Emmett turns 7 and grandsons hunt bullfrogs

Since their grandson, Emmett, was born seven years ago, Jani and Gary have tried to visit Wyatt, Sara and their family twice a year. Early visits featured lots of sightseeing and few ferry rides, as the young couple lived on the mainland in West Seattle. Later visits proved to be more frenetic. Wyatt and Sara moved across Puget Sound to Vashon Island, and the only way off the island was by ferry. Between work schedules and off-island adventures, it seemed as if every outing required complex calculations.

Ironically, with the advent of COVID visiting became less complicated. Sara and Wyatt – both are lawyers – were working from home; their sons were schooling locally – in pods (Emmett has since gone back to school). Absent the scheduling considerations, island life became more … relaxing. Gary and Jani never left the island this trip, save for when they returned to the airport, and were happy to share a low-key, more personal visit, satisfied with enjoying some family time.

If there was a highlight, it was watching Emmett, Luca and their friend Ruby exuberantly searching a pond and adjacent fields for frogs and other critters that either hopped or crawled. Their delight when they managed to catch a huge bullfrog is more than evident in the video below.

Of course, there is more to do on Vashon Island than catching frogs. There were two birthday parties for Emmett: one at the local theater, for kids, and another at Sara and Wyatt’s house for the adults (and kids). Gary and Jani visited Sara’s parents in their new house on adjacent Maury Island and took a pleasant walk around their new neighborhood, overlooking Puget Sound.

No trip to Vashon Island is complete without a visit to the “Bad Dad Skateboard/Bike Park”, where Emmett and Lucs demonstrated their bike-riding skills. There was also a visit with Monica, the beautiful Jersey heifer that hangs out nearby.

APRIL VISIT TO VASHON ISLAND PHOTO GALLERY

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