nice place to raise a family? Finally, how is the weather? I don't remember Washington State having bad weather but all I ever hear about is how rainy and cloudy it is there.