This summer will be remembered as the summer of challenges. From dealing with truck issues to the myriad of health issues that plagued the Dicken Clan! Ending with me breaking my toe just before we left! (Fellow RVers you know the hazards of sock feet and those steps from the bedroom! Slip! Ouch!!)
Yet, we still managed to squeeze in lots of Family time! Grand time! Lake time! And time for a wedding!
Grand Time
This craziness of getting the transmission replaced on the dually prevented us from taking the Grands camping, but we still had many precious times together! Zoo trips, Christmas shopping, several spend the nights at their new home in Marysville and a special adventure to Anacortes.
Anacortes is a historic little seaside city on Fidalgo Island. I thought it would be fun to see, so I packed up my Grands and “made” them go with me! First stop was at Seafarers Memorial Park, a sweet spot with a protected bay for boats to dock. Fun to watch the fishing boats coming in and the gulls diving for a tasty morsel. There’s a beautiful statue memorializing the local men and women who have lost their lives at sea. Our picnic lunch was interrupted by swarming bees. After a quick escape and another round of Chinese fire drills where I made them switch seats after every stop, we headed downtown to look for souvenirs. Then off to Ship Harbor Interpretive Preserve. It’s a nice hike with access to the beach. Fun place to explore and watch the ferries. With the hopes of spotting whales, our last venture was to Washington Park with it’s amazing views of the San Juan Islands. Be prepared to drive slow through the one way loop or you’ll miss the places to pull off and explore the rocky tide pools or just sit on the many benches and watch your Grands being silly! No whales were sited, but the views were breathtaking. We never found any souvenirs either, but we did collect some driftwood to create our own with the wood-burning thingy I brought. #craftswithgma
I put my Sedgwick County Zoo membership to good use visiting the reciprocal zoos in the area several times! Woodland Park Zoo is tucked into the busyness of Seattle, so driving there was an experience for me! Be prepared to pay for parking. (Did I mention it was in Seattle!) The zoo itself is average. Lots of animals off exhibit for rebuilding and, of course, the Avian Flu. Not the easiest zoo to navigate, but it was still very pretty and we definitely got our steps in! The other zoo we visited several times was Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma. Just WOW! The aquarium is incredible! This is a must see zoo! On my 2nd trip with Delaney, we read every sign and did every quiz. We both learned so much! Several zoo staff commented on her “I wanna be a marine biologist” T-shirt!
Grand Nights
Exploring with Evan. The inquisitive, problem solver. He’s the epitome of his Grandpa John. Always eager to learn a new skill, from fixing bikes to putting on shocks. With Papa John as his teacher, there’s nothing he won’t try! And, he still loves going on adventures with me! 🌼🌸🌺 Did I mention his amazing athletic ability! ⚽️
Shopping with Katy, my Joy! This Chick is so full of beauty both inside and out! 👠💃 Her love and kindness shines in everything she touches! ❤️ From making me an apron to baking brownies for Papa John! And she even wore my Kansas City T!
Laughing with Coltan. The elder of the bunch will be driving soon. And of course, who gave him his first lesson…Papa John! In our dually! 🛻 He also became an expert at driving around the lake! Meanwhile, his witty nature continues to crack me up! I love that this thoughtful soul gets me! 🤪 Two peas!
Speaking of two peas brings me to the youngest of the clan, Delaney Grace. She’s my mini-me Lorax with her undying love of all critters great and small. She will be the next Jaques Coustea! 🐋🐬🦭🐟🐙🦋🕷🦗 I can’t get enough of her!
Lake Time
Summer in Seattle = Lake Time at the Lund’s! Sister Sherry and Stan hosted many family gatherings and lots of spur of the moment fun just playin’ in the water together! A super special treat was meeting our cousins from Maryland, Glenette and Dave. They flew out for a weekend full of fun!
Christmas Time
The Dicken Summer Christmas celebration is becoming an annual event! 🎄🤶🎅❤️ And I love that we are keeping our family traditions alive! Spending the Night with the Britt, Matt, and the Grands, Gma Jan’s Christmas Story, Papa John’s Pancake Breakfast, and the Dicken Clan Gift Exchange. The gifts are always so thoughtful, you can tell by the expressions on the faces of the recipients! 🙂
Time for a Wedding
Watching John give his daughter, Shelly, to the love of her life was a time full of love and a few tears! A beautiful beach wedding in Ocean Shores, WA on June 24th was followed by a family and friends reception in August. Lots of dancing, toasting, and a gorgeous cake decorated by Brittany! We are blessed to welcome Brandon into the Dicken Clan. Besides the moving father daughter dance to Butterfly Kisses, my other favorite memories were the something old…a wrench Shelly used when she was John’s pit crew in his Corvette racing days that I wrapped in flowers for her bouquet. And the something borrowed, my Momma’s pearls that I wore in my wedding.
Time @ South Prairie RV Park
We do enjoy this park in South Prairie, Washington. It’s close to shopping in Bonney Lake and Enumclaw and about 30 minutes from Mom and Sherry. We caught up with old friends and made new friends. Lots of memories from puppy sitting Fen to watching football with a Bills fan! Wish y’all the best and hope to see you down the road!
Happy-Sad as we start our fall migration back to the Lowcountry. Happy to see more of this beautiful country; sad to say goodbye to our Dicken Family!
