Frank's on Whidbey Island

After whale watching we drove to the south end of Whidbey Island for a sleepover at Frank's place on Useless Bay. Elena and Terry had fun in the sand creating animals out of shells and driftwood. Here's the seagull they made.
A friendly kitty lives nearby. The kitty reminded Elena of Maven.
Elena loved spending time with Terry on the beach and on the deck. The house had plenty of children's books for Terry to read.
What a great place to play. We really lucked out with fabulous sunny weather.

After one of the meals, the guys bonded on the deck. Elena was lucky to get invited to their special meeting.
Thanks to Frank and everyone else for a great time and fabulous food!

Thar She Blows!

We went whale watching on the Island Explorer 3. It was a 5 hour adventure that was fun and informative. The crew was great and made sure Elena had a good time.
Yes, we saw whales!


And Dall's Porpoise!

We saw lots of other wildlife too. Who better to narrate our day than Kate the Naturalist on our boat. Here's her whale watching report for Friday, September 26, 2008:

Dall's Porpoise Pretend to be the Southern Resident Orcas!!
"Our day started on one incredible note!! We not only had a couple of Harbor Seals biding for the same rock to haul out on, right outside the marina, but we also have a mature Bald Eagle peering down at us from atop Cap Sante Point!! This all happened within minutes of departing the dock!! Entering into Rosario Strait we found some very surface active Harbor Porpoise, a handful of Marbled Murreletts swimming side-by-side, and an entire colony of Double-crested Cormorants on Birds Rocks!! The Island Explorer 3 ventured into the shallow waters near Colville Island where we found another Bald Eagle, this time perched on top of wildlife refuge sign posted on its shores!! Just below a few Harbor Seals were warming up on the rocky outcroppings, while up on the island we saw 12 Turkey Vultures just sitting and over 30 flying off in the distance over Lopez Island!! As we made our way through the Strait of Juan de Fuca a group of Dall's Porpoise bombarded the boat- seemingly having a great time bow riding as we cruised at 13 knots!! Some of our guests even got sprayed as they surfaced for a quick exhalation!! They carried on playing alongside the boat for at least 10 minutes leading us right to the Orca Whales!!! We first encountered Blackberry (J27) cruising southward before he turned back for a closer inspection of the boat!! We watched as this young 17 year old male worked for a salmon before having some fun with his smaller relative the Dall's Porpoise who decided to try "bow riding" on his rostrum!! A very rare sight!!! The one Dall's Porpoise hung out with Blackberry before trying out another whale before returning again! It wasn't long before Blackberry's attention was diverted from the porpoise to a female Orca!! Their quick direction and behavior change took us off guard and with our engines off we watched as they broke the surface right off our stern in some x-rated activity!! They lingered under the surface close enough we could see their white portions as their bodies fused under the water!! Witnessing the creation of possibly the next generation of Orcas is something quite special!! Our adventure wasn't over we had some great looks at Ruffles (J1) as he gracefully surfaced and a female with her calf even ventured over for a close encounter!! WHAT A DAY!!! After saying our goodbye's to the Orcas we took the scenic route through the inner islands!!!" - Naturalist Kate Janes

Costs an Arm and a Leg (and a bunch of hair!)

Poor Kitty Warrick got beat up and had to get surgery on his bum. He looks silly with his cone and all his missing hair (and a little gross too with the drain tube and stitches in his tail). It got worse after this because the wound opened up and Warrick had to go back and get his stitches redone.And 2 days later, Fat Whitto had to go to the vet for a similar procedure... He has 2 drain tubes on his thigh/back (so no hair there), and stitches on his belly. Our best guess of the attacker is a black and white kitty we've seen in the yard.

oooh, the first day of school

School finally started the last Thursday of September. Elena was very excited to go and make new friends in Miss Katie and Miss Cathy's class. Her new classroom is cute and cozy and has some really neat features like a shelf table that looks out the window where the kids eat - kind of like the counter at a diner. Looking good Elena! Are those grapes behind you ready for eating?

Yay! Swimming with Teacher Patty again!

Elena was so happy to go back to Teacher Patty's blue pool! She took Aubrie with her in the hopes that they could take lessons together. Unfortunately the girls weren't at the same level so Elena is taking her lessons solo (which she's fine with because she ah-dores Teacher Patty).
Even with her summer swimming hiatus, Elena remembered all her skills and could pick up right where she left off back in June - Teacher Patty was very proud of her.

Marymoor Dog Park

I took Rai and Cody to the dog park with Auntie, Mommy, and Zachary. We met Liz and Daisy there.Mommy let me take pictures. Here's Zachary in his carrier.
Rai loves swimming! I help Auntie throw Rai's ball.
Here's Co, Daisy, and Rai. They like each other.
Love, Elena

Elena in Nevada

On this trip to Nevada to visit Great Grandma, we went to Lake Tahoe for a picnic. It was really windy. Too windy for kites, but it was fun getting our hair blown around and the view was gorgeous! Elena and her daddy on the playground testing the communication device.

Great Grandma has lots of rocks and sand in her yard (it's the desert) so Elena made a habitat for her animals.

She used tape, a box, and some shells in her design. Elena had fun at the local swim center. There were buckets that would fill with water and we'd try to be under them when they emptied.
Swimming is hard work though (we were at the pool for a few hours) and Elena fell asleep on the short drive back to Great Grandma's.
What's a trip to Nevada without some gambling? Elena cleaned up at Circus Circus - after playing a bunch of arcade and midway games, she earned a purple flower, a purple sheep, and some candy. Her favorite part of Circus Circus was getting her face painted. She kept that unicorn and rainbow on her face all the way back to Washington!
Elena and Great Grandma bonded over stories and coloring. Thanks for having us at your house!
Much love, Elena and family

Day at the Evergreen State Fair

Auntie went to the fair too! First stop - pony rides! My pony's name is Honey. It looks wet out, but it didn't rain all day!

We stopped at the Home Depot booth and I made a tile. It's a purple and blue unicorn. Mommy is displaying the tile on the window sill in the kitchen.
Snack time! Cotton candy for me (purple cotton candy) and a scone for Auntie. Mommy got a coffee.
I liked this baby cow and took a picture. I took lots of pictures of cows, pigs, and goats. I liked the little goats that had playgrounds.
I rode a green tractor and a red tractor.
And I went on 2 rides!!! I went on this swing ride by myself and on the bug coaster with Lisa from Auntie's library. Mommy says next year I'll be big enough for the big roller coaster and lots of other rides - I can't wait!Love, Elena

NW Trek

On an August Sunday, the whole family went to NW Trek.

NW Trek is a wildlife park that is the home for animals native to the northwest. We saw a porcupine, badger, beavers, otters, and skunk in their individual habitats before boarding the tram that took us through a large, shared habitat.
On the tram we learned about the history of the land, saw lots of animals including moose, elk, and bison, and witnessed some beautiful views.

After the tram ride, we went to view the carnivores - bears, coyotes, foxes, and big cats. Elena loved every bit of NW Trek but found the tram ride a little too long (thank goodness for snacks!). On the trails, she was unhappy with the stinky smell caused either by a nervous fox or a skunk. She enjoyed the art projects and amphibians in the interpretive center, especially the silly looking salamanders!

Attention all Montage readers:

Sorry for the slow posting... We had an overload of things going on and updating the blog was low priority. We've gone to the fair, NW Trek, whale watching, and Nevada - prepare yourself for all the pictures and videos we'll be posting before September is over! Elena and Zachary are in a box because we've moved (another reason the blog hasn't been updated)! Change of address etc. notifications have gone out, but if you haven't received one let us know.