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!

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.

Just the two of us & Walter

 

Joshua and I drove Walter to Deception pass/Rockport State park to sneak in one last trip just the two of us. We lucked out and the weather on Friday evening and all of Saturday was lovely. We made bagels & coffee in the morning. Took a long walk along the beach and threw a football (named Steve) for quite awhile just chatting. Headed back to Walter for a nap and some reading. Heated up some leftover homemade indian food for lunch. Caught the sunset over the beach for a bit before starting a fire. We cooked some sausages and ate them with Cheez-its and Joshua played his guitar for a bit. It was a short sweet little trip but it was just enough and it felt great to exist outside and away from everything for 2 nights.