Ocean Park, Washington trip July 28-31, 2011

At the end of July the kids and went to my mom's house up in Washington for a visit while Darin was away at a retreat.  We had perfect weather the entire time we were there and had a lot of fun.  We were there long enough that I actually got to relax.  Usually the trips are shorter and I feel like I am packing up everything just after I unpacked it.

My mom put up a fence around her garden and wanted all the grandkids to paint it for her.  Here are the results.

I used Alesha's hands to make flowers.  She was NOT impressed by having paint on her hand.  It was a much more difficult process than I thought.

The end result.  We had to use Martin, Luke and my hand to make it complete.  Alesha, refused to put her hand in the paint anymore.  She also played with this sponge and pitcher for about an hour.

One of the days we headed to Cape Disappointment.  It is a beautiful cove with lots of drift wood and  places to play in the water and sand.

 After some searching the boys found this little secluded beach area.  It was the perfect place to play for several hours away from the wind and the crowds.

Alesha with my mom.  Yes, my mom has a broken foot, but that didn't stop her from going to the beach with the grandkids.

The boys had a blast climbing on all the HUGE rocks. 

Luke made a teeter-totter for Alesha

Our three blessings

Martin and Alesha pretending to be in a boat.

 Smores are always a must when we go to grandma and grandpa's house.

 Saturday, we went to the Saturday Market in Ilwaaco.  It is a really fun market with lots of interesting things to look at.

Alesha, wanted to walk, but decided her baby needed to be pushed in the stroller.

This old man was playing and singing as we walked along. Alesha was fascinated by him and stopped to gaze at him as he played.  She danced a little bit and really enjoyed it.

All of us at the end of our trip.  We were blessed by a sweet man named, Cliff, who bought my boys bags of kettle corn.  He said that he wanted to do a good deed.  So sweet.  Our boys were thrilled and very thankful for his generosity.

 Later that day we headed for the annual trip to the local arcade.  Here we are playing Deal or No Deal.

After we left the arcade we saw a horse drawn carriage going down the street.  I thought this would be so fun.  We found the boarding area and before we knew it we were ready for our ride through town.  Just before we left the driver looks back and asks my boys if they would like to ride up front with him and help him lead the horses.  Both boys jumped up with excitement and took their places behind the reins.

The little bear Alesha is holding was given to her by a man at the arcade.  He cashed in his tickets, bought the bear, and turned around and gave it Alesha.  What a nice guy.

My boys behind the reins.

This was taken after the ride was over.  The man with the  hat let each of the boys take the reins during the trip through town.  It was really cool and he talked to them the entire time about the horses and how to get the horse to do what you want them to do.  It was a wonderful experience!

 On the last day before we left for home, I decided to add some additional artwork to the fence.  Alesha's flower garden looked too lonely :-)

Me with my little helper.  Here is Luke's completed artwork.

As I was painting I turned around and found Alesha painting her toenails  with soap using a paintbrush. What a creative little girl.

Almost completed.  Ran out of time.  I think I will put a tree or bushes to the left of the rainbow or just complete the arch. Not quite sure yet.