Wednesday, we were able to avoid swapping out rental vans when I found the eighth seat in the trunk. Installation proved very easy and we were on our way to pick up Emily and Casey (at the time, the newest member of the Ball family - married in Dec.). They had been flying since the early morning and still recovering from colds - but we drug them all over the coast anyway. :)
After visiting the famous Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and seeing fields and fields full of beheaded tulips, we decided the nearby Bay View State Park would be a better stop for lunch. We were right. (Beheaded tulips are pretty boring.)
From there we visited two other state parks (had to make use of that $10 daily discovery pass). First, we drove through Deception Pass State Park. It lived up to its reputation especially on such a beautiful day! I forgot to mention that the weather was beautiful all week! That is no small task for April in Washington.
Truman had fallen asleep in his car seat but Emily and Casey were happy to stay with him while the rest of us went on a little hike. What do you say about hikes in WA - there were lots of trees. It was neat to see one uprooted away from us so we could see the entire root system (or a lot of it). We told the kids it was like the trees footprint. When we got to the top of Goose ... Mountain? Peak? Summit? Rock! Goose Rock ... we saw a deer grazing nearby, a bald eagle, and Nathan claims he saw a snake ... We also saw everywhere around us: the Olympic Mountains, the Cascades, the water. It was quite a view. Once the deer ran away the kids lost interest quickly as they realized how tired and thirsty they were.
Though the climb was strenuous and steep I was amazed at how little my lungs hurt. Steep has usually meant for me, high altitudes where running is painful. Not here. The air was perfect. I know we got more tired from being outside so much but it was the most refreshing kind of tired I've ever experienced.
From there we went to our third state park of the day: Fort Casey, where we were shown around by the fort's namesake. We were even made privy to many of the secrets of the catacombs of Fort Casey. Emily's husband proved to be a very entertaining host. :)
A short ferry ride later we were on our way back to Ben and Stacy's, a delicious meal, and another mediocre night's sleep. There must be something about their basement that says "midnight snack" in baby-ese because Truman woke every night for some cereal and milk. I could tell even he was getting tired of that by the end and now that we are home he has discovered in a new way the joy of sleep (twelve hours straight through every night and a three hour nap. Hallelujah!)
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