Just Julie's Jottings

Road Trip sights

2008-03-30T11:50:00.000-07:00

Our Road Trip Continues

Erik with Alyson, Dad, and Cara.

In background you can see the falls and the bridge.

This little house shows how to live more energy conscious.

I just think it looks like a fun place to play.

Alyson is well loved by both her parents. They take good care of her.

Alyson just needed to get out of her seat and stretch like the rest of us.

I love this picture with the rain on the window. She did not get wet though.

What a little doll.

We went to the Bonneville Fish Hatchery on the way to Montnomah Falls. We saw some fish here. Some were really big. Some were tiny. We learned about Sturgeon, Trout, and Salmon. Sturgeon is a big dinosaur fish.

See the big fish behind me? They are Sturgeon.

See the big fish? That is a sturgeon. They are bottom feeders like catfish.

This pair of Mallard Ducks was in the parking lot. The male is pretty with bright colors. The female is subdued, brown, camo. This is so she can blend into the wild and protect her babies.

We saw this pair on the way home when we stopped for gas.

Teething!

I had a really cute teething picture before this one but it got lost somewhere and I do not know how to get it back so I will have to post it some other time.

Special Teething Bib from Karen.

We also went to the Bonneville Dam and saw the fish ladder. This ladder is how the Salmon swim upstream from the ocean to the place where they were born. When a Salmon is hatched and grows to about the length of your thumb they start the journey to the ocean. At this stage they are called fingerlings. They stay in the ocean about 3 or 4 years then swim home to their birthplace to spawn. After they spawn the males die. The mothers bury the eggs in the sand. Then the babies hatch. There are no fish running now. It is the wrong season.

Mist on the Mountains. Beautiful scenery all the way. This is the second largest bridge in the country. It is 4.1 miles long and spans the Columbia River. One side is Oregon and the other is Washington. We went across it at night but could not see much because it was dark. So we went back across to the Oregon side and spent the night in a hotel. The next day we went back over it, hoping to take some great pictures but the fog was so thick we could not see very far at all. It was still quite a sight and an experience. Beautiful clouds, beautiful sky, beautiful country. This is the pacific ocean in Washington. It was cold and rainy. I am holding a paper cup full of black sand that is packed to come home with me. This is my first visit to the Pacific Ocean, to Washington, and to Oregon. We had a great trip and really appreciate Erik and Cara for showing us so many wonderful things. We appreciate all who helped us be here.

Our Road Trip Continues

2008-03-30T10:43:00.001-07:00

This is the cute picture of Alyson teething. Her mom's finger is perfect for chewing on. Sorry it got out of the other post so it is out of order. I wanted it to be there but the blog was messing up and would not let me type earlier and when I finally got to type I lost it. But here it is. We love her so much and you can see why.

Road Trip

2008-03-30T10:06:00.000-07:00

Montnomah Falls, Oregon

We went on a big road trip and saw this waterfall and lots of smaller ones on the way and near this one. There is a bridge part way up where Erik, Cara, and I stood while Alyson and Grumpy took a picture of us. It is a little fuzzy but you can see me waving!

We met with all kinds of weather on our trip. We drove through the hail and rain on Thursday on the way to Oregon. We drove through rain, sleet, and snow on Friday on our way home. This picture shows the snow. One car was in the ditch and we stopped to help but they were on cell phones and did not need help. We were safe. Erik drove slowly and carefully. Alyson traveled like a little trooper. I took this picture of her while she was looking at and talking to her mom.

We had our snacks and Alyson had snacks of her own. I packed her cookies for her. She loves the banana cookies! Alyson was such a good girl that it was easy to enjoy the trip.

Taking Flight

2008-03-19T18:23:00.000-07:00

Our kids gave us a 35th wedding anniversary party.

16 March 2008

Wedding

17 March 1973.

Our kids said since they all missed the 1st time we fed each other cake they wanted us to do it now. Fun!

D got these shamrock glasses. She put apple juice in them so it would look like Irish Ale. Then she asked if I wanted a beer? Funny funny girl!

T & J gave us a gift. It was a box of tissues. Now I know why. Our card contained the printout confirmation on a trip to Washington State so we could fly to see E & C & A. I cried and cried. We will leave for Washington on the 19th of March and fly home on the 31st of March. A did the arrangements for us. C will take us to the airport in KC. A will pick us up and bring us home at the end of our trip. T and J made dinner for us all. J traveled the farthest to be with us and provided the funny googly eyed card for the travel confirmation papers to be in, and the kids all signed it for us. You all made the evening wonderful. Thank you. Everyone was able to come to the party except S, E, C, and A. We missed them. We are sure glad for all who were able to celebrate with us.

This is the first time we ever flew together.

The first time I ever flew I was 12 and it was a small Cessna Piper Cub and it crashed on landing. It was owned by the family who sold Grandpa V the house where I grew up. The plane was flown by the mom and the dad sat co-pilot. My sister P and I were in back. When we crashed all I could think of was I had to find my glasses or I would be in big trouble. My delay exiting the plane got me into bigger trouble! My folks thought I was hurt or dead and that the plane would explode. It did not. I found my glasses. My parents survived the experience also. I flew with D and S in Spring 1987 to Georgia to drive home with Dad. I flew again almost 2 years ago to Idaho when Debbie sent tickets for K and I to visit. So flying is not an everyday thing for me. My odds started out 100% crash. Went to 50%. Then 25%. Now 12 1/2% crash. Odds are getting better in my favor and I like that.

C asked us, how was our trip? Dad said boring. I said eventful! Dad says I am not good with take offs, and I am not good with landings, and I am not much better with anything in between. I said there was turbulance. And the runway felt like it had potholes and we were driving on flat tires. C laughed. She set me up with this blog page so I could share this with you. I was sick in the first picture but I did get better during the flight. Anyway we are here and we are safe. (And I am much better flying now than I ever was.)

This is me feeling very SICK!

(Lamaze breathing still works!)

This is me feeling much better.

I got two windows on the second half of the flight.

The first half of the flight from KC to Denver I sat between Dad and a very nice man who flies every week and took everything in stride. So no windows and no aisle either. Kinda claustrophobic. But the up side of it is that we were in row 10 --the escape row! Comfort there for sure! And more leg room too.

A is a baby doll and has her parents quite well trained for her age. She does baby sit ups with Dad's help and mom as her spotter and laughs with the cutest giggles. I have pictures! She has little hair but what she has is red. She is so cuddly and fun!

We are so glad to be here and thank all of our children and grandchildren for all their generosity. There are so many ways so many of them helped us be here. There are the ones who contributed money for our tickets, the ones who helped with transportation,(getting us to the airport and home at the end of this miracle), and everyone for keeping it a secret surprise.

Thank you all so much! We are so grateful for all of you! We love you all! Bye for now.