About two weeks ago, my parents moved from Michigan to Northwest Washington...once they find a house, they will be about 2 hrs from my little sister and 30 minutes from my big sister. What this means is that the entire family now lives in the same time zone! And since we are all on the west coast, we figured we should meet up and spend some time together. It's a good thing my parents like driving, because we picked a place in Southern Oregon, roughly half-way between Lynden, WA and Grover Beach, CA.
The plan was to spend Wednesday driving, Thursday through Saturday relaxing and spending time together, and drive home Sunday. Around 6:30 Tuesday night, we decided that we didn't want to drive all 10 hrs and 10 min in one day, and by 7:00 we were on the road! Kyle was amazing and drove for 5 hrs! We spent the night at a Travelodge in Santa Rosa. I thought Annaliese would go right to sleep, since she'd been awake from about 9:00, but apparently it's exciting to stay in a hotel! I ended up bringing her into bed with us and she finally fell asleep around 3:00!
Annaliese's First Night in a Hotel
We were excited to have half the drive behind us, but it ended up taking longer than expected to get to our destination- a 'vacation-rental-by-owner' house on the Oregon Coast in Brookings, OR. We arrived before the others, so after unloading the car, we made a quick trip to the grocery store and started dinner just as the rest of the family arrived.
Auntie Kim and Cousin Elias
Annaliese and Elias giving hugs
Sitting next to each other on the steps
Our days were pretty relaxing, filled with walks down to the beach, playing games, and hanging out with the little munchkins.
The view from the back deck
Annaliese and Auntie Kelsey checking out the view
Annaliese and Grandma 'sewing'
Look closely and you can see Grandpa and Annaliese down by the water...this was our private beach area
One morning, we drove a few miles north of town to a state park/beach area known for the Puffins...we didn't see any. But we enjoyed the sand and Annaliese loved the water!
Frisbee
Annaliese with Grandma and Grandpa
She would keep running straight into the ocean if they weren't there to catch her!
Playing with Uncle Ben
Our best attempt at a family photo
All the kids:)
Auntie Kelsey and Uncle Ben
Grandpa and Grandma
It was a bit breezy so Kyle brought out his kite!
Elias is just learning how to walk...it was fun watching him try to get around~ and I'm sure the sand is a good place to practice!
Back home, we spent the afternoon around the house and exploring the beach.
Annaliese was the only one who enjoyed the hammock...and her butt touched the ground
and maybe she's not really enjoying it after all...
I think she prefers the beach!
Rescuing a starfish...Grandpa helped her throw it back in the ocean.
Auntie Kim showing Annaliese something she found on the beach.
Grandpa had to be quick to get around those rocks so he wouldn't get wet...but he wanted to see what was on the other side!
Annaliese has been taking swimming lessons for about 4 weeks now, so we thought it would be fun to go to the local community pool and show off everything she's learned so far. It wasn't very warm out, but the pool was heated, so we all went in and had a great time!
She just wanted to keep swimming and swimming...we were there for 45 minutes and she swam back and forth almost the entire time!
And more 'around-the-house' time...
The cousins trying to fit into a small container together
It didn't work too well, so they switched to the laundry basket.
Elias doesn't look too sure about this...
and for good reason. Annaliese is in to giving big wet kisses!
I just love this little smile!
Family photo!
Uncle Thane, Auntie Kim, and Elias
He is clearly having fun!
On Saturday, we went to a kite festival. We were expecting to see lots and lots of kites, all flying in the air. But instead we saw this...look closely, the man in the yellow jacket is the only person flying a kite. And he is doing a choreographed routine to music! It was actually quite impressive...who knew that was even possible!
Saturday afternoon, while the kiddos napped, Kyle, Ben and Thane took paddle boards out onto a local river.
Kyle
Uncle Ben and Uncle Thane
Check out those lips!
Bath time!
It was a fun few days together and so much fun to watch Annaliese interact with all her relatives! She has such a personality and that little smile is just so adorable!
The drive home was a long one, since we did it all in one day and encountered more traffic than on the way up, but Annaliese did great for 11 of the 12 hours we were in the car!
