Mainland Vacation (part 1)

Here goes nothing! I don't even know where to begin with the kids and I's trip home to the mainland but I guess I should start by saying we loved every second of it! It went entirely too quick and it was great to be home when it was all over! We loved seeing so many friends and family members. Here we are ...leavin on a jet plane! Matt dropped us off on his lunch break and then headed back to work. He was a great sport about us leaving him. Thanks Matt!! The best thing about our little airport is that you get to walk right off the airplane onto the pavement. I always feel a little bit like the president of the United States walking out of the airplane and down the stairs. ha ha. the kids thought it was cool too. We got into Portland OR airport after 11pm, got our rental car and headed to Monte and Solana's for our first stop. Within just a few minutes of being in the car this is what it looked like...

We got to Mo & So's after midnight (thanks for staying up late for us). The kids were so excited to wake up and play with their cousins! It was fun to see all the changes they did to their house! Looks incredible! We started out the day with free breakfast at the school (they do it gourmet in the small town of Dayton) kids had fun playing at the track and then we headed back for the free lunch later that day. Again super yum!
On your marks, get set..GO! These kids can Run!
We ended the day with a little nature hike before dinner. There is a great trail behind Kallin & Aidan (and Monte's) school.
The boys were all busy blazing the trail way ahead of us all while the girls lagged behind picking "hiking flowey's" as Isley called them.

We had a yummy dinner back at Mo & So's and then the kids and I hit the road and headed to Grandpa & Grandma Blackburns!! Ben and Lydia had already arrived by the time we got there and Mitch & Jesse came the next day. It was fun hanging out with the two newlywed couples.
We filled the days up with boating, mountain biking, basketball, gardening, storytime, river walks, raspberry picking. Just yesterday I heard Olivia and Dawson talking about that grandpa and grandma blackburns house is "almost like a farm" They love to sit on grandpa's tractor, Ride in his truck, pick the berries and enjoy the beautiful big yard and all there is to explore.