Washington 2011

My dad paid for our family to fly up to Washington again this summer. What a blessing! We found this great airline that is definitely not a luxury airline, but flies directly into Bellingham from LAX or Long Beach for CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP! Unfortunately, they only have 2 flights a week, so we had to take the 8pm-11pm flight. I figured the girls would sleep the whole way...WRONG! So we had two tired girls the next day.

That didn't stop us! A little car nap, and we were back in business. There has been so much anticipation about "the cabin" since last year's trip, that I couldn't wait to get up there and see the ALMOST finished project. Unfortunately, my dad hired a contractor that doesn't usually build houses so things have taken a LOT longer than they should have. My dad is a bit too loyal sometimes, so he plans on sticking it out with this contractor. (On a side note, his loyalty is one of my favorite things about him, so I guess it's okay ;) ) I can't believe I didn't take any pictures of the inside, but it's turning out to be quite beautiful! The forest surrounding the cabin is lush, and the favorite activity was definitely the rope swing out in the trees. At the beginning, Aubrey was cautious, but by then end of our stay, we couldn't push her high enough!

We enjoyed a few days in the Birch Bay area and enjoyed all the local fun like a beautiful community park, farmer's markets, and some shopping in beautiful Fairhaven.

Loved our time at the cabin! (I'm already planning a girl trip in about three years. We'll all bring our passports, ditch the kids, stay in the cabin, enjoy the bay, the shopping and then have Lorie show us around Vancouver. Plan? GREAT! Start saving now!)

Soon, we headed east to Moses Lake to visit the rest of the family. We stopped at the fun farm, Smallwood's Harvest, from last year's trip. It's a great pit stop after about 4 hours straight of driving. We had fun feeding all the animals, swinging on their swings and just stretching our legs.

 

Finally, we made it to my grandpa's house where we had fun swimming, visiting Silverbow, and even making a day trip out to Ephrata's little waterpark for a day with Anna's crew. Visits like these make me wish we lived closer. I miss my grandpa, and I know he's lonely. Wish we could hang out with him more often.

Had to include this picture because it was a glimpse into my future. Doesn't she look like a teenager?

We put two slides together to make a double slide. Safe, I know. ;)

Such a great trip!