We were lucky enough to get to go to Oregon for Labor Day Weekend.  We car pooled over there with Darin and the kids.

We all left on Friday afternoon.  With 5 kids in the car I have to say it went a lot smoother than I imagined it would.  I sat up front with Darin while Greg was in the back with the kids.  It was pretty hilarious listening to him dealing with the kids demands for the next movie, drinks and snacks.  We didn’t have to stop too much and made it by 11ish I think.

We got up Saturday and headed to the beach to go crabbing.  My best friend and her family managed to make it over as well.  It was nice being able to share some of our traditions on the coast with them.  Scott and the boys also made it down.  I love getting together with everyone, even with 1 bathroom, LOL!

I love creating these memories for my kids with family and friends.  We basically started the summer at the ocean on the east coast with family and ended it on the ocean in the west with family and friends.  It is a summer I am so grateful for and will remember forever.  I am so thankful for the opportunities we’ve had.

Went a little sappy there for a second….back to the basics.  I don’t think we planned to just be at the beach all day but that’s what happened.  The weather was really nice and the kids just played in the sand and water for hours while switching in and out of the boat.

The crabbing was ok.  I have never seen that many pots in the water before, they were everywhere.  It worked out though because that just meant we could spend more time out there instead of limiting out and moving on.

The kids found a huge fish head that was used for bait and washed up on shore, they thought it was fun to bury it.

One of my favorite pictures of the whole trip, love all the cousins together dirty from sand, exploring the rocks and making silly faces.

I had never seen jelly fish this color before.  They were everywhere and very close to the shore it looked like a giant egg yoke.

After the day at the beach we went back to the house to have dinner.  Amy and her family came too.  The kids all just ran around the house playing.  Greg cooked the crab and Amy and I helped in the kitchen.  The dinner was delicious!  I didn’t take a single photo but luckily LaRee did and I snagged a few of hers.