So. Nevada is pretty much what I'd envision hell to be like. It's hot, it's dry, it's rocky, and it's hot. And it's hot. And it's boring. And nobody lives there. And it's hot.
When we left Hoover Dam, we drove through Nevada from the south to the north, meaning we drove the longest possible route through Nevada you can go. It was hot, but we had an easy drive. Straight through, no traffic, no big trucks hogging up the road.
I should have put this one in Part 2, but here it is. Right at the end of the bridge from hell is the sign.
There it is, the road to hell. You only get one picture of Nevada because they all look like this.
Poor Jack-Jack. Sick as all get out. Thankfully he was a good sleeper. He slept through the entire state of Nevada after we left Hoover Dam, and he missed absolutely nothing. Ha.
And we kept on going, till we got to Idaho Falls, Idaho. We went to see the temple. We tried to do that everyplace there was one close by. It was important to Justice.
Then we went to Cold Stone. Nobody liked it. I already knew I wasn't going to like it, but none of the boys did either. Too creamy, too thick. Don't get me wrong, they ate it but they won't be asking to go back again.
And for some reason, the only picture I have of the campsite in Idaho is this one. Ha. Somehow I managed to get a perfect picture of a naked baby with no naked parts showing.
We weren't in Idaho long, just spent the night and then woke up the next morning to head to Washington. The kids were eager to get there so we left fairly early. I stopped at my brother's house on the way to my Dad's and picked his kids up. We took them with us to Dad's so the kids could maximize their time together.
What a blessing that was. It was so much fun. The kids had such a great time.
Hey look! It's a Jack in the Box Taco. Because everybody needs to try it once. Of course he loved it.
My Dad lives in a beautiful neighborhood just a short distance from the Canadian border. He lives on the water, with a dock and canals right in his backyard. While I am a road traveler, he is a water traveler. He loves boats, it's been his passion since I was a kid. We had a sailboat when I was a kid and it was just the way we vacationed in the summers. I don't care for the water as much as I do the land, but I definitely have his passion for travel. I just prefer the roads, not the water nor the air.
My Dad has kayaks for the grandkids. Talk about fun. Justice and his cousin Morganday were all over the canals.
This did not please Jack and Bo.
At the beginning of the trip, the older kids took the younger kids out on the kayaks.
For the record, Jack was pissed he didn't get to go out by himself. My Dad finally just gave in and tossed him out there by himself and told him to figure it out, and don't come back till you do. Haha!
Bad picture. Sorry. But you can see Jack's out there by himself.
Morganday and Bo. I'm trying to figure out why I don't have any pictures of Tiernan, but then again he's not much for sitting still so I'm not surprised. Busy little feller.
Grandpa took the kids to the beach while the tide was out so they could play in the tide pools. We stayed till the tide came back in.
Wait! It's Tiernan!
Jack didn't like the sand. Got in his britches and he was not pleased.
Bo? Didn't care.
Gramps and the kids. This would be a great time to tell you that my nearly 70 year old Dad is like a 40 year old. He played these kids into the dirt. He's healthy and strong, he woke up before them and went to bed afterwards. They were exhausted, he was not.
I love this picture.
These two geniuses decided to swim in the canal. It was cold.
Not a great picture, but talk about facial similarities.
Julie, or Ju-Ju as the kids call her is the most awesome "Oh my goodness, I just inherited seven grandkids when I had none" person I've ever met. She handled the chaos like a champ. I have no idea how she pulled it off, but I was so thankful for everything she did for all the kids when we were there.
She decorated goodie bags with them, with the patience of a saint. Not an easy task with Bo Mack on your lap.
The view is amazing, is it not? Mount Baker in the distance.
Dad took the kids to the water park. Justice said the water was heated. Pretty neat idea since it's not always warm in Washington. It was beautiful while we were there, though thanks to our virtual tour guide. It was in the 80's the whole time, and did not rain once. Yes folks, no rain and it was not just warm, but hot. Perfect.
Breathtaking sunset from Dad and Julie's backyard.
My boys and Jakes kids.
Since Grandpa lives a step away from the water, there is a strict life jacket rule in effect.
Bo loves Gramps.
Fishing off the dock.
We were sad to leave Dad's house, but after a week it was time to go and head towards my Aunt Janet's house.
A few hours after we left, we checked another food stop off the bucket list.
Carl's Jr. My favorite. Wester bacon cheeseburger and fried zucchini. It tasted exactly the same the last time I had it, which was unfortunately 20 years ago. Best lunch ever.
My Aunt Janet is my Mom's sister. Visiting her was reminiscent of being at my Grandma's house so many years ago. She reminded me so much of her, and it was a wonderfully healing visit. I love her so much, and I'm so thankful that she in in my life, and in my boys lives. She is very important to me. When I first joined the Navy, she lived very close to where I was stationed, and she did her best to make me feel at home. She fed me countless dinners, which I truly appreciated. And she loved me when a lot of other people didn't. I will never forget that, and will always be grateful.
She only has girl toys at her house, because her granddaughters are you know, girls. It didn't make any difference to my boys, they can comb My Little Pony hair with the best of them.
Ok, this was hilarious. Aunt Janet was teaching the boys to play Old Maid. But the funny part was that she was teaching them to have "poker face". I laughed so hard during that whole game.
That precious little gem of a girl is Stella. She's a doll.
And that beauty is Ginger. She and Stella are my cousin Natalie's girls.
And there we all are. Janet, me, Natalie and Mandy. This is probably when you are thinking "WOW, they're tall!" Yes, yes they are. I'm not exactly short either, so they are all indeed tall. My cousin Chrissy and her girls were also there but somehow or another they dodged all the pictures. Pretty slick.
What a great time. The kids played together all day and night.
We ate a wonderful meal, played cards and reminisced about old times. Shared some sad times, talked about difficult times, and laughed so hard our faces hurt. I didn't want to leave, I could have stayed much longer.
What a happy time, so many great memories made.
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