We went to Seattle. We had a blast!
On the way there we stopped in Ellensburg and had a picnic dinner at the park on Manitoba. At the park there was a swing that we could all sit on.The hotel had a really cool swimming pool. It had two sprinklers and a really deep end and a really not deep end. It went from nine inches to four and a half feet. Derek and Eliza mostly liked playing in the shower. The food was great. There was waffles for breakfast and lemonade and sandwiches for dinner. They also had croutons. Michael liked watching Sponge Bob. Our hotel had a personal bathroom and a bed in the couch that Emma and Megan slept on. Michael and Merian slept on a blow up mattress and Mom and Dad slept in the KING bed with Eliza and Derek.
On our first day there we went to the Seattle Aquarium. The otters gracefully swam. There were seahorses. We saw a presentation with a scuba diver! We also saw the octopus being fed. We touched starfish, coral reef stuff, and crabs. There were also tiny sharks in a dome room with a lot of cool fish. They also had an activity where you could rub impressions of animal foot prints.After eating PB&J in the car we went to Tukwila park. There was a playground and so many plants! We went on a little hike on a path.
That night we went to the Rainforest Cafe. There was pretend lightening and the animals moved. There was a statue that had a sign that said, "save the rainforest." We shared two volcanoes that had a sparkler on top and when they brought it out they yelled, "volcano!" There was a tree with a face carved into it with eyes that moved and it talked.
The next day we went swimming and to a park that had a giant spider ball to climb in. It also had a slide that had a cool way to climb up. We also took a walk around the pond there.
At night we went to the Seattle Center and saw Laser Beatles at the Pacific Science Center. Laser images were projected on the ceiling while Beatle songs played. One of Michael's favorite ones was "It's Been a Hard Day's Night." It showed an owl that found a earthworm and did nice things. He also liked "The Yellow Submarine" that showed pictures of a yellow submarine.
We also saw the Space Needle and we touched it!
The next day after swimming and checking out of our hotel and eating lunch at a park we visited the Defiance Point Zoo. There were lemurs, meerkats, and puffins. The beluga whales always smiled. The walruses were huge. So enormous they are hard to imagine. They would swim right by the glass. We saw a zoo keeper holding a tarantula, another one holding a snake, and another holding an owl. We saw huge sharks and sea dragons! They had a playground with a climbing spider web. They had crab shells so you could pretend that you were a crab, a nest and a coral reef thing.
Then we picked Dad up at his training and went camping at Zion's Camp. Everyone did a good job helping set the tent up and we sang songs and roasted marshmallows at the camp fire before going to bed. The next morning Michael, Emma, and Merian kept the fire burning bright. Megan discovered a few ripe blackberries and sent the kids on a hunt.
We played at the playground at the big rope swing and barrel swing. Merian found a secret room at the tree house. Then Dad took Megan, Michael, Emma, Merian and Derek out in a row boat. The water was so clear that sometimes you could see the bottom. Marian thought it wasn't safe to go but she did it and it was fun. We ran into a rock. Michael put a fishing bob from the boat in the water and later Emma caught it. Megan, Emma and Merian carved pictures into tree bark. Michael, Emma and Merian learned how to skip rocks and they swung out over the lake on the rope.
After we left Zion's camp we visited Port Orchard and ate lunch at Sidney Glenn where Megan went to Kindergarten. She remembered a huge rock covered by moss and surrounded by trees, but it wasn't quite how she remembered it. There was a huge slide on the hill and a playground.
We also went on a quick hike at South Kitsap park.
After driving around we went to Bremerton to catch a ferry. Michael almost got sea sick but really liked hanging out on the deck. He liked watching the water. Megan, Emma and Merian collected travel brochures. Merian remembers the water fountains at Bremerton's ferry dock. We saw star fish but Megan was disappointed she didn't see any jelly fish like she had as child.
Michael thinks this trip was "specticalelar!" because the food was great! Merian thinks the best part was finding the secret room in the tree house with the benches and table and the cement head. Emma liked seeing the seahorses and sea dragons. Megan liked not having to wake up at 6:30 to go to band camp. Dad's and Mom's favorite part was being together as a family.
