First day of school for 2nd and 4th grade. After being home on the computer since March of 2020 this is their first time back in the building other than the short stint they had at summer school. Which was a lot more laid back and smaller than real school. They are very excited. Hopefully they remember how to behave in public...
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Rwxg8g2EpmDQhYdt5
Went out for a kayak adventure today to enjoy the last bit of summer before school starts tomorrow. Went from Dockton Park to Raab's Lagoon. It took 2 and a half hours getting there heading into the wind and a half hour to get back. I had to tow Jake back as he was tired. He was just sitting there and wouldn't even help steer. So half the time he was floating sideways as I am struggling to yank him along. Saw lots and lots of Jellyfish. And we did get some floating phone cases so no ones ended up at the bottom of the sound. It was a beautiful day to be on the water.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/xVTKmyAjQ5YMV9mW8
The boys were super excited for the Harry Potter drive in show. Thanks Vashon Theatre and O space for the show. Thanks to Granny's for the costumes we scored today. I just dug through the costume box while we where there and found not one but 2 costumes. We got some butterbeers (cream soda and whipped cream) and Bertie's Botts Every Flavored Beans (jelly beans). We got there early so we set up some wizards chess and had pizza from the rock while we were waiting. Fun night.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZL3aSGX54VwXHpet8
At the ocean we usually make pizza. We brought a bunch of the fixings and had left overs. So today we bought more pizza crusts. And the boys got to make up their own pizza. The both chose very similar pizzas. One Canadian bacon and pineapple. And one Canadian bacon, pepperoni and pineapple. But they had fun putting on their own choices. I made a fresh mozzarella, tomato and basil pizza. Eric had a meat lover with some olives.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/GZw2VhPpg26aX4Np7
After having to skip a year due to COVID, the family made it back to the ocean for our annual vacation. The boys were so excited to go. They talked about it for days and days. By the time we hit the ferry they were asking, "Are we there yet?"
https://photos.app.goo.gl/K38owDyuVxDWjxLK7
When we did finally make it there the first thing they wanted to do was try beach volleyball like they saw on the Olympics. I think they realized it was a little harder than it looked so that didn't last too long. But they had fun trying.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/SrQFDmbt1Bqgn3kt5
Over the vacation the guys decided to spend quite a bit of time golfing...
https://photos.app.goo.gl/8QVw3AzzXm1jUsvA6
So I took the boys to the beach. It wasn't the nicest weather we have had at the ocean, but it certainly wasn't the worst either. While it was 95 degrees and smoky in Seattle, it was 70 degrees and no smoke in Long Beach. There was a bit of a marine layer that hung out most of the time. But at least it was not windy so it was not cold. In fact for almost the whole week we could not get a kite to fly.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/K6bDKH35raNXN4C18
We did spend quite a bit of time boogie boarding. The boys learned how. The waves were not very good because the tide was not a very low tide. But they were a perfect height for the boys and they loved it.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/2ZC7z4UT5x3ynS9L7
And Jake was the chosen person to keep the tradition and get buried this year.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Aj6Hrx27VFqDvkqw6
We also went to see the light house and walked around the paths to check things out.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/wSEWtA4tGERsFRDJ7
We hit the town. We did not go to the arcade as we didn't think that would be the best thing to do in COVID. And the bumper cars and rides were closed down. But we did do the go carts.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/VYnhYdsgjor8Va5o7
We also checked out the kite festival. And fortunately the wind did pick up the day we went so there were kites up and flying. They had someone flying the 3 kites at once which was pretty cool. It is not the original guy who passed away and also different kites. But it was the same kind of string set-up.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/4VdBxWYXeBg14otp6
We got the same house this year and spent a fair amount of time hanging around, putting together puzzles, playing games, watching weird shows Eric turned on, and of course eating a lot of good food.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ABFxs1TcfdEQpbiY6
And on our last night we lucked out. The clouds parted just before sunset, the wind picked up, and we were able to head down to the beach to watch the sunset and fly kites. Jake stood at the waters edge for quite a while seeming to have a conversation with the waves. I think most of us have done so at some point. He seemed to be enjoying himself. A seal even came right up to the first wave break to say hello to him. It was a great way to end the trip. So glad we were able to do it this year.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/dmKAJQtjs89NoC848
