Just Pretending

We haven't gotten much sleep the last couple nights and the sweet little girl in the picture above is the reason. Maybe God is just preparing us. In a few weeks we'll be back to no sleep, but it will be because of a newborn, not a 3-year-old.

Elise has been waking up several times after we put her to bed and, up to this point, we haven't been able to determine the cause. Bathroom break? Nope. Cold? Hot? Nope. And usually when we ask, she can't answer us. I have gotten a "I don't want to sleeeeep!" a few times at 1:30 in the morning. Night terrors? Maybe, but it's so hard to tell.

This morning we tried a new tactic: ask her why she's waking up when she hasn't just woken up. Really, can any of us form a coherent thought after waking in the middle of the night? Turns out she doesn't have much recollection of the previous night's events. We had to remind her that she woke up several times. Then we asked her again why she was crying in the middle of the night. Her response? I was only pretending.

Sigh...too bad we can't "only pretend" to respond.

Not About the Bunny

There are very few holidays that we actually celebrate around our house. Easter, Christmas and Thanksgiving are about the only ones that make the list. Of course we recognize Mother's day and Father's day, but I wouldn't classify those as "holidays." We try to recognize the holiness of the days we term "holidays." As such, there is no Santa at Christmas and no bunny at Easter. Feel free to judge me now and tell me how I'm depriving my children of lasting childhood memories and fun. It wouldn't be the first time I've heard it and I'm sure it won't be the last.

This approach creates some great teaching moments with our kids as we wander the aisles of Target. In the winter we talk a lot about why Santa is on every shelf and around every corner but doesn't come to our house (or any house for that matter). In the spring, we get to challenge our kids when they see the Easter displays and exclaim "Easter!" but don't see any items representing Jesus or the cross. "What do bunnies/ducks/chocolates/eggs have to do with Easter?" we often ask. Of the three, Jack is most able to reason this out, but the other ones are catching on. It's one of the ways we have to teach them discernment about the messages "the world" throws at them and helps develop their Biblical world view.

Of course, there are moments when it would just be easier to compromise. Wesley's preschool offered "bunny portraits" this year (there's a side story here about compromising values for money, but I'll save that for another day) and we opted out. I just don't see a reason to confuse the issue at age four. Now I thought "bunny portraits" meant pictures with a costumed-man against a basket-full backdrop. Imagine my surprise when we picked him up from school and we saw the adorable floppy-eared fuzzy bunnies (as in, actual bunnies) being loaded into the back of the photographer's car. Wesley calmly explained to the other two that some kids had their pictures taken with the bunnies that day, but "Mom wouldn't let me." Bring on the mother-guilt. In admittedly not one of my finest mothering moments, I blurted out that "Easter is NOT about bunnies and they are just a distraction from the real meaning, which is Jesus' death and resurrection." End of discussion. No teaching. Lecturing only.

Fast forward a few weeks when Wes is actually learning about Easter at school. He excitedly told me that they talked about Easter that day so I asked him what they did. "We played bunny-bunny-chick," was his reply (think duck-duck-gray duck). Sigh... Reminding myself that my frustration was with the curriculum and not my children (teachable moment here), I calmly asked, "What do bunnies and chicks have to do with Easter?" "I don't know," was his reply. Then Jack, who's obviously been listening, pipes up with, "Nothing. Satan just uses the Easter bunny to distract you from thinking about Jesus."

Yes he does, little one. Yes he does.

Orcas Island

After one night in Seattle we set out early to catch the ferry that would take us to Orcas Island. If we had any plans for sight seeing along the way,  they were gone given the dense fog that covered the whole area. We arrived at the terminal early to make sure we could catch the ferry at the right time (our whale watching tour left only 45 minutes after the ferry was scheduled to arrive) so we had some time to wander around.

We took a lot of pictures of the dock so we could show the kids, but it must be one of those you-had-to-be-there types of things because they just weren't interested at all.

In our wandering, Sean discovered blackberry bushes (we soon discovered that there are blackberry bushes all over the area) full of, you guessed it, blackberries.

 

He ate some. I'm sure it's my city-kid childhood that leads me to believe that if it doesn't come from the grocery store it's not edible, but I just couldn't partake in the wild blackberries. Because, you know, what if they weren't...

 

After what seemed like hours waiting at the ferry terminal, we finally drove on and claimed our spot on the car deck. I say that as if we had a choice in where we parked. We didn't. You pretty much just do what the men in orange (yellow?) vests tell you to do.

Then it was time to head upstairs to check out the views. You can see how foggy it was still when we left.

Further away from land, the fog lifted and we were able to see some beautiful scenery. Lots and lots of little islands.

 

As we floated along, you could actually see where the fog ended.

 

Though I should be able to tell you what mountain this is, sadly I can't. I don't think it's Rainier, though.

Due to the fog-related ferry delay, we rushed to the west side of the island to catch our whale watching tour and zipped past our bed and breakfast along the way. I'm going to wait to post pictures of whale watching and move along with the rest of our Orcas Island experience.

We stayed at the Blue Heron Bed and Breakfast, which was a wonderful first-time-B&B experience. The owners were super friendly and very flexible. The rooms were nice, breakfast was delicious and the host and hostess were very knowledgeable about the island.

We spent the majority of our time just exploring the island. There was a dock across the road from our B&B so we spent one morning just looking around. It became clear to me from whom our children get their endless curiosity.

We found these things on rocky beach:

And this in the water:

He was not in the water or on the beach. He was on the dock.

The blackberry bushes lined the main road near our B&B (remember how I said there was an abundance?).

The bushes

The fruit

The thorns

I think it's a requirement when you're in the Pacific Northwest to spend at least one day hiking and enjoying God's creation. We spent one morning in Moran State Park making our way up to Mt Constitution. We were rewarded with breathtaking views of the multitude of islands scattered across the area.

Sean was practicing the art of "fitting in" on Orcas Island. Okay, not really. I made him hug this tree because I thought it would be funny, but he ended up with super sticky sap all over his hands which was not funny all...to him.

That afternoon and evening we explored one of the towns on the island

and returned to a great Mexican restaurant where we'd had dessert the night before.

Orcas sunset

Our final morning was an early one that consisted of a quick (but delicious) breakfast, packing and a short drive to the port. As Orcas Island is a popular spot for weddings and there were at least two the night before, we were sure the ferry back to the mainland would be full. We were right. Two (yes, two!) hours of waiting allowed plenty of time to explore the shoreline and shop for the same souvenirs in all the little shops.

When our ferry finally arrived, we were one of the lucky ones to secure a spot for the trip back.

The rest of our trip was filled with travel time: what seemed like a very long drive back to Seattle, a short shuttle ride to dinner that evening (we stayed by the airport so returned the car early), a long-ish walk back to our hotel and finally our flight home to reunite with our three most precious blessings.

Seattle

In late August (though not as late as originally planned since we had to reschedule due to a school start date), Sean and I spent a long weekend in the Pacific Northwest; a couple days in Seattle and a couple on Orcas Island. Sean spent some time in Seattle on business a couple years ago and has wanted to take me there ever since. It was the promise of orcas that finally convinced me to go, but I did enjoy the other things the area had to offer as well. On a side note: pictures of our whale watching tour will come in a later post as there are far too many to include in this epic.

As we drove away from the airport, we had a great view of the skyline (and the traffic we were caught in).

Our first stop was the Pike Place Market. I've seen the Pike Place Fish video, but had no idea what to expect when we actually stepped out of the car into this shopping-experience-like-no-other. 

We walked in and I was overwhelmed by all the people to see



and yummy food to eat.



The vast amount of seafood was amazing! From fish...



to things in shells...



to freezers full of everything under the sea.

The fresh fruit and veggies were impressive and included some I'd never seen before. Purple and yellow cauliflower?

 

There was a guy on the corner with a bird. I think his name is Phinneas...the bird, not the man.

Phinneas and his man did tricks...

and delighted little girls watching nearby.

I just love the joy you can see in her face.

Because we were there, we had to visit the original Starbucks (though I still prefer Caribou). The line for coffee was out the door and half way down the block, but lucky for us...

these two were keeping us entertained while we waited. They are folk musicians who play a variety of instruments, many simultaneously. He is playing a guitar with a metal part on it that acted as his percussion instrument. She is playing a saw with a bow. Yes, a saw. Later he pulled out a tin tub fashioned with a rope and broom handle and began to strum. The whole thing was amazing.

After some out-of-Seattle adventures (which you'll see later in this post), we headed back downtown to The Crab Pot where we shared a huge pot full of a variety of oceanic delights. They literally just dumped it all on the table, gave us some bibs...

and a couple mallets and let us work our way through it.

Now I love seafood, but I really appreciate the preparation done in the kitchen at Red Lobster before I see it on my plate. Sean had to peel most of my shrimp because I just couldn't look at their little black eyes as I ripped their heads off. I still can't look at this picture for too long without getting squeamish. Hopefully I haven't ruined a good shrimp scampi meal for those of you who have been sheltered by the kind chefs at your favorite seafood establishment.

As we moved out of the heart of downtown, we passed by many ship yards. I've never considered something this industrious to be beautiful, but the vibrance and color were unbelievable.

This next picture is brought to you by the weekend's blonde moment. As we explored what the area had to offer, I saw these flags all over...the state flag. Now you're probably thinking, Of course you did, it's the Washington state flag...because you're in Washington state...and of course it has a picture of George Washington on it...because it's Washington. If you were me, however, it would have taken you four days to make this connection and it wouldn't have been until you were taking the picture below that the lightbulb would go off (or is it on?).

When we had had enough of the city, we ventured north to a little town called Snoqualmie. There was  a beautiful Inn overlooking Snoqualmie Falls, 

a waterfall more than 100 feet higher than Niagara Falls according to the website. As with most of God's natural wonders, pictures don't do it justice.

In the town of Snoqualmie we visited a railway museum and experienced a little bit of history

as we saw what the railcars and wagons used to look like - a far cry from the graffitied railcars and semi trailers used today.

Then we visited this bridge (though I'm not exactly sure where it was - close to Snoqualmie I think) and walked along the trail for awhile.

Upon our return, we witnessed some people jumping off the bridge into the water below. For recreation, just to be clear. The picture below will give you a little perspective on how far the jump is.

This is what it looks like before you jump. See my feet? you have to climb over the fence and then walk out onto that beam and jump from there.

Apparently this is a common thing to do if you live and/or visit the area. But be careful if you get up there and chicken out because your cowardice (read "wisdom") may be broadcast to all subsequent visitors.

I was originally planning to cover our whole trip (with the exception of whale watching) in one blog post, but in the interest of brevity (ha!) I will stop here and leave our time on Orcas Island for another day.