{ Unexpected Blessing }

Yesterday we returned from two days of visiting new friends. I should say new to me. Tim and Andrew met during their National Guard days and have kept in contact occasionally over the years. Also, Andrew's wife Anna is our friend Kevin's sister. We had such a good time with them. What we planned to be an overnight trip turned into two nights, thanks to their kind invitation to stay another day. We felt so at home with them. They too have three kids, three boys mostly grown. Anna, our hostess, took to having three tiny kids around again like a duck to water. Our kids just loved her and Andrew.

They have a lovely home out in the country. We met their dog and kitties and their 4H pigs. The kids played on the swing set, slide and trampoline. Oliver ran around to his hearts content and we didn't have to tell him "No, stay away from the street" and "Don't go off the sidewalk." The perfect place for busy toddlers! We walked around their property at dusk and came back for a bonfire and s'mores. And did I mention they cooked for us the whole time we were there? It was amazing! We brought food to contribute, but they seriously took such good care of us and spoiled up rotten.

We had planned to camp out in tents, but when they offered their entire basement up to us we decided to "camp" in there. That is exactly the way that camping should be done with three little kids!

Next day Tim and Andrew loaded our trailer full of wood. This was the reason we had gone up there. They graciously offered to give us a load of seasoned tamarack. Not only seasoned, but split! What a blessing. The guys were done by 10:30 in the morning so we had the rest of the day to play.

Andrew took Tim and I up into the mountains above their house on a 4 wheeler, while Anna stayed back and watched the kids. It was so much fun to get to do something like this on our own! It was Tim's first time to be on a 4 wheeler and he got to drive so he was one happy man. I'd been on one before, but didn't remember it very much. I just knew how much fun I'd had and was ready for another try. We sure got dusty, but it was worth it. From the top we saw 5 or 6 lakes, including one little piece of Lake Coeur d'Alene.

When we got back, lunch was made, the kids were happy and then they took really good long naps! I did a little reading and Tim and Andrew when out for some guy time. When the kids woke up we all met down at the lake and went swimming. The kids had a great time. There is no doubt our children are water bugs!

Anna watched the kids again at the beach while Andrew took Tim and I (along with a sleeping Wret) to his friend's private dock where the water was crystal clear and we could jump off. Was that ever a treat! Wret slept happily in his car seat there on the dock, rocked to sleep with the water lapping against the sides and we enjoyed a good swim before heading home for a bbq and another campfire.

This little trip was such an unexpected break and really felt like a vacation. We came back refreshed and rested and so thankful for the blessings God showered on us. So often they come in the most unexpected ways!

{ Summer Begins }

It is a beautiful warm and sunny morning as I sit here by myself with a cup of coffee overlooking a lake, nestled in the forest.  The two youngest are napping and Tim and Oliver are off visiting. 

Vacation!

Yesterday we trekked seven hours across the state, our entire little tribe of three under three to join Tim's family for a niece's wedding and family reunion.  We are very glad to be here and so thankful that his mom is finally able to meet our two youngest.  We saw them last night and it was so sweet to hear Oliver calling them Grandpa and Grammie right away, even though we've spent very little time with them in his life, being significantly separated geographically.

The kids have done very well on our trip so far, but let me assure you it has not been completely blissful.  As traveling with little children always is, it has been a lesson in adjusted expectations, making decisions on the fly and trying not to sit down in a heap and cry!  There are always those moments when Tim and I look at each other and ask, "Is it worth it?" But the answer is always yes.
 

We both love to travel and spending time with family is worth sacrificing for.  I really think it is good for the kids to adjust to new surroundings.  We have actually done a surprising amount of traveling since we've had kids.   Thankfully they all do well in the car.  We definitely have those hours of crying to be let out of the carseat, but for the most part we are very blessed in their cooperation.

We are staying at Tim's sister's neighbor's house.  We are very thankful for this gracious accommodation.  It is a challenge to keep track of our kids in an un-childproofed home, which has made it difficult to relax, but I am so thankful that our kids are doing as well as they are.  Whenever we come to a completely new environment I am much more able to see how obedient they are and the areas of training we're doing well in and the ones that still needs improvement.

The weather is supposed to be gorgeous all weekend and into next week, which is just perfect for the vacationing still ahead of us.  This is our "big" trip of the summer so we're planning to make the most of it.  We have friends to visit, a trip to the zoo, a ferry ride and perhaps a stop in Leavenworth planned before we head home. 

It is the beginning of summer!  When we get home Tim's job will transition to summer hours.  We are hopeful that this summer will be lazy, with not much more excitement than a little painting on our house and yard work.  This is the first summer since we've known each other, which is almost five years, that we are not tackling a HUGE home-improvement project.

So here's to summer!  May it be lazy!

{ Canada, Friends and Family :: Days 4 and 5 }

 Saying good morning to Canada and enjoying a little bit of scenery before heading back to the States!

 Waiting to go back over the border.  Honestly, I don't think I'm a very good international traveler.  The furthest I've ever gone is a couple of hours over the border into Canada and I'm always really glad to be back in the US.  There's just no place like home, I guess.  We stopped for a picnic lunch and let Oliver get some wiggles out along the way. 

A highlight of this trip was getting to visit our dear friends who moved to Montana not too long ago.  It was much to short of a visit, but so good to see them and where God has led them and is using them.... only wish we could have met their baby boy that arrived just a few weeks later!  We're just to have to visit again!

 Two sweet girls.  Sure miss them!  I was their "nanny" of sorts the year before Tim and I got married.

 Got to join them at their church for an ice cream social that evening.  Such a blessing to see them in their church home and meet some of their friends.

 Family snuggle next morning

 Then we were off again, back through Glacier and on the last leg of our journey.  We debated whether to go back through the park or take another route, but I'm so glad we chose to go through.  The weather was amazing and I finally felt like we got the Glacier experience everyone talks about.  Truly an amazing place!

 Hike to St. Mary Falls

 These pictures are beautiful, but they really don't do justice to the spectacular beauty of seeing this in person!

 Oliver really wanted to get in the water.  Made me a little concerned about him having a necessary fear of very deep, fast moving water!

 The line along the mountain here is the Highway to the Sun

 Tim and Oliver at the top

 We finished our trip at my family reunion.  The fact that the reunion was being held in Montana is what prompted us to take this trip to Glacier.  We ended full circle back at my uncle's house for 2 1/2 days with my mom's side of the family.  It was a wonderful time of seeing everyone again, but a little more on that soon.  I promise there is only ONE more post to come about this vacation!

 Sunset that evening.

{ To Start at the Beginning & Day 2 }

After beginning the retelling of our trip to Glacier, Tim and I realized that down the road, when we remember back to this time, we wouldn't fully appreciate it unless I also include something about getting ready to go.  There was SO much that went into planning and preparing for this vacation, it is really kind of amazing.
In January we started making plans, doing research and booking reservations.
In February Tim began ordering parts to rebuild the front end of our Jeep, because it wasn't going to comfortably get us to and from without them.  He worked on it off and on until it was finished.

{ I love these pictures of Oliver helping his daddy.  He wants so much to be just like him! }

We also began the process of applying for passports for the kids, as we were also heading to Canada and Waterton Park.  While doing that, thankfully I discovered that Tim's was about to expire!  So thankful we didn't find that out at the border!
About a month before the trip, we had the AC fixed, twice.  We knew we didn't want to travel at the end of July with two kids without it.  Ha, ha, the best laid plans sometimes go to waste.... but more on that later!
We also began training the kids to sleep in the same room again.  We had many nights of crying and exasperation, but finally we got over that hurdle, only to throw in simultaneous teething and colds about a week before we were going to leave!
Many, many times it felt like maybe this was just way more work than it was worth, but I guess there is always that question with anything.

Now on to Tuesday, Day 2

After a fairly peaceful first day on the road, it would be nice to say that we all got a good night sleep and were bright eyed and bushy tailed for the next day.  Alas, that first night away from their beds and their routine, completely threw the kids off.  They were awake, taking turns for four straight hours during the night.  It wasn't until sometime the next morning that we put two and two together and realized Oliver had indulged a little too much in the fresh cherries my aunt had to offer.  Between Tim, me, and my aunt, we had fed him a very good size bowl, which resulted in a serious tummy ache!  Poor guy!  At least their was a reason for all that wakefulness, but it sure made getting going and enjoying the next day quite challenging!

The biggest lesson we learned on this trip was that every day there was a major obstacle to overcome.  There was always something significant that threatened to ruin the day and make us wish we'd just stayed home.  We very consciously had to work through the obstacle and look past it and move on.  It was a really good discipline and in the end, we felt like this trip helped us to function much better as a family unit.

The day we entered Glacier it was cold and cloudy.  It made for some great photography, but not so much for hiking.  At the top of the Going to the Sun Road, when we got out for a break, it was in the 50s and windy, making the air temperature much closer to 30s.  

 { Driving up the Going to the Sun road.  We had to stop for a bit, so Oliver took a turn "driving". }

 { Sunrift Gorge }

We didn't get out of the car a whole lot that day.  It seemed like the kids would just fall asleep when we would find somewhere we'd want to stop, and naps were a much higher priority!  We did stop at this gorge, though.  It was amazingly beautiful!

We stayed the night at the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn.  A couple of weeks before we left on the trip, we decided we should stay one more night inside the park, rather than just the one we had planned.  This was the last room anywhere in the park for that night!  We enjoyed it very much.  It was rustic, but had the amenities that made it a little bit like camping, but not! 

 The kids slept much better that night and actually slept in.  I went out before anyone was awake the next morning and brought back coffee for Tim and I.  We enjoyed it together on on the stoop outside our door, listening to the sounds of the forest and watching the sun come up on the mountains.  It felt luxurious.  Then we went back inside and said good morning to these two "best of friends"!

 { Wake up, Sister! }

Okay, that's a little of day three as well.  More to come......

{ To Glacier We will Go :: Part 1 }

 Finally, I am beginning the re-cap of our family vacation this summer to Glacier National Park!  We traveled there in July and spent a total of 6 nights and 7 days away from home.  We drove over 1,200 miles and stayed somewhere different every night.  Those of you who have traveled with kids know, that is no small deal.  It was an incredibly wonderful time and an incredibly difficult time!  All in all we are so glad we took this trip and got away from everyday life for a bit.  What a blessing it was to soak up the incredible beauty that God has created! 

Monday: Day One

We traveled to my uncle and aunt's house in Montana, just south of Flathead Lake.  It was a manageable first leg of our journey.  On the way, we stopped at Cataldo Mission in Cataldo, Idaho.  I grew up visiting that area since my mom had grown up in Wallace, Idaho.  It was a fun trip down memory lane.  We had lunch at the mission before finishing that day's drive. 

My uncle and aunt purchased their property about a year ago.  Some pretty amazing property it is too!  Not a bad view, don't you think?  We took a walk after dinner to enjoy the view of the mountains.

 

 That is their house in the distance.  I could get used to waking up to that view each morning!

 More to come.... soon!