Visting Good Friends!

At the Market... take 1!

At the Market... take 2!

Argh... the Pirate water boat! Thanks Elena, for letting Carts borrow one of your hats... he fit right in with the gals!

A few weekends ago we drove south to Camas, WA to visit my dear old friend, Allison and her beautiful family, Tony, Elena and on the way Mateo. We got there Saturday around noon, where we were greeted with a wonderful BBQ lunch, hugs, laughter and catching up. The kiddos (Q, C and Elena, who is almost TWO!) went "down" for a nap... Q&C decided to chat the whole time during nap time and Carter decided to crawl out of his pack-n-play... hop into his Sissy's pack-n-play and then into Mateo's soon to be crib. Needless to say, he is now is a different bed at home (that blog to come later). :) After nap time, the kiddos got up and played outside, as Tony worked hard during their nap to build a pirate water table... nice work Tony! We then just hung out and enjoyed the rest of our evening. The next day we were going to be heading home and decided, since it was a nice day, to head to the Vancouver Sunday Market. It was awesome! We bought our goods and then made a picnic while listening to live music, dancing and running around. Til our next visit Arellanos! We love you and thank you for your (always) amazing hospitality and can't wait to meet Mateo!!! See you in December!!!

Carter's 1st Official Haircut

This past weekend we went to visit G & G Gannon in EW. On our adventure to Moses Lake, I decided that it was time that Carts got his haircut (officially). I say officially because I have been giving him his "haircuts" thus far... I couldn't do it anymore as his hair was getting out of control. So we came across a barber shop which took kids and a wonderful gal named, Ida had an available chair and wa-la... Carter turned into a FIVE year old. I swear, right before our eyes! The pic's tell it all. Way to go Carts... you are our little trooper and WE LOVE YOU!

Weekened Fun!

Recently, Glamma & Papa Gannon visited for a week and we were able to hang out as a family and fun some fun... we hit up the Zoo, Red Mill, walks, lots of time playing in the back yard finding new bugs, Quinn got her first Ballerina Barbie Doll, while Carter some groovy trucks and cars (thanks Glamm and Papa!!!), family dinners and just spending time together. We look forward to heading over to the Ranch in a few weeks to spend time with G&P at their place.

Easter and Spring time

Quinn girl

Carter was so excited, as he had just discovered a worm... he has a new favorite!

Hanging out in the backyard.

Carter with his serious egg hunting face...

Ms. Quinn in egg hunting mode...

Aunt Nancy, Q&C on the search...

This year we spent Easter at my parent's house... egg hunt, followed by a traditional ham dinner and some family time.

Fridays

I am now back at my old firm in Edmonds and am fortunate to be able to to work 4/10's with Fridays off. So, being that yesterday was my first Friday off, the kiddos and I had a fun day! We met our friends Jana and baby Jack for a walk and coffee, had a dance party, made lunch together, read A LOT of books and ran some errands.

Family trip!

Let the trip begin...
Driving through Mount Vernon...

More Mount Vernon.

Quinn and her 'baby Jane'.

Tired boy on the road.

On the big ferry! They had a great little 'kid zone' to hang out in.

Beautiful ferry ride.

Black Rock Resort, Ucluelet, B.C.

A view looking out one of the hallways.

View looking back at part of the resort.

View from our deck.

Two bugs and a soaking tub... they thought it was so cool.

Jump, jump and jump...

Getting ready to watch the sunset.

Dinner time! Our room had a kitchen, so it was perfect for the long weekend.

Peek a boo! This was the sliding window from the bedroom to the bathroom, which the kids loved.

The shower was awesome, the twins thought so too!

Getting ready to head to the beach!

Family portrait on Long Beach in Ucluelet, B.C. - Pacific Rim National Reserve.

There was small and HUGE driftwood all over the beach.

Quinn all bundled up!

There was an incredible trail right off of our resort and we went for a stroll and came upon this little inlet as the tide was out.

Checking out some sea life.

Ya gotta have a walking stick!
Shane all bundled up, stick in hand and coffee in other hand.

Carter having a bit of a freak out... hard to tell int the picture, but he had so much sand all over him.


Last weekend we hit the road and headed north to Ucluelet, BC. Shane has been fishing up there a few times and swore to me that "one day, we are going to take our family up there when we have kids"... and well, we did. It was amazing, although cold, rainy, snowy and windy still absolutely incredible.

We left on a Friday morning... hit the road, dropped El off at the Bakker's (thank you, H&N!), busted up to the border, then Delta, BC and then Tsawwassen, BC to catch our 2 hour ferry ride to Nanaimo, BC (aka Vancouver Island). We then continued our journey to head through 2 summit passes (Port Alberni Summit and Sutton Summit) to finally arrive in beautiful Ucluelet. We left at 7 am in the morning and walked into our resort room at 4:30... long trip, but super fun and the twins were incredible. Carter couldn't stop saying, "Mommy, Daddy, we on a twip!!?".

We did everything from checking out the local beaches where we saw surfers, yes I said surfers (which hosts the best and most sought after surf in all of Canada... rain or shine), animal tracks (likely cougar or wolves, as they have both had a recent growth in population, so the "alert" signs said everywhere), going on nature walks, searching for eagles (they are everywhere up there... and those of you who know me, know that I LOVE eagles), hanging in our room being silly and enjoying some local fish-n-chip at the local dives.

It was such a great family trip and I can't wait to go back someday... next time we'll try the summer season.

Gamma Wendy & Papa Tom Visit

Quinn having her first dinner party...

Q&C upside down!

Play date with CC!!! "I'm a pretty pony..."

Uncle Niels relaxing on his new furniture!

Papa Tom and his little girl.

Papa Tom and his guy.

CC sporting a serious hair do!

We had a fun packed weekend when Gamma Wendy & Papa Tom visited... we went out for a Mexican feast, got pedi's (Gamma, Mom... Quinn was all for the ride), had a fun dinner date with the Bakker's at their new house, Superbowl shin dig and dinner with Aunt Nanny and some good Gannon time. Wow, I think all we did was eat! I don't have as many pic's as I would like to share from the entire weekend, but there are some.

We miss them already and look forward to their next visit!