Up in the Left-Hand Corner

Vacation #3 (but who's counting?) for the summer brought us way out to the upper left-hand corner of the country. Going to Seattle means getting to see our beloved girl-cousins...not that the gender matters so much, but it's a great chance for the boys to learn how the "other half" lives (Taylor Swift, makeovers, fashion design, etc....). Fortunately none of this is a barrier to having a great time together. Our trip started with a quick overnight in Seattle, and then we were off on the road to La Push.

First stop: Mike's four-star BBQ restaurant, complete with wall 'o' license plates. Guess who was happy with that?

Of course we had to make the stop at our favorite raspberry/lavender farm. This year the blueberries were in full force, the blackberries were on the downswing, and the raspberries were plentiful but super-ripe. The farmer warned us that if we picked them they wouldn't last for more than a day or two so we'd have to plan on eating them quickly. Well, yeah.

Yield: 9 pounds of raspberries, 8 pounds of blueberries, scattered blackberries.

When we finally reached La Push, the happiest person of all was probably Dave. Let's remember that he works basically 24/7 inside our house, so going anywhere is a big deal for him, but if he gets to immerse himself entirely in nature it's like unwrapping a totally new person. 

Second happiest was probably Luke. Of course he already love, love, loves being with his cousins. But stepping into the cabin, he just couldn't contain his delight. "I'm the happiest person in the world! This is the best place ever! This is the best DAY ever!" OK, so he's found his happy place. Can we make school more like this?

Having been here last year, the kids knew where to find some of their favorite spots.

Then, naturally, we had to make a fire every single night.

La Push also seems to bring out the snuggliness in everyone, especially Zach.

And Zach got some time to hang with his best buddy Eric:

After Julie and Eric and crew left for their camping trip, we were left to our own devices. Our first morning as a foursome we went for an exhilarating guided kayak trip. I wish you could see the beautiful close-up views of the bald eagles and the gentle curves of the Quillayute river, but we were advised against taking any electronic devices that shouldn't get wet. So without pictures, it's almost like it didn't happen. But I did get this wonderful insight from Luke, my co-paddler, when we got super-close to one bald eagle: "I just want to take this memory and seal it up so that I never, never forget it."

The next day we bundled up in all of our rain gear to head to the rain forest. Was it raining? Nope, not a drop. But the Hall of Mosses showed that it must have rained a heck of a lot at some point:

On our last day heading out of La Push (sob!) we meandered our way up to the hot springs and met Julie and Eric there. The kids had a great time in the 70-something-degree pool, but most of us spent the rest of our time between the 100-degree pool and the 104-degree pool.

For the grand finale, we headed back to Seattle and enjoyed our traditional visit to High Five Pie. Fortunately, when we got there (at a yawn-inducing 9 pm), our favorite giant round table was open, so we were able to have our pie...and eat it too.

Next installment: Portland.

"Pencil" vania

Moving on to the second part of the trip... Joe's house is a magical wonderland of toys (Wii, karaoke machine, homemade marshmallow shooters), plants, dogs, art supplies, cooking implements, and delicious hot fresh pizzas coming out of the oven at all times. It's amazing anyone ever leaves the house.

Somehow, though, we managed to slide out of the house long enough to get to the creek where Joe is a ranger and the kids are wildlife collection experts. With Tupperware containers in hand, we found frogs, salamanders, fish, water bugs, and precious metals.

We did a slow, winding, uphill trek through the stream, and although the water was icy cold, it was a welcome relief in the humid weather. Everyone had some form of water shoes; Lily's were particularly effective because she caught a fish in them (!).

When we finally got to the peak of the stream, we switched over to the main path and we went downhill in about one-third the time that it took to go up. Total yield: Several creatures, which we set free, plus about 5 pounds' worth of rocks, which we had to whittle down before packing our bags.

The next day we headed to Joe's CSA farm to pick up his weekly share and to pick whatever produce we could get our hands on. Were the kids bored with the idea of going to yet another farm? Yeah, right (as they go running at top speed toward the raspberry bushes):

One thing that was amazing at this farm was that they had all-you-can-pick flowers - the most beautiful flowers you've ever seen - for as far as the eye could see.

Loaded up with fruit, veggies, and flowers, we headed back to the house for a massive pizza dinner. You can read more about that whole affair on Jolly Tomato. But you can get just a flavor of it right here:

Mmm. Pizza.

Homegrown

Summer in New Jersey, and the weather is...tolerable? Nice, even? Well, stranger things have happened. We are just recovering from a great week back East and we've got some crazy stories to tell. Like the salamanders and frogs we caught...or the bug-smashing job at my friend's farm...or the yellow jackets that came after the kids with a vengeance when they disrupted the hive.

Day 1: My mom made this beautiful "Welcome to New Jersey" pink potato salad (yes, pink potatoes - Jersey grown). Also: How do you know you're at a South Jersey farm stand? When they trust you to just leave the money.

I had been telling my friends from work about Wawa and they didn't believe me that there was actually a place with that name. So we headed over to Wawa to take a picture, and whaddya know, there was a huge rainbow overhead. As my friend Sue said when I sent her the picture, "It must be a truly magical place." Indeed.

Day 2: My best friend from middle school/high school happened to be in town visiting her dad at the same time. She called and asked if we wanted to stop by her dad's farm. She and I caught up while the kids did some vegetable picking and bug-smashing (killing the pests that were killing the plants). Of course I had a great time, but would you believe how much fun the kids had? For the next two mornings Luke was asking if he could go back and work at the farm. You can bet they'll be putting him to work at Christmas.

Then - joy! - Joe and the cousins came over and we immediately dragged them out to a second farm for some blackberry picking. Listen to Joe on the way down the rural gravelly road to the farm: "This place is ridiculous. Who would want to live back here? Who plows this place when it snows? Where are we, West Virginia?" Now the farm comes into view and it's a gorgeous Victorian house on the waterfront with a huge farm for a backyard. On the way out he's completely changed his tune: "You know, I can attach a snow plow to the front of this car..."

That night Zach and Dave put a penny on the railroad tracks and all of the kids walked down with Dad and Dave to check it out. Then Joe and I headed out to walk Steve...and we were met with three hysterical kids, sobbing all the way back to the house. Turns out someone stepped on a yellow jacket nest and the bees went bananas. Luke got the worst of it with 10 (yes, ten) stings. Lily had a handful of stings keeping her in pain, and Sam suffered from just one sting...on the butt. We doped them all up with Benedryl and Tylenol, put them to bed, and hoped for the best, until....

...Day 3: FunPlex day! Go-karts, laser tag, bumper cars, miniature golf, roller coaster, bumper boats, 3-D movie ride, arcade...Did I miss anything? You have never seen a more crowded place but it sure seemed to make the kids happy. The bee stings were completely forgotten by that point.

And you know what's really great? Watching the cousins all have so much fun together. There's something just incredibly inspiring about watching each of these little people become individuals and develop their own relationships with each other. And the more days we give them together, the stronger that bond becomes. Coming soon: Part II - the Pennsylvania leg of the trip.