Waiting for the ferry

We had a wonderful weekend on Orcas again, but our return home was a bit hairy.

The Washington State Ferry started allowing ferry reservations this summer and while that's helpful, it also means it's stressful if you don't have one! 75% of the ferry spots can be reserved (25% of the spots are opened up at 3 different intervals leading up to the date) so only 25% of the ferry is for walk-ons. We were one of the fun 25% that didn't have a reservation coming home on Sunday. We got to the ferry terminal 45 minutes before the 5:15pm sailing but didn't make it because of the crowds. We didn't make it by a long shot - by probably 10 cars. That meant we had to wait for the next ferry which was scheduled for 8:45pm! What to do with 2 little kids, stuck in line for 3+ hours?!

The Orcas Ferry terminal has very little to do so we took our time letting the kids (ok, Nora) play with all the buttons in the car, then we walked around the little marina several times and pointed out all the little fishes and jellyfish swimming about, ate a very leisurely meal of fish and chips and ice cream for dessert, and let the girls run around many many times.

We were pretty pooped when we finally got on the ferry (which was 30 minutes late!). The boat ride back was pretty dicey since it was WAY past the girls bedtime but then the drive home after was thankfully pretty quiet because they zonked out as soon as we started driving. Poor Scott was not so lucky since he was the driver!

Sunset on the dock.

Evie and Nora liked to "rock climb" and sit on top of this mountain.

Chocolate ice cream face!

ooooh! what does this do?

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Happy new year!!

Goodness, it's already 2025! It's been a really long time since we posted! We had a very lazy new year. We flew back from LA on the evening of the 31st so spent the last remaining hours of 2024 cozying up on the couch and then fell asleep before it even hit midnight! On New Years day, we slept in, cleaned up the house and then did a quick hike the next day. All in all, a good start to the year! Nora's new blanket hoodie. Cold and muddy trails. We're not in LA anymore! We hiked the Primrose trail that follows Coal Creek.

Eating on the road

With all the COVID restrictions on restaurants and Scott not liking takeout service, we've gotten pretty good at planning meals for days we are out and about. We've basically taken to tailgating... a lot! It is nice though that it means having a hot meal to warm up after a day of playing in the snow and I'm not going to lie - it is also a good excuse to eat instant noodles because it is fast and easy and warming! For overnight stays, we end up doing instant pot meals like one-pot spaghetti or chili, or easy meals like a cheese plate or sandwiches. It does save on $ so that's definitely nice but man, I can't wait to go out to restaurants again! Beef and barley soup lunch at Mt Baker. Chillin' with Chili at Crystal Mountain. Beautiful but cold picnic in Wenatchee Little girl loving her hot ramen over Blewitt Pass Jook after sledding at Crystale Springs Chicken Noodle Soup in the snow at Salmon Ridge. Pho bowls under the ferry awning at Diablo Lake.

Nutcracker

I have fond memories of going to watch the Nutcracker at Christmas time and have been looking forward to when I can take my girls to watch with me. After Evie sat through Frozen on Ice so well, we figured she's old enough to sit through a ballet. We invited our pal Blakely and her mom Lauren to go with us, and we made it a girls trip. The little tykes did amazingly well! We got there early enough to grab booster seats for the two of them, and also splurged a bit on nicer seats to make sure they could see the dancers. They asked some questions throughout (like, what are those rats?) but for the most part watched quietly. Towards the end, Evie fell asleep but not before enthralled by the Sugar Plum Fairy and her sparkly dress. I can't wait to do it again next year! Pretending to be a ballerina. Palsy walsy. These two are the cutest! Mommy daughter picture Waiting for the show to start!

Simpsons in Seattle

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