1 Really trying to get a nice picture of Sam...good luck with that! We are out on a bike/run. Such a nice time.
2 Waterfall with swimming hole below...near Dosewallups River. We are with good friends Annie and her clan.
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5 Very cold water but Sam loved it. I tried to stand up on that log - not very stable!
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7 Reminds me a lot of Hawaii.
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11 A great trail Dave found - Steam Donkey trail. 3.5 miles, rolling terrain, lots of maples which would look great in the fall.
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13 Tons of little bridges. 16 in all?
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15 Huckleberry bear constantly stopping for berries!
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19 And again!
20 Beautiful sunlight peeking through!
21 Huckleberry bear!
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23 Daddy stopped, too!
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25 Love this one!
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27 These black slugs always remind me of a hike with the boys on Mt. Constitution. We were not on the right trail, and we made a mental note of a particular black slug on a particular stump so we could find our way back. We called her "Licorice."
28 Two trees fell down together - very shallow roots on fir trees.
29 Ok - trying again for all four in a shot!
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33 Funny what all the mouths chose to do.
34 Dave looks questioning here.
35 Annie and her daughter :)
36 Beautiful end to the hike. So peaceful along the river.
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41 Final tournament of the season! Ooooh...kinda sad!
42 Awards ceremony.
43 My good friend, Basia :)
44 Sam taking his medal.
45 Ben, Alex and Sam recognized for their fundraising efforts with egg selling and sign-spinning. Ben wasn't even on the team yet. This dear lady made an award just for him to recognize his efforts. It was so nice.
46 Grand Forest!
47 Long hill. Daddy is very good with #2, who tends to be a bit vocal about challenge.
48 They made it!
49 Snacks on Hilltop! Great views of the mountains but hard to capture on camera over those trees.
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53 Awesome visit from Brendan, Leocadia and their two girls who were traveling around the Pac NW from Virginia! SOOO great to see these Hawaii friends!
54 A walk in Fort Ward - lots of blackberries coming into ripeness!
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57 Some spontaneous adventuring...
58 Doesn't this look like elephant skin? SO interesting.
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61 The tide is coming in!
62 We're hanging on like this tree, trying to skirt the shorelines to a couple little tucked-in beaches.
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65 Sparrow still doing well! Almost a month into the grand integration!
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68 Going to a rock show in Edmonds. I am convinced this is an aboriginal tool. Think anyone will agree with me?
69 Getting thunder eggs cut in half. Always fun!
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71 And now to Play-it-Again in Lynnwood (AGAIN!) for more gear. This time ICE HOCKEY! Trent is sharpening blades on a pair of used Bauers.
72 Ben made this arrangement on the ferry table with his rock show loot.
73 More Olympic Discovery Trail exploring - this time in Port Townsend.
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76 You bike 7.5 each way through many great trails and farms. Hard to decide which of these bike trails I like the most!
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78 Can you barely see Rainier above that little bridge between two land masses?
79 Just a sampling of the trails in the next series of photos.
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85 This is where I want to live. The area is peaceful, near the water, and has LAND near TRAILS for HORSES!
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88 See???
89 Oh my goodness! SO CUTE!
90 When I try to take picture while biking, the white balance is totally off! Dumb smartphone!
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92 Going back to Port Townsend.
93 Dave does not like it when we get under foot for this portion of the adventure. Somehow Ben made three of the four bikes fall to the ground in totally innocent maneuvers! Not fun!
94 We stumbled into the Jefferson County Fair for dinner!
95 The boys bought a box of rocks for $10!
96 Like the outfit? They are seeing how high they can flick a hockey ball.
97 And how many taps. Sam is up to 16 I think?
98 This strikes fear in Sam and my hearts! Where is that ball going to go?!
99 More rock cracking!
100 Bainbridge Island Mining Company at home and at large!
101 I found picture jasper, I think!
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103 Buying 50 lbs of chicken feed then biking home with it. AND 10 lbs of rocks. UGH!
104 Next day Ben had an ear infection. But the PA couldn't see his ear drum due to too much WAX. So she irrigated it. FUN!
105 Sam was beside himself with this gory task! But she got a lot out. Thankfully...although Ben still says "WHAT?" a lot!
106 And the same week as the ear infection, I am beset by a mite infestation of Armageddon-like proportions. In the chicken coop, I should clarify.
107 Ben is going to help me use some unconventional warfare techniques to kill them. I've already lost four birds in three days to anemia. They just keeled over dead as a doornail with no signs of distress the previous day.
108 Out on a hike with Ingunn and Esther!
109 Can you see the owl we found!? HUGE eyes just staring at us! A bit creepy!
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111 Sam has a friend over who also enjoys playing the guitar.
112 But they soon ventured outside for mining!
113 And look who else wanted to help!
114 Hi Gordon! This is a bit morbid, but I'm photographing the chickens because I don't know who will fall the next night. I hope all survive this mite infestation and my efforts prove to be sufficient, but we are very sad to lose four hens. We certainly don't want to lose Gordon or Sparrow. I had to box up three hens and ship them via FEDEX to the Avian Health and Food Safety Lab for necropsy. The lady at the shipping store was a big help but she was a bit out of her element...laughing about trying to keep them cold so they don't stink, what size box, more plastic needed to keep the ice from condensing and getting the box wet, etc.
115 Walk the plank, Sparrow!
116 Sparrow looking on...
117 Talking about something in Minecraft I think...while doing actual "mining."
118 Just a sample of summer with Campbell watching the boys (and some other neighborhood kids) while I ride. We are so fortunate to have found a guy who is a good sports buddy AND a mentor in computer programming, roboto building, etc.!
119 Sam and his buddy Alex are making robots to battle each other. This is Sam's.
120 They battled and modified for hours! Then pizza and fire.
121 Sparrow likes hanging out on the roof of the coop at night!
122 This is where Sparrow likes to roost now!
123 Battle Bots at our house! Sam and Alex have built robots to battle each other. Sam is sharing the controller with a friend right now so he can battle Alex's robot. The boys loved it! They would build, battle, then retool.
124 Alex's "grabber" claws were very effective at trapping.
125 Off to the field at school for a little football tossing!
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127 Like the little side-kick-buck? That was fun! This is at a dressage clinic where I am trying to master canter departs from the walk.
