Happy Birthday, Bayley!

When we put Bayley to bed on his birthday, he declared that he had the best 6th birthday ever. I'd have to agree. I doubt anyone could have a better day, or do more. Heck, most kids don't get to do this much in an entire vacation!

No surprise...Bayley wanted the beach for his birthday. We woke up and headed out, trekking to Astoria and starting at the Martime Museum. The boys liked the tugboat exhibit and the vertical Coast Guard boat. While there, we saw a gallery about shipwrecks and Bayley decided he needed to see one. Lucky for us (and truly unlucky for the ship) the most photographed shipwreck is only a few miles away.

A bonus to the Maritime Museum...the Lightship Columbia. Floating Museum and Lighthouse in one (for 101 Before 12). The boys liked climbing on the bunks.

Onward to the beach and the wreck of the Peter Iredale. The water in Astoria is actually warmer than we expected, and it was a beautiful day. We just thought the huge shipwreck was all that was left of the ship. Not so. Hayden tripped and scraped his leg on a smaller bit hidden by the surf. We moved down the beach and all was well.

They got to try out new buckets and shovels, and Bayley tried his hand at body surfing. Hayden preferred to jump over the waves as they came in. And then after a bathroom break...they ran the dunes!

After we dried off...we explored Fort Stevens. The Fort was active from the Civil War until WW2. We climbed all over, exploring the batteries and the lookouts, the blacksmiths shop and the cannons.

Thought we were done? No way...they had a Native American long house like the ones Lewis and Clark found families living in. The boys thought it would be fun...again because of the bunk beds. See a recurring theme? Not sure why Jeff is against the bunk at this point.

After our LONG day, we still weren't finished. There was dinner to be had. And what does a 6 year old want for dinner? Pizza... at an arcade! To make it even better, Bay won a stuffed Curious George!

For once...they dropped right off to sleep!