Summer Vacation!

We took a wonderful nine day vacation to Washington - with stops in Boise on the way up and the way back.  We have so many pictures that it was hard to sort through them and decide what to post.  So I didn't decide.  I asked everyone in the family to tell me their top four highlights from the trip.  Here are the answers I got:

LILY'S HIGHLIGHTS:

 Flying kites on the beach

 Coloring on the chalkboards in the cottage

 Going to the restaurant where we can throw peanuts on the floor and eat hot rolls with honey butter (Jimmy Mac's Roadhouse)

 Buying corn on the farm with the sheep and cows near Grammy and Grampy's house

DADDY'S HIGHLIGHTS:

 Swimming with the kids

 Flying kites on the beach

 Playing shuffleboard

 Exploring the beach at lowtide

ANNIE'S HIGHLIGHTS:

 Digging for "Pirate Treasure" on the beach and finding a large jeweled ring

 Exploring on the beach and finding sand dollars

 Taking a nap with Papa

 Making S'mores and "Going on a Bear Hunt" with Papa

TOMMY'S HIGHLIGHTS:

 Lots of loves from Puna

 Eating jerky and watching American Ninja with Brady

 Crying - this was his absolute favorite thing to do on this trip

 Going swimming with Puna

MOMMY'S HIGHLIGHTS:

 Showing our kids the ocean for the first time.

 A short reign as the Great Dalmuti

 Exploring the charming town on a walk with Jeremy

Visiting the graves of my grandmother and great-grandparents

Our cottage on the coast was absolutely wonderful.  It looked like Pottery Barn and Pier 1 Imports did a catalog shoot inside it.  Papa's enthusiasm for all the ocean animals was contagious.  The girls loved exploring the beach and  learning about ocean life.  Thank you for a wonderful experience Puna and Papa!  The girls have been talking about the beach ever since we got home.

And of course our short stops in Boise were a treat too. They made me feel really homesick for our family, life, and friends in Meridian. Grammy and Grampy have a beautiful park in their neighborhood and we played there twice.  Plus we stopped at the Berry Ranch to buy fresh corn and visit the animals - strange horned sheep, turkeys and chickens, and cows.  The staff there gave us free slices of watermelon.  Thank you Grammy and Grampy for feeding and housing all of us!

 I love how Annie is charging into the water spray!

It was a great vacation.  What a blessing to have so much time together as a family.  We are so thankful for all our grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles who love us!