Summer Vacation 2012 Part II

Here are some more beach time.  I think this was Tuesday playing in the afternoon.  I cannot remember which day it was.  Before we left for the coast we talked to Kenya about what to do on the beach and she said she wanted to make "sand angles."  When we asked her about them she told us it was just like a snow angel, but in the sand.  What a creative girl.  Here she is making her first "sand angel."

Making "sand angels"

Neither of them could ever wait to get to the beach each day. 

Running to the ocean first thing in the morning.  Daddy and Kenya

Playing on the beach in her patriot swimming suit. You betcha, I love it!  

More playing with sand.

 Daddy enjoying the beach with his girls.

Digging a whole where the tide is still reaching not the best idea.  It kept filling back in, but they had fun none the less.

Jasmin cruising on the beach.

 This video is so cute!  It was of Jasmin calling out for Daddy.  But of course once I got the camera out she stopped.  Still this is a cute video of her walking around on the beach. 

Cutie!

Kenya thought it was funny to put a crab on Jasmin's head.  Yep, she was right.  Kenya looks at this picture now and still laughs about it.

Kenya said she was making stew.  Jasmin was helping her and taking out the things Kenya was adding.  So cute when they play together,

Mommy and Kenya running into the ocean to get "all" wet.  Kenya backed away and didn't go much further.

 We gathered an audience when jumping into the ocean to be sure that we got completely wet.  I did it first and just dunked under.  Then because of his audience Robert went in with style to give them a show.  He ran and cartwheeled in!  What a fun daddy!!

Ready...

Go

brrr...

Getting out.

Feels good!  but a little salty!

Kenya and Daddy getting wet in the "warm" tide pools

 The 4th of July was great!  We celebrated it just like most other Americans: a parade, family time, and fireworks.
First we went to the a Parade in Gleneden Beach.  It was fun.  The walk to get to the parade and trying to leave the area was not so fun. 

Family 4th of July photo

Jasmin trying to escape.

Watching the parade. 

Fun with family!  Christin, Granny, James and just as I took the picture Michelle stepped behind Granny.

Mommy and Kenya loving be American!

Clowns

 After the parade we went and had the worst dinning experience ever!  It was a buffet and yummy food, but they were not really putting out new food, no one was refilling our drinks, it was all just horrible!!  I honestly think it took over 30 minutes just to get our bill after we had already waited forever for someone to come so we could ask them for it.
After that we went to the Yaquina Lighthouse.    It was so fun to just spend time together and enjoy the variety of the earth that Jesus created for us! 

Playing with aunt Michelle!

Looking at seals and sea lions.

"Cheeese" and Granny enjoying her grand kids in the back ground.

 While going down to the beach by the lighthouse I stepped off of a stair and twisted my ankle really bad.  Instant swelling.  I really have no idea what happened, but my ankle bone touched the ground while my foot was firmly planted.  OUCH!  It was strange, not too much pain, but lots and lots of icing and ibuprofen.   We went straight home of that and I iced for over 2 hours in hopes to make it out to the fireworks.  But I enjoyed the view from the room while waiting for the fireworks time to start.  Robert, Kenya and Granny went swimming with Christina and Michelle while I rested and Jasmin napped. 

Sunset on the night of the 4th.  BEAUTIFUL.  This was the view from out room!

So no one in Newport really knew anything about the fireworks.  We were going off of what our hotel staff told us so we went down at about 9:30 to watch the fireworks near the bridge.  There was a huge crowd gathered and so we just found a parking spot and wait.  And wait and waited.  I was talking to a few local people sitting next to us and they even said that in the last few years they have moved the location so much that they were not sure where to sit to see them.  When they finally began we could not see them.  There was a hill and a bunch of trees in the way.  We packed up and headed for the hotel.  On the way home we got the perfect view away from people and traffic.  We got to stay in the car and way from the mosquitoes who had been eating us alive.  Michelle, Christine and James were able to walk just a little ways and see them.  We all go to see some great fireworks but just not together!  And I did not get my once in a lifetime chance to watch the fireworks over the bay or ocean.  I guess that just means that we will have to return to the beach.

Waiting for the fireworks to start. 

This was worth all of it those.  A huge orange full moon rised over the bay.  It was an amazing sight!! The locals fireworks were going off right next to it and it took our breath away.  What an amazing sight!

After the show it was back to the room and to bed.  What a day!  We are PROUD to be AMERICAN!!!

The rest of our trip was not documented with the camera.  I will have to steal some pictures of the reunion to get on the blog because our camera never made it out of our bag.  But here is how it went.
Kenya played on the beach Thursday morning with Christine and Michelle as we cleaned out very messy hotel room and rested for the drive to Klamath Falls. We left just after 1pm.  We drove to Medfor(5 hours)d and got to go to the temple there.  First Granny watched the girls while Robert and I went and then we let her have a turn while we ate dinner.   We got to Klamath so late and the girls were SO over tired that we had to just go to bed.  Driving from Medford to Klamath (1.5 hours) was the only break down of the entire trip.  You guessed it, both girls screaming and crying at the top of their lungs.  (1 melt down in over 2000 miles in the car is not bad)  Friday we hung around with family and went swimming.  Just a nice day visiting family.  Saturday was the great Draper/Young reunion.  We were so excited to see so much family!  We even got to see some great friends.  We saw some friends from high school and even some friends that had just moved away from Idaho to Redding, CA came up for the event.  Yet again great fun in the water and a yummy bbq!  It was so much fun to see Kenya this year actually running around and getting in on the water fight.  I, however, was not much involved because of my ankle and Jasmin was not too interested in it. So sad!  After all the fun that night we took off and started our very long trip back to Idaho.  We did not make it as far as we hoped (only 90 miles) and then had to get a motel.  Then we drove to Boise (4.5 hours ish) and spend some more time with them and had dinner and played games.  Then finally home leaving around 8ish (4.5 hours).  Home in Shelley around 12:30 am.  Jasmin woke up when we got home and stayed up until about 2:00am.  That was sure fun.  It was so hot when we got home I don't know if I would have been able to sleep if she had been asleep anyway.  Then Robert back to work again Monday morning. 
What a fun trip and well worth it!

Teaser

So we got back from a wonderful vacation last Sunday super later at night.  Believe it or not I have to first part of vacation up on the blog Monday night.  Then I was trying to mess around with one part of it and ended up deleting the whole post.  So now you  must wait till I have more time to redo it.  It will be coming soon!

Summer Vacation 2012 Part I

Taking 2 toddlers in a car for over 2000 miles in the dead heat of summer who were sleep deprived does not sound like much of a dream vacation, but is was. 
It started out Friday, June 29 right when Robert got off of work we headed to Caldwell (4 hours) to visit my sister and her family, the Hammonds.  We got there late at night and Kenya was so excited that she did not even sleep on the way over.  Of course we let her stay up a while and play with her cousins because we were after all, on vacation.   Night 1 and she already lost 3+ hours of sleep. 
The next day we hung around their house and then in the evening went swimming with them.  It was so hot there!  YUCK!

Jasmin wanted to go down the slide and Daddy's wasn't fast enough at putting her at the top.  She began to climb up the bottom just a little ways and the turn around and slide on her bum while say, "Weee."  Too cute! 

Jasmin ready to go swimming.

Here is a picture of the slide Kenya went down quite a few times.  3 times by herself.  She got a little scared because as she went down by herself she was turning around and at some points ended up sideways for even head first. 

Look at them!  So cute! 

Going to bed at least 1+ hours late Saturday night.  
Late that night Cheri and I got crafty and made some bows for our girls.  After all they needed ones to wear on the 4th of July.

Sunday we headed to Portland (6 hours) to check out Robert's sister Christine's new house she bought.  On the way there we had to stop for a few minutes at Multnomah Falls.  It is just too beautiful to pass and not stop.

So this picture is great.  I was just holding the camera down to try and get a picture of Jasmin at her level and when I pulled the camera up this is the picture I got.  Stair stepped in the background is Kenya and Robert.  Even funnier is the faces they are making.  This one is worth clicking on to blow up and see the details. 

It was awesome and great to see her decorate and enjoy her very own place!  We had an amazing dinner Christine made and enjoyed being her hospitality and company that evening.  Kenya stayed up late playing with Aunt Christine.  2+ hours of sleep lost again, however she did take 2 naps in the car that day.  The next day we picked up my mom, Granny, from the Portland airport and she stayed with us until our drive home.  It was nice to have an extra set of hands to distract and play with the kids.  After we picked her up we went to Newport where we were staying on the Oregon Coast (3 hours).  
These first few pictures are of the view from our balcony at the hotel.  We loved our hotel!  Every night we were there we slept with the door open and listened to the ocean all night long.  

What was the first thing we did when we got there after unpacking?  Yep, to the beach!

Kenya and Granny were picking up sand and throwing it into the waves. Kenya's first tine on the beach!

Jasmin's first time on the beach. 

Granny and the girls having a blast!

Robert went exploring, of course! 

Granny running from the waves. 

Playing with Daddy on the beach.

Kenya holding her first of several hermit crabs.  She had to hold it on the sand first and then after this first time there was not going back or stopping her from hold crabs on the beach.

Our only family photo on the beach.  Nice, right?  haha

Jasmin holding a hermit crab.  She tried to eat it and the after telling her "no" I thought she was going to crush it because she was holing it so tight!

Kenya fell while playing chase with the waves and got soaked.  After the beach we got back to our room and ate dinner and of course swimming in the pool.  Girls 2+ hours past bedtime.  Robert and I slipped, way while Granny stayed with the girls, for a quite date driving around Newport.  
First thing after breakfast Tuesday morning.... beach!

Kenya and me looking for ocean life and exploring. 

Starfish we saw on Tuesday morning in the tide pools. 

I learned that my favorite part of the beach is looking for ocean life.  I could be there all day observing and searching for them.

We found a ton of hermit crabs with brownish shells and most of them looked a lot alike.  Robert found this striped one that was beautiful. 

This was the littlest crab I had ever seen.  Kenya carried it around for at least 20 minutes.  She kept telling me she was going to take it home and that it was her new friend.  It was adorable to watch her talk to it like it was her own baby.  She was reassuring it and telling it everything was going to be okay.  Just the cutest little thing ever!  She continued to so this will a lot of the crabs over the next several days. 

A starfish Robert found in the middle of the tide pools. 

Kenya loved playing in the sand with her bucket.  

Kenya developed a love her the ocean and the beach just like her Daddy!  Every second we has she wanted to be at the beach in the sand playing.  It would not be right to not mention the main attraction our girls love the most where ever we go.  The dogs.  Both girls were in heaven to talk to dog owner and ask to pet the dogs. 
Tuesday afternoon we went whale watching in Depoe Bay, right after an all you can eat buffet.  We all took a Dramamine just to be safe.   We left our camera at the hotel on accident, so no pictures, bummer!  We had a great time and Robert, Granny and I all saw at least 2 whales.  By that I mean we saw the water spray from their spouts and possibly saw the back of one of the whales.  Kenya says that she saw one too.  Jasmin I think got a little sea sick.  She fell asleep for about half of it.  Poor little girl.  The medicine must have gotten to Robert too because he was pretty hard to even wake on the way back to the harbor.  Kenya was a little timid on the boat at first, but warmed up to it and we all really enjoyed being in the open sea and having fun. 
Later Tuesday evening Robert's siblings were able to join us.  We had a fun time that evening with them.