We filled another weekend to the brim, and had tons of family fun. Elias had a lot of firsts, and was generally adored by all six adults in attendance. The only downside was missing the St. Bart’s day celebration at our church. I guess there’s always next year.
Friday we said good bye to Auntie Erin and cousins Audrey and Sonya, then packed up, and headed off to the coast for some camping. (Granted, we did stay in a cabin so Nathan claims it does not count as camping…I think it’s just camping with style) We crammed into a cabin with my parents, brother, and sister-in-law so there were seven of us in that small space designed for a maximum of five.
Elias trying out Baba’s water bottle while sitting around the campfire.
Shortly after we arrived, we got to sit around the campfire. Elias enjoyed exploring his new “home.” He learned how to zip and unzip the entrance to the dining tent and promptly went in and out and in and out saying “peek-a-boo.” He also practiced his two newest words: auntie and uncle. In the car on the way to the coast, he started saying those two, and we were excited for him to show them off when we arrived.
We also ate smore’s which is one of my favorite things to do. Elias somehow got a hold of a marshmallow skewer and almost did some damage to my face with it…Luckily he ended up just poking my forehead. Auntie Kristy snapped this picture just before the incident.
Here is our boy getting ready for bed.
After the campfire, we went inside to go to sleep. We had never gone to sleep at the same time and in the same room as Elias, so we wondered if he would be able to fall asleep knowing that we were only a few feet away. (In hotel rooms, we’ve had a habit of putting him to bed, then reading in the bathroom until he falls asleep…weird I know…we probably won’t do that any more now that we know it doesn’t matter if we are in the room!). Elias sailed through his first night. He fell asleep relatively easily…Daddy only needed to tell him to be quiet twice. It was actually hard not to laugh when he was shouting “Auntie, Uncle, Ama, Baba” at the top of his lungs.
Most everyone woke up extremely early to go fishing the next morning. Elias, Ama, and I were left to sleep in. (Well…if you count 7 am as sleeping in, which I do these days). We had a leisurely morning, and then went to play at a park at the campground. We also went to the Seaside Outlets to get Elias a few more fall and winter clothes at Osh Kosh with my free Osh Kosh cash.
Elias running in the sand.
After everyone else got back from fishing (They had eleven fish on, and actually were able to keep three salmon!) Nathan and I took Elias to the beach to play. He loved playing in the sand, and as soon as
Elias and Nathan walking into the ocean.
Nathan said, “Do you want to go in the ocean?” he went straight there to dip his feet in. As you can see from the first picture, we did roll his pants up, but it didn’t do much good. Elias wasn’t bothered by the chilly water at all, and waded about thigh deep!
Elias was very happy to be in the ocean. He kept giggling when the waves came in.
Saturday evening we decided to go for a boat ride. It was Elias’ first boat ride on the Columbia. I won’t let him go fishing at this young of an age because there are sharp hooks and heavy metal weights and rough waters and fish blood everywhere. But a nice calm evening boat ride sounded fun. Elias kept saying “boat!” and seemed to have tons of fun. Notice the boots he is wearing in the pictures. I bought those for him earlier in the day and he absolutely loves them! Here are a few pictures of our ride:
Elias with Auntie and Uncle on the boat.
One of the views of the docks.
With Mommy and Daddy on the boat.
Then, Baba let Elias sit on his lap and drive the boat! We ended up going in a circle with Elias as the driver, but he had the time of his life!
Elias the boat captain.
On Sunday, everyone went fishing early again, so Ama, Elias, and I went on a long walk through the forest. We saw a large crane, and Elias stopped to pick some dandelions for Ama and Mommy.
After lunch, we packed up, and headed home in time for Nathan’s softball playoffs and championships. Elias loves watching the softball games. He claps when they get hits and everything. The first game went really well for the team, and they made it to the championship game! Go St. Juan Diego Screaming Eagles! Unfortunately the second game did not go as well, but second place is not bad! Here is Elias running and playing on the field between the games:
Elias heading for home plate.
Elias playing with Uncle.
Needless to say we were all pretty exhausted by the end of the day. This is when we are making memories. I think they’re good ones.