October Outdoors

Eek, what a busy month October was! It began with a trip to Colorado. For my brother's wedding! Thank you for planning it in a glorious spot at a spectacular time. (Also, my brother is MARRIED!!!)

This was preceded by a September during which we all tried to make sure we had proper clothes for a fall wedding in the mountains. Or honestly, even just fall clothes that fit (Elise was all out of pants and did I unthinkingly donate Kalina's hand-me downs?!?). Turns out, only Matt had everything he needed. As the predicted weather switched from slightly chilly and partly cloudy to quite chilly and drizzly, and as all reasonable, matching cardigans sold out pretty much everywhere, that final week before the wedding was a bit of a scramble. 

Elise also packed her loud, sparkly rubber chicken, because Uncle Tom.

The trip started with a strange noise that the van was making, and by the time we'd almost arrived, Naomi's dental appliance had broken. On a Friday afternoon. When the office was closed. When we were a state away. We adopted my favorite strategy: pretend it didn't happen and that everything would be fine. Although we only got it reattached nearly 4 weeks later, due to busy-ness at the orthodontist's office, things still seem to be fine. For the record, Naomi is a trooper.

The remaining 45 minutes of the drive were pretty perfect. We arrived with plenty of time to make it to the rehearsal dinner, after first saying hi to Aunt Nancy and checking out the gift shop at the YMCA of the Rockies, where we were staying along with Aunt Nancy, Grandpa and Marianne. Because the time to buy souvenirs is definitely before you even begin the trip, right? Of course.

We weren't able to check into our room yet, so we headed over to the rehearsal location where we got to meet the bride's family and see lots of Tom's friends we hadn't seen in forever (or ever, in the case of some of the girls). Naomi was taught not to just drop the flower petals--because that's boring--but instead to toss them high in the air. She was totally up for it. The ring bearer, meanwhile, napped on his dad's shoulder. Naomi began to see that throwing flower petals would only be part of the job, and that she could have her work cut out for her getting that ring bearer up the aisle.

We caught up with people, ate a lovely dinner, and even squeezed in the most straightforward game of Telestrations I've ever played, with other guests, before heading back to our room for bed.

The next morning we trekked out on a gorgeous hike past the Twin Owls, along with other members of the wedding party and cousins. We enjoyed exploring and catching up along the way. Then, it was time for us to decorate for the reception and get all the bits and pieces in place (including, we debated, the chicken in a place of honor as part of the head table's centerpiece. Although we hated to waste the opportunity, we decided against, in the end. We didn't want the bride to have any reason to second-guess her decision. :) ). 

Back at the Y, after a drive through the elk festival in downtown Estes, which turned out to feel a lot like driving through an actual elk herd, we had enough time for a cooler lunch, showers, dressing and--for Naomi, hair curling before heading back through the crowds to the wedding. Naomi was actually quite excited to get all dressed up and although the curls didn't stay in very well, she exuded radiance and looked quite lovely.

And the wedding! Naomi scattered the petals with gusto, and also probably helped the ring bearer feel comfortable enough to make it up the aisle. The ceremony was gorgeous, and not nearly as rainy/chilly as I'd feared throughout the week before as I'd stocked up on all the warm wedding-ish things I could find for the girls of the family.

At the reception, the chicken did make an appearance on the cake table, and the photographer may have snapped a photo, but it wasn't too disruptive, I don't think. The girls enjoyed their food--Naomi having secured my promise beforehand that if she ordered the chicken fingers and fries she wouldn't actually have to eat the chicken ("Mom, a chicken had to die!"). I debated, but decided that in the spirit of unforced celebration, Matt could finish off the chicken. Elise had been glad, when we responded to the invite, to be allowed to choose the grownup lasagna instead of a kids meal. It all felt fancy and delicious--we don't attend too many formal occasions. Yum.

Elise managed to get in a little dancing (and maybe Naomi, too?), as did Matt and I, but I believe Kalina stayed glued to her spot, in true Hanks-Odegaard style. 

We had a lovely time but were ready for bed before everyone else was. However, that meant we were awake in time for a short hike in the morning with Aunt Nancy. The rain had held off so well, but we were nearly drizzled out this morning, being a little cautious about finding ourselves in a downpour a mile out from our warm, comfortable van. Still, we enjoyed some beautiful aspens and didn't really get wet, thanks to all the raingear I made us drag along. (I packed for ALL the weather.)

After hiking, we stopped at the store to pick up all the amazing brunch food, before heading to a lovely, elk-infested park for the post-wedding picnic brunch and a few rounds of spikeball. After which we said goodbye to all the relatives, and began adventuring on our own, namely in the form of a hike at RMNP. 

We may have spotted some endangered fish, but we definitely made it to our destination: Emerald Lake. After which, the weather looked a bit iffy (was that rain?) and still not wanting to be out there in a downpour, we yanked the kids away from their quiet admiration of the view and quickly retraced our steps to the parking lot. No rain, so we hiked the easy Bear Lake loop.

For dinner we decided to return to the yummy-looking mac and cheese we'd seen in the grocery store's deli when picking up the food. As if we'd only dreamed it, however, the mac and cheese had been replaced by a shiny, sterile, completely empty serving bin, ready for the next day's mac and cheese. Honestly, I think I was the only one that had major problems with that (hot. warm. comforting. dinner. now.). Matt, sensing the kids were in danger, wisely removed them toward the summer sausage, crackers, and cheese, while I glared at a row of prepackaged cold deli food.

Once eating my stupid pasta salad, doctored up with summer sausage, back at the hotel and divvying up cookies, though, my good nature returned and we made our plans for the next day before everyone else went to bed and I sat up for 2 hours reading alone in the dark (which I had 0 problem with).

The next morning we first hiked, and then hung out at a favorite part of the park: the Alleuvial Fan, an area with large rocks to climb and a waterfall. Climbing around on the rocks and wading in cold, clear water was pretty fun, but even better was taking turns with Elise's LifeStraw and sampling the water. Delicious, refreshing, clean... the list goes on. Best of all, no one got sick!

Back at the lodge, we ate a quick cooler lunch and Matt began putting in 1/2 day of remote work while the girls and I headed to the craft cabin. Kalina mosaiced an amazing cat pawprint, Elise turned a picture frame into a creative half-mosaic, half mountain artwork (and it turned out really cool!), and Naomi painted a lovely pumpkin for fall. She's been super into pumpkins lately. It poured while we were in there (and I chose that moment to run to the car to bring everyone's rain jackets in case it was still pouring when we left...not my best-thought-out idea ever), so I was glad we weren't hiking.

After our projects were finished, we headed to downtown Estes for some souvenir shopping. I love hiking with my girls, and I also love shopping with them, and I love that they love hiking and shopping as well. Kalina was looking for a t-shirt (preferably for much less than the $30+ we were seeing on many price tags), Naomi wanted a rock animal, and Elise wanted maybe a shirt, maybe a keychain, maybe a sticker--we'd see. 

Naomi was delighted to find two dinosaur rock animals she wanted, and kept her spending at that. Kalina eventually found a shirt that fit pretty much all of her qualifications, including price, and Elise found a super reasonable long-sleeved one as well. We also somehow found something to buy at the taffy store (aside from gifts for our pet-sitters), and wandered through an art gallery that left us all almost wanting to be CEOs when we grow up so that we could buy all of it. 

A spectacular sunset, a cooler dinner, and a bunch of packing rounded off the day. And the next morning, we headed back home. It sure is a long drive... wish we could make it more often, but we're pretty sure we'll be back!

But we weren't done with epic outdoor adventures in October! As part of her role as Girl Outdoor Lead with our AHG troop, Elise had the responsibility of planning the fall campout! And as there was no mentor in place for her and I'm her mom, plus the troop vice coordinator, I did my best to support (not control) her. Spoiler alert: the campout turned out awesome and Elise and I feel like we make a really good team. 

Actually, much was beyond Elise's control: she helped narrow down campsites, but our coordinator chose her #4 choice out of 4 options. The option we chose included a built-in evening activity--Elise was on board, but again didn't have much say. We also informed her we wanted to tie-dye matching troop t-shirts on the campout--an idea she loved, but had no say in. And finally, our troop shepherd and her team had an hourlong activity to do. So Elise was left with scattered chunks of time to accomplish her goals: namely, to complete/work on the Camping badge!

Elise decided that we'd go on a hike, and she figured out the meals, with some help from another team member. She also created the schedule--a monumental task that many adults would have trouble with--made a controversial decision about how the girls would contribute, delegated/invited other girls and adults to help, and wrote various communications. She wrote a packing list and made sure we had the right supplies.

The kicker: "I feel like I didn't do enough," is how she self-evaluated. Read: "I'd liked to have done it all!" Glad she likes her job!

One thing she couldn't have planned: the weather, which was pretty much perfect. 

In the end, despite a few mess-ups, the camping badge was as earned as it could be, the hike was fun, the meals were enjoyed, the evening activity was... okay and memorable... tie-dying was amazing, and the girls seemed to have a blast. It's going to be really hard to top, but as Elise is brimming with ideas, I'm pretty sure if anyone can do it, she can. 

Elise at 12

 If there's one thing that annoys Elise leading up to her birthday it's celebrating fall before celebrating her. As such, we have something of a family rule that we don't decorate for fall, buy anything pumpkin-spiced, or even talk about fall much before she's aged up. This year, however, she decided that September could be its own season. So it's kind of, almost, okay to talk about fall. [We do remind her, every year, that Grandpa Les has it way worse, with a near-Christmas birthday. This does not seem to change her convictions about her birthday + fall, but Grandpa gets a good dose of sympathy from afar.]

Honestly, I agree. September, gorgeous and lovely, is really neither pure summer nor pure fall. So we celebrated September as the summer-fall shoulder season this year, as well as Elise's 12th. 

Elise is surprisingly low-maintenance when it comes to birthdays. She's happy with anything (as long as there's a party and sweets), and is content to stay within a budget, keep it simple, consider others, etc. She conscientiously drops hints about what she wants to receive, so there's little guesswork, and she'll gladly help with celebration prep. I know she'll have a great day, no matter what.

On her birthday morning, Elise managed to let us sleep in a bit, but still started her day with fanfare and sisters. Having asked for  hinted about a camera (a rather large gift), for months, the rest of her gifts from us weren't gigantic, but she did open a stingray Squishmallow from Naomi and a book and a bioluminescent mushroom kit from Kalina. 

We enjoyed yet another box of Lucky Charms for breakfast (seriously, we call that breakfast?!?), and I baked Elise's cake so we could decorate it later. Then off to church, where Elise was over the moon to see one of her besties, who we don't actually usually cross paths with in church. Her family made a lovely fuss over Elise, and Elise's day was officially made. 

At home, Matt made pancakes (a new tradition for birthday lunch? I kinda hope so!), and we opened a game of Spikeball from Uncle Tom and Aunt Clarissa! :) We tried to play, failed hilariously, and generally enjoyed ourselves so much.

Then Elise decorated her cake to the theme of sleeping under the stars, her highlight of the year, thanks to plenty of fondant. She was putting the finishing touches on when Grandpa and Marianne arrived for lots more fun.

We made the trip to Jason's deli, opened more gifts, and then expertly pogo sticked a whole lot in the driveway (she got a pogo stick from Grandpa and Marianne and mastered it almost immediately, having borrowed one once for a while). 

A week later, Elise had some friends over for some low-key celebratory fun as well. They began with a craft--decorating wood cutouts of their initials. We even allowed glitter (under stringent rules since I was less than confident about some of the girls' ability to manage it responsibly--no offense, Elise's friends), although I regretted it later when I saw that the glitter didn't stick as well when the paint dried. I also regretted a wet paint/dry glitter blow-dry incident that you can still find traces of in the half-bath.

We enjoyed pizza (from two separate places--the cheap place that is the only kind one girl likes, and the gluten/dairy-free pizza for two other guests. Thank you Matt for doing that running around!), and then headed outside.

Earlier in the day, Kalina and Matt had created an awesome orienteering-based treasure hunt that took the girls down the trail a bit. I'm not sure everyone stuck with it, but they definitely all enjoyed roaming the woods, and eventually they made it to the end (which was, ironically, very close to where they'd begun. Even more ironically, they'd almost started digging there at the outset.). 

Next, a campfire and lots of s'mores options: gluten-free Oreos, Rolos, York peppermint patties (which will forever be known as Yonk peppermint patties in our house--a hilarious mispronunciation Elise is officially able to laugh at now), pretzels, fruit-flavored marshmallows, and more. 

And then, quickly, gifts. We'd requested only simple things. We ended up with everything from a lovely plant to a glittery, noisy rubber chicken. Hmm.

______

At 12, Elise continues to amaze us with her good-naturedness (that she seems to be purposefully developing even more), joyfulness, and volume. And curiosity. And occasionally, daring. And strangeness creativity.

She's as emphatic as ever about certain types of scientific knowledge (plankton, etc.), and the outdoors, and baby snapping turtles, and whatever book/craft/pogo sticking/new pet/whatever other hobby she's into. It's fun, really, to be pulled along through all her interests. Most of the time. Other times they hit you a bit like a train.

Elise asks great questions and shows great empathy and thoughtfulness, with a very well-developed sense of social situations. It's not that she acts on that 100% of the time--but if she was annoying adults by chatting too late in the tent with her friends, she will freely admit she needed to have quieted down. She's an encouraging little soul, too, trying to push her friends and family to greater heights. Again, not 100% in the right way, but getting there, and with the right motivations. 

Her pets in the past year have included a baby prairie kingsnake, a couple little turtles (painted, snapping, I think maybe one other), triops, copepods, tadpoles (2 kinds), a preying mantis, probably a couple fish, and of course her frogs and the standard things in our house. And probably more that I'm forgetting.

Elise still loves all things science, reading, writing, and theater. She's currently in Annie and in a show called Puffs, about the Hufflepuffs' experience at Hogwarts, in her theater class. She also continues to enjoy her voice lessons and loved planning and organizing the campout for AHG. Nature Club still continues, although it's been a bit bombarded by neighbors and is maybe not as big of a thing as it used to be, sadly. She's one busy girl!

People frequently mention how fun Elise is to talk to--a neighbor was even happy to drive her to theater classes last semester. She has no problem speaking to people of alllll ages. It's as though age doesn't exist--although she can definitely tell when people aren't acting their age, and she does value a certain level a maturity from kids who are old enough to know better. :)

Her sweet tooth still reigns, but she's just as likely to pop tomatoes into her mouth as chocolate chips (or, almost), and she even wants to try adventurous foods. She still climbs higher than we'd like, but is not afraid to do a lot of other things that we would like (get shots without a fuss, kill the spider, make friends with a new child, etc.).

She likes to tap into her creative side, whether by writing poetry and illustrating it, or, more recently, painting tiny canvases in national park-inspired scenes.

Here's some poetry she wrote in her math book, just like those monks copying manuscripts years ago added their own thoughts to the margins to make life more interesting:

The sunlight shines upon her fur,
So now it seems to glow,
And why she looks so pleased and smug is something I don't know.
The sunlight soothes her worries;
She purrs without restraint.
It's very clear this sunlit cat is perfect, without taint.

And on the next page:

I rub her chin, I pet her tum.
She blinks and smiles and rolls.
It is my job to pamper,
She pays me with her purr. 

And for the final stanza, she changes it up:

She's always, always sleeping,
Unless she's busy licking.
I try to let her rest as best I can.

In order to conserve time so she could write the poetry, she omitted some steps of problems and shortcutted her way to the final answer. Personally, I'm wondering if we should be doing math at all--after all, she could probably make her way in the world just fine with a little cat poetry and a smile. 

Speaking of math, it remains on her list of things she won't do without a fight. Also included: dentistry (still) and grammar. Other things she won't do without a varying level of nagging: clear her dishes at the table, brush her teeth/hair, clean her room, turn out her light and go to sleep (basically anything recurring).

She freely admits that she gets distracted easily and this keeps her from getting schoolwork done and sleeping at night. To the point that I had her take a self-test for ADD (turns out, her answers lined up almost perfectly in the "gifted" column, with almost none in the ADD column, so there's our problem...).

But she maintains enough focus to produce lovely art, hold interesting and in-depth conversations, learn all about microscopic (and non-microscopic) critters, plan an entire campout for AHG, bake amazing key-lime bars, learn a TON of lines for the play she's in, crochet an entire blanket, kayak and hike long (ish) distances, scatter joy around the world, and all the rest. Not bad for a 12-year-old!

Naomi's Ninth

Naomi was super excited to be
the birthday girl!

Naomi is nine! And nine is a big deal. Her birthday wish list, written on the dry-erase board, included the following:

A glue gun (later crossed off, because I didn't allow her to put glue all over the counter in an attempt to make solid glue creations)

A real pet Guinea pig

A pencil sharpener

A tape dispenser

Erasers

Really big drawing paper

A specific Guinea pig book

Mini lights that you could turn on and off, to use for crafts.

A stuffed axolotl Squishmallow (Google it)

Only later did it include things like:

A stuffed Guinea pig

Another specific Guinea pig book

Much later. Saturday later, with her birthday on Sunday.

Fortunately, unlike a certain stuffed puppy crisis of Christmas 2018, Naomi had a delightful birthday even knowing that she wasn't going to get a real Guinea pig (yet, anyway), and that she'd probably written the stuffed Guinea pig on the list too late to actually receive one. If she was feeling emotions such as "disappointed" or "frustrated," she bottled them up well.

But it'd be hard not to have a great day when waking up to a sweetly decorated dining room (llamas were the theme), plenty of gifts that she actually did request (nice of Target to have so many back-to-school sales just in time for Naomi's school-supply requests!), Lucky Charms for breakfast, and a sister sleepover the night before. 

I will never get tired of saying how grateful I am to birthday-girl sisters for making each others' days special. The two older girls pulled out all the stops even after losing sleep to a sister sleepover.

And even when, in addition to the stuffed axolotl from Elise  Naomi got the super cool gift they both probably would've asked for if they knew it existed: a 3D printing pen. I'd had the idea when Naomi gave up on the idea of a glue gun. "Wait... I think they make a product like that that's way cooler... Amazon?!?"

Eventually we made
guinea pigs instead
of random strings.

Although much of the melty plastic was initially used to make long vertical strings and other kinda weird little sculptures, Naomi eventually learned how to make a bunny... sort of. There's lots of room to grow, but the YouTube videos sure look cool.

Naomi was delighted to wear the Birthday Girl button at church--where they had a giant box of donut holes set out just for her (or for a volunteer recruitment event, maybe--but probably just for her). She loves going to her class and even made a new friend named...drum roll...Naomi! 

Fuzzy rug from Grandma and
Grandpa, and a cuddly sister!

Back at home, Matt had his super amazing pancakes all ready to whip up. Naomi opened a gift and played a quick game of Telestrations with me and her sisters, who were still, thankfully, not too worn out by all the celebrating to stick close to the birthday girl and continue to make it a special day.

There wasn't a ton of afternoon left after our late lunch, and before Grandpa and Marianne arrived, but Naomi had plenty of ways to fill it. Soon, though, we were metal detecting in the yard with Grandpa. Whose birthday is it?!?

Chocolate cherry
cake and llama
plates--a great
combo.

And then Jason's Deli, a rousing game of Telestrations (new family favorite?), more gifts, and lots of fun overall. Plus cake, and two different ice creams (if you only go to Jason's Deli once a year, you do kinda need the free soft-serve!), including Grandpa's special homemade ice cream. 

As a bonus birthday, Naomi also got to invite friends to paint pottery at a local studio the Saturday after. Although there was frequent confusion about which pastel color on the palette would turn which vibrant color when the pottery was fired, a patient attendant with a wet sponge was able to fix every mistake and help the girls enjoy their experience. 

See the worry in Naomi's face?
She's still nervous about fire.

Naomi painted an adorable orange and white cat (2 guesses where she got the inspiration), and enjoyed seeing her friends paint a mix of dolphins, horses, and other animals--plus Kalina's plate. We also enjoyed cupcakes and gifts, most of which were crafts. She's set up for a while now! 

It was a pretty awesome birthday, and so much fun to celebrate our sweet girl! Happy birthday, Naomi!

Naomi is gaining confidence as a 9-year-old, which shows up not only in how she talks to her sisters (which is ripe with pros and cons), but also in tasks that she takes on. Case in point: trying to earn 6 new badges over the summer so she can fill up her "flower" on her AHG vest. Ambition--I like it!

Naomi shows off her new
pencil sharpener, and I show
off my new 9-year-old.

Stuffed animals are still her favorite, but she's increasingly enjoyed playing with little kids this year, like neighbor girls and little sisters of friends, and her well-honed nurturing skills are transferring well. Moms/grandparents everywhere love her--she's a natural and she genuinely enjoys playing with littles.

Naomi desperately wants a pet Guinea pig, but also openly recognized that eventually she "might not be as into Guinea pigs anymore." So she wants a pet one before she's lost interest. Hmm... maybe we won't just run right out to the store for that one. However, if she maintains interest, and maybe at some point we're short a bunny...

She uncomplainingly and unfailingly takes care of the bunny, which she's claimed for her own (to the annoyance of Elise, for whom I don't feel much sympathy as she's unwilling to do anything about it) and renamed Oreo. She's done this partly to convince us she could handle a Guinea pig. And she's totally proved her point. Matt and I just can't handle cleaning out another cage.

Naomi's expanded her reading horizons, breezing through the only 3 Harry Potter books we've let her read and picking up a lot of historical fiction. She's been increasingly able to handle suspense and sadness in books, shows, and conversation, as well as even a tiny bit of blood and guts. We're up to, like, a paper cut.

Increasingly adventurous outside, Naomi will happily hold frogs and scale cliffs. Yet she's very scared of the dark, and ants. She's also a newly discovered claustrophobic. Worms are her least favorite.

Naomi's new skills include baseball (thanks, cousins, for playing with us!), practicing piano without needing much from me, violin, a pretty decent cursive, making pancakes, cleaning toilets, a solid doggie paddle and diving underwater, actually eating food she doesn't like (it happened! Like twice! Only because I made her, though...), using a porta potty (despite being claustrophobic and only, she informed me, because it was her only option), a few computer skills, doing her own hair, and drawing fairly well--her newest thing is to draw people sitting down. Like Mona Lisa. I think she may actually surpass my skills in that this year (not that that's much to speak of).

She had her first audition in a musical theater class this year, and earned a fun little solo part that she's really excited about. We're excited to see her personality shine through on stage, and she's been enjoying acting and learning to sing with a group. 

The girl loves flowers (always has, looking back--many wildflowers lost their lives to be stuffed into a vase after family walks), and is uncovering a new interest in interior decorating. We have vases with fake flowers that she arranged all over the house. And ceramic bunnies as decorative arrangements. And pompom animals. It's super sweet, and I'm counting the days until she can for real decorate my house for me. Until then I'm enjoying the colorful hodgepodge.

She also likes shopping with me, but mostly at stores that have "animal decorations" (i.e., ceramic bunnies and such). Usually, this means Hobby Lobby, but I've also convinced her to come along to Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. Even the grocery store she doesn't really mind. 

She's asking really good questions lately, showing lots of thoughts and larger-than-life connections. We often Google things together.

Around the house, Naomi will happily do Elise's chores for her, but will freak out about washing dishes. Why? The plate may have touched food she doesn't like. Some things never change after 9 years--but we wouldn't have it any other way!

Chaos and Camp

Thumbs up for summer camp!

Every week in the summer is different. Which is super refreshing and fun at first (towards the end I'm usually way ready for a schedule again). There's VBS week, with younger kiddos out of the house in the morning, there are various half-day camps, occasionally, and there are the weeks with nothing planned that end up planned anyway (but with trips to the pool, Hobby Lobby, fun places around town, playdates with friends, and random walks). There are also the inevitable trips and visits. 

Plus occasionally I like us to do math in the summer, and most days I assign some sort of a special chore, in addition to regularly scheduled music practice. As I commanded my kids to clean the baseboards, walls, doorframes, doors, and cabinets one morning, I realized that I wasn't sure I'd ever actually cleaned my own baseboards--or at least not more than a couple times. Only my mom's. It's totally a kid job that gets neglected when there are no able-bodied kids in the house. Another mommying mystery, solved: which adults actually regularly clean the baseboards? None of them! Why? Because it's not that important and it's hard on our knees! Why assign it to kids? So they learn to work/keep out of trouble/it's hard to mess up! Plus they're the ones who get them dirty in the first place! (Or, if you regularly clean your baseboards, just disregard this part. Also, I suppose now that I know better I will probably stay up on it, but for now it's totally a kid job. Please don't look too closely.)

And actually, cleaning the woodwork is a job they all actually really get into--especially Elise and Naomi and Magic Erasers. There's something truly satisfying about scrubbing dirt off polished wood. 

Anyway, summer is basically managed chaos (but good kinds of chaos!), which totally freaked poor Matt out when he first started working from home, and still does--especially when he actually tries to stay on top of our movements. I'm not sure why anyone tries, actually, because it all changes at any moment anyway.

Plus it helps that I purposefully schedule in plenty of down time. 

Chaos doesn't mean kids hanging from the chandeliers, by the way (except Elise recently hanging ribbons from the chandelier so it looks like a giant jellyfish--a big improvement). Sometimes it means everyone is peacefully reading one minute and then rushing out the door to piano lessons/pool/local attraction/playdate/etc. the next. 

Ah, summer!

But nothing challenges a chaotic summer schedule like a week of sending the older kids off to a 5-night camp. 

To prepare, we bunched all of our activities into the week before and week after (talk about chaos!). We also discussed all the "what ifs?" To help with these, we devised a code, knowing that the camp photographer would make her rounds every day.

In addition, watched videos on horses, as the camp was called Horse Wilderness. They would be doing wilderness things, and also horse things. Kalina, not being super into horses, was going to have to fake it. Elise, not being in 7th grade yet, was also going to have to fake it. [The camp was officially for grades 7 and 8, but by nudging Elise into 7th--which she could totally be in anyway. As long as no one asked too many questions. Plus usually once people meet Elise, they want to keep her, so she I knew her personality would work in her favor if need be.]

And finally, we packed. The girls packed from a rather sparse list, and we asked our friends about the rest. They actually ended up well-prepared, and not really over-prepared. Perfect.

And I wrote letters, one to be delivered to each girl, each day. I believe most kids got a, "Love you! Mom" type of letter. Not mine. They received 3 long, fun (to me!) letters from me, and another each from one of the cats. 

And then we were off! It took me an entire day to drop them get them to camp, and return home empty-handed.

The drive up was fun, getting excited about camp. We talked through scenarios and discussed what to do at each one. The girls read. I savored the last couple hours of me and my older girls. And finally, we made it to the iconic restaurant we'd agreed to meet up with our friends at, with whom they'd be attending camp (just the kids, though). 

After another drive, we arrived at the camp. And then, after I spent 4 hours in the car, plus a restaurant meal, it took all of 10 minutes to drop them off. I felt ripped off, and ripped apart.

I didn't mean to come back a zillion times after dropping them off, but it happened. First, to encourage sunscreen--after all, they were standing right in the sun! Seriously, girls?!? Then, to ask Kalina if she wanted the book that was on the front seat (she didn't). Next, to take their picture. Everyone was laughing at me at this point, self included.

The whole cabin! Elise has
apparently found a snail, and
the fun counselor is
interviewing it for the
photo. Because Elise.

Finally, I actually drove away, with Kalina loudly predicting I'd be back. Soon, it dawned on me that I hadn't told the counselor that the girls would be picked up by their friends' parents, which is kinda important. Back I went--but that was it! I turned on my audio books and hit the road. 

By evening, the camp had uploaded loads of photos from check-in and the first chapel service. And there I was! One of my many attempts to say goodbye was captured for posterity. More important, there were my girls, vehemently giving me thumbs ups in each picture.

Kalina makes breakfast

Why thumbs ups? It's all about the code we'd developed. We agreed that if the girls saw the photographer and wanted to communicate to me that the camp was actually a forced labor camp, and they needed to be picked up immediately, they were to smile and wave for the camera with one hand. If the girls saw the photographer and wanted to communicate to me that there were no bathrooms nearby (this was a legitimate worry for about 30 terror-stricken minutes during packing), she was to wave with two hands. If everything was fine, they were to give me a thumbs up. This made us all feel better.

Waiting for breakfast

I wondered if all week, all I would see in photos would be thumbs. Fortunately, that was not the case--they relaxed and had a fantastic time, from the looks of the photos. I did not, unfortunately, get a single shot of one of my girls on or even near a horse. But I did see that they cooked breakfast outside (Kalina tended the fire and checked the meal), did a perfectly coordinated Church Clap at chapel, and threw hatchets at a target (embarrassingly, I didn't actually recognize them until they got home and they showed me...). 

Church clap!

Another stalker-Mom moment happened every evening when I checked their account balance to see if I needed to add more cash. You know, for things like candy and slushies (cushy camp!). One night, I saw that Elise had spent something like $17 and I figured out that she had probably purchased a milkshake and a t-shirt. But which shirt? After checking out the store online, I found the camp horse shirt that looked just like Elise. Was I right? (spoiler alert--I was only wrong about the milkshake!)

This is a picture I
didn't recognize
until after they
showed me at home.
Because ax throwing
?!?!?

The girls had a fantastic time, adored their counselor (who also adored them--and regained hope after having been ready to quit her job after the previous week and was giving it one more just to see), slept under the stars 3 nights in a row (and got rained on the last one!), rode horses a lot and BOTH enjoyed it, went down the water slide, rode the giant swing (terrifying, apparently!), enjoyed the food just the right amount (they were really excited about my lasagna, corn and bean salad, etc. back at home), loved the other kids, learned an amazing new song they're still singing, and decided that of course they'd be going back the next year. (Surely there are amazing camps closer to home though, right??)

But Kalina and Elise weren't the only girls who had a fantastic week! Naomi started talking the minute they left and didn't stop until after they got back home. We loved hearing from her. 

Plus, she attended our favorite art camp with a good friend, Emily. As a bonus, the camp has a mini farm attached to it, and the new animals this year were bunnies. Every "recess," Naomi bonded with the same one. The whole recess. 

Naomi and her non-
bunny friend

Naomi and her camp bunny

Naomi and Emily, although they were only 8 and 9, were allowed to be in the upstairs area this year, with more advanced projects. They actually did a stained glass project that turned out beautifully (Naomi made an orange cat), as well as a hanging clay planter and one or two other things. They had a blast. 

You'd think we would've had a lot of extra time on our hands, but that wasn't the case. I'd found a sweet little paper flower kit and we poured over the complex instructions and completed a few steps every day, waiting to let the glue dry. We learned a lot and produced a poppy and a purple one by the end of the week. They were lovely, but time-consuming! We also worked on a couple badges, since Naomi's trying to fill her AHG flower this summer, having just moved up to the next level. And baked, and read, and chatted, and played games.

With a playdate or two and other random things going on, the week passed super quickly, but we enjoyed every moment of it. In fact, we might just send the older girls away for a week every year...

Naomi and her art

Our friends stayed the night after
camp! After lots of showers, we
had dinner and celebrated 
Kalina's birthday early, because
we could.

Beach "vacation!"

Not sure we'll ever top our latest road trip. But we don't have to, right? Right??

It began with a longish drive to Mammoth Cave National Park. We pulled in in the early evening and managed to avoid the predicted rain long enough for a beautiful (albeit short) hike in the woods above the cave system.

We also checked into pretty much the cutest little cottage we'd ever seen. Right out of a fairy tale, including no air conditioning. We were off to a good start, despite the tick Elise got on her pretty much the second she stepped off the beaten path (turns out, Daddy was actually right with his warning this time!).

The. Cutest. Cottage.

We'd all been to Mammoth Cave before, although Naomi hadn't been born quite yet at the time. It soon became clear that she greatly preferred it that way. Here's a list of the fears she confronted within the first 5 minutes:

-Giant spiders

-Dark

-Being hundreds of feet underground (10 would've been okay)

-Heights

-Those metal steps that are full of holes with no backs

-Close spaces

-Those metal platforms that are full of holes and cross over heights

-General creepiness

But not bears. Elise had heard, in preschool, that caves are crawling with bears, and pretty much the worst thing you could do was to enter a cave (this she remembered from our previous trip). Fortunately, this cave was bear-free at the time.

Our junior ranger!

Naomi did survive the tour, and even enjoyed the stalactites and stalagmites at the end. (The rest of us loved the tour, but kinda felt bad saying so.) Back at the surface, we grabbed lunch from the cooler, and chilled in the visitor center a bit. Naomi completed the Junior Ranger badge program and was sworn in (and she wore her badge faithfully for at least two full weeks), and everyone bought something, except Matt. By the time we were ready for more adventuring, though, it was about ready to rain. Five minutes into our hike, we were turning back--but at least our next hike would be indoors (i.e., the cave).

I was hoping Naomi would enjoy the cave more the second time, having "conquered" her fears. Plus, I knew it was a more level route, with wider spaces and less towering scaffolding. No such luck. After the ranger's dire warnings about who should and should not go on the tour. Naomi was in tears. "Please don't make me go!" she begged, feeling as though she fit into the category of people who either didn't want to take health risks or "just wouldn't be comfortable." I assured her that the warnings were for people with medical problems, and she'd be fine. Trooper that she is [required to be sometimes, due to her family of origin], she allowed me to drag her into the gaping hole that was the entrance to the cave. 

Bat not pictured. Naomi being
a trooper.

This time, she hated it even worse. Fortunately, the people around us were kind, and hopefully not too annoyed--several of them congratulated her at the end, at least.

However, with the light at the end of the tunnel literally in site, a fellow tourist pointed out a small, furry bat cleaning to a somewhat low ceiling. Naomi turned around in her tracks and went BACK into the cave to visit this sweet little sleeping bat. She loved it. After lots and lots of pictures, our smiling girl virtually danced out of the cave. So it ended up that no matter how terrible each tour was, there was something to like as she finished. Note: every time Naomi is scared, bring her an animal. 

Our next stop that evening was a random hotel in Tennessee, a few more hours down the road. I'm pretty sure the kids had ice cream for dinner (ice cream may have been promised a couple hundred feet underground during the second cave tour), and then we supplemented it with--you guessed it--cooler food at the hotel. 

Elise: I kind of feel like I want some lettuce. [unheard of for Elise]

Me: Here's a pear.

Elise: I feel like that will be too sweet. [also unheard of]

In between trips out to the car, we drooled over the microwaveable meal vending machine in the lobby. 

Kalina: I just want real food.

Me: Me too. But this won't really taste as good as it looks...

I almost caved in. Secretly, I was super proud that it only took about 2 days of "unreal" food before at least two of my kids were ready for my home cooking. I promised them real food once we got settled into our AirBnB in St. Augustine, and maybe Subway on the next day's drive, and then we went upstairs and made toast, apples and peanut butter, recombining the ingredients we'd been living on for (only) two days. The toast, at least, was warm and comforting--just like Mom's.

The next day, we drove the rest of the way to St. Augustine, Florida. The kids are champs in the car, and we all enjoyed listening to Elijah of Buxton, a somewhat humorous, exciting, educational, heartwarming, character-building book about a boy living in a free slave settlement in Canada. We did have Subway, and enjoyed every crumb.

We had just a bit of trouble finding our AirBnB and its parking spot, plus it was chilly and drizzling and getting dark when we pulled into the beach. Blech. Nevertheless, Matt, the hero, took the kids to beach in rain jackets until it really was too dark, while I tried to get organized. Throughout the evening, we kept staring at the forecast, hoping for a change from all the predicted rain.

How we all felt when
we arrived at the
beach.

The next day began with the beach and a much-appreciated grocery-store run (me). I couldn't wait to stock up on healthy favorites. Only one problem: due to inflation and a tourist town, a small head of broccoli cost $4, strawberries were $5, and nothing else was much better. I stared long and hard at all the selections, weighing the amount we'd be likely to eat, with nutritional value, with prep difficulty, with general acceptance--there should be a degree in these things. 

My best values:

-White peaches, which are never that good anywhere else, but were delicious in Florida, and "only" cost $3.99/lb. Comparable to the cruddy ones in Kansas that cost roughly the same.

-A colossal bag of popcorn. Chips were $4/bag. This 20-serving monstrosity cost me $6, plus had all the "wow" factor that a vacation treat should.

Back home, I proudly served a not-cooler-food lunch amid beach time.

The beach was amazing. Relatively flat but still with decent waves, and with white sand that didn't retain heat, it did feel like a paradise. However, no amount of sunscreen could keep the girls from getting burnt. We decided to pull them in and check out some attractions in St. Augustine.

See all the nesting birds
in the background?

We ended up at the Alligator Farm. The alligators were cool, but our favorite site was alllllll the nesting water birds that somehow chose the trees hanging over the alligator-infested waters of this little zoo as the ideal place to raise their young. We saw all stages of chicks, observed feedings, heard their calls, and avoided being sullied. Plus, the alligator shows and such were pretty cool, too, and we got to chat with a keeper for a while and learn what it's like to be one. 

Then, back to the beach. But we still couldn't ignore the history (actually, I couldn't ignore the history, and there was no way I was going to let my children do so). On our second day, after visiting a beach that was supposed to have better shelling than our own--and kinda did--and where it wasn't supposed to rain--and it kinda did--we all toured the old Spanish fort, which became extra interesting to the kiddos when a history professor volunteer in costume began telling them the stories. Plus we could go up on the roof.

A cool spot on the
roof of the fort.

The stories were great, and the fort was fun to explore, but the girls were still eager to be on the beach, where we ended up spending all afternoon. Being a little bit intrigued, however, they also kinda wanted to see more history. So on Monday, with Matt working a 1/2 day, we headed to the historic district to take a tour that had gotten rave reviews by parents online. I figured it was worth a try--after all, they were supposedly going to fire a canon and it'd be way better than watching me try to lead them around and look stuff up on my phone. 

Naomi and I like
old houses. :)

Their attitudes were good, but I could tell they were putting on a brave face, and were anticipating another activity that Mom got way more excited about than they did. Plus it was hot.

But within about 2 minutes of starting our historic district tour, the tour guide had made them laugh at least a couple times, and then she kept them laughing all the way to the end. Not only did they learn a ton, but the girls delightedly retold it all, sometimes word for word, to Matt back at the condo. 

We also were able to walk around the old buildings in the historic district, shop for souvenirs, and purchase some amazing popsicles for an overall incredible morning. Win! Plus, they were excited to go to the Ponce de Leon Fountain of Youth Historical Site the next day. And we still had plenty of time for the beach.

We drank from the 
fountain of youth!
Except Naomi, who
was weirded out by it,
but also nervous she'd
get in trouble with the
docent if she didn't
actually drink.

Feeding an albino
peacock!

The Fountain of Youth site was also pretty cool (although Elise was a bit let down by the fact that the water came out of pipes), especially the peacocks that roamed the grounds and seemed to almost meow like cats. Sweet Naomi's anxiety reared its head when they shot a cannon again--no matter how many kind history buffs tried to explain to her that there was no cannonball and it couldn't possibly hurt her, she wasn't budging from her spot 50 feet away. I let them finish their thoughts, not trying to explain that it was probably the noise that actually bothered her the most, but that she probably couldn't put that into words yet and just knew that she really didn't want to see/hear it go off. [Sometimes the bigs don't understand that life actually is more difficult--in some ways, anyway--for their ultra sensitive little sister and I try to remind them that while they were super excited to see a cannon shot again, it was super stressful for Naomi, and that same situation repeats itself all the time. But it'll get better.]

I think this is Elise's
crab larvae. I think.

One of these evenings, we took the inflatable kayaks out to a wetlands for an evening paddle. We saw a couple alligators and a bird or two, plus some jumping fish. But mostly it was a beautiful evening on the water. And Elise was able to collect a plankton sample, from which she was able to observe, under her pocket microscope, her much-anticipated crab larvae! It was actually pretty cute with its big eyes and everything.

On the way to and from, we spotted a fruit/gator jerky shop that became a family joke. What if we own roadside gator jerky stand? Where we'd process the jerky along the side of the road, and then sell it. And where would we get the gators? Also alongside the road. Get it? Get it?? This kept us amused for quite a while. And presumably, will for the near future.

Also exciting: in one of the low-tide "tide pools," Kalina caught a skate. It was adorable and didn't even seem too concerned with us. We found a second as well. Naomi's toe got caught by a crab, and Elise, throughout the trip, got stung by jellyfish 3 times, bringing her total to 6. 

Elise in her happy place. Which
is pretty much the entire ocean.

The girls built large sandcastle systems (or in Naomi's case, fairy villages) complete with bridge, and Kalina dug down to the water. They mastered boogie boards (even Naomi tried them!) and Matt attempted to snorkel--but couldn't see much. 

We were sad to leave our beautiful beach condo and beautiful beach and lovely beach town, but our trip held many more adventures, and on Wednesday, it was time to begin them. We loaded up the van and met Uncle Brian at a kayaking place, snagging the only shady spot in the lot (yes, that's notable. "Park in the shade." -Me, everywhere we stopped), and then snagging Uncle Brian!

This site was particularly cool because we might be able to see monkeys--the remnant of a tourist stunt from like 90 years ago. We figured we had a 50/50 chance.

Yay! Gorgeous water, and 
so much fun to kayak with
Brian!

With incredibly little fanfare for such an amazingly beautiful spot, we loaded up our kayaks and pushed off into the spring-fed river. The water was clear as glass, such that we could always see to the bottom, even when the bottom was 50 feet below us. This was unnerving for at least one of us (the same one who doesn't like stairs with holes in them above large drop-offs), but pretty exciting for everyone else.

We partially fell in with a tour group that pointed out a momma gator and a couple of baby gators (which Naomi had really, really wanted to see), and also cruised past some turtles and plenty of fish. But not monkeys. Naomi chose this time to mention that 1.) She was ready to be done and 2.) Monkeys were the thing she wanted to see the very most. (But no pressure.)

We weren't seeing any monkeys.

Coming into the end of the paddle, we were all super hot and one of us was fading fast (honestly, maybe two of us...). We saw a small group of boaters pointing out something near the water. An alligator? We decided to check it out. 

It was so bright, I had
no idea if any of my
photos were turning out.

Thanks to three young guys breaking the law and tossing snacks, a cluster of monkeys had gathered near the water's edge for free handouts! Including cute little tiny baby monkeys clinging to their mammas. Jackpot! Obviously, you don't usually get this kind of display, because people aren't usually illegally feeding them. But we weren't going to see anything. We did keep a bit of distance because they can potentially jump into boats. Not that that wouldn't be fun...

Gorgeous night, just no gators.

That evening, we headed out to look for alligators at an amazing boardwalk over a swamp (no alligators; lots of amazing birds, though, and a few not-very-skittish, adorable marsh rabbits!), and then got to observe the bats leaving the bat house at the University of Florida, which was totally incredible.

The next day, we headed to an animal rescue zoo. But not just any animal rescue zoo--this one was the only place in Florida (that I could find, anyway, and that was near enough) that would guarantee a manatee sighting! 

We drove a while, then hopped on a boat, and finally ended up at this cute little zoo, where some of the signs were misleading and we very nearly missed the manatee feeding! We ran up just as the volunteers was finishing sprinkling leaves of lettuce all over the feeding area. But it did the trick!

Look carefully for the anoles
on Matt and Elise.

Manatee nostrils are totally
a thing. Or should be.

The manatees were amazing, just for who they were. The coolest part was the nostrils. Or the soft, friendly eyes. Either way, we watched for a long time before they swam off, and then we wandered off to check out the rest of the critters. Beginning with the resident anoles, who at various times found themselves placed on Elise's and Matt's heads for pictures, until they once again gained their freedom. 

Along this path, I realized we'd never taken advantage of the underwater viewing portion of the observation area. Coincidentally (maybe), I saw one of our manatee friends returning to the feeding place. Should I, also return? Would this manatee actually show up there if I did? And stay there long enough to make the short trek back worth it? Was this just me being a crazy person?

I had to try, and somehow I got everyone to follow (but kinda far behind--I was super motivated and can walk pretty fast). Sure enough, as I climbed down the stairs, the manatee was ready to meet me at the viewing window.

Naomi in her
favorite hat,
with her new
favorite animal.

Fortunately, everyone else also arrived in time for some super fun close encounters through the glass, as the manatees seemed to actually want to interact. Naomi fell in absolute love, and resolved to buy a stuffed manatee at the gift shop (her first--and only--stuffie of the trip! She's growing up!). We hung around quite a while, and then finally saw the other animals, including the oldest hippo in captivity, who was actually an honorary resident of Florida.

The gorgeous spring

We then tried to kayak again, but were thwarted by the fact that the kayak launch closed shortly before we arrived. Oops! We instead headed to an amazing swimming spot at a clear (chilly!) spring. On the way in, we spotted four baby armadillos. [Did you know that armadillos generally have 4 clones as offspring???] On the way out, we spotted a couple snakes climbing trees.

The spring was gorgeous. And the people-watching was fantastic. Matt, Kalina, Elise, And Brian were able to snorkel around, with visibility almost as clear as the air. Naomi did an amazing job of swimming around in a life jacket and not being scared, and I kept an eye on everyone. With the water feeling fairly cold, though, no one lasted super long. Still, it was an amazing stop.

More yummy food, some good conversation and a few board games rounded out the day.

The next day we were faced with rain, but still managed to go back to the alligator boardwalk and see a giant one, in addition to lots more birds and a few smaller alligators. We were taking our time walking back to the car, though, when we heard a steady noise off in the distance. And saw clouds...and rain...headed our way. We ran for it, and sheltered in an old barn with a bunch of other people, reaching it just as the rain did. After a bit, the rain let up for a few minutes, and we ran the rest of the way back to our car. 

Amazingly, not too far down the road, another park was avoiding rain. We stopped for another hike, and were joined by a dynamic and intrepid park ranger who took us to see an alligator nest! He and Elise got along great, both having an affinity for anoles and a certain somewhat obscure YouTube channel called Journey into the Microcosmos. He took us and another group on a fairly long hike, along which we sometimes shared the road a bit with a family of 4 sandhill cranes, who didn't seem super bothered by our presence as long as we didn't actually approach. We arrived back in the car about 5 minutes before the rain this time.

Happy early birthday, Uncle
Brian! We even left him the
rest of the cake.

After lunch, a few games, and a grocery run, we headed out another hike to a gorgeous sinkhole, and then to an amazing pizza dinner. When we returned back, timing worked out such that Matt and Brian were dealing with some things outside while the girls and I were very sneakily able to make a birthday cake for Brian (his birthday was in about a week and a half--too soon not to celebrate!). Somehow, we managed to finish everything, and clean up, before the guys came back in. Surprise!

The next day, after a final amazing breakfast and a quick vacuuming for the van, which my emotional health really needed, we left for our friends' place along the Gulf coast, stopping at a very nice Waffle House along the way. Because that's where you eat in the south. Our friends had moved to their new area about 11 months prior to our arrival, and into their new home exactly 1 week. Phew! It was gorgeous, and a short walk/bike ride/car drop-off (woohoo!) to the beach. We didn't know what to expect when they cautioned us that "it's not a great shelling beach," but we definitely didn't count on the best shelling of the trip! We came back with piles of beautiful specimens. 

We used to play in our stream
together; now, it's the ocean!

We enjoyed catching up, a fancy dinner of steak and shrimp, and then celebrating their adorable nearly 1-year-old's birthday--a little too late at night for his tastes, unfortunately, but it was still fun. By the time we left the next morning, he was juuuuust starting to maybe warm up to us a little. 

We also enjoyed learning about what it's like to actually live in one of those beach tourist destinations. Turns out, like Kansas, it has its pros and cons. Hard to argue with snorkeling at a coral reef whenever you feel like it (except us--we weren't in town quite long enough), but also the prices, traffic, and scarcity of actual goods for actual full-time living would be tough to take at times. Not to mention the culture sometimes...

Not pictured: cousin Ed, who's
actually taking the picture.

Speaking of culture, our next, and final, stop was at my cousin Ed's place outside of New Orleans. His place backed up to a small part of an alligator farm/mini zoo, and once we had chatted for a while with Ed, Julie, and their 6 kids, we drove the 5 minutes to the farm. 

It was different from any zoo we'd ever seen (except for the reptarium 15 minutes away from our house that the girls and I had visited, but ironically, Matt never had). Although we weren't overimpressed with the conditions for the animals, we did see that the owner clearly loved his brood and was doing his best--the hurricane last year set him back quite a bit. He came out of a building with a couple other visitors, between them holding a couple large snakes and a 4-foot alligator, and started handing the animals to the children to hold. Elise got the gator first, thus fulfilling a goal of the trip (actually, it was to kiss a baby gator, but she decided this counted). They passed around the gator, snakes and a parrot, and also got to take turns feeding the porcupine and another furry animal. 

Check the box on
holding an alligator!

Only in Louisiana, right?

We could've held this
bird all day.

We watched him hoist a giant alligator snapping turtle, we played with kittens, we helped put a wandering goat back in its pen. And we heard stories about all the alligators the guy keeps as pets and usually interacts with (he kept his distance this time, though, it being breeding season).

After dinner and some more chatting, we headed to our hotel, choosing to find another gas station after police cars with their lights and sirens turned on started pulling into the one we were initially at. Despite a long check-in process, and after eying all the rules posted around (thankful for them), we were in our room and mostly asleep within an hour. 

And then it was time to go home! We were excited to be driving through yet another area of the southeast--the Mississippi Delta. And we were excited to see our cats, and were ready to be in our own beds again. Less excited about the 12-hour drive we faced.

But the scenery was interesting, especially when we started listening to Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry less than 50 miles from the town highlighted in the book. In fact, it was a relatively uneventful drive, until...

With only about 1 1/2 hours left to go, we took a wrong turn. We didn't realize until we were almost to Springfield. From which it was about 2 2/12 hours to home. This was frustrating, but honestly, it was about the only thing that went wrong during the trip. Understandably, it was a bit of a low point for Matt, who'd done all the driving (I did offer!!). We agreed it was nobody's fault (or everybody's fault, which is pretty much the same thing). 

This guy deserves a beach trip
to recover from this beach trip!

We still made it home, but only to mild threats of "next year, we're vacationing in Branson." Which honestly didn't make any of us very excited. We felt better after hearing from friends that the turn we missed was suuuuppper easy to miss. 

Now that several weeks have passed, and we all agree that we may actually travel again sometime. I can think of at least a few of us who are totally ready to return to Florida--although we're still not sure we can top this trip!

Old St. Augustine. We felt like
we were in Spain!

Kalina did all the
knots, and could
probs be a sailor.