Solo Trip

I was lucky enough to jet off on my own this last weekend. I flew to Billings, Montana where my sister and her family live. She recently had her third baby and I was eager to see my new niece.

It was quite strange to be traveling all alone. I brought a book, headphones, and plenty of chocolate snacks to get myself through. I had a layover in Salt Lake City. It was nice to see the valley again even if it was just from the air. I got to enjoy some Cafe Rio for dinner! Yum!

The baby snuggles did not disappoint. It was so nice to get a new baby fix. It's hard to believe how small they start out. It definitely does not last long. It's hard to even remember when my own kids were this small. 

Each day we helped take care of the other kids and we spent some time exploring the town. The first afternoon we hit up this fun place called Caramel Cookie Waffles. Their signature item was a this small cookie waffle thing with, you guessed it, caramel. It was really good. We had soup, a pastry and dessert. Yum!

Playing with the kids took lots of our time. We took them out exploring and shopping. It was fun to play with them.

While we were walking though the wetlands area this little cat found us and started following. He stuck pretty close to my heels the entire time. It was adorable. When we got to the parking lot to leave he stopped. It was really hard to leave him. He really seemed to want to go home with us. 

Plenty more time to snuggle the baby! I love how newborns smell. Their little heads are just the best.

On our last day we all drove out to Pompey's Pillar, which is a National Monument. It's where the Lewis and Clark Expedition stopped on their way back. Clark inscribed his name on the side of the large rock formation. It was a really pretty area with the Yellowstone River on one side. The wind was really blowing, but it stayed dry for us.

We spent the rest of our evening relaxing. Baby Reagan was happy to spend more time hanging out with me. Once the kids went to bed, David made us a delicious pizookie. Seriously soooo amazing! This was actually our second one. I forgot to get a picture on that first night.

Heaven in a cast iron

It was really a great trip. I'm so glad that Chris was able to hold down the fort so that I could go. It was fun to hang out again with my mom and sisters. I also got my baby fix taken care of for a while. Newborns are adorable, but so hard too. It's great to be the aunt! Thanks Bree and David for having us!

Quick catch up

We've been staying pretty busy over the last few weeks. School is in full swing and so are the fall sports. Softball has started and now we are running to practices and games almost every day.

We also worked on a small project that involved laying down river rock alongside our house. It was bare dirt before and when it rained it would get pretty muddy. I like the look of the rock much better. Hopefully it will also help the spring weeds stay away too.

On Friday I had another birthday. My 35th. It's hard for me to even type that. For some reason I'm having a much harder time processing this number. Maybe it's the lines on my face that I'm starting to notice, or the fact that it's getting harder to eat what I want and maintain my weight. Who knows? All I know is that this wasn't my favorite birthday ever.

It didn't help that Chris was out of town for it either. I spent the day shuttling the kids around and then we went to their school for a movie on the lawn. It was fun to spend time with them, but it just wasn't what I envisioned for what felt like an important birthday.

I did manage to treat myself to some In N Out for lunch!

All set in the grass for the movie Zootopia!

Chris made it back home on Sunday. He brought me flowers and then he helped the kids make me fondue for dinner and dessert. It was a good day. Thank you to everyone who helped make my day brighter! I'm very appreciative of all the calls, texts, cards, and FB messages. It's always a great reminder of how many people care.

Labor Day Weekend

We were feeling fun and spontaneous this last weekend. There were no games, practices, or projects that required our attention so off we went.

Saturday morning we headed out. It was about a 4 1/2 hour drive north until we reached the beginning of the Redwoods. Our first stop was to the Chandelier Drive thru Tree. It was a pretty impressive tree that happened to be large enough for cars to drive through. The van made it without much room to spare. There were tons of people waiting for their turn so I didn't get a picture of us driving through.

There were picnic tables there that we used for our sandwich lunch. We explored the small gift shop and then walked around a few of the fallen trees. Then it was on the road again.

Our next stop was in a tiny little town that happened to be called Phillipsville. So, yeah, we needed a picture.

We were finally on the scenic highway called the Avenue of the Giants. It parallels hwy 101 for about 32 miles. If you ever get the chance to drive that road I would highly recommend that you take it. It is amazing to just drive through.  There are tons of places to stop and explore along the way. Some are marked trails and others are just places to pull over and look around.

Our first stop was a random place. We found huge stumps and then were able to walk down to the river. The kids had a blast walking in the water and playing with the rocks. 

Next we stopped at the Visitor's Center. They had a pretty interesting set up that told the history of the forest. There were lots of animal skins and interesting displays. We all enjoyed perusing it. Outside they had this weather rock set up. I know this is hard to read, but basically the weather rock is never wrong. If the rock is wet...then it is raining. If it is white...then it is snowing. Etc...

Our next stop was on the map and called Founder's Grove. There is a massive tree there as well as a really nice loop trail to hike. We had a great time snapping selfies, meandering through the giant trees, and just talking with each other. It really was the perfect afternoon.

From there we headed north again to the town of Fortuna. We checked in to our hotel and got pizza for dinner. We were all exhausted after a full day. 

The next morning we at the continental breakfast and set out north again to the city of Eureka. On our way we stopped in a very small town called Loleta. There was a cheese factory there. It wasn't like the big Tillamook one that we are used to, but it was still fun to visit. We sampled probably 30 different cheeses. Outside they kept a beautiful garden complete with a scavenger hunt. The kids enjoyed walking around and crossing things off their lists. We purchased some cheese and were on our way again.

We headed straight to old town Eureka. It was fun to walk along the waterfront and to see the historic old buildings. I especially loved the old two story bookstore. We walked around the fountain and had lunch. Then we set off on a boat tour of the bay. The wind was a bit chilly, but we were prepared.

After our boat ride, we got ice cream cones and then headed to the beach. The sand was warm and it was a beautiful day. We played for a couple of hours before our next stop.

We drove to the end of the north spit where there was a long jetty out to the ocean. The weather was calm, and the tide was going out so we walked to the very end. This was quite the feat. Many areas of the jetty had been washed out and we had to scramble up, down, and around large boulders. It was an accomplishment for sure. The views at the end were worth it. Pics don't do it justice, but it was fun to see the waves rolling into the bay.

We had worked up quite the appetite, so it was off to find dinner. We ended up at a seafood place. The girls had really good clam chowder, and Chris enjoyed his steak. Most of us left a little bit hungry still. Since we were on vacation we stopped at Marie Callenders on the way back to the hotel for dessert. Pie for all! 

The next morning we skipped the hotel breakfast and instead hit up McDonalds. Then it was off to the south again. We again drove along the Avenue of the Giants. We stopped at the Drury Cheney trail. We hiked through really pretty forest. We stopped at another trail as well that went down by a river. We played for while in the water. 

We also stopped at one of those vista overlooks along the main highway. Of course we attempted a family selfie.

This was the best trip! Like one of my very favorites ever. I think maybe it was so fun because we had nowhere to be. We were free to do whatever looked interesting. The kids all said the same thing. I'm so glad that we did it. Now I'm already trying to come up with ideas for our next family roadtrip. Any destination ideas are welcome... Yosemite? Grand Canyon?