Bainbridge Island

This is our 4th year going to Bainbridge Island in October. We always go for the pumpkin walk at Bainbridge Gardens and then find some fun places to explore for the day. This year I decided to make it a young women day activity and it was so much fun. Paige, unfortunately, was not able to go with us because she got sick and needed to rest and we missed her so much. We had three young women go and some of the other leaders. Nate was a good sport and went as our priesthood representative and spent the whole day with all girls though I'm sure he is used to that by now. :) I wish more young women could have gone but those that did go we had so much fun with them and we spent the entire day exploring the island.

A week and a half before this, for one of our Wednesday night activities, we painted our own pumpkins to take with us. Our first stop was at the gardens. We ended up walking through the trail twice. The first time the young women sped through it, mostly looking for the perfect place to put their own pumpkin. We wandered around the other parts of the garden and then I had them go through the pumpkin walk a second time and had them slow down and had them point to any pumpkin they liked and why it spoke to them.

Then we went and explored Fort Ward. We first had a picnic lunch and I told them a very brief history before walking down to explore what is left. The best part of this was sitting by the water. I loved visiting and the girls all loved the water, finding shells and rocks, and enjoying the gorgeous views.

Then we went to Halls Hill Lookout and Labyrinth. The girls all did the labyrinth and loved it. Then we walked over to the lookout and talked about how you would apply it to the gospel. We talked about how we follow the path and we have to focus on the path we are on if we want to get to the center or the Savior. It is easy to be distracted by other things but if we keep focus, keep trying, and repent or get back on the path then we can make it back to our Heavenly Father. We also talked about how we all went at different paces and that's okay. We also talked about how at times you feel like you are so far from the center and you aren't sure if you are going to make it back to the center but if you keep trying and focus then you can do it. 

Then we went to the Japanese American Exclusion Memorial. During WWII, the Japanese were ordered to go to concentration camps and this is a memorial for those from Bainbridge Island that had to go through this. It was a reverent and somber experience and but so good.

The dock they walked off to get on a boat to leave. They didn't know where they were going or if they would ever come back.

Then we went and saw Pia and Peacemaker. She is an 18 foot troll. There are 5 in different cities/areas and they are so amazing. They are all created by the same artist and are all a little different and made by all recycled materials. 

Then we went to McDonalds for dinner.

And last we took an evening ferry ride back to the mainland. The view of Seattle at night is gorgeous!

What a fun day!

Thomasson Family Farm

This year marks 10 years of going to Thomasson Family Farm! We love this yearly tradition. We actually got a discount code this year, but had to schedule when we were going by the end of September. We decided on a Wednesday afternoon since the girls have early release that day. It looked like it was going to be rainy, but we lucked out and had perfect weather and hardly anyone was there. It was a perfect afternoon and so much fun!

Corn Maze fun! We took a picture of the map with one of our phones, and then Paige led us through. She did a really great job and only got lost a few times, but we made it through.

McCall's first time going on the little train ride. They all loved it and it was so cute to watch.

Some more farm playground fun.

The girls always love the animals especially the kittens.

Oh how I love these three!!!

Hay Maze

And of one of the favorites every year- the corn box. We had it all to ourselves and it was so much fun. McCall tried eating it every so often, and she loved crawling in it and going down the slide. Baylor loved being buried, and Paige loved to race around to see who could go through it a certain way the fastest.

Tractor Bike Riding

McCall was done by this point and in need of a nap, but I love to get this picture every year to see how they change and grow.

Last stop to look at the pumpkins before heading home.

I love family time and family traditions!

Weekend Getaway

 This past weekend we had gorgeous weather and so last minute I found a little Airbnb for us to go on a little weekend getaway. It was in Shelton and right on the one of the inlets of the Puget Sound. I'm so glad that we went! I love any outdoor adventure I can go on with my family.

On our way to the house we stopped in Tumwater to see Tumwater Falls. We had a picnic lunch there and the girls played on the pirate ship (they loved walking the plank) for a bit before going on the beautiful walk to see the falls.

There was also a salmon fish hatchery there and there were so many fish jumping and going through it. It was an added bonus since I didn't know it was there.

The start of our walk. You get to walk along the river and there are so many little waterfalls and little things to see and explore. It was so beautiful!

We got to the bridge at the end where you can loop around to walk on the other side and it was covered in locks.

The big falls at the end- every time we saw a waterfall, McCall would reach out her cute little hand wanting to feel the water.

Paige was in charge of taking pictures this trip and she loved to take artistic shots. She got some pretty amazing ones on this walk!

We found some really cute girls in this tree. :)

Car fun in the back seat driving to our next stop.

We made a quick stop when we got into the city of Shelton to take a picture of these cool welcoming signs for the the city. The big Shelton sign is from a tree that was cut down. It was HUGE and sprouted in the year 1295!!!

Then we checked out this cool playground.

Then we made it to our Airbnb. We got all of our stuff in and checked on the inside of the house and then went down to the water. It was a rocky beach with a few shells and some crabs to find. The girls had fun finding rocks and shells and breaking them open. They were finding some big rocks to crack open and the little kid in Nate came out. I kept an eye on McCall as she crawled on the stairs and played in the rocks. 

We had some dinner and then we ended our evening with a fire with the most stunning view.

Smores were a big hit and watching the sky grow pink from the sunset.

The next morning we had breakfast, enjoyed the foosball and ping pong table in the garage, found a little lizard in our house that we set free, and enjoyed our view one last time before heading out.

We drove across this bridge to spend a few hours exploring Harstine Island. 

Our first stop was Harstine Island State Park. You park and then walk 0.35 miles down to the water. This hike was so pretty. I love hiking here and this was a prime example of it. Lot of trees, moss, undergrowth, and just so much green.

The beach was so pretty. There was a small stream that flowed into the water that the girls had so much fun in. Paige worked on diverting it and making another path. Baylor would float leaves and sticks down it and McCall was right in the water crawling everywhere. We had the beach to ourselves and it was simply wonderful.

Then we went to Jarrell Cove State Park. This is a campground and has a marina. We had a picnic here and then walked around to see the docks and the water. The tide was high so there was no beach area to play on but it was pretty to look around.

Then we made our way home. We decided to finish off our fun weekend with this glorious weather by going out on the kayaks and playing in the lake. 

A beautiful weekend with my beautiful family!