Family Vacation: Part Two - My Favorite Moments in Washington

The second half of our grand adventure was spent in and around Seattle, Washington. My grandpa lives on the Olympic Peninsula, just across the Puget Sound from Seattle. In fact, if you could drive, it would be a really short trip from his house to downtown. Because of the complexities of driving over water, it takes a bit longer. Because the trip between the two takes about an hour and a half, we didn't want to go into the city every day. Most days, we spent our time exploring places closer to his home.

Here are some of my favorite memories of our days in Washington:

Hiking in Olympic National Park with trailblazer Will

Will actually walked by himself for the entire hike back from the waterfall to the car! It was only .2 miles, but he was sure proud of himself!

Port Townsend Park at sunset

It's a quaint little town right on the north eastern tip of the peninsula, and I fell in love. I want one of these porch swings when I'm old. I've always wanted a porch swing, but this one is awesome! You can actually swing it by pushing on a foot board (which got cut off in the picture). So cool!

Will loved the rocks...again.

See, I wasn't kidding. The kid loves rocks. 

There's something magical about the moon rising over the ocean. We would have stayed there until the stars came out too, but our parenting consciences kicked in and we decided Will needed to sleep. 

Oh, but we couldn't leave town without stopping at an ice cream parlor. I did marry a Harr boy after all. So I sent Graham in to pick something quickly that we could eat in the car on the drive home. Boy, does that man know how to deliver! He came back with a slice of chocolate orange ice cream pie. So good. I want to go back to that town just for that pie. 

Pike Place Market

We went there first thing in the morning on a Thursday, so it wasn't super crowded. We ate yummy food, watched some great street performers, and I stared longingly at the gorgeous bouquets of flowers. If we had gone at the end of the day, I totally would have bought some. They were so cheap! A whole bouquet for $5??? Gorgeous.

This picture makes me laugh. This was not the first cute Asian lady to fall in love with Will on our trip. Several times in both Vancouver and Seattle we were asked by a friendly lady if we would allow her to take a picture with Will. After it happened several times, I decided to take a picture myself, too. Traveling with a baby turns many strangers into friends, especially since Will has no concept of personal space or social norms.

Just adorable.

Riding the ferry with Will

 He was completely giddy the moment we took him on deck. See the yellow and black poles in the picture below. He would run to a pole, grab onto it, sit down, get up, run to the next pole, and continue the process down the entire side of the ship! I get a kick out of this boy. It was fun to watch him take in all the new sights and sounds, completely in awe of the experience.

Morning view of the city:

Evening view of the city:

Will trying to jump into Lake Washington

Seriously. The kid would have been in the water in two seconds had Graham not grabbed him. And he threw a tantrum because we wouldn't let him go swimming. And I'm such a good mom that I took pictures instead of helping. :)

Will loved trying to push the stroller everywhere, including into Lake Washington.

Will and Graham playing in a modern art sculpture like it was a playground. 

Outside one of the museums at the Seattle Center (by the Space Needle), Will saw another kid playing with his dad in this sculpture. Of course, he wanted a turn, too. Who are we to deny him?

Playing with Grandpa Wright

It was so great to spend time with my Grandpa while we were in town. His house looks exactly the same as I remember it from twenty years ago (the last time I visited). Perfect. I loved watching Will interact with him. We couldn't ever get Will to sit on his lap, so this is the best we got.

It was a great trip! Will was so exhausted by the time that we got back to Utah that he fell asleep in the car on the way home from the airport (he didn't sleep on the plane). I tried to wake him up when we got home, but even when I sat him up, talked to him, and set him down on the couch, he just flopped over and went to sleep on the couch. Poor boy! 

Resting up for the next adventure.