Rocks aren't edible?

Our maternity leave trip was amazing, unparalleled but  - it is really fun to take Roslyn on van trips where she can interact now! She was very blobby the whole trip and napped a lot. This meant we got to do whatever Joshua and I wanted the whole time. We hiked when we wanted, ate when we wanted, etc. Now though Roslyn has opinions and wants to interact with the world which has been so much fun! She likes to crawl around outside getting her knees dirty and playing with rocks, sticks, bugs, etc. She also now giggles when you throw her around on the hammock and she can fit in the swing we bring along. We knew she would slow us down but we didn't anticipate how much we actually enjoyed it. We really like her and therefore going her pace and watching her interact with and discover has brought us a lot of joy.

Roslyn has always loved watching water so we walked around the beach the next morning. She would giggle when a big wave washed in and sucked itself back out. She attempted to eat more rocks and wanted to hold our fingers to go on lots of walks. At one point we dumped her among a bunch of driftwood and she surprised us by how well she climbed over big logs, played with the sticks, and overall didn't need us to accomplish how she wanted to play. She's an independent lady and constantly impressing us with her boldness!

Back to Whidbey

Lately, when we get home from work it has been warm and the sun has been shining so we play outside in the yard with Roslyn a bit before dinner. The problem is we can't get her to then come inside. We try to coax her to crawl in, carry her in, try to make it a slow transition. Any way we go at it she's always pretty sad when she has to come inside. So on Friday I texted Josh "should we be going camping at Whidbey this weekend?" Without missing a beat he booked us a site and on Saturday morning we headed out to spend the whole weekend outside playing.

We had just recently been to this area with my sister and brother in law but since it is snow free and close we didn't mind going back. We hiked along the bluff and played in the grass all afternoon. Roslyn, even from just a few weeks ago, played very differently. She wants to hold your fingers and walk endlessly and spent a very long time plucking up little flowers and smooshing them in her fingers. She can hear the sea planes, point at them in they sky, and then she waves at them all. She also would crawl around find something fun, show it to us, then clap for herself. Really crushing the adorableness lately.

Before bedtime we walked back out to the bluff for a peak as the sun set. Roslyn played with sticks and we sat in the grass. Then she decided she was going to walk herself all the way back to Walter. She wanted Dad ahead of her cheering her on putting yogurt snacks in her mouth and to hold onto my fingers. With those things going her way she walked over a 1/4 mile on her own back down the dirt path. 

Sister, soccer game, seaside walks

 My sister and brother-in-law came to visit last week. We were so excited they were coming that we let them sleep in the same room as us for a week on a pad from our van. Rolled out all the best for them :) Luckily they were troopers about it and at least didn't complain to our faces. Besides the sleeping arrangement though we had a really lovely time. The snow had finally melted off and the sun was warm enough to go play outside for extended periods of time.

We took the ferry over to Whidbey Island for the day and played on the beach. We taught them a game we had made up with some friends a few years ago. Tim was the ultimate champion. It involves throwing rocks at sticks but in the sunshine listening to the waves it was so darn lovely. Roslyn played her own version of the game which involved knocking over rocks, picking them up out of the sand, and then inserting them into her mouth to chew on the ends of them. 

Then we took a little hike to a meadow and a bluff overlook where we ate snacks and sat in the sunshine. It has been to cold and wet to really dump Roslyn on the grass at all since she's been able to crawl so we were really excited to see how she'd react. So we laid her down and walked away. She played with the blades of grass for awhile then started crawling around in it with big smiles. 

 One of the reasons they came out this time of the year was to go to FC Cincinnati's inaugural MLS game, which was against the Sounders. We sat in the Cincy fan section up in the nosebleeds and ate stadium food for dinner. As we cheered Roslyn added in with her clapping which she gave up to either team with no loyalty. She was just  happy to be in the crowd, until she fell asleep. She was the littlest FCC fan at the game and looked too darn cute in her scarf. Although Cincy lost we did score the first goal and we had a good time.

As our last adventure we went to high tea at Queen Mary's tea room. Mall and Tim went to England not too long ago and loved high tea so we took them here and we all enjoyed the giant pots of tea, finger bites, and gaudy décor together. They have a large room stuffed with people but they also have these two tables near the front room that stand alone and sit in front of their large windows. We luckily were awarded this table so Roslyn could roam around on the bench seats, we could soak in the sunshine, and we felt like we  had our own fancy private high tea. Even convinced Mallorie to wear the crown they gave us because her birthday is coming up.