The TRIP!

 

The TRIP!

Before Dave started NP school, we knew we wanted to do a big vacation/trip at the end of it to celebrate and be together for the first time in in years. There was much debate and deliberation-but I knew if I mentioned the word "RV" he'd be in.

Well, on July 28th Dave turned in his last assignment! The rest of the week we began our preparations and on Friday the 2nd we did the big pack up. The day was actually really crazy-we had had attempted 3 different RV trips to make sure things we were working-and each trip things we not working. It was SO hot, and I came down with a terrible cold. We were on track to leaving at 6am. But at 3pm the truck wouldn't turn on in the Home Deport parking lot. And our RV was blocking our driveway. I didn't know what to do, so continued to pack like normal and boy did I start saying some prayers. Dave struggled in the heat all day trying to figure out what was wrong. His Dad towed the truck to my parents garage. at 9pm I was afraid to ask Dave what our status was-but still he told me he didn't know what was wrong-and I cried.  We all went to bed. Dave came home at 10:30 and told me the truck was fixed! Nothing short of a miracle, prayers answered!

We didn't leave at 6am-but as we drove away I cried again! Dave and I were both so nervous and we couldn't believe what we had planned for so long was actually happening-and we were so nervous. The first day we traveled to Redland CA, and just stayed the night at a Rock Gym parking lot. I had blew the generator fuse popping pop corn and we had no AC! It was sooooooooo hot!!! We were so glad to get out of there! 

Monterey CA was were were made it to next-and miraculously the AC was fixed! More prayers answered! But the weather was perfect and it was right by the ocean! We explored Cannery Row/Downtown and made the kids try crab. Even Allie didn't think it was that offensive.

Monday the 5th we went to Point Lobos State Park. SO beautiful! There were tons of coves and bright blue water. We then miraculously found parking at Carmel beach, the sand was white! It's right next to Pebble beach and the town of Carmel was just gorgeous!

When we arrived in San Francisco-it was foggy, windy, and so cold! I thought of my friend Beth every moment we were in San Fran! We went from sweating, to perfect, to freezing! Our RV park was right by the beach and you could see the white caps! The worst of my cold was behind me-thank goodness. We had a half day so headed to Golden Gate Park. We explored the Japanese Garden because I wanted to, Dave and  Will looked like they were board out of their minds! But the girls and I loved the short stroll through.

We rented bikes and after the girls got used to breaking and shift gears with their hands-we were off. We almost had bike tears but thankfully the girls pressed through it. The park was HUGE. The Trees were so big and museums and statues were scattered everywhere. The girls made it half way, and then they went with Dave to see the flowers and Conservatory. Will and I made it the distance around almost the whole park. He is a bike manic! Going so fast! I kept yelling at him "Stop! Wait for me!" Will! Will!" He kept leaving me in the dust. We say the beach, buffalos, windmills and rode through beautiful trees. But man did we get our workout going up those hills! Whoa!

The next day we did the bus tour through San Fran. It started across the Golden Gate Bridge-and it was FREEZING! Dave and Will only had one light sweat shirt but smiled still! It was stunning! It was surreal going across. Then the bus stopped us a different stops around the city. I thought it would be fun to see Lombard street-but holy cow! We had to walk up a steep hill! The kids did really well but we were all tired and Ubered to Ghiradelli Square where the fudge sundae was to die for. We ate at Boudin's Sourdough and did a few game at the Muse Mechanic all at Fisherman's Warf. 

Off to China town-Allie was dying to have Asian food. It was kinda fun to walk down the street and see the odd things in windows. It was totally like Mexico, but Chinese. We went to a small fortune cookies factory and watched the ladies hand make the cookies, then went around the corner to The House of Dim Sing were we got pork dumplings and egg custard tarts-it was SO good. The bus then took us through all the different neighbors in San Fran. We made one last stop at the Full House, houses overlooking the city line-so beautiful-but cold and windy! The kids did great the whole day! It was fun to see all the buildings and houses! I want to come back and do everything we didn't have time for! Including more food!

We got a slow started and now made it to Humbolt State Park. We are here at Myers Flat and a wonderful RV park by the RV and in the tall trees. The drive took forever! We go a lot slower hauling the trailer and I've never seen my husband drive so cautiously this whole trip! Who is this man? He's constantly pulling over the let faster cars pass-it's nice for a change for him! And he's made us feel so safe!

Daves been doing so much on this trip! He's doing everything with the car and trailer, cooking, and doing dishes. Pretty much he's been super Dad and husband-but he does look very tired! I hope our easy day in the wood tomorrow will be enjoyable because I don't know if he liked Frisco as much as me. Allie has only cried once for home, but the kids have been doing great! Wills been buggin the girls like normal-but he's been such a great helper with the trailer, I'm so proud of him. We've been staying up so late! The sun stays out a little brighter-but hopefully these next few days in the Redwoods will be relaxing to him. The day is just over before we know it! Last night we turned on  a movie at 8:00-I was passed out by 8:10 and Holly had put herself to sleep at 7:30

I just feel so grateful to be here! Seeing these wonderful places! Completely away from normal life a responsibilities-it's been like living a totally different life. And we just have each other! What a blessing!

Myers Flat was wonderful! Our campground was right by a river and the kids loved swimming and skipping rocks there. We explored a few short trails in the Red Woods, they are incredible. There is something truly special about the Red Woods-a special feeling. It would be nice to be there when no one else was and it was perfectly quiet. Allison and I were on the hunt for a banana slug-but alas, the weather wasn't moist enough. So David bought a magnet one.

On to Crescent City! The cold followed us. Luckily the sun shone slightly for an hour or so during our kayak adventure by the sand bar of the Smith River. Dave and I quickly observed that the girls were going to need an adult paddling with them so we did a switch a roo. We got really close to seals on a shore, they were watch us get close-plop in the water when they got scared of us-then pop their heads out of the water to keeps an eye out. It was fun. Dave and Holly saw otters splashing too.

The next day we went to church where we all struggled to stay awake, then walked the Red Woods in Jedidiah State Park. It also was an incredible forest. Huge towering trees. There were lots of LDS families and people thinking the same thing for a Sunday afternoon. We drove back down Howland Hill Road which was really cool. Dave loved the off roading, tight turns, and narrow one lane. You could literally put your hands out and touch the Red Woods as the small road wove in-between them.

The drive up to Florence was spectacular along the ocean. We stopped at a pull out and walked along a beach with tons of huge standing rocks. The beach was flat and so cool. We saw a ton of star fish and tide pools wash up.  We made another stop also at Umpqua Lighthouse. We got to go into the lighthouse and have a short tour. It was neat. We decided to go into town for dinner, in Florence- but Mo's was closed and all the other restuautnt in Old Town Florence we packed. So we took a table outside at Restobar-a small local Italian place which was delicious. But we were FREEZING! Dave didn't even have a jacket. 

We also splurged and did horseback riding on the beach! It was really fun. The girls were nervous at first but once they saw how calm and slow the horses were they were fine. I think the girls and I got the slowest horses around actually. The guided were very strict in their instructions and Allie didn't get a chance to put her coat on before the beach hit-she was absolutely freezing as we didn't think to pack thick winter coats! It was really windy and all of us turned to ice. Dave and I were sore getting off those horses! But it was awesome and worth every penny. 

Also in Florence we went to the Sea Lion Caves. You go down in an elevator through rock to a cave that smells like sea lions-but it was fun! And I managed my caves fears pretty good. Then we went up to a blow hole-Thor's well. Dave could have watched that thing for hours.

We also did a hike by a very Beautiful light house! It was called Hobbit Beach. The boys decided to poop out but the girls and I hike the full way and loved that we got pick up by the boys! At the beach by the light house the wind was perfect for flying our stunt kite that we picked up in town. 

Florence was just wonderful-but the cheese at Tillamock awaited. And oh was it yummy! WE ate lunch and picked up ice-cream for later, a lunch well worth the stop for. We were in cheese heaven.

Canon Beach was just an huge gorgeous beach. We flew our kite, checked out the tide pools, did a hike around a state park, and ate at Mo's and Pig in a Pancake. 

We crossed over Oregon into Washington and David was feeling at home! We stayed in Tacoma outside of Seattle at a KOA and kids loved it. They just wanted to play at the RV park. The first day in Washington we went to Snoqualmie Falls. It was a tall and great waterfall. I volunteered to to the hike back up and get the car while the kids played in the river below the falls-whoa! It was a workout.

The next day we explored explored! We started with a Harbor Cruise. The saw all the city Skyline and enjoyed hearing tid bits about the city from the tour guide. We then took a ferry ride-which was a fun adventure-to Wibly Island. We went to Fort Casey and explored all the dark hallways, went to Deception Pass-which was soooooo high up I couldn't stay up there very long, and then went to dinner with a couple of Davids nursing friends. Alot of driving-but just a great day. 

Seattle Day! We went to the aquarium, Pike's Market Place, the Museum of Modern Pop (where the girls totally geeked out over Disney costumes and Will over Star Wars props!) and the Space Needle. Seattle is a wonderful place!!!! We ended a long day of walking at Dick's for hamburgers and shakes that we scarfed down. 

One of our Washington Days we went to David's home town-I hadn't seen him that excited the entire trip! He was loving every second. We saw everything in Lake Stevens and he told us all of his memories. The church, high school, house, river, gas station, and of course Dominos. 

After Lake Stevens walk down memory lane, we checked out Granite Falls. It was a nice pit stop for lunch and then headed to Lake Kavanah to spend some time with Daves childhood friend Cory and his family. They took us boating on a secluded mountain lake and it was so fun for Dave to see his friend. The water was ICE. Somehow I coaxed Dave and Cory to take a spin on the tubes-it was the highlight of everyone's day watched to grown men go at it and squeeze into child life vests. 

And then the very long drive to Idaho began-we couldn't feel our behinds at the end of the day. It was so nice to go to Adam and Keelys house though and relax a little. The kids played from morning to the late night with the Arnold kids. They fed us a ton and wonderful food at that. We checked out Meridian, walked one morning, and one day went to the river-which the water was also like ice there too. Dave loved being with his friends-and the girls made a special friendship with their girls. 

We also made some time to see the Garrett Family! It was great visiting with them. Allie stayed to play the whole night with Landon, and when we came to pick her up, the keys accidentally got locked in the car, with the engine running, at 10:30 at night. So I waited patiently inside with Christy while Dave and Will did their many duty with a coat hanger. 

Next stop was Lacey and Evan's house in Clinton Utah. They let us stay longer than we expected! We played games, went to church, and did a quick tour of some Salt Lake sites. We went to the Salt Lake Cemetery where the prophets are burred, this is the place monument, and of course-the every important East High. I thought Alls and Holls would burst with happiness. Of course we tried to sync our High School Musical jump and did a musical number out front.  I loved spending time with the Slade and their little kids are just so special and cute. 

Before we left Salt Lake, we stopped by to see Daryl and Moonja. We kept trying to get out of there-but they insisted on taking us to eat, and insisted who sat where, and who drove what! We were full from breakfast but the kids loved the idea of getting whatever they wanted at a buffet.

Manti Utah was out next stop. It was great for David to see his Grandfather. The kids love being in Manti with Stephanies kids as well. They played hard and were soooooo sad to leave their cousins. We spend some time at the lake paddle boarding and kayaking in Manti too. 

Hurriacne UT was an awesome stop toward the end of our trip. Zion was absolutely beautiful and I wished my kids had more hiking endurance so we could have explored more. The first day there we check out a hidden waterfall Stephanie suggested and it was hot and the water felt great! If it didn't look stormy we might have stayed longer. We also did the tunnel drive through the mountain. 

Will exhausted himself (no water or healthy food!) so the next day he and Dave stayed behind while the girls and I went back to Zions. We hiked the Emerald Pools and it was hot! But we made it to the top and soaked ourselves in water to keep cool. We had lunch under the oak tree and rode the shuttle all the way up and down. Dave had treated us to ice-cream the day before-so we couldn't resist stopping again. SO yummy. 

Dave had a virtual job interview, so one morning in Hurricane I took the kids to breakfast on Main Street. Then we all headed to Snow Canyon and Sand Hollow. The red rock was just stunning and beautiful! It was so hot in Hurricane that Dave bought a cool full of gaterade and we just kept it cold in the back of the truck the rest of the trip. Sand Hollow said their was swimmer itch present-so the whole time we were paranoid as I'll get out. Dave refused to get it. But the kids and I jumped/swam/and paddleboard in great fashion. they were strictly scrubbed out shelves till we couldn't scrub anymore. 

 

One last thing to do in St. George area was Tuachan. When we arrived, the sky looked fine. But literally 5 minutes into the show it started to sprinkle and the show stopped. We waited an hour for the storm to lift-but it began POORING just as they cancelled the show. My girls were heartbroken-as was I. At least we got a refund and will still have to keep Tuachan on our bucket list. 

Dave wanted to say we stayed in all of the Western United States so we decided to make one final stop in Las Vegas. We went to a delish dinner and saw a magician at the Linq. He was great! The kids loved it! And I have to admit-Dave and I loved it too. 

Home at last. Our house felt HUGE and so nice. We were HOT and tired. Our back yard grass was a jungle. Our neighbor Mike mowed the frount, but the back was pretty thick from the awesome monsoon season we missed out on. We were glad to be home-but also very sad it was over. Even still, a month later, we Dave and I are still saying to eachother "can we go back on vacation". 

What an awesome memory! I'm so glad we did it and spent every penny. Heavenly Father truly blessed us with safety and health so that we could make some memories together. We have a history of things breaking down and people getting "tired" and "sick" so this was a miracle that we were able to do so much and make it home safely. I don't really think the kids appreciate very much what we just did. I hope someday they will. In 15 years Dave and I want to repeat this trip without them! Ha! What a blessing to spend this time together. David had nothing to do but be with us! It was just lovely! And we just had fun every day! I can't get this enough! Time for another adventure!