Week 5

Warning: A LOT of photos this week.

MONDAY: Scout Camp/Anderson Island

In the wee hours of the morn, I awoke our teen and almost-teen to load up the car and drop them off at the church to go to Scout Camp.  This is Michael's first time and he was a little overloaded by his gear.

Josh didn't seem to have that problem, and I am not sure if that is because he is taller or if he "forgot" to pack some of the items on the list.

Down to two kids, we went on many adventures this week.  It all started by taking the ferry to Anderson Island.  My friend who plans fun adventures has been wanting to do this for a while and the timing was finally right.  

Once on the island, we dragged all of our beach gear uphill to a beach on a lake.  It was a pretty nice little beach and a pretty nice little lake, but at first Ben was not convinced and planned on spending the day wearing his sweatshirt while hanging out in the sun tent.

A combination of bribes and threats took care of that.  Isaac, on the other hand, was enthusiastic from the start.

I even braved the water when Ben wasn't quite fast enough to catch a runaway inner tube.

See, he does have fun after he takes off the sweatshirt.

WEDNESDAY: Tumwater Falls/Tumwater Park/Pioneer Park

We started the day with a quick hike.  Well, it would have been quick if I hadn't stopped the boys over and over again to take pictures.  But they are just so gosh darn cute that I just couldn't help myself....or something like that.

Just down the road is a playground we haven't explored before.  That's the sort of situation we try to remedy as soon as possible.

And because we are in the middle of a heat wave, we also checked out the rumor that a nearby park has water access.  And it does!  It's amazing what putting your feet in cold water can do on a hot day. 

THURSDAY: Frye Cove Park

Another park we hadn't been to.  The website described it as a "hidden gem".  Well, that got the hidden part right.  Otherwise, the beach was just muddy, the playground just ok, and the "magnificent views" of Rainier were not as good as the ones I can get from the elementary school down the street.

FRIDAY: Rainier National Park

To make up for the lame trip on Thursday, we went somewhere guaranteed to be fun and tried out some new trails.  Also, my park pass expires soon.

Grove of the Patriarchs

Silver Falls

Box Canyon of the Cowlitz

Just a quick shot of the star of the show

Trial of the Shadows

It was a long day.  

Actually, it was a long week, but fun.

I have definitely missed my big boys (and not just because Josh helps carry Isaac on hikes these days), but it was nice getting to spend more time with the littles.  With four kids, I often feel like I am being pulled in too many directions all the time and things were calmer for a little while with just two. However, I will be thrilled to have Josh and Michael home tomorrow.  (Probably even more so after they shower.)

Week 4

We didn't get as much hiking in this week, but we did manage to get a few of us sunburned and Amazon Prime Day changed our lives forever.

Monday: Twanoh

By PNW standards, Monday was a scorcher.  Our friends had scored a sweet camping site for Sunday night, so we joined them Monday morning for a hike and some time in the water.  I promise that Isaac was with us as well, but he was comfortably relaxing in the carrier and I wasn't about to mess with that.

The water was refreshing, but definitely not as cold as I usually expect the Sound to be.  We stayed longer than I was expecting and without sunblock, this is the time when a few of us got crispy.

I forget who, but someone with sharp eyes found this sea cucumber so my friend picked it up so everyone could get a close look and touch.

Wednesday: Trek/Sax

After a week of high drama trying to find out if the food for Trek was going to be safe for Josh to eat, we finally got some answers.  So he packed up his gear, put on his plaid shirt, and slipped on his hat for a week of playing pioneer.  Yeah, that's right, for fun Mormon teenagers spend 4 days pulling handcarts and wearing funny looking clothes in the summer.  I told Josh that he has no idea how lucky he is to be doing this in Washington State rather than northern Virginia.  I am sure he will come back with some great stories.

Wednesday is also the day that Michael's sax arrived.  After sticking it out for a year on the clarinet (and doing very well), we finally caved and agreed to let him play the sax this year.  This is a pretty inexpensive student instrument, but still costs far less than renting one.  He is very thrilled to have it here and we are looking forward to the short prep lessons he will be getting next month before school starts.

Friday: Ward Lake

This is when our lives changed.  While I was out biking with Isaac and Josh on Tuesday, I got a text from my friend telling me about a great Amazon Prime Day deal on inflatable kayaks.  I would like to say that we rushed home, but rush might be too strong a word.  We did our best and arrived home to find out that it wasn't a timed or limited deal.  Whew.  When the box arrived Friday morning, Jason had to put it together right away.  Michael and Ben AND Isaac fought to help inflate it.  (I can only imagine that enthusiasm will die quickly.)  After figuring out the quirks and learning that you really should inflate section number 1 before section number 2, it was time to try it out on the water.

So Michael and I headed out to a little known lake access point our friends told us about and had great fun paddling around the lake for a couple of hours.

I think this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

Sunny Saturday

I got a new toy.

Week 3

And we're coming up on the middle of July.  When the kids don't get out of school until the end of June, summer seems to move by so quickly.  And as much as my kids' dream scenario would be to spend the entirety of their vacation playing video games, I continue to cross hikes off of my summer bucket list.

Tuesday: Nisqually

Thursday: Staircase.  Josh, again, shouldered a bit of the weight of carrying Isaac.  On the way back to the car, he and Ben decided to reenact a scene from The Holy Grail, so they picked up some "coconuts" (rocks) and knocked them together while "galloping".  It warms the cockles of my cold, cold heart when my kids chose to reference hilarious movies when they play.

A view of Lake Cushman on the way home.  So beautiful.

Friday: Priest Point.  Michael pointed out that this hike should actually be called "staircase".  Holy incline, Batman!  The extra 35+ lbs I was carrying (Isaac in the carrier) did not help.  At one point, I resorted to chanting "I think I can, I think I can" when the going got particularly steep.  At another point, I put the carrier and tantruming ball of rage down on the path and sat 10 feet away for 30 minutes waiting for him to stop screaming/whining.  Michael's friend may never want to hike with us again.

Three more down!

Week 2

And we're off and running on my hiking bucket list for this summer.

Tuesday: Tolmie
Josh was a champ and carried Isaac for a short part of the hike.  Other than that, he and his friend geeked out for two miles with no electronic devices in sight.  It was strangely impressive.

Wednesday: Watershed

(not seen here)

I bribed the boys with a trip to Trader Joe's afterwards and it totally worked.  

Thursday: Woodard Bay
These three were the blackberry brigade.  Blackberries are not quite in season yet.  They didn't let that stop them.

Friday: Sequalitchew

If we gave Michael enough time, I think he could probably skip a rock all the way to the Olympics on the other side.  However, we had to go home for lunch.

A note about hiking with my kids: they never want to go.  

And then they have a good time and sometimes don't want to come home (see Thursday and Friday). 

And then they complain about it later.  

It all goes better with other kids, so I try to invite other kids or families along.  In any case, I have already warned them that we are going to continue to hike until they love it.  And then we are going to hike some more.  I have this dream that some day one of them will come and tell me how much they appreciated all the time we spent outside during their summer vacations.  And then,if I am not so ancient that all of my tear ducts have dried out, I may cry.