Roadtrip - Day 28

The rest of our road trip was spent in the car. We woke up early in Salt Lake City and pulled in late to Portland! It was a LONG day. We (Oma) tried to keep the trip lighthearted and took a silly string break at the gas station. And as for the required license plate game.... We got almost all of the US and Canada on our month long excursion (excluding Hawaii, Arkansas, Georgia, South Carolina, Vermont, Connecticut, and Rhode Island & Quebec). We are sure if the Mt. Rushmore wasn't closed we would have got them all!

Roadtrip - Day 27

Arches National Park was the most AMAZING place to visit! We started at the visitor center and got the boys excited about becoming Jr. Rangers. Then set off to visit the park. We stopped at each turn out and marveled at the rocks. We had to hold ourselves back from taking so many trails to make sure we had enough time and stamina for the hike to Delicate Arch. We stopped and watched some rock climbers and the boys did their best to climb too (without any gear). We drove through the park and made it to Delicate Arch but by that time we weren't all up for the 3 mile hike in :-( We weren't dressed for the warm weather and the possibility of carrying the boys all the way there and back was very high. So we did the one mile hike to see the arch in the distance. It was still impressive. I guess we are going to have to come back someday! Throughout the park Nate worked on his Jr. Ranger booklet and had an eagle eye out for any trash he could pick up. At the end of the day we stopped back in at the visitor center to turn in the booklets and met with a Ranger. She walked the boys through a few facts she thought they should know and FINALLY had them raise their right hand to promise to take care of the environment and present them with their badges. This badge was Nathaniel's prized possession and he did not let go of it for the next 24 hours. Unfortunately, we stopped at a rest stop and the badge dropped in the toilet. The automatic flush went off before I could grab it (yes, I would have stuck my hand in the toilet, ewww) and the alligator tears instantly flooded the bathroom. Nate was soooo sad. I couldn't blame him. The only way to get him to calm down was to offer to call the park and ask that they would send us a new one. Thankfully, they took our address and said it's in the mail. Here's to hoping they follow through!

Roadtrip - Day 26

From Boulder we headed South to Colorado Springs to visit Mom's cousins (who married when she was 4 years old) and hasn't seen since! Crazy that technology can connect us, huh? Honestly, when we pulled up the boys were a bit wrestles and I thought this was going to be a painful visit. I couldn't have been more surprised. The boys LOVED their house (they had lots of toys and a yard to run around) and it was hard to get them back in the car. Arlene made a fabulous brunch and we enjoyed catching up with them and their side of the family. We reluctantly got back in the car, knowing we had a good 6 hour drive in front of us. Another LONG day of driving.

On the road again

We left Omaha and headed for Boulder, Colorado. It was a LONG driving day. There were actually a few places along the way that looked interesting and I might have tried to stop if we weren't on a schedule. I could hardly wait! We checked into the hotel and then raced off to see Jill and Jacob. Our neighbor friends moved to Colorado earlier this summer and we have missed them so much. It was so fun to see the boys pick up right where they left off. Jill was kind enough to make dinner for us and for a few sweet hours it felt like an ordinary day just hanging out with close friends. We went on a little walk around the neighborhood with glow sticks and then put on a movie for the boys to watch so we could just catch up. I kept the boys up way past bedtime and wished I could stay longer, but we said our goodbyes and made our way back to the hotel.

Omaha Zoo

This zoo is one of America's favorite's. We were not disappointed. It was built on the old baseball field, but they saved home plate and made a little memorial field. As for the zoo itself, I can't decide what was my favorite the Albino Aligator, the ape that kissed mom (through the glass), the skyfari ride, the aquarium, the bridge in the jungle, or the just the variety of animals I have never seen before! We can't wait to go again.

Omaha

We made it to our final family destination! We have seen all my mom's siblings and almost all my cousins. We've arrived in Omaha just in time for my cousins 16th birthday. We spent the day at a local pumpkin patch. This was no ordinary pumpkin patch. It had everything from a petting zoo, to a bounce pillow. We saw a pumpkin cannon demonstration, rode a four person peddle cart, flew down the big slide, picked pumpkins and watched a pigs race. Awesome Day!

South Dakota one more time

Since Daddy flew through Sioux Falls airport we visited Uncle Paul and his family multiple times :-) Hopefully we didn't overstay our welcome. The boys just loved playing with their kids. Our last day there was a bit like an Oregon blustery day. The kids needed to run off some energy though so we just put boots on and went outside to play in the mud. Nate got stuck 3 times! . Afterwards we came inside to make caramel apples! Yum! And just before we left the sun came out and we took a ride in the Jeeper. Yes, I put my life in the hands of a 10 year old boy. I figured he knew what he was doing, but to be honest it felt a bit like a roller coaster nearly missing the pot holes to the right and left and slipping backwards down the hill. The boys LOVED it! We stopped at a hollow tree and the boys got out and climbed inside.