Seattle: Monday thru Wednesday

Monday morning, we got up at the normal early hour--thanks to Kallie and Whitney--and got things packed up to head to Ryan's brother's family's home. We got there around 10 a.m. and had breakfast. Then, we just hung out and talked while the kids played. That afternoon, we went to Sizzler for lunch, (the only place in Bremerton/Silverdale that had a salad bar--which is what my SIL and I both wanted), and then took the kids to see Ratatouille. Both of our kids acted just like we thought they would! Whitney had a bottle and then slept through almost the entire movie. Kallie, on the other hand, got bored after about 30 minutes and started vocalizing it. Ryan had to take her out and missed probably 20 minutes of the movie. He actually used the "Church Foyer" technique and didn't let her run around in the hallway. So, she decided that being in the theater and being quiet was better than hanging out in the hallway doing nothing. And, miraculously, she was quiet through the rest of the movie! As far as the movie itself--I thought it was cute--although more of a grown up Pixar than a kids' movie.

After the movie, we took the kids to a park to play and get out all of their pent-up movie energy. The playground where we took them was a fun place. My SIL and I saw and watched the kids and other people at the park. There was a group of skater-type kids who were causing mischief near some picnic tables across the playground from us. They were all teenagers, the youngest being about 10 years old, and they were all smoking. At least 2 of the girls were literally throwing themselves at the guys in the group. I was incredibly sad. It made me wonder what their parents thought and if they even knew what the kids were doing.

That night, Cami and I stayed home with the kids and got them to bed while Ryan and his brother, Heath, went to see Transformers. I was definitely relieved that Ryan got to go with his brother to see it because it's definitely more of a guy movied that I wasn't thrilled about seeing.

The next morning, my SIL was teaching piano lessons, my nephew had a swimming lesson and Ryan needed to go to Costco...so everyone but me and my girls left. (Well, my SIL was there--she just wasn't available because of the lessons.) Our plan waas to leave on the 12:30 ferry for Seattle and spend the day at Pike's Place and maybe the Seattle Aquarium. Ryan and his brother got back around noon--and we hurried to get everything together and make it to the ferry. At about 12:20, we realized that we were still too far away to make it. With a car full of kids and now no plans, we decided that taking them to a park was going to be the best option. The playground we went to was incredible! The play structure looked like a castle and was HUGE! We were there for quite a while letting the kids run around with each other. While I was sitting in a parent's area of the structure with Whitney, a little boy--probably about 9 years old--came up and sat RIGHT next to me. He started talking to Whitney and playing with her. (Being the paranoid mom that I am, I had to remind him to please not touch her face and hands.) He scooted up next to me and even laid his head on my shoulder while he played with her. I have to admit, I was somewhat uncomfortable with the situation, but I was pretty sure that the poor little guy just didn't get enough loving attention from his parents. (I think he was there with a baby sitter.) So, I just sucked it up for about 10 minutes and then it was time for us to go anyway.

That afternoon, after the kids had napped, we let them play in the front yard in the sprinklers. In the evening, the boys went and bought fireworks. We thought about keeping Kallie up to see the fireworks, but she was so sleep deprived on Sunday night that she threw a MAJOR screaming tantrum. Since we didn't want to revisit that experience, we put her to bed at her normal time. That night, we started the fireworks--and they were so fun that I couldn't let Kallie sleep through them. So, I got her out of bed and brought her outside to watch. I was SO not disappointed that I did that! She loved every second of the fireworks and begged for more! (Guess she's got some of her mommy in her...) Heath has a really cool camera and got some fun pictures of us writing our names with sparkler. It took a while for us to do the fireworks and we got to bed around midnight or so.

Wednesday morning, Ryan and I ran a few errands while Kallie stayed and played with her cousins. And, I think most of us took a nap that afternoon. After Heath got home from work, we went to a park on the beach near the Hood Canal bridge. Ryan's entire family, (minus one sister), was there to have a BBQ and celebrate the 4th of July. Kallie played with her cousins and played in the sand on the beach. My nephews found some dead jellyfish on the shore and brought them over to show everyone. Having never seen a jellyfish in my life, I thought it was pretty cool. It was a very relaxing afternoon for me--although I'm sure not as much for Ryan, as he was chasing Kallie around all afternoon. (Which, I must say, I was TOTALLY appreciative that he did that. After trying to keep tabs on her while unpacking the house, packing for the trip, and the normal every day stuff on top of it all--I desperately needed a break from chasing a toddler around 24/7.)

As it got to be evening, everyone left the park and we decided to go find a place to watch fireworks. We drove through Bremerton looking for people gathered to watch the fireworks. We found a spot across the street from the inlet where the fireworks barge was anchored and parked Maybe by now you can tell that I am a HUGE fan of fireworks...and being where we were for the 4th of July was the best!! There were hundereds of people around us waiting for the official show to begin--and in the mean time, they were putting on fireworks shows of their own. There was literally no more than 2-3 seconds between the fireworks, with many overlapping each other. I don't know how it is elsewhere, but in Utah, the biggest fireworks you can get are fountains. There are laws about how high they can shoot into the air, etc. In Washington, you can get the kids of fireworks that shoot into the air and then explode. And, those big ones were the kind that almost everyone waiting for the fireworks was setting off. When the official show finally started, it was kind of far away, but we still had a great view and definitely enjoyed the show! It was SO fun! Once again, Kallie LOVED the fireworks--and every time we got in the car after that, she would ask if we were going to see more fireworks. I do have to say, though, that the most amazing part of the evening was that when it was over, we got everyone in the car and headed straight home--NO TRAFFIC!!

I think that 4th of July was one of my favorites. The fireworks and company were wonderful and we wish we could do that every year!