Catching up...

So the circus hit the road this last week. We took our show to the Seattle area to spend Turkey day with some of John's family. But, before we loaded the tour bus, the kids and I did a special little "turkey" of a project for Grammy. This is the first year in we have ever missed spending Thanksgiving with my family and they were all a little sad to lose their entertainment for the holiday! So, the kids and I made some very cute little turkey centerpieces for Grammy's holiday table....this way the kids could still be the "center" of attention...hahahaha! We made our turkeys and then spent the evening wearing-out Grammy! They had a blast, as usual.



After getting all our tour bags packed, we hit the road on Wednesday morning. Alison tends to get very carsick, so I had called the pediatrician to see what we could try. I started with the lowest dose possible of Dramamine, and she was snoring before we hit Hermiston! Needless to say, by the time we reached the rest stop on the other side of Yakima, they were all asleep - except for Hosanna who had soaked herself with her sippy cup of water and was screaming miserably. After potty breaks and settling back in our car seats with lunch in hand....we enjoyed the commentary from the back seat for the remainder of our trip. Of course there was the standard question every ten to twenty minutes from Jeremiah..."Are we there yet? How much longer? Is this Uncle Dan and Auntie Beth's city?"

As we approached the summit, the kids saw the large lake and Jeremiah proclaimed, "Mom, look at that lake. It reaches clear across America!" Shortly after, Alison noticed several mountains outside her window...many of which had trees-trees with snow! We kept hearing, "Mommy look at all those trees...There's another mountain!....Take a picture of that one Mom!" I would reply, "I did sweetie" (of course we know I didn't every time) Alison, of course is so smart now that she is in preschool and all and would quickly reply..."No you didn't!" Busted. So, I did take a couple of "snowy mountain" pics just for her. At one point, Jeremiah decided to count all the trees as we were going over the pass....one, two, three....twenty-five! "Wow Mom, there's twenty-five trees! That so many!" John and I laughed so much and so hard, that I was certain I wasn't going to make it to Dan & Beth's without wetting my pants!

We made it safely to Dan & Beth's and had a wonderful time. It was great to take it easy for a couple days. On turkey day, we just took our time getting the turkey and other delicious sides cooked. We ended up eating around seven, but the kids were so tired afterward they slept great...and, the adults were able to enjoy coffee and pie in peace...even if it was ten o'clock at night!

(WAITING FOR BELLA TO DO HER "BUSINESS")

Beth and I took Hosanna and Savannah shopping on Friday. We didn't leave until just before lunchtime and so the early crazy rush was over....it was still shopping in crazy Seattle, but it was fun. I was able to find a couple of things I had been waiting to purchase at a very good price!

While we shopped, Uncle Dan had to work and so John took Jeremiah and Alison to see Rod and the kids. they had fun and again, were very worn-out.

Saturday we headed over to Rod and Liz's for a family brunch. All of John's siblings and kids were there as well as his mom, grandpa and cousin Tim. It was nice to see everyone and let all the kids enjoy some time playing together.

We loaded up the tour bus after loading up on food....ugh! The kids gave lots of loves to everyone, including their favorite family member....Bella, the dog(sorry everyone, I guess it's just too hard to pass up on those wet-nose kisses!).

Once we left, we decided to take I-5 to I-90, the long way, I know, but we wanted to show the kids Seattle and all the buildings, planes and of course, tunnels. We took the express way and if you know Seattle at all, you know there is a very long tunnel before you come out on the floating bridge. Jeremiah was laughing, squirming and had an ear-to-ear grin the entire time. He and Alison LOVED it! When we went over the floating bridge, he kept saying, "Dad, we are driving in the water! Our car is in the water!!"

We made a quick stop at one of my favorite places, Trader Joe's and met up with our friend Heidi. It was great to see her and the kids had fun shopping for their "special" foods (gluten-free). I think our circus show in Trader Joe's just about topped all performances form the weekend. We had quite a few onlookers as the kids chose their items and strategically tossed them into our cart. At one point, Jeremiah was doing a "trick" and flipped his fruit leather into another shopper's hand basket! She was very impressed with his skills! We got all our treasures and groceries alike, settled in the tour bus and gave Heidi one last goodbye before getting on the road to find the nearest Starbucks so John and I could survive the next couple of hours. Not long after, all but our faithful driver, John were fast asleep. I don't know how long it's been since I was able to sleep in the car, but I can guarantee that John not only enjoyed my slumber, but appreciated the silence!

We made one last stop in Prosser to see an old friend. Rob Morris and I went through fire and EMT school together as well as participated in the Resident Reserve program at the Pendleton Fire department about 8 years ago. My Dad officiated Rob and his wife's wedding not too long ago and John had also become friends with him thru me, of course! Rob is a state trooper for Washington now and so he and John have even more in common. We stopped for dinner and catching-up and then hit the road one last time. We made it home later in the evening and the kids were almost happy to see their own beds!

This circus group is very worn-out, but happy to have had such a successful week! We enjoyed our time with family and friends and we are looking forward to sharing Christmas with them. Thankfully, our next performance will be in our hometown!