Camping in Westport

Sometimes you just gotta’ get outta’ dodge.  The weekend before I had to report back to school for teacher meetings Adam, Eila, Zoe and I exchanged our condo in Puyallup for a tent near the beach.

Get me out of here!  I want to play in the sand!

Just a few hours drive to the West found us at Twin Harbors State Park near Westport, Washington.  While our last minute plans didn’t land us a camping spot super close to the beach, when the campground was quiet you could still hear the waves crash on the beach.

Having only escaped after Adam got off of work, we arrived at the campground with just enough light to get the tent up and hike to the beach.  It was a gorgeous evening for Eila’s first glimpse of the ocean.  

Eila’s first trip to the ocean!  (I made sure to turn around so she could see the waves, too).

As peaceful as our evening picture appeared - it was just a few short moments later that Eila decided she was NOT a fan of sleeping in a tent and proceeded to wail through most of the night.  The temperature plummeted and we all awoke a bit bleary eyed.

Sure, NOW you’re happy to be in the tent!

All cuddled up...can I have breakfast, now?

As usual, Daddy Adam came to the rescue by braving the cold and getting the camp stove roaring and making hot chocolate and oatmeal while mom huddled inside trying to catch a few more winks.  

I’m a hungry bunny! 

It’s just too cold for fragile little pugs like me!

As the sun rose and the day progressed, it became blissfully warmer.  Following a quick jaunt into Aberdeen to get the Subaru’s flat tire light examined, we packed up the girls and headed to the beach. It was a beautiful afternoon - but the wind was positively blustery.  Our cute little pop up tent didn’t last long in the gale winds, but Zoe was still able to take off and enjoy the dunes.  The beach is one of the rare places she still remembers how to be a frolicking puppy.

Hold on everyone!

The wind wasn’t great for beach bumming, but it’s great for kite flying!

Eventually wandered off the beach and into town to enjoy and DELICIOUS seafood meal.  Don’t tell the doctor, but even Eila got to try clam chowder.  We plan to bring Papa Kay and NomiAnn back in November if the weather permits.

She was a BIG fan!  This gal’s got fine tastes.

 Back at the campsite - we had some time for “hanging around”.

Thank goodness for talented dads who know how to lasso a tree for Jenny Jump-Ups!

 Dinner was chicken brats, baked beans, and fruit.  Once again, Eila ate very well.

Easy to see where Eila gets those chubby cheeks!

In an attempt to stall for time (and night fall) we took an evening stroll back to the windy water to enjoy the Westport Lighthouse.

Don’t lean too far back, Eila! 

The entire state was under a burn ban at all State Parks due to the unusually dry summer conditions.  This meant no campfires and, more importantly, NO MARSHMALLOWS for scores!  Unacceptable on every level to camp without the traditional delicacy - we resorted to gas fired sugar bombs.

Flaming beauty.

 I wish I could report that Eila slept much better night two - but the truth is that she made her opinion of sleeping while camping quite clear.  We packed up camp bright and early the next morning in an attempt to escape before any of our fellow campers could equate the previous night’s bawling with our little quartet.  Don’t worry - both Eila and Zoe caught up on their sleep within minutes of our departure.

Happy trails to us all!

Adam had to turn up the radio to hear over the snores from his passengers.

Great Saturday

A couple of weeks ago we road tripped up to Seattle to run quick errands and enjoy some wonderful company.

We had a delicious lunch at University Village with Aunt Kay and Cousin Claire once we all met at the same Starbucks at the same time (there are, apparently, multiple green umbrellaed caffeine injection sites...not surprising in Seattle).

Found at last - Eila was infatuated with her beautiful cousin.

Eila gets a sweet cuddle from Claire.

Eila preferred to hop around with Kay and show off her shoes. 

While we originally planned to go from lunch to the Great Wheel, the weather wasn’t quite as eager to cooperate, so we decided to crash the brand new townhouse of Nate and Val instead.

Bouncing’s what Eila’s do best!

Roxie, their adorably hyper Boston Terrier (and good friend to our Zoe) was eager to show us around the awesome new flat.  With three stories to explore and lots of open space, Roxie is in heaven.  She really thought she should be the one to give Eila the tour, but Val insisted that our babe wasn’t quite ready for the RoxieRide and toted her around personally.

We adore visiting with all our friends from “the North” and hope to return the favor to welcome you down in our neck of the woods soon!

Managing Mischief

If you haven’t seen Eila in a while, you may be under the false impression that our sweet little cherub remains stationary when you put her down.  Once Eila finally got her knees under her it sure didn’t take long for her to begin taking off on her own adventures.  Here are a few of her antics from early August:

It all started with a pull up.  I’ll never forget the first time I set Eila down in the family room and found her when she started to panic because she had pulled herself up on the stool and didn’t know what to do next.

Now what?!?

She wasn’t too traumatized, though, because a few minutes later I found her doing this.

The next day I celebrated another anniversary of turning 21 myself.  Eila and I enjoyed a simply lovely day doing barely anything noteworthy at all.  We did take time, however, to enjoy our favorite guard hedgehog in the hallway given to us by our favorite Wheeler clan.

I felt a definite theme this year in my birthday collections.

We never caught it on camera, but Eila certainly enjoyed teething on HedgDog’s nose a bit.

A big tent-like package arrived the next day from NomiAnn and Papa Kay.  While Eila adores the sweet shade relief it provides on sunny days at the park and beach, she REALLY liked the bubble wrap in which the shade shelter came packaged.

Have you heard that bubble wrap is an endangered species?  Apparently the company that makes the bubbly wonderfulness has revamped their technology so that we will no longer get to enjoy the “pop.”  I’m glad I have at least one photo to show Eila in decades to come that she did get to “pop” once in her life.

I promise we do actually have real toys for her to amuse herself with! Here she is playing with her exersaucer...in perhaps a slightly less conventional way.

Peek-a-boo!

Of course, when she’s up to real mischief, sometimes Eila feels the need to eat her own words.

Can I buy a vowel?

Sometimes the mayhem becomes too much for Eila’s momma and she really needs a nap.  That’s when it becomes Daddy Daughter Date Day.

And the game of peek-a-boo continues...

Procrastination Post

School is starting in less than a week and my to do list has become so long I can barely see straight - so logically I am sitting down this evening to put up some pictures.  While it hasn’t been a particularly exciting month, I can say with near certainty that it has been my happiest August ever.  Why, you ask?  Simply because I spent it largely around home with little Miss Eila and Zoe.  Adam got to enjoy the wonders of mass transit without a daycare drop and we just plain had good family time every day.  A few highlights to keep me from my school work:

Shopping!  It’s a good thing I work for 10 months of the year, because I tend to pass the lazy days of summer by keeping the credit card hot.  This shopping cart liner, for example, was a fun thrift store find.

How could I resist shopping with such a cute companion?

The first weekend of August brings a wonderful tradition to the Wilhoit home: Arts Fest in Anacortes.  Oma and Opa were once again kind enough to open their beautiful home to us so we could enjoy the festivities.  While the art was fun and beautiful, I think our favorite part of the trip was just hanging around the house.  It didn’t hurt that it was far cooler inside than out in the sun.

These arches may not be golden, but their occupant is worth more than her weight in gold or french fries!

The wiser Wilhoits ALWAYS treat us to the most delicious food when we escape to their home.  August was no exception as they made us these mouth watering pastry morsels they learned to make while on their most recent European cruise.  The Caneles de Bordeaux probably wouldn’t make a health food list, but they made everyone plenty happy.

Now THAT’S what I call a breakfast!

Eila downed as many Caneles as we’d give her to stuff into her mouth.  Yum!  

Can I haz more Caneles, please?