We just got back from a 3,300 mile road trip! It was crazy and long and so fun. Jade needed to do another one of his long business trips across the NW, and I needed to go see my 2 best college friends' newborn babies, and we all needed to go visit Jerai and Phil, so we decided to make a family trip out of it. I was really worried about traveling 1) 7 months pregnant and 2) with a very active 3 year old, but it turned out better than I could have hoped. I brought "halfway point presents" for Peyton, which were little car toys she could open up at the halfway point of driving every day. I did this in the hope that she would have some sort of idea about how much longer we would be driving every day. This strategy worked out pretty well. I also brought lots of home movies and our wedding video, since those are the only movies my daughter likes. A friend of ours loaned us her kids' IPOD video, which was loaded with kids movies, but Peyton wouldn't watch anything for more than about 3 minutes. She really just doesn't enjoy TV or animated movies yet, which I guess is a really good thing, but on a 2 week road trip, it would have been a nice distraction. The home movies were a saving grace. We left on Monday night, and drove right up to Spokane. We stayed there the first night, then drove over to Idaho, through Coeur d'Alene and into beautiful McCall, ID. That was an absolutely beautiful drive (and I consider myself a little scenic-ly spoiled after living in Portland). The next day we drove to Idaho Falls and stayed the night there. It really wasn't that long to drive between all those places, but Jade had to make about 30 stops, so it took the better part of 3 days. Thursday was the day I had been looking forward to- the beginning of our weekend, which was all play and no work. We drove into Pocatello, where my best friend Megan and her husband Ryan and their 4 week old, Cooper, live. The boys went golfing, and Megan and I spent Peyton's nap catching up, while I hogged Cooper. Then we went to the Pocatello zoo, and met the boys for dinner. It was such a good visit. Megan is truly like a sister to me, and so it was amazing to meet my new nephew! Peyton absolutely loved little Cooper. She wanted to hold him and kept trying to force his binky into his mouth and cover him up with his blankets. It was really cute. I'm hoping that is a good sign for when she has a baby of her own at home. The day came to an end too soon, but fortunately for us, we had some more great things to look forward to. Thursday night we drove to Driggs, for our weekend with Jerai and Phil in the gorgeous Teton Valley. We had THE BEST time with them. It made me miss so badly the times when the 4 of us (plus the 2 dogs) all lived in Provo/Orem and got to spend lots of time together, camping, 4-wheeling, and hanging out. Peyton and her cousin Boyd are only 3 months apart, so it was so fun to watch them interact. They got along SO well. Peyton prefers playing with older kids or boys, and this was no exception. She and Boyd absolutely loved playing together, and we didn't even have any crazy meltdowns. Friday morning we woke up early and drove the hour and a half to Yellowstone. Phil had a great idea to rent a Suburban, so the 4 adults, 2 car seats, and 2 dogs could all comfortably ride together around Yellowstone. That was a really good plan, and made the drive more fun because we were all together. Our first stop was Old Faithful, and we could not have timed our arrival too much better. We didn't even have to wait 5 minutes before we saw it blow, which is super lucky since there's really no way to time when it will happen. After, we had a picnic lunch while we waited for the crowd to clear out, which was also a great strategy. We saw a bunch of elk cows (no bulls), deer, and bison. We even had a gigantic grandpa bison cross the road right in front of our car. The kids thought it was pretty cool, Remy didn't even look twice at it, but Tink surprised us all with her reaction. She had a conniption. She was barking her deepest, meanest bark, so loud that Jade was worried she was going to make the buffalo turn around and charge us. Eventually we drove away, and Tink let out one last big bark to make sure we all knew she still meant business. It was pretty funny. We saw some of the other sights in Yellowstone- the mud pots, hot springs, huge waterfalls, and other geysers around the park. It was beautiful, and even though I never got to see my grizzly, I enjoyed every minute of it. That night we camped at a campground right outside the park, and Phil and Jerai cooked us an awesome dutch oven dinner of chicken, potatoes and delicious cobbler with ice cream! It was a treat, and I felt spoiled. That night, we were treated to lightning and a thunderstorm, with a little bit of rain. It was absolutely beautiful, and luckily the rain wasn't very bad, so we stayed nice and dry in our tents. Peyton got her own sleeping bag and she was so cute- like a little bug in a cocoon. The next morning we took down camp and drove to Jackson Hole. It was so fun to just walk around and take in the cute little town. There was a farmer's market going on, and we were able to eat some good food- even bison jerky. We took the kids to the big candy store and let them choose some treats. We also took them to the huge toy store and let them play with all the toys that were out. They had a really fun time. After we left Jackson, we went for a birthday lunch for Phil at a local restaurant that was really yummy. We even got to sit outside to eat, where the kids could run around and play, since we were the only customers outside. When we got back home, we unpacked the cars, and got cleaned up. The kids took naps and the dads went golfing. That night, Jerai and Phil had 2 families over to celebrate Phil's birthday. We had a great BBQ and it was fun to meet some of their Driggs friends. Sunday came way too fast, and after a morning of the kids riding bikes and the dads riding the dirtbike, it was time for us to pack up and go. It was hard saying goodbye to the Moultons, but it wasn't so bad because we know we'll see them next month in Oregon. We made our way to Utah, but took the more scenic route through Wyoming. It was another really pretty drive, but we were excited to finally make it to our final destination in Park City. We stayed at a hotel with a really pretty outdoor pool in a courtyard, and we were lucky enough to get a 1st floor room, that walked right out to the pool. Jade and Peyton took advantage and swam until bedtime. Monday morning Jade's gorgeous and talented cousin Sydney took some maternity pictures for us, and then we put Peyton down for a nap and Jade went to some meetings. After nap, we went to my other best friend Steph's house to visit her, Rawlin and their 3 week old baby, Brielle. The boys went golfing, and Peyton and I spent the afternoon loving on Brielle. Peyton was so helpful and interested in the baby. She wanted to hold her, "all by myself", and help feed her, and go get things for her out of her nursery. Peyton also loved playing with Steph's 2 cats. They don't have real names, so Steph told Peyton that one of them was named "Peyton". Peyton thought that was about the neatest thing ever. She kept picking up the cats and carrying them around, trying to put them in Brielle's swing and bouncy seat. They were pretty patient with her. That night we stayed at a friend's place, and Tuesday we had the breakfast I had been dreaming of since the last time I was in Utah- french toast from Magleby's Fresh. YUM. Then we met up with some of our friends from college- the Garfields- and went to the fun water park in Provo, Seven Peaks. They have a daughter who's only 4 months younger than Peyton, which is so fun. The girls played so cute together, and they loved playing in the water and especially going down the slides with their dads. Noah and Jade raced a few times, and Twink and I even raced twice (let's just say that every time, the heavier person won, and it was always a Thelin). After Seven Peaks, we went to another Utah favorite- Costa Vida. It was also delicious. Then Peyton and I went back to see Steph and Brielle for the last time, while Jade had a couple other meetings. It was so sad to say goodbye to those girls! That night, we went to dinner with our friends Kelly and Becca and their little cutie pie, Elsie. We had so much fun with all our Utah friends! That night we stayed in a hotel in Provo and when we woke up, I took Peyton swimming in the pool while Jade went to more meetings. When Jade got done working for the morning, we met up with our friend Emily, a girl who used to be in Jade's Sunday School class in Portland and now is in her freshman year at BYU. It was really great to catch up with her. (For all you Bachelorette viewers- we ate at a restaurant that was next to mean-Bentley's family fun center that he owns. I hate to admit it, but it was actually pretty cool.) We left Provo and started to head north, and in between Jade's meetings, we were able to meet up with Chaz for ice cream for about 20 minutes. It was good to see him, even if it was short. That night we stayed in Logan, UT, and rested up for what was going to be a LONG 2 days of driving. Thursday morning Jade and Peyton burned off some 3 year-old energy in the pool, then we started our drive back home, stopping about 20 more times for Jade to have meetings. The stops broke up the drive a little bit, so that was a really nice way for Peyton and I to be able to get out and run around for a few minutes every so often. We finally made it home at about 9:00 on Friday night, and it was AMAZING to sleep in our own bed again. We had a fantastic trip, and it was so much fun, but it feels so good to be home!
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Tink was pretending to cuddle Peyton, but really I think she was trying to snatch a snack.
Adorable Cooper
There's a bobcat standing in almost the center of the picture, about to jump from the short log to the tall log.
Very attentive to Coop
LOVE my sister
This waterfall was CRAZY
The grandpa buffalo that caused a stink with Tink
Our babies crashed
So did our other babies
Peyton loved the "water squirter" or "big steamer"
Sweet cousins
More gorgeous waterfalls
There was the moose that we never got to see
I love her "waking up" picture
Jackson
Go Cougars!
My little animal lover
The kids on their matching Striders
We passed so many farms and Peyton loved all the horses, sheep, goats, llamas and cows. Once in awhile we would stop by one and let her get a closer look.
Poor kitty...
Sweet Brielle. So big and alert and strong for a 3-week old. Crazy!
My goodbye to my baby Brielle.
Lazy River
Peyton, Kirra, Owen
After the water park, Peyton was totally wiped out. She put her whole blanket over her body, head to toes, and conked out.
Our last leg of the trip. I loved that she was wearing her shades.
Lots of laundry when we got home. Guess which parent put her in the dryer...
