A Three-Hour Tour

We said our goodbyes to everyone this morning and hopped in the car on our way out of Canada. We had just turned out of the driveway when Melina started wailing, “I MISS MY COUSINS!!” It was sad and sweet but mostly hilarious so of course I grabbed my phone and recorded some of it. I’ll send it to the family later as it was the perfect ending to her insane behavior with the family. She was so crazy and over-excited to be with her cousins that she seriously couldn’t control herself and was an uncharacteristically difficult child when everyone was around. But as soon as it was just our family she was back to angelic. Hopefully next year she’ll have matured a bit and her cousins can see the real Melina!

So of course I wanted to see the seals one last time before leaving so we again visited the pier to show Diane. We also saw starfish and a gigantic jellyfish in the water, so it was doubly exciting for all. Then we drove into Sidney to catch our ferry to Anacortes, Washington. While waiting I grew more and more nervous about what I had heard referred to as the “yo-yo ferry,” especially upon realizing I had left the dramamine at home. My tension mounted as the ferry pulled from the dock and I realized it was a three hour ride, a detail I’d forgotten since planning the trip, and Diane was nearing nap time (the train ride to Seattle was still to fresh in my memory). But all my apprehension was completely unwarranted, as it turned out to be a perfectly smooth and gorgeous two-hour journey where we gazed at beautiful island scenery and pods of dolphins. 

 The girls were fantastic and before we knew it we were back in the car clearing customs with Diane fast asleep and Melina happily playing the “quiet game,” her new favorite (much to Zach’s delight). Then we made what turned out to be our fatal mistake: we woke Diane to visit the Arts Festival in Anacortes. Diane wanted to touch everything and Melina fell asleep in the stroller and we had to bribe her with twizzlers to keep her from screaming once back in the car. Then Diane cried almost the entire way to Seattle in a way that we know now for sure can only mean one thing: carsickness. We averted danger but it meant making many stops along the way which forced us to use the horrible port-a-potties in the Washington gas stations (YUCK what is wrong with a state that doesn’t have real bathrooms near the highway?!?) and we arrived in Seattle late, hungry, and cranky. 

Thankfully our luck again turned and our Hostel in Fremont turned out to be a gem with a large and cheap room for our family, and we remembered that the wonderful Juan had pointed out a nearby perogie joint so the decision for dinner was easy and tasty. And to top it off, the baby monitor reaches to the street below the hostel so after finally getting the girls to bed Zach and I enjoyed some ice cream together outside. 

Hopefully our trip home tomorrow will be so uneventful that I don’t need to write anything, so this may be my last entry on this trip. It was tough but I’m so glad I did this, and thanks for your support-  this journal sure will come in handy when I make our photo album!

I’ll start planning next year’s trip on the flight home…