It was so fun to see all the orchards and vineyards. So many apples, cherries, and grapes! We stopped at a roadside stand and taste-tested so many Rainier Cherries that we felt obligated to buy some. I wish we would have bought more. They were so yummy. Liza especially loved them. Plus I loved that they weren’t staining bright red cherries!
The favorite part of the Columbia River Temple for the kids was the fountain. Water in a hot place is always awesome. My favorite part was the pretty stain-glass windows. Most of all – the temple is just a great place to be.
Saturday, July 6, 2013. It’s so interesting that the kids run with all their energy and smiles to a playground while on vacation in a new place. There might be a million other new things to see – but a playground – that is glorious to a kid.
Friday, July 5, 2013
More Driving. Watching movies on the IPods. Max’s headphones gave him munchkin cheeks. Stayed in Richland, Washington. Ate dinner at KFC & A&W (hannah has been dreaming of eating here). We enjoyed the chicken and the root beer freezes. Hotel didn’t work out. Turns out our family is too large for most hotels (persecution!). We got ousted… or forced to buy another room. Called up TownePlace Suites Richland Columbia Point and they were so accommodating for our family. They had a tiny swimming pool but the kids loved it! Turns out Truman is quite the brave swimmer. Liza – not so much (though she liked her legs in the hot tub). Liza went to sleep much easier this night. Hurrah!
History day today. Let’s learn about those who traveled 2,000 on the Oregon Trail.
Eaten alive by mosquitos at the Snake River.
Oregon Trail Interpretive Center. Asked the boys to act like a sheep herder. It was a little bit more ninja than sheep herder. It would be so hard to be a pioneer. There was hardship and grief in their faces (ok, I know they were only replicas… but still). They learned to tie on that bonnet, oh so tight!
I got many a good chuckle out of the pioneer’s diary quotes. Poor them! Waiting for their ‘promised land’ and they arrive and are very disappointed. There was one lone tree in the valley. And then an emigrant chopped it down for firewood. The weary and hot travelers were not very pleased about it.
Our family went and walked a little ways on the Oregon Trail. Tru’s balloon blew away. It was very sad for him. We would have died as pioneers. Oh wait – that’s not true! But boy-howdy it would have been hard. Liza was scared of the buffalo statue. Imagine the real thing! I’m so glad for those who came before who showed us that we, as a people, can do hard, hard things!
We only drove to Boise this first day because we knew a 5 hour drive turns into a 7 hour drive with all the potty stops.
The Boise Hampton Inn Spectrum was our favorite hotel. The swimming pool was grand. Hot free breakfast. 2 queens, a sofa bed, an extra chair and ottoman turned into a bed for Tru, fridge, microwave, with enough space for our family of 7 (we soon realized that not all hotels were as friendly with a family of 7).
We stopped near the temple in Twin Falls to see this sight. Hurrah for the Snake River. And Hurrah for awesome waterfalls! Shoshone Falls turned out to be cooler than we thought. We even saw a rainbow in the water.
Though the gates were closed for Independence day, it was neat for me to stop and see a lovely Idaho temple. The kids were hot & tired. This was 1 of 4 temples we visited on our trip.
It all began July 4, 2013. We left an hour late (which means most of the kids were waiting in the car for an hour and half before that because they were so excited). Liza just didn’t like her seat in the back between Abe & Max. She cried for 45 minutes. So, our first stop was my parents where we switched her back to her normal spot in the car. Bonus – seeing the Brunsons, my parents, having Creamies, and the first of millions of potty stops!
p.s. Liza did much better after our switch-a-roo. And with Hannah taking Dramamine the entire trip, she survived the back seat.
We pulled in last night from a 9 day trip to Seattle. Phew! WE LIVE! It was a long drive. It was fun. It was hard. It was an adventure. AND … We are glad to be home. I have 380 pictures to sort through and hopefully someday we’ll get them on this here bloggie for our family record.