Science World

Friday, it rained in Vancouver, so instead of going back to Stanley Park, we decide to check out Science World instead. After a mid-morning free bagel stop at a nearby bagel shop, we walked down to the science centre.

Koala family

While Jasper took his morning nap, the adults spent an hour trying and failing to solve mind puzzles. I think we solved about 5 between the three of us.

Jasper solved the puzzles better than us

So many Jaspers!

Science!

All worn out

Vancouver Aquarium

Jasper slept in until 5:30 Pacific time this morning! I think he may adjust to the time difference just in time for us to fly home.

Running around the aquarium

Aunt Pat had to work today, so we decided to take Jasper to the Aquarium. We seem to have hit the sweet spot between summer crowds and school groups, so it wasn't too busy.

Gentle in the touch tank

Jasper was equally interested in the fish, whales and otters as he is in the seagulls and squirrels we saw out in Stanley Park.

Pat measuring his catch of the day

There was a good kids play area that Jasper enjoyed running around in. He especially liked to watch the other kids playing.

Baby seal formula at the animal rescue station

We had planned to also walk around Stanley Park, but ended up staying at the Aquarium until the end of the day.

Staring down a fishy

Back at Aunt Pat's place, we had a nice supper and put Jasper to bed at a reasonable hour for the first time on our trip. Ruby the cat wanted to share Jasper's travel bed. Jasper is equal parts scared and fascinated by Ruby.

Ruby likes the travel crib.

After Jasper went to bed, Pat and I wandered around the neighbourhood at bit. He filled up a growler at one of the many nearby brewpubs, and I got an organic ice cream cone.

Baseball matinee

This morning, we had to pack up and leave our little apartment. It was a great place to stay for a few days. Our host even brought us doughnuts this morning.

Front road seats

We went right down to the baseball park, but instead of going right in, we went for a walk around the Seattle waterfront for a while. We got some Starbucks coffee, but opted not to go to the first location with the giant lineup. It's not hard to find another!

Walking the stairs with Dad

The game today started at 12:40, so we brought in sandwiches for lunch and loaded up on the sunscreen. The game went to extra innings, so it was a long afternoon for the little ones. The Blue Jays ended up losing this one, but they won 2/3, which isn't bad.

Tuckered out

After the game, we parted ways with Aaryn, Stu and Evelyn. It was great to see them again and to meet baby Evelyn. Next time we see her, I'm sure she'll be running around and babbling. We ended up with one photo of the 6 of us at the baseball park. Unfortunately, Evelyn was fast asleep in the carrier.

Group shot at Safeco Field

Since the game went late, we were trying to leave the city right at rush hour. After waiting for 20 minutes just to get onto the on ramp, we decided to abandon ship to have Thai food and wait out the traffic.  Since all of Vancouver seemed to be at the game, traffic and the border crossing were still pretty bad when we did finally leave. Eventually, at about midnight, we made it to Aunt Pat's place in Vancouver.

Discovery Park

It was another beautiful day in Seattle, so we decided to go for a little hike in Discovery Park to check out the views of Puget Sound.

Eating Cheerios (and the occasional rock) at the beach 

It took us a while to find a route down to the beach that was stroller-friendly, but eventually we made it and were rewarded with sparkling waters and mountains in the distance.

Jasper the explorer.

Jasper enjoyed sorting rocks from place to place, just like at the beach at home. Luckily he didn't decide to go for a swim, since we don't have a spare pair of shoes with us.

Hike out to the point

After the hike, we took Jasper to the kids interpretive centre and to play in the park.

Playing at the park

In the evening, it we tried out a local vegetarian diner and then it was off to another baseball game. The Blue Jays won again in front of the "home" crowd.

Green Lake

Jasper had another early morning, but at least he seems to be trending towards sleeping in more. Pat took him for a walk around the neighbourhood and to a local coffee shop before sunrise.

Walking around the block

The AirBnb apartment we rented with Aaryn and Stu is in the Green Lake neighbourhood. It's a nice residential area with lots of kids running around. We encountered two five year old Darth Vaders on our walk around the block.

Neighbourhood explorer

We took the kiddos for a walk around Green Lake, got some groceries and explored the neighbourhood for most of the day before driving down to the baseball park.

Dinner at the ball game.

We arrived very early for the 7pm start, so we sat down in the good seats to eat our dinner. The have lots of food selection at SafeCo field, including veggie dogs and sushi.

Running around in Jersey and PJs.

Jasper was still pretty wired once the sun went down, and he enjoyed running around the upper deck in his PJs. Eventually he fell asleep, and didn't even wake up when the Jays won.

Nap time.

Olympic National Park

Despite his late bedtime, Jasper is was still on Eastern time this morning, so he woke up at 2:45 am local time ready for the day. After trying to get him to go back to sleep with no success, Jasper and I went for a walk around Poulsbo instead. We came across a 24-hour Safeway with a cafe, so we stopped and had breakfast and played for a bit. 

We continued to tour around the town as the sun came up, stopping at a coffee shop and bakery. Poulsbo downtown is Scandinavian themed and set up for lots of tourists. We had the place to ourselves at 6:00am on Sunday morning. Breakfast opened at 7, so we went back to hotel to wake up Pat and start the day.  I had 10,000 steps before 8:00am!

Family photo on Hurricane Hill

Jasper and I napped while Pat drove us to Olympic National Park. We hiked up Hurricane Hill, a very popular and paved 3 mile path. It was steep enough for us pregnant and carrying Jasper.  The views were pretty impressive from the top.

Picnic at the top.

Jasper was in the carrier, and liked to say "hi" and "bye" to other hikers as we passed them on the trail.

Walking close to the edge

After the hike, we stopped at a park in Port Angeles for Jasper to run around and burn some energy. We took the ferry back to Seattle and checked into our Air BnB with Aaryn, Stu and Evelyn. Evelyn is almost as big as Jasper, but she's only 7 months old!

Staying cozy in the wind.

Back to Seattle

Jasper is back on the road, except this time we got a head start and flew to Seattle.

Today was a travel day, starting in rainy Detroit and ending in rainy Washington state. Our flight wasn't until late afternoon, so we spent the morning exploring a mall in Dearborn, MI and getting snack supplies for the trip.  Jasper enjoyed walking up and down the ramps and stairs in the mall.

Play area at Detroit airport

We were really early for our flight, so Jasper had lots of time to play on the moving sidewalks and at the airport play area.

Sorting Cheerios

He did really well on the flight, especially considering it was 3 hours past his normal bedtime by the time we landed. Upon arrival in Seattle, we picked up our rental car and drove about an hour to Poulsbo, on the west side of the Puget sound. Our plan for tomorrow depends on the weather, either exploring Olympic National Park, or taking the ferry back to Seattle.