Sequoia and Kings Canyon

 On Saturday the oldest two boys and I set out for Sequoia.  We had a bit of the run around because of road closures and chain restrictions, but by the end of the day most of the park was open and we were able to enjoy both Sequoia and Kings Canyon.  There was a lot of snow up in the mountains and it made it even more beautiful.  Brad stayed behind with the three littles because we were unsure if we would even be able to get into the park and he had some things to catch up on around the trailer.

 You have to see the trees in person to be able to fathom their size.  It is craziness.

 We spent some time in Grant Grove and the boys had a Grant burger for lunch.

 I wish that I could figure out our go pro and how to get our video footage onto the computer so that I could show you the beauty of these trees and the woods.

I was sad that we weren't together as a family, but it was so enjoyable to spend some time with my older two boys.  They also enjoyed having more of my attention and getting their questions answered more quickly.  The day was very memorable.

Yosemite

 Our next stop that we drove to from Oakdale was Yosemite.  I have never been there and it was amazing!  The views and the woods were so mighty.  The boys enjoyed hiking through the woods and climbing the rocks in search of a closer view of the water falls.

 The park was not busy at all.  Some of the park was closed due to weather, but I am so glad that we were able to go in and see some of the views.

 We only spent a day here, but I could have spent weeks hiking and taking in all the different things that the park has to offer.  I definitely want to come back so that I can see Mariposa Grove.

Tunnel view was one of my favorite spots that we stopped at.  I could have sat here all day and let my thoughts drift away. but we had a long drive back and I didn't want to do it in the dark.  If you haven't been to Yosemite, you definitely should put it on your bucket list.  It is worth it.

Next Stop - California

 After staying in the Seattle area we made our way to California.  It was a long trip so we stopped a couple nights along the way.  We stayed at a rest area in Oregon the first night and we stayed at a free campsite behind an Olive Pit store the second night.  It was fun to stay at the Olive Pit because we had breakfast right out our back door.  We arrived at Oakdale, CA and had a sweet camping spot on the reservoir.  The boys LOVED it here.  They played on the beach and made some more forts complete with beds and chairs.

 Our first full day in California the boys and I went to San Fransiso.  This was so much fun.  Our first stop was on twin peaks to get a good view of the city.

 Our second stop was at the painted ladies from the Full House opening credits.  The boys didn't even get out of the car because they just didn't get it, but you guys FULL HOUSE!

 Pier 39 was our next stop and where we spent most of our day.  The boys enjoyed walking around the shops.

Their favorite thing on Pier 39 were the sea lions though.  We sat and watched them for a really long time.

 We took a quick walk over to Fisherman's Wharf and walked around there for a little while too.  

 We got a good view of the bridge before we crossed over it heading to Muir Forest.  I have all my Redwood pictures on my phone so I was unable to put them on the blog.  This is a great place to see Redwoods and some Sequoia and the woods are like a fairytale.  Definitely worth the trip.

Above is a pictures that happens when I go to the bathroom and leave Benjamin with the camera.  I have tons of pictures very similar to these.  They make me smile when I download my photos onto my computer.

The day was a long trip, but it was well worth it.  I would never want to live in a big city like that, but it sure is fun to visit and to see the sights.

Emerald City

 Yesterday was our last day staying near Seattle so we decided to go into the city one last time.  We went to the Public Market and it was by far our favorite thing.  The boys LOVED the Pike's Fish Market.  One of the workers gave them a couple different samples and we purchased some smoked salmon jerky so we could see/hear them in action.  Our tiny $10 piece of jerky was thrown, hoot, and hollered about.  

 A fun thing for me was getting a chai tea from the original Starbucks.  Since we are here during a not so busy time of year we didn't have to really wait in line.  From what I hear there is usually a line that goes out the door.  I even got the boys some hot chocolate.

 Seattle has been such a great spot.  We definitely got a taste of the Seattle weather, but the city and it's surroundings are still amazing despite the rain and clouds. I am for sure coming back some day so that I can do more.

We caught a quick view of the city from Kerry Park and then left so that the kids could get back to work more on the fort that they have been making in the woods behind our camp.  They have spent hours out in the woods making this fort.  It has been so enjoyable for them.  We are ready to leave the rain, but not our campsite and the Emerald City.

San Juan Island

 Yesterday we took the car ferry from Anacortes to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.  We were really hoping to see some whales, but we had no such luck.  However, we did see some dolphins and a couple sea lions very close to the boat during our ride.  The boys were amazed that you could drive your car right on to the boat.  

 San Juan Island is absolutely gorgeous and it is so cute.  It reminded me slightly of Mackinaw Island.  We didn't have much time on the Island because of the ferry schedule and the drive time back to our camp which was sad.  We found this park and spent all of our time here because we enjoyed it so much.  I loved the views and the boys liked climbing the rocks near the shore.

 Above is a Pacific Madrone tree.  It so unique.  We saw many of them throughout the park.

 This state park is also known for it's whale watching.  Again, we were in high hopes of seeing some, but we didn't have any luck.  We missed the best time of year for whale watching by a little bit.

Even though it was typical weather for this time of year, we were still able to eat our lunch outside right by the Puget Sound.  

Catch Up

I want so badly to keep the blog updated so that I can look back on it when we are home, but we are so busy enjoying life that I forget about it.  I will do some quick catch up as to where we have been.  While we were in Boise, ID we did a lot of school so that we could take some time off when we were in Seattle and at the National Parks in CA.

 We went to the World center for Birds of Prey.  Here some boys are trying on some wings.  Since it was not very busy there we got our own personal tour from a nice older man that worked there and we got to see the birds eat their meal up close.

 One other place that we went to in Boise was the Old State Penitentiary.  It was super interesting because they kept adding buildings as the years past.  So we were able to look at how the designs of prison cells changed over the years.  After Boise we headed for Boardman, OR for Brad to do some work.  Next we went to Pasco, WA where we spent Thanksgiving.  We were invited to a coworker of Brad's house.  We had a wonderful time there.  It helped us to miss being with family a little less.  

   On our way to Pasco we found this interpretive center for the Oregon trail and were finally able to see some wagon ruts that are left along the trail route.  I have been in search of these because there are not many left.

 In Pasco we decorated our Christmas tree.  We found a little shrub tree at Walmart and one of the boys suggested that we get it for a Sheila Christmas tree so we did.  

 After Pasco we headed to Seattle, WA.  On the way to our campsite we stopped at Snoqualmie Falls.  The town of Snoqualmie is so cute.  I want to pack up and move there permanently!

 On Sunday we did some exploring.  We headed towards Olympic National Park.  We didn't go all the way in because it was a long drive, but we went to some little state parks around.  We found a state park right on the sound.  Across the sound you could see Mt. Olympus in the background.  The kids enjoyed looking for clams and oyster shells along the shore.

Yesterday we went into Seattle and did some exploring.  We got the take our picture with the Fremont Troll.  Many people come to get their picture taken with this piece of art.  It started as a way to clean up the drugs and homeless that were under the bridge.  

Washington is beautiful!  It is raining a lot, which we expected.  We all have raincoats and are trying to get out and see all the things while we are here.  We have a couple more days to explore and then we are heading into California for the month of December.

Two Months on the Road

The 13th of November marked two months of living on the road.  We officially closed the sale of our house on the 13th as well so now we can be considered homeless.  Being homeless never felt so good.  I was sad to leave our little house when we left Michigan and was a bit sad again when everything was final, but I am thoroughly enjoying this traveling lifestyle and am so glad that we took the leap of faith to make it all happen.  I often find myself in disbelief that we actually left everything we know and love to travel the US.

I thought I would do a little reflection post to let you all know how we are doing.  I journal everyday and have had so many thoughts about so many different things that I never had the time to think of before.  My mind as a mother of five was always racing about what was next and who needed to be where with what things.  I didn't have the space in my thoughts to actually think about the things that truly mattered to me.  My day was so scheduled and I had to be a certain place at a certain time and it NEVER ended.  Don't get me wrong, I loved my life back home and there is so much richness that was to be had, but I found myself growing bitter and forgetting the things that gave me happiness.  Being on the road I still have to do things like laundry, school, cook meals, and clean them up, but there is so much more space for freedom than there was before.  I am able to choose to go to the park for a couple hours before dinner if we want to.  When we are at the park I feel like I actually want to push my kids on the swings because I am being fulfilled and don't need to try and steal every minute I can for myself.  When I was home I felt burnt out a lot of the time and so when my kids were playing I would be sucking every minute of Facebook time that I could. 

Being with the kids 24 hours a day, 7 days a week has it's trials, but I can honestly say that it has not been as hard as I thought it would be.  Let's face it, our family is a bit of a circus.  I mean, FIVE BOYS!  When we are places with people that I know my awareness of every little thing that they are doing is heightened.  Being in this sort of hyper aware state can be wearing at times.  Since we really don't know anyone the places that we go, I am much more relaxed and have been able to allow the kids to be who they are without feeling embarrassed.  Teaching them has had it's hardships.  In fact after today I don't really want to do school tomorrow, ha!  The thing that I love most about teaching them though is that now I know them on a whole different level.  As their mother, I thought I knew everything there was to know of each of my kids, but being their teacher has really opened my eyes to them in a good way.  As the days go by I can see our relationships changing because we are the only 7 people we have most of the time.  I have been able to joke with my older boys and giggle more with my little boys.  I am not sure if that has more to do with the fact that our relationship is being nurtured with time spent or if it is because I now have more time to stop and to enjoy/notice those little joys.

Living in a 5th wheel has some annoyances.  None of us really hate them or wish that we lived in a house because we are all enjoying this journey, but there are definitely some annoyances.  Every campground has a different rule to keep their water pumps from freezing.  The campground we are at makes you completely disconnect your water hose from their pump.  So every night before we go to bed we draw straws to see which one of us has to go and disconnect the water in the cold.  Our showers have to be strategically timed.  Brad and I end up hanging out in our bedroom most nights because it is too cold to be outside and we don't want to keep the kids up.  I really miss my oven at home.  These are all things that are kind of annoying, but don't bother us completely.  I am not sure if it was because we spent a lot of our time in our house all together and shared bedrooms, if we prepared ourselves a little bit mentally for the change, or if the life that we are experiencing with being able to see so much just makes those things matter so little.

About 2 or 3 weeks ago I noticed that the kids were having kind of a hard time.  Three of them had a little bit of a down day where they missed friends and wanted home.  I questioned if what we were doing was right because I want everything to be good and right for them.  Brad reminded me that we would have bad/down days even if we were at home.  It was a great reminder.  We are going to have some hard days being away from the friends and family that we love.  Since that time I have not noticed them being down from missing home.  Yesterday I said to my oldest, "I love this life!"  He answered with out skipping a beat, "yeah I do too."  The kids miss some of their people fiercely, but they are really finding joy in the experiences that we are having as well.  They love trying new things and have been looking forward to moving when we have been somewhere for awhile.  They still fight like brothers, but I can see them relying and helping each other a little more than they ever used to.  It has been neat to sit back and watch.

So we still have some hard days just like we would if we were home, but we are all being fulfilled in so many different ways.  I am so looking forward to continuing our journey and I can't wait to see how the rest of this unfolds.  There is so much more that I could say, but hopefully this gives you a little peak into how we are managing.  We miss you all dearly!

Boise

After the Anderson Ranch Reservoir we moved onto Boise.  We will be here for two weeks by the time that we leave.  I am enjoying Boise and the bigger city, but I realized that I definitely like the more remote towns with crazy good scenery.

 The capitol building in Boise is gorgeous!  The inside is really pretty and I am so glad that we took the time to go in.

 We went to the Discovery Center of Idaho.  It was the coolest place.  They had a whole bunch of stem type things that the kids could do to learn about gravity, energy, and so much more.  The boys could have spent much more time there.  They also had an exhibit that showed how geysers and mud pots work.  It was so neat to see this right after our trip to Yellowstone.

 This guy spent most of his time at this table.  He loved watching the balls float in the air.

 We are staying at a KOA with an indoor pool.  We have spent every evening here but one since we got here.  The boys love to swim and it helps to tire them out right before bed.

 One day we ventured out to a place on the Oregon Trail.  This is called Three Island Crossings.  Inside the museum it was interactive.  When you walk up to the mannequins they would tell you a story.  This was very interesting and informative.

 Here is the three Island crossing on the Snake River.  Immigrants had to make a choice at this spot.  Would they cross the river and risk their life, belongings, and oxen in order to have a shorter route with more vegetation along the way or would they take the longer and easier route with less vegetation? 

On Saturday there is a market downtown with so many interesting things.  We walked down there with some hot chocolate and had some balloon items made for the kids.  

Mainly, we have been working hard with our school work.  I want to get ahead a little bit because we have some spots that we will move to coming up that are full of sight seeing.  We are still enjoying the sunshine and trying to get outside at least once during the day.  

Anderson Ranch Reservoir

This past weekend was definitely on my top 5 places that we have been to so far.  Our time was so well spent and Brad could catch his breath a little after a long work week.

 On our way out to the reservoir the boys and I stopped at the Little City of Rocks.  We were the only ones there.  It was a little trail hiking trail leading into a unique "rock city."

 I was a bit worried about snakes.  My fear rubbed off on the boys and they began carrying rocks around to throw at the snakes if they would be in our path.  The day was beautiful.  I cannot get over the sunshine in Idaho.  The sun shines most days at least for a little while.

 We got to the reservoir later in the evening and enjoyed a beautiful sunset.

 This is where we set up camp.  There was a small tent that was a little ways down the path, but otherwise we were all alone.  It was quiet and peaceful.  The reservoir was being drained so the water level was very low.  We were driving on ground that usually water covers.

On Saturday morning we woke up and all went fishing.  Rosie was loving being able to roam free.

On Saturday evening we found this hot spring near the river and the boys took a swim.  It was 45-50 degrees outside, but the water was at least 95 degrees.  This was a highlight for each boy for sure.

While we were here we had no wifi, no hook up, and no cell service.  On Saturday we spent the entire day outside (except for the smallest boy's nap time).  We ended the day with burgers over the fire and s'mores.  Our day was quiet, peaceful, and meaningful.