Who knew the grocery store was only a hayride away??!!

Each year on Whidbey Island there is a farm tour and we decided we just couldn't pass it up! On our list of must-visit places was an Alpaca Farm, Blueberry Farm, and the 3 Sisters Family Farm (Grass Fed Beef).  After taking Bentley Bear on a nice morning walk we jumped in the car and began our farm tour! One thing we love to do is just drive around Whidbey Island and look at the beautiful landscape and homes. While the history is certainly not as old as Virginia, there is still a lot to learn and see. Some of the highlights from our farm tour:

1. Tasting and buying some delicious honey and BBQ Blueberry sauce at the Blueberry Farm. 

2. Feeding one of the alpacas at the Alpaca farm and realizing that they tickle your hand when they eat. 

3. Taking home some farm fresh hot dogs and cage free eggs from 3 Sisters Family Farm.

Lastly, my wonderful fourth grade students from Arlington Traditional School, gave me a gift certificate to dinner at the Oystercatcher. We decided it would be a great date night after a long first week of school and before Robert left for a training. The quaint and cozy restaurant is located in Coupeville and has been raved about by newspapers near and far. The menu changes every couple of weeks and you find yourself wanting to order everything. The chefs are fantastic and so welcoming as they work their magic in the kitchen. We already made reservations for Mom and Dad Thacher as the restaurant is closing in January!!! They are moving to NC of all places, so we might have to pay them a visit in future years :) What a beautiful and wonderful gift my students and classroom parents gave us!!!

Oystercatcher: 

http://www.oystercatcherwhidbey.com/

I added some photos of my new second grade classroom! You will notice the ceilings are much shorter and the room is much smaller, but the love for teaching is still present. I have to admit the first couple of days were difficult with the constant talk of nap time and potty time, but I have become used to a slower pace and enjoy their funny quirks. 

The beautiful blueberry farm

Amazing Alpacas

Thank you for your eggs!

A very friendly and hungry little man

I wish I could relax like this all the time :)

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Perfect date night at the Oystercatcher!

Using the BBQ sauce at our cook out this coming weekend!

Step into my classroom!

I had to bring my kiddos from Arlington.

They truly are my little "Incredibles." 

No One Should Be Crabby When Their Pots Are Full!

The past two weeks have been filled with BBQ's, wonderful time with new faces and friends, and WORK! Robert has been more busy now that the summer vacations are coming to a close and I have been busy preparing my classroom for a new set of second grade students. In addition to prepping my classroom, after completing the Ombudsman course, I graduated as a Naval Ombudsman with the intent of serving in this position in the future. Bentley has been busy chewing up some furniture and spending time with his new love, Ms. Piggy. Needless to say, we have found time to relax and enjoy life on Whidbey Island. I apologize that the next couple of weeks will be scarce with pictures and updates, but we will try our best to keep y'all posted! We realized the other day that Robert has been here for over three months and I for over two months. Time flies by when you are having fun! While we both are missing the start of JMU Football season, we balance it with a nice sunset ride on the boat while cheering for our JMU DUKES! I even bought Robert a purple and gold Dr. Suess hat to wear in honor of GAMEDAY!

I asked him if he had any last words...
he didn't, but tasted good!

Hopeful of catching some crabs with the Dohm's

Ms. Piggy who is already missing his ears,
tail, and stuffing!

Not so lucky...

NHOH Ombudsman Graduation

Bentley loves to do what his dad does!

We think he may have been a model in his past life!

Lesson planning was much better with this view :)

The many crab legs (picking them is a lot of work!)

The other "Crawford's" on the island joined us for a beautiful day.

These chatty kathy's were quite loud and huge!

Date night at the drive-in movie theatre!

Waiting for the sun to go down to see "Brave."

Taking up a taste for crab and other goodies!

We decided while in Washington we mine as well obtain our fishing and crabbing license. The biggest thing is gathering the materials for the crab pots and making sure you know what you are doing. The crabs out here are definitely bigger and different from the ones of the Eastern Seaboard. With the help of some new friends and their advice, we succeeded in our first crabbing adventure.

In addition to crabbing we have enjoyed spending time with new friends and faces in the area. I, Shannon, was able to spend time with the one connection I had to the small town of Oak Harbor, WA. The wonderful new family and friend, Kathryn, is a woman Nana babysat back in Portsmouth, VA. She also happens to be the music teacher at Oak Harbor Elementary where I will be teaching second grade this year! Her girls are adorable and know stories about Nana. Nana's ceramics are all around her house here in Oak Harbor and she has told me stories of Nana from their times spent together in Virginia. There is NO doubt in all of our minds that Nana has been looking down with a smile on us and watching over us here on Whidbey Island.

Robert spent this past Saturday evening at a men's Poker night and I am happy to report he won some $$$. While he was at poker I popped over to our neighbor's house and spent time meeting their friends and family at their "Italian Dinner" party. They certainly are warm and welcoming people here on the island. Lastly, Bentley had his first play date with an 11 week old German Shepherd puppy who is absolutely adorable. Unfortunately, Bentley can be a little intimidating and overly outgoing which made befriending the smaller puppy more difficult. He is still learning how to interact with other puppies and we enjoyed spending time with some new friends over a delicious steak and salmon dinner. We are certainly starting to feel at home in Oak Harbor, WA.

A small view at the beginning preparation of my
new second grade classroom

The desks are certainly smaller than my old
fourth grade classrooms, but I still overlook the
playground and am across from the bathrooms!

I grabbed tea at the local tea room downtown with Kathryn
and her beautiful girls!

Preparing our first crab pot

Bentley and Koda at their play date!

The adorable town of Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands.

Robert did a fantastic job docking the boat at the marina. We had to
travel over rough waters to arrive at the San Juan Islands, but it was
well worth it and only took 45 minutes.

We were able to see many sea lions and even some dolphins
on our trip back home!

Bentley was a trooper through the rough waters!

Preparing for crab pot #2 and hoping no one steals the second pot!

Excited and eager to see what our crab pot has brought in! We waited and watched for any poachers.

The pot certainly weighed more and we were sure we caught some crabs before
even seeing into the pot. We had to quickly figure out what to do with all the crabs.

Time to pull them out, size them up, and either throw them back or keep them!

We were able to take home three large Dungeness crabs!

Life is always BETTER while on the water (or so we think)!

Our first look at the boat and Bentley approved!

We even have a place to spent the night while anchored
around the various islands.

We did it!!! Very excited to spend our weekends cruising around Washington and
British Colombia. Our 21 foot Bayliner 2152 will be great for catching salmon, cruising around, and crabbing!

You can't beat the views you see from the water in Washington.
We love the fact that we have mountains, water, farms, and hills all in one place!

Beautiful day to take the boat home!

Ending our first day out on the boat on a high! 

Deception Pass

Bentley is ready to go and looking safer than ever!

There are many swells you have to travel through when going under
Deception Pass. The boat certainly rocks and jumps, but as long as you hold on
and enjoy the ride you are fine! 

One of the most interesting homes we have ever seen!  Which one do you think it is?!!

On our way to Port Townsend

Port Townsend

Port Townsend Lighthouse standing strong!

So long Deception Pass, until next weekend when we visit the San Juan Islands!