Trip to Washington

We had such a blast on our family vacation this year. We were able to go for 9 days to Washington state to visit lots of family... We left Friday night when Jared got off work and drove through the night. I am a horrible night driver. I will fall asleep at the wheel within 15 minutes of driving, no matter how much sleep I have had. ( I only know because of our last attempt to drive thorough the night somewhere). So Jared had to drive the entire way. I really feel bad that I can't help but for the safety of our family we decided that I wouldn't even try this time.
We stopped at a rest stop just before bedtime to let the kids run I tried to take some pictures but realized my battery was dead and I left the extra battery and the charger at home. I was so bummed... Luckily Grandpa Wright had a charger that worked with my battery so I was back in business. (Sorry, no pictures until Monday)

Saturday morning we got to Scott and Marianne's around 8:00 AM. They made us an awesome waffle breakfast and sent Jared and I to bed. They took the kids to the park and let us catch up on a little sleep. After we woke up Marianne and I went and did a little shopping, by the time we got home I was so sick I could barely stand up without getting really dizzy. I had the chills and had to go and lay back down. Jared, Scott, and Marianne took the kids to a lake and let the kids play around, I forgot their swimsuits (who goes on vacation without swimsuits?) so they just played around the lake and had a blast. By the time they got home I was feeling a lot better.

The next day (Sunday) we headed to Grandma and Grandpa Dickson/ Wright's. Little did we know what they had in store for us...we had a week full of fun things to do!

As soon as we got there Lily and Mallory wanted to go and see the chickens and the cows. There are both pretty timid around animals so they weren't so sure they liked the idea of Grandpa letting the chickens out of the coop to run around. Grandma and Grandpa assured them that the chickens were more afraid of them they were of the chickens. They seemed a little more comfortable around them until the next day.... I had just gotten back from the grocery store when I heard Mallory high pitched scream of horror, she was running towards me with a chicken hot on her trail, she was scared to death. I know it's horrible, but I was laughing so hard I was crying. She starting yelling at me "I thought you said they wouldn't chase me." Then she stomped off and said "I am going in the house." You could bet that if the chickens were out of the coop Mallory was inside from that point on.

Monday we went on a hike to the ice caves in the mountains past Verlot. It was so much fun, the girls loved the hike (about 2 miles round trip) and the ice caves were so fun to see. Lewis was in a backpack we borrowed for Jared's cousin, and loved every second of it. He was so tired he fell asleep but woke up with the biggest grin on his face.

Tuesday we went to a little beach right across from Downtown Seattle. Jared's cousin Janice and her husband Matt went scuba diving for sea creatures. They brought them up and put them in a large tub so we could see them up close and touch them, if we wanted. Thanks Janice and Matt for taking time to do that for us!!! Thanks Grandma for making sure there were seashells there for the girls to find, definitely one of the highlights.

Wednesday we took a ferry to the San Juan islands. The girls absolutely loved being on the ferry, out on the deck by the water.

Thursday we went to Darrington which is a logging town in WA. If Jared would have had the opportunity he would have loved to go to WA and log for a summer so he loved this. Then we went on the Deception Pass. It was so beautiful. Then we went to fort Casey. The girls thought it was named after me. It was an old military fort built pre WWI. It was fun for the girls to run and play in. They were even able to hide with Grandma and scare us. Grandma took the girls out to a field right in front of the fort and they went on a "bear hunt." We saw lots of bunnies and deer. DarringtonDeception Pass Fort Casey

Sadly, Friday it was time to leave Grandma and Grandpa. We had such a fun week that went by all too quickly. Grandma had a new surprise for the girls every day and they loved going to watch cartoons with Grandma and Grandpa every morning when they woke up and every night before they went to bed. Thank you for helping us create such fun memories! Friday night and Saturday we spent with Scott and Marianne again. Friday night Marianne and I went to the mall so I could go to H&M, Marianne's favorite store in Seattle, I had to see what it was all about. Cute, cute stuff. Can I just say the shopping in WA in crazy, huge malls everywhere. It may be better for our budget that we live in UT. Thanks Marianne for showing me the shopping scene.

Saturday we went to Pikes Market. It was so fun to go downtown Seattle, it is definitely a different world than what I live in but so fun to visit. The flowers they had for sale at the market are amazing! $10 for the biggest most beautiful bouquet I have ever seen. After the market we went to a pier by the aquarium and had lunch at a little sandwich shop. There was a band playing so the kids ate their lunch and danced to the music. What a fun afternoon and the weather could not have been more perfect. On the way back to Scott's we stopped at my Uncle Dave's and Aunt Diane's house for a short but sweet visit and the girls even walked away with a little bear as a treasure.

Early Sunday morning it was time for the vacation to end. Even after 9 days we were not quite ready for it to end. We had such a great time and were ready for more. But we had to get back to reality. Thanks to everyone who made our vacation the best!