Driving Home

When the party is over, dang it, you have to start that long, long drive home.

I was just grateful that I had such lovely travelling companions and such beautiful scenery to admire.

Man, Montana. Those are some great clouds.

Day 1:

The first day of our trip was probably the most eventful. By the time I got to Spokane, my "check tires" light was on. Ok. I checked them. The air pressure was fine. Continued on.

I should have had a professional look at them...but I didn't want to lose time. (It was already going to be a 9+ hour day.) So, we drove through the norther bit of Idaho and into Montana. About a half hour outside of Bozeman, at 9pm, one of my rear tires shredded. 

Thank goodness for roadside assistance! Nice gentleman put my spare on and informed me that it was nearly flat. I got to drive on the shoulder, going 20 mph until I got to a gas station, and, even with the spare at full capacity, could only drive 45 mph all the way to Billings.

We got to our hotel at midnight and were informed that they did not accept pets. Poor Matt had to sleep in the car. Lucky for us, he couldn't have cared less.

(Ain't he adorable, holding hands with his 'Mama' while he naps!)

Day 2:

Got four new tires.

As a result, didn't get on the road until 10am.

North Dakota was lovely. Chilly, but full of sunflowery fields.

We made it to the hotel by 10pm.

Better, but still not great. Losing an hour a day is lame. I hate driving East.

Day 3:

Better!

We got a decent start and drove through Minnesota....

(Where Cozette gave herself a sleeve tattoo with her markers. The pool rinsed it right off!)

...and into Wisconsin, where I want to go on vacation. It'll be one of those vacations where we learn to make our own cheese, harvest wild rice, and visit Laura Ingalls Wilder historic sites. The kids are going to love it.

We were lucky enough to stop for a potty break near the Cheese Chalet!

I had to resist my impulse to buy a thousand-dollar cuckoo clock...

...but I did buy some other, less spendy souvenirs. Maple sugar (just like in Little House in the Big Woods!), sorghum molasses, wild rice, and dilly beans.

We were finally able to stop early enough to swim! Happy for the kids...and happy for me....since I didn't swim. I decided to take the lazy lifeguard approach, threw life jackets on the littles and just sat back and watched.

Our hotel in Wisconsin did leave something to be desired.

It was about to change from a 'Holiday Inn' to a 'Clarion Hotel' - a fact I was not aware of. AND they had already changed the sign! I finally called the hotel to let them know that their building didn't exist, and then they let me in on their secret. Nerds.

I couldn't get too mad. 

Cause it was free. (Yay for hotel reward points!)

Day 4:

We mostly drove through Illinois. Tony had me routed right through Chicago, but I opted to give big cities as wide a berth as possible. We spent all day driving on nice, straight country highways. (We even went by Rock Island! Just for you, Dad.)

This was also the day that I started feeling super bored and stir-crazy.  I stopped at a gas station and bought 4 cds of dramatized Louis L'Amour stories....saved my sanity.
Of course, now we are trying to figure out why every single heroine in his books (aside from the prostitutes with hearts of gold) is named Ruth!? Really. Why?

Spent the night in Indiana, at the same hotel we stayed in on our way out West. It gave me that "almost home!" feeling. Plus, it was a couple of blocks from Sonic.

Day 5:
Last day of driving!!!
Can I just tell you what a good kitty Matt was during this long, boring trip.
He mostly liked to sleep in his carrier, on Sofia's lap, but he also entertained us with his attempts to find other, more innovative places to nap.

We would just be driving along and James would say, out of nowhere, "Matt is so adorable!"

...and he is.

(And check out the giant cow that I just noticed through the car window.)

Matt snoozing on Cozy's seat.

He even got brave enough to climb my seat....but I think he regretted it. Doesn't he look terrified?!

We drove through the rest of Indiana, then Ohio, Pennsylvania, and back through Maryland.

Home again, home again!

And, when I got back, I found that my lovely friend Amanda had stocked my fridge with dinner and breakfast for the next morning!

What a nice trip.

Next summer I'm going to be the laziest slug ever. :)

Breanna's Doll Quilt

Sofi's friend, Breanna used to be at our house all of the time. She would always see me working on doll quilts for various cousins and wanted one for her own stuffies. Little did she know how long it actually takes me to finish the things I start! (It just doesn't see long to most people, because they don't know I'm making them something.) So....three years later...

I chose this "cheater" fabric for Bre, because it reminded me of her wardrobe.

...and I figure that, since I wouldn't have to do any piecing, I could do a lot of hand quilting.

I got to trace bows and skulls and flowers and hearts. Good times.

I'm finishing up a second set that I may put in my much-neglected Etsy shop...for some other tough girly girl.

On the Ferry

We did find a couple of excuses to take the ferry over to the Kitsap Peninsula before heading "home". In a word - Dentistry. Jon and James both needed cavities filled (and, while we were at it, molars sealed).

....and if that happened to afford us a lovely view of Mt. Rainier, so much the better. 

We took the ferry there and back....since I was too lazy to deal with traffic.

Really, who wouldn't prefer riding a boat to driving through Seattle and Tacoma?

We spotted all sorts of jellyfish in the water.

Sofia may have spotted a few less than the rest of us.

She was otherwise engaged in the struggle of man/woman against zombie and the

pursuit of suitable husbands for the Bennet sisters.

Really, Sofia only came with us so that she could hang out with her friend (and used-to-be-neighbor), Breanna. Bre kept Sofi company while the boys were at the dentist, and then I took everyone to the Mall.

...and the doll quilt I promised Breanna....we forgot to give it to her. Thank goodness for USPS.

Jon, expressing his deeply-felt concern that I was going to drop my phone into the water at any moment.

...but I thought Jon's pose was just too cute to resist.

...and a farewell selfy.

Goodbye until next time, Kitsap.

Half-Way Back

After two lovely weeks in Hawaii, we got on our red-eye flight back to Bellingham. 

Then SLEPT! (Thanks Mom!)

Don't you just love the bouquet of carrots the littles brought me?

I didn't mention to them that I'm allergic. ;)

The Flea Market

We wanted to let the kids choose a couple of souvenirs...aside from the sand and shells they had collected.

The best place I know of to find a wide variety of Hawaiian stuff is the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet.

Plus, I wanted a fresh coconut. :)

The coconut guy lops off the end of a coconut with a machete and sticks a straw in it. And when you're finished drinking your coconut water, you bring your coconut back to the guy. He cuts it open and gives you a piece of green coconut rind to use as a scoop. Fresh coconut! Yum!

It's not the texture of those dried-up things you buy in the store. It's soft, almost gelatin-y. 

The littles didn't care for it.

Can you tell by the face James is making?

I got them a Hawaiian Ice instead.

...and a container of fruit. They were nice and let me have all of the dragonfruit and coconut 

(that they didn't want.)

I gave each of the four big kids $15 when we got there. Jon and Anthony left to do their shopping, and Annika and Sofia paired up to look for their souvenirs.

I helped James and Cozy find theirs.

Coze knew exactly what she wanted - a pink Hawaiian dress!

(I got her a Kukui nut necklace to go with it. I wanted to get green...but it had to be pink.)

At least that purchase will get plenty of use.

James wasn't sure what he wanted to buy...until he saw the umbrellas.

Of course it rained before we even left the market, so it turned out to be a pretty wise purchase.

Jonny and Anthony got necklaces with tiny Hawaiian weapons on them (while longing for full-sized Hawaiian weapons.)

...and Anthony bought a new camo hat...and Jon found a dragon pocket watch.

Why are there no pictures of the older girls?

I think they were much busier shopping than everyone else.

Annika was the only child who turned in any of her change. Remind me to give her an "honesty bonus".

Turtle Beach

One of the things you HAVE to do on Oahu is visit Turtle Beach (truly, it's name is Laniakea...in case you're looking on a map). It's on the North Shore, not far from Haleiwa. Parking and traffic is a mess there (unless you are able to go on a weekday morning) and then you have to jaywalk to get to the beach. 

Totally worth it! ...cause there are sea turtles everywhere!

They come to sun themselves on the sand and eat the seaweed, but, if you aren't into that (seaweed is not for everyone), the swimming and snorkeling are also nice.

Gorgeous. I herded everyone together for one group shot before they scattered to 

their various activities again. 

...and just to tattle on Anthony real quick: He did not want to go anywhere with us (or at all) that day. He was under the impression that I would be willing to leave him home to play computer games all day. That's just a waste of Hawaii time! Anyhow, he was so uncooperative that he refused to wear or bring a swimsuit!

Because he was not going to swim. 

His resolve lasted maybe five minutes once we got to the beach. He swam in his shorts.

(So, if you think you're the only person whose kids are uncooperative vacationers...)

Annika volunteered to be Cozy's swim buddy, even though it cut into her snorkeling time.

With swim-buddy-duty goes mermaid-tail-making-duty.

James collected lots of little shells that ended up as mermaid tail decorations.

He also came up with a fun new game: pretend you're a dead body and let the waves push you to shore.

Lovely. A little morbid if you ask me, but they had a lot of fun playing it. :)

...and look at Jon, not getting sick or injured in any way! Yay! 

I may have overdone it with the "don't touch, taste, approach the sea turtles" lecture that prefaced 

our beach trip.  I couldn't get the kids to go anywhere close to the turtles for pictures. Well, I guess that's better than kids trying to ride a protected species.

It was still fun following the "honu" around and watching them eat.

Even better - watching my kids play together.

Some Stitchin

I get really bored without something creative-ish to work on. Vacation time can be hard.

About one week in, I broke down, bought some embroidery supplies...

...and did some stitching.

Cozy helped me cross-stitch some hearts.

Now that I'm home, I need to find a bigger gingham for her.

....and something to do with my random stitchery.

Tiki Island

Not two blocks from where we were staying on the Marine Base, there was a little 

rec place called Tiki Island. 

James was entranced. It looked like the funnest place he had ever seen. Sadly, it was also closed.

We checked on the internet - open on weekends only. He waited patiently for Friday. (...and by patiently, I mean asking daily if it was Friday yet and if now we were going to Tiki Island to ride the bumper boats.!?!)

It was nice when Friday came and I could finally say 'Yes!'

And, not only did we get to go to TIKI ISLAND!!, it was their opening day, fun fair, buy-a-bracelet-and-get-to-ride-everything day! Excellent timing. (The big, sometimes boring kids opted out, and, since it was right by 'home', that was fine. Sometimes it's nice to be party-pooper-free.)

Balloon Monsoon was there. They made us POKEMON!
It turns out, three out of four Romero children prefer pikachus to other balloon animals.

So, we got 3 pickachus (though, where my James picture is...?) and a bear on a heart for Cozette.

There was a little boy next to us in line who had two kissing doves on a balloon heart. I asked him if it was for his sweetheart, and got an "Ugh! No! It's for my parents!" Funny!....to me...if not to the boy.

We waited in line forever for bumper boats (not theme park forever waiting...15/20 minutes).

The kids said it was worth it. I'll have to take their word for it, because I opted to stay on the sidelines for that one.

Annika was a sport and took Cozy with her...

...while Jon seemed to have a squirt-gun vendetta against Annika.

SO glad I sat that one out. They were so wet.

They dried off, jumping in the bouncy houses...

...and riding the pirate ship.

(Notice we aren't carrying our balloons around everywhere? That's the nice thing about being right by your house. We walked home and put them away....and tried to entice the big kids out of their cave, with tales of floats and bumper boats. Alas, to no avail.

So we returned. And after we ate hotdogs and rootbeer floats (Yea! I don't have to make dinner!), I decided we should do something calm, like mini golf.

Even as I'm writing this, James is looking over my shoulder and offering Cozette mini golf advice. :)

"You should hit your ball to the high part Cozy. Then it will roll down to the hole"

Tiki Island. Land where childhood dreams come true.