penrose state park- camping over the 4th of july

We have been camping several times this summer, and I am behind on posting the photos... I'm just going to post them out of order, just to get them on here before I get even further behind!

We spent Fourth of July weekend with friends at Penrose Point, on Hood Canal. It was our first time at that campground, and it was fun to explore... A nice place to go for just two nights because it is so close. Getting to the water was not quite convenient, but for the price of a half hour hike, we had a small section of beach nearly to ourselves, while the "parking lot" beach was over crowded.

Jason kept rigging his pole for salmon, but those darn sculpin are hungrier, I guess... Here is his prize winner. Bo had a great time swimming- just wore his little brown self out. He was so tired he had to go curl up for a nap- right on all the dry clothes.

The kids had so much fun together- they played non-stop all weekend. I felt like I didn't even talk to them! But that means they're having fun, I know. So we tried to get a "nice picture" of them all together before we left. Little Gabie, though, was just not feeling compliant. Doesn't this remind you of that old Sesame Street song, "One of these kids is doin' his own thing..." Finally he agreed to humor the mommies, and stand behind the other kids. What a guy!

And below is the price they exacted for all that "nice for the mommies" smiling... Aren't they charming?

Eva got to listen to her buddy Nicholas' iPod- in fact, he was playing it for everyone, though it didn't get very loud... They decided to make up skits and dances, and perform them for the parents around the campfire. Naomi got pretty into it- she is quite the budding rock star, as you can see from her self-styling in this picture. She and Nicholas had a competitive dance off. Eva declared Nicholas the winner. It was just too close to call, really. I will now always think of this trip when I hear the old C & C Music Factory song, "Everybody Dance Now!"

Good friends, seaweed, burnt marshmallows, mosquito bites, fireworks, toxic algae... These are the things great memories are made of! We'll be off to do it again soon!

said the heifer to the bull...

The other day we went through the four-way stop near our neighborhood, and slowed a little, as usual, to peer at the livestock on the right. "Oooo..." said Naomi with a sly grin, "I see an udder surprise!" Goofy laughter ensues.



So that is to say, that Naomi has been just slightly fascinated with udders of late. No particular reason why, that I know of- just finds them interesting and rather funny. And that leads to last night's post-tooth-brushing conversation, which I overheard...



Naomi finished brushing and leaned over the wooden stool (could be a milking stool- but isn't). "Whoop!" she says, "I'm a cow! Someone's milkin' me! I'm a cow! Milk milk milk!" This accompanied by handmotions on her invisable udder, pointed toward the stool. Josiah finishes brushing too and wants to get in on this pretend... "I'm a cow too! Someone's milkin' me too!" he says.



"No, no, Bubby." Naomi says. "You're a male. You can't get milked- you've gotta get killed, and ate! You're no dairy cow... (and here she pauses to shake her head, and give him a consiliatory hug).... You, are a Steak."

a bright bracelet by Naomi

Naomi's latest craft: plastic lacing. Aunt Leslie gave us lots of craft supplies from her teaching days, and Naomi waited patiently for weeks til I "had time" to help her make something. She chose the colors and did all the wrapping, though I had to hold the laces because it was really kind of tricky. She is very pleased with her new bracelet. Now, maybe Auntie Dani can dig deep in her memory and remember how to make all those rope-like things with plastic laces, so we can have lots of key chains, lanyards, zipper-pulls, etc. milling around the house? Isn't it great that kids have time for everything?

brothers

Bubby loves to sing to and talk to Bo, whether they are all alone or with the whole family. I frequently overhear him singling little ditties such as, "I luv ya Mistah Bo! I luv ya Mistah Bo!" Tonight he asked me once again to please have a baby brother for him. I made some comment like, "Well at least you have Bo around?!" and, poor little guy, he went out and found his furry brother. This is what I overheard in the hallway after that:

"Bo... We're brothers! We're brothers, cuz we're so alike! We've both got just one thing on. I've got m'one thing, m'underwear, you've got yer one thing, yer coat! We're so alike, we're brothers, we're twins! Twins- we live in the same country! Our ships have the same anchors, only you don't have a ship! We're brothers, Bo! Twins!!"

a little news about Naomi

Naomi's newest favorite snack- a whole avocado, peeled carefully. It makes her muzzle quite slimy , but she adores it.

Naomi is growing like crazy, and of course learning and doing all sorts of new things. She has really been into biking lately, and has challenged herself on the Lake Youngs Trail- wanting to go faster and further each time. It is so fun to run with her and watch her getting better and feeling great about it... She has become an awesome rider!

Naomi is also making gains in spelling and reading. As a kid, and a younger sister, she has been hearing "secret" things spelled out by adults for years, and has made a mission of figuring them out. She's been pretty good at certain things. In fact, when she was two, she used to ask for "C-A-N-D-Y." So the other day, she overheard Eva and me discussing when and how a package would arrive, and she thought she was missing out on something when we mentioned the "USPS." Not about to be left in the dark, she rushed over and yelled out, "I know what you're talking about!! Us pus!" We're not pulling the wool over her eyes anytime soon, right?