camping

We took Oliver on his first camping trip to South Whidbey State Park this weekend with our friends Kaila, Mike and their dog Zartan. The reason for going to Whidbey Island is because there is a dog-friendly beach where dogs can actually be off leash! In Washington State, dogs are not allowed on most beaches, so this was an awesome find. Penny was pooped by the time we got home :)

Oliver had a great time too (the weather cooperated!), and I think he would prefer to be camping all the time. He was also really well behaved and camping went more smoothly than Nick or I anticipated. He was good about the fire pit, except for sometimes wanting to put too much wood on :) and he hardly ever wandered out of our site. He did great on the hike that we took and loved the beach. The tent was also a big hit as Oliver continues to sleep in one every night in his room. As soon as it was assembled, he was calling it his bed.

 The family camping next to us had a little boy Oliver's age and last night Oliver decided he wanted to share his tractor (that Kaila bought him). He shyly walked over to show the other little boy, who was equally shy. After the tractor finally switched hands, Oliver walked back to our campsite and showed up shortly after with a log for their fire. He apparently thought their fire wasn't quite adequate (it was much smaller than ours) so he put a log onto their fire for them. He's such a nice boy :)

first awake ferry ride!

a bit too windy for Oliver

comfy in the car

happy Penny after a long walk and lots of ball chasing

traveling in style

Kaila taught Oliver how to dig for clams

leaping over the waves to catch her ball

watching Penny

look at my shells!

family photo attempt

i found something else

Kaila also taught him how to roast marshmallows (or rather catch them on fire)

eating the only part of the s'more he likes, the graham cracker

trying to smash an uncooked marshmallow onto a graham cracker

he loved sitting in the warm sand. he actually refused to get up when it was time to go.