Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
Another great day
We had another great day in Eden, Idaho. We slept in then visited the Hagerman Fossil Bed visitor center and learned about fossils in the area. Faith completed another Junior Ranger book on the national park and also picked one up on paleontology to complete.
On the way to our next stop, Balanced Rock, we saw geese, cows, baby alpaca, and a frightening dead cat. On the way back a snake slithered right under our tires. We backed up to see it- I wanted a picture, but Rick wanted to make sure it was on the road and not wound around the under side of our van.
Balanced Rock was an awesome sight to see. We didn’t plan on climbing up there, but it seemed like the thing to do once we got there. I was outside taking pictures with my mom and asked her when the kids would start complaining as I looked up the path. It was as soon as we informed them of our plans! Once we got to the top it was great fun and the kids were climbing around exploring.
Our next stop was Cloverleaf Creamery in Buhl to try their potato ice cream (and most likely get another flavor to eat!) We drove to the address which was 205 Broadway, but all we found was BFD- the Buhl Fire Dept. I had to take a picture of their logo and then we found out it was 205 S Broadway so we had a few blocks to go to get there. It was a fun little place with milk in glass bottles and yummy ice cream.
We headed back to the rv park for a round of miniature golf and swimming in the geothermal pool. I can’t get my pictures to upload so they will have to wait for another day. Tomorrow we are heading to the ice caves where it will be 29 degrees inside. Looking forward to another dip in the pool already!
On the way to our next stop, Balanced Rock, we saw geese, cows, baby alpaca, and a frightening dead cat. On the way back a snake slithered right under our tires. We backed up to see it- I wanted a picture, but Rick wanted to make sure it was on the road and not wound around the under side of our van.
Balanced Rock was an awesome sight to see. We didn’t plan on climbing up there, but it seemed like the thing to do once we got there. I was outside taking pictures with my mom and asked her when the kids would start complaining as I looked up the path. It was as soon as we informed them of our plans! Once we got to the top it was great fun and the kids were climbing around exploring.
Our next stop was Cloverleaf Creamery in Buhl to try their potato ice cream (and most likely get another flavor to eat!) We drove to the address which was 205 Broadway, but all we found was BFD- the Buhl Fire Dept. I had to take a picture of their logo and then we found out it was 205 S Broadway so we had a few blocks to go to get there. It was a fun little place with milk in glass bottles and yummy ice cream.
We headed back to the rv park for a round of miniature golf and swimming in the geothermal pool. I can’t get my pictures to upload so they will have to wait for another day. Tomorrow we are heading to the ice caves where it will be 29 degrees inside. Looking forward to another dip in the pool already!
Sunday, June 12, 2011
On the road again
After a week in Washington, we’re on the road again. We had a great time visiting with the family in Spokane for Gramma’s birthday. Then we spent about 48 hours in western Washington putting items in storage, seeing the girls’ BFF’s in Washington and spending time with my mom, nephew and sister.
We left Friday to start our “official” trip to and through the states for the next year. The trip has been revised so many times in the past three weeks, and it may change again, but this is the beginning. We arrived in Mountain Home, Idaho, Saturday where we spent a night at the Air Force Base. We are planning to stay at military RV parks if their location works into our plans because they are inexpensive, have the commissary, exchange, and a good price on gas.
It was a nice, scenic drive through Washington and Oregon. Saturday evening we picked up my mom at the Boise airport so she could spend a week with us playing. This morning we washed the RV for the first time. That was great fun for the whole family! Then off we drove to Eden, Idaho, near Twin Falls. We’ll be staying here for a few days seeing the sights. Today we saw Shoshone Falls. They are 50 feet higher than Niagra Falls. Becca said this is her favorite thing so far that we’ve seen.
We left Friday to start our “official” trip to and through the states for the next year. The trip has been revised so many times in the past three weeks, and it may change again, but this is the beginning. We arrived in Mountain Home, Idaho, Saturday where we spent a night at the Air Force Base. We are planning to stay at military RV parks if their location works into our plans because they are inexpensive, have the commissary, exchange, and a good price on gas.
It was a nice, scenic drive through Washington and Oregon. Saturday evening we picked up my mom at the Boise airport so she could spend a week with us playing. This morning we washed the RV for the first time. That was great fun for the whole family! Then off we drove to Eden, Idaho, near Twin Falls. We’ll be staying here for a few days seeing the sights. Today we saw Shoshone Falls. They are 50 feet higher than Niagra Falls. Becca said this is her favorite thing so far that we’ve seen.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Holding my breath again /Letting out a sigh of relief
We made it to Utah- one state closer to Washington! Our challenge Monday was making sure there was enough air in the spare tire so we could get to Utah. Putting air in a tire is not usually a challenge, but we have to go back to Saturday night when the spare was put on. As you know, it took forever for the fella to get there so it was after 10pm. He asked if we had tools. Um, no, you’re the tire repair guy that’s being paid to fix the flat.
Little did we know until it was time to put air in the tire that the air valve stem was facing toward the inside of the vehicle. Now that would be a pain on a regular vehicle, but it was even more challenging with the rv since there’s another tire right there. It was near impossible to get your hand in between the two tires to try to get the air hose onto the air valve stem. And then it was even more challenging to squeeze the thing for the air to enter the tire. Rick duct taped the thing down so the air would flow and we tried again and again. I prayed for the tire to get air. I laid hands on the tire. When I put in the fouth set of four quarters the last quarter wouldn’t go in- the edge had a flat spot on it and wouldn’t fit in the machine. Are you kidding me? We had to laugh.
Holding my breath, we made it to Moab, UT, a few hours away with Rick driving the rv and me driving the van. It was a relief to arrive early in the afternoon and not stress about finding our way around the new town. We did some laundry (our washing machine/dryer works perfectly thanks to cousin Mark and Rick for installing it) and headed to Arches National Park. Arches has spectacular rock formations- spires, fins, balanced rocks and, of course, arches. We were only there for three hours and it was not enough. We’ll have to come back next year. Utah has five national parks- impressive!
Tuesday morning we took Faith to the visitor center to get her Junior Ranger badge. The Junior Ranger program is a free program in the national parks. Upon arrival you ask for a booklet on the park and the kids have different pages of activities to complete based on their age. It’s fun and educational. Our little brownie has completed three now- one for Carlsbad Caverns, Mesa Verde and Arches. I’m going to buy her a special national parks vest on which to sew/pin them.
Then it was time to head north. I was holding my breath once again hoping all would go well. I googled tire centers in the area we hoped to reach, thankful the long weekend was over and businesses were open. Les Schwab was happy to help us out. They gathered the tires from surrounding stores, let us stay in their parking lot overnight, offered us water for the rv and told us they had free internet and popcorn! Woohoo!
So if you’re keeping track that’s three days now that we haven’t had a major problem! Looking forward to a smooth ride to Washington on our new tires. I’ll be happy to get there and relax for a bit before actually starting our “trip”.
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