Summer Vacation 2010

(From notes I kept on the trip)



We left just as school got out, drove to Bountiful and saw John and Tawnie's beautiful new baby. Drove on to Idaho and saw our house looking a little tired and overgrown. Oregon was beautiful. Hills covered with green and purple grasses. Pine trees. Beautiful farms, red barns, cows grazing.



Ben Lee singing "We're All in this Together," making me glad to be here with my family. Kids napping. Me napping. Travis driving and cracking jokes. Joe asking how much longer 'til we get there. A little talk radio. Peanut butter M & Ms.



Gas is getting cheaper. We see a sign that the powerball jackpot is 220 million. Travis asks what's the first thing we'd do if we won that much money. I say "pay off everyone in the family's houses." Bruce says, "Buy everyone new houses and get the schoolhouse for Grandpa and Grandma." Sounds like a good plan.



I want to read my book but the scenery is too pretty. Love seeing the trains, even the graffiti covered cars. Joe has read 14 chapters of White Fang. I'm enjoying the old-fashioned power lines--the ones that look like a man standing there holding the wires.



Bruce's graduation is happening right now. We're all glad we're here instead.


SATURDAY - Kids swimming. Ivar's fish and chips. Feeding seagulls. The market--flowers, Three Girls Bakery and more. Disappointed that they no longer make haystacks and smaller mounds cost more. Andre Lovett singing on the street. He's excellent.

(For Mehmet)

SUNDAY - We drive around the city and look at some homes. Veronica has a bad cold. Road-raged, insane flipper-offer. Bags of fancies for breakfast. Challenge getting our parking taken care of, then a crazy taxi ride. Long lines, but finally on the ship.

Safety drill. Unpacking. Sign kids up for teen club and tween club. We read in the library. Delicious family dinner. Bruce can't be in teen club. Bummer. Tween club fun, but no girls in teen club. Bruce and Veronica join us for cheesy show, but Bruce gets called on the stage to participate so we're glad we went.

MONDAY - Basketball. Savannah and Joe climb rock wall. Veronica meets girl from Lone Peak. Rocky Road ice cream on demand. Oh oh. Terrible comedian. I mean the worst. I wanted to boo. Beautiful scenery. Bruce and Travis place third in Sports Trivia. Joe wins survivor in kid's club. Veronica and new friend go to teen club and have fun. Bruce, Travis and I go to fun Majority Rules game.
TUESDAY - Juneau. We rent a car. Neat town. We hit a Wal-Mart and a laundramat for the necessities. Mendenhall glacier. Beautiful. Souvenirs. Drive around seeing the town. Sunny and warm. Ski wall entrance. Bruce tries the highly recommended Russian Dumplings. Lobster for dinner. Dance games in Kid's Club.

WEDNESDAY - Skagway. Very old-fashioned and cute and small. Hot! 85 degrees. Souvenirs. Triking down the 4 miles from the lookout. Fun pictures in panorama at the park. Discovered delicious pecan sticky buns on the ship. Golfing and suffleboard. Funny waiter asks Joe to pay the bill several times, even bringing him a fake bill at the end of the meal. He asks Joe for his room card to pay and asks for Joe's signature. Joe writes at the bottom of the bill: Never. The waiter can't stop laughing. Crossword puzzle with Bruce. Bruce entertains the room with his dance moves at a dance party. Fun juggling show. Too much food!

THURSDAY - Glacier Bay National Park. Over 3 million acres of incredible beauty. Calving glaciers. Stunning ice. Park ranger who said "I'd encourage you to..." at least 100 times during the few hours of narration. Breathtaking!

Delicious lamb, pecan pie, mousse and scallops. Travis, Bruce and I took 2nd place in Olympic trivia. Very funny 2nd City Comedy group. 2nd place in True/False trivia (There is a limit of 4 per team, but we keep losing to a family with four playing, but about eight more "watching"--pretty fishy). Can't take Andy the cruise director. Shuffleboard, basketball, pirate fun, photo scavenger hunt, library, gameroom where we play a really dumb game of Office Trivia.

FRIDAY - Ketchikan. Interesting and charming town. Duck Tour. Eagles. Entertaining lumberjack show. Purchased a couple of pretty watercolors. The girls wanted some rings from a seller there. He started out at $20.00 each. The girls started to walk away so he offered to make them a deal. If they'd buy 10, he'd sell them for $7.00 each. They asked if he'd take $28 for 4 of them and he said, "Well, I don't know. How about 5 for $30?" I quickly agreed and we were on our way.

2nd place in 80's trivia--Again. Hilarious improv show from 2nd City group. Chocolate buffet. Beautiful weather. Another crossword.

This eagle was real. I promise!

SATURDAY - Slept in late. Animal towel folding demonstration. Second City improv workshop. We laughed so hard I almost had an accident. They were my favorite part of the entertainment by far. Good juggling show. Crossword with Bruce. Last dinner in Summer Palace.

Victoria. Carriage ride and bus tour. Beautiful city! Incredible architecture. Gorgeous homes. One of the prettiest cities I've ever seen. Last evening with Joe and Veronica's cruise friends.

SUNDAY - So sad! It's over. Easy exit. Really wish the week was just starting. Wish we'd gotten more pictures with the kids' friends. Raining in Seattle - the only city we didn't have sunshine.

Some final thoughts as we go home:

I'm actually glad Bruce couldn't go to the Teen Club. We loved doing more things with him. Loved all the family time--activities, meals, games, shows. So many fun memories with no blow-ups, everyone laughing together and having fun. A fantastic week.

On the way home we visited for a couple of hours about funny memories and experiences, impersonations of people we met, things we'll miss, etc. So glad we went!

Bring on the Summer

It might be because Bruce is a senior and can't wait to be through with school.

It might be because we have some great things planned for summer.

It might be because everyone is tired of homework.

Whatever the reason, I can't EVER remember a time when my kids have been so ready for school to get out. Every kid has wanted to miss days of school this past month. They are all a little harder to get up in the morning. We're just ready for summer!

Bruce, being a senior has about three days left. The rest have six. They just have to gut it out and then summer will be here.

I have ALWAYS looked forward to summer. For the first time in my life, I have mixed feelings about summer coming. As a kid who didn't love school, I couldn't wait for summer every year. As a mom who LOVES having my kids around, I have always loved summer. But this year feels a little different. You see, in a matter of days, summer vacation will be here and then the fun will begin. And then, all too quickly, the fun will end. The kids will go back to school, but this time Bruce will live somewhere else. He won't show up for lunch every day. He won't ask what's for dinner. He won't be around to tease us and crack jokes. He won't be here to show us a highlight on Sportscenter or to watch Law and Order with me.

Oh great! Now I'm crying.

We're all looking forward to summer, but I just wish there was a "Pause" on the remote control of life. I'm not really ready for what comes after summer.

St. George Weekend

We enjoyed a little weekend trip to St. George last month. It was quick, but enjoyable. We went to a Colbie Callait concert with Grandma and Grandpa Rindlisbacher, hiked a nice trail, went out to dinner and had a great time.

Veronica's friend Bryce joined us. Bruce was on the trip as well, although he didn't join us for the hike. He was seeing the barber.