Family Trip Continued...

We spent the next day just hanging around town and at the house.  The kids fished some more and that night we ate some more s'mores, which ended up being a nightly tradition, which was totally fine with me! 

Then on Wednesday we grabbed some lunch at the old Orcas Hotel and then hopped aboard the Eclipse charter boat to find us some whales!  I wasn't so sure about going.  Being on a boat for four hours with two kids didn't sounds too fun to me, not to mention my apprehension of boats to begin with, but Kyle talked me into it and I'm glad he did.  The kids loved it, especially Katie.  The Whale Museum on Friday Harbor has an Adopt-A-Whale program Katie is very interested in.  I enjoyed seeing her enthusiasm that day with the whales and her pure excitement over it.  Kayden had a fun time too, but I think was a little young to fully understand the uniqueness in our adventure!

The crew was very good with the kids, they have kid friendly binoculars, coloring activities, crayons and books to keep the kids busy.  And we really lucked out with the weather, so Katie stayed out on the bow of the boat with Kyle, while I stuck around with Kayden in the cabin for the most part.  He really was a trooper on the boat.

We saw 7-10 different whales and were able to watch them for about 20-25 minutes before we headed back to town.  We also saw some seal and different native birds.  It was a ton of fun!

Family Trip

We took a much needed break from unpacking and stressing over what furniture should go where and what we should keep and what should go, it was all necessary thinking and planning, but also, necessary to get away from several days to escape the stress. 

So, Kyle took a week off work and we headed to Orcas Island.  Kyle found a pretty awesome house that we ultimately rented, and this pretty awesome house had a pretty awesome trout pond in the front yard with fishing poles on the porch and power bait in the coat closet/pantry.  Kayden was in heaven. 

Not only did this awesome house have a trout pond, it also had a hammock, an enclosed fire pit with s'more ingredients included, a play set, and a small tractor tricycle.  This house had it all, and we all loved it.

We were lucky enough to have Katie come with us.  She was able to miss school for the week and join us.  It was great to have her, I just love how her and Kayden get along so well. 

And in order to get to Orcas Island you have to a ferry.  So, Kate and I (we joined the boys the day after they arrived on Orcas Island) got to the ferry terminal with a half hour to spare.  We got the last guaranteed spot!  Lucky us.  With the thirty minutes we had to goof off, I captured some fun pictures of Kate!

Here is the ferry we boarded.

 





So, we arrived on the island around 8:00 pm, so we headed back to the house.  Kayden was too excited to go to bed, so he showed Katie the fishing pond. The kids fished, while the adults watched and prepped s'mores.

 

The kids took the boat out for a little bit.  It's a small boat.





 

Originally I asked Kayden to try and mimic the tiki's face, but he wouldn't...so Katie was up to the challenge and nailed it!

 

And I will conclude this blog post with the pictures below and post more of our trip another day. 





 

Happy Father's Day

Today is Fathers Day, and I couldn't be happier to celebrate the dads in our lives.  In the past, we have had a poker party for the dads along with a brunch or lunch, but over the last few years we have been in different places or at different points and the poker parties have taken a hiatus.  Eventually, we hope to get back on the annual Father's Day Poker Party, but until then, this blog post will have to do.

Here is to all the dads out there, and more specifically the ones in our lives, Happy Father's Day, we love ya.

Dash Point State Park

Kyle, Kayden and I went on a spur-of-the-moment trip to the beach yesterday to enjoy some sunshine!  We picked up some lunch and headed to the beach with some necessary sand toys.  Invited some friends and called it a party!

The beach was pretty crowded, but we managed to get a picnic table and some prime beach real estate!  The kids had a grand ol' time and Emily found a huge clam, which the kids loved playing with.  They threw it back in the water before we left. 

These two are too much sometimes.  They really do love each other and have a great time together!  Emily is already planning her wedding, to which Kayden plays the groom!