Road Trip with Papa

10 July 2009My Dad came to visit on Monday, 06 July -- He's been able to do all sorts of exciting things -- like watch me sew buttons on a wall-hanging, sit at Jiffy Lube, walk through Fred Meyer and sit by himself for long periods of time and read a book or two. I have felt so bad for boring him for so many days -- but he says he's content (would that mean bored?) to just be with us. We love having him here for whatever time he has to spend and we are so thankful for the time he takes to drive up and spend with us.

Jon didn't have a lot of time to take off work, but we stole away today-- he mapped out a route for a roap trip -- you know how we like those. The photo above was taken as we headed North on the I-405. We took the Mukilteo Ferry to Clinton, on Whidbey Island.
Kyle and I -- self-portrait....

Kyle brought along his I-pod and he danced and sang for a good portion of the day. I love to listen to him sing -- the words are mostly grunts, but he's getting better at approximating a tune and I get some of his words.......It truly doesn't matter, because he knows what he singing and he's enjoying it -- and the scriptures say, "The song of the heart is a prayer unto me." And he sings with all his heart.Arriving in Clinton, Washington -- the pylon was a momentary roosting spot to several seagulls.
We drove across Whidbey Island and sat in line for the Keystone to Port Townsend Ferry
While we waited for the ferry we went down to the beach where Jon fed popcorn to the seagulls and Kyle fed them cold french fries -- see how much better he did with climbing over the driftwood......he didn't want to stay to throw rocks though, because he was worried about missing the boat and worried about Papa, who stayed in the car.
Feeding the birds....woohoo it was good for some laughs!

We were told when we got in line for the ferry that most likely we wouldn't make it on for the 12 o'clock sailing because we didn't have reservations (Who knew you needed reservations for this ferry in the summer?).....so we waited -- but we got on! They packed that ferry tight...Jon could open his door -- but just barely and if not for the sliding doors you couldn't have gotten out at all on the passenger side. Papa stayed in the car -- Kyle and Jon went up on the passenger deck and I took photos to document our leaving and the tight squeeze.
Jon and Papa -- we got on the boat -- hooray!

Did I mention that we were trying to get home by 5 p.m. when Scott would get off work. He worked the early shift today, so he had a rare evening off.
Kyle--have you seen such a nervous face? He was not at all sure about getting out of the car and exploring the ferry -- it was a bit overwhelming -- but he did it. I find Kyle to be a most courageous person -- he's very often faced with moments and tasks that severely challenge his comfort zone -- and while he may resist -- he usually tries and that is the definition of courage -- facing your fear and coming off conqueror.
Leaving KeystoneWe had an absolutely gorgeous day! Sunshine -- cool breeze -- good company -- Kyle was worried that I wasn't getting in the car -- we were docking at Port Townsend and I was standing on the deck taking pictures -- this could not be good -- it was kind of funny though. He kept patting the seat and saying, "Mama -- get in."The courthouse in Port Townsend. Jon drove all over to find this building so that I could get a picture -- when you are coming into Port Townsend on the ferry -- you see this gorgeous building and I could only get fuzzy and blurry photo's because we were moving -- but, Jon, drove around so I could get a good clear photo.

We stopped to eat lunch -- at the Lighthouse Cafe --

let this be a lesson to you -- if you come into a restaurant at lunch time and there is no one there -- don't stay--and don't stay if it's an "all-american" cafe decorated in Chinese decor.....you can eat it -- but it's not the best.....

I was trying to take a photo of Kyle and he lifted his head, so I got his neck, so Papa held his head down....he thought that was funny.
Port Townsend Lighthouse

We drove from Port Townsend to Kingston to catch the ferry to Edmonds. Kyle was excited because he'd seen a horse trailor and when we boarded the ferry, the horses were next to us! How exciting. The cars were on either side of us -- waiting for the 3:45 p.m. sailing.

We got home, picked up Scott, retrieved Derek who had stayed home and went to dinner at Outback Steakhouse -- it was the most exciting day that poor Papa's had since he got here -- and it was fun....I hope he enjoyed it as much as we did.