Oregon/Washington Trip (long post)

Well, I've been back to reality for 3 whole days now and am finally able to blog about our vacation.

I just want to say off the bat that considering it was our first vacation with just the 3 of us, I didn't expect it to be as smooth as it went. Avery, who has NEVER flown before was a champ and was such a mellow traveler! No melt downs, no freak outs and oddly enough, she slept the majority of the travel time! (Thank you Jesus!)

DAY 1:
We were out the door to the airport at 4:45am to catch our 7am flight to Portland. Security was super easy and they let Avery keep her cuppy of chocolate milk after testing it (made me laugh). She was alert and bubbly carrying her princess suitcase behind her as we made our way to the terminal while I was freaking out over all my mental checklists. We had 1 suitcase with Evan and I's clothes and shoes, 1 suitcase of Averys clothes and things that was thankfully carry-on sized and then her backpack and a tote bag filled with everything you could think of to keep her entertained/distracted/content on the plane.

I totally didn't need to pack any of it. We boarded the plane when Evan started doing his freak out thing (he hates flying, no joke, like I doubt we fly ever again if we can drive to our destination). So I decided I would just leave him alone and focus on Avery who was not happy about having to have her seat belt on for take off. After a few tears and a bribe of gummy letters (at 7am, sure why not) she settled down as we approached the runway to take off. Apparently all the bumping and jostling was soothing to her because by the time we were in the air still over DFW this is what she looked like...

Yep. Head in my lap, blanket over her and snoring!

It was a 4 hour flight and she slept 3.5 hours of it!!!!! Seriously, I had to laugh about it and be thankful none of the hundreds of scenarios I imagined actually played out. It made me have a boring flight to be honest. I was so absorbed in making sure she was comfortable that I failed to pack anything for me to be occupied with. Evan slept off and on which helped his nerves. The flight attendants must have felt pity for me because they kept bringing me juice, cookies and a crossword puzzle all while being in awe of how good Avery was! She even got a pair of Alaskan Airlines wings she wore out of the plane. :)

        

These two crack me up so much, like father, like daughter....

I must also say that I am one of those window flyer's who just loves looking at the view, it's just so incredible to me how amazing everything looks from 35,000ft up!! Just so inspiring and relaxing.

      

X Marks the spot.

Anyways, we made it to Seattle where of course it was raining. We boarded our next plane which we had to walk out onto the runway to climb up a step ladder to board which was way cool! Avery was more excited that it was a pink plane (maroon really). It was a propeller plan and super little compared to other planes I've been on so Evan got to sit elsewhere while Avery and I were beside each other. 30min flight easy-peasy and Avery entertained everyone by singing the alphabet over and over in different versions.

We arrived in Portland and made our way to baggage claim where Jarrod was waiting for us. I wish I had gotten some pictures because I tell you it was super emotional for me watching her spot her Uncle Jarrod and take off at a run shouting his name while tons of people watched from security. She literally leaped into his arms and knocked him over she was so elated to see him. When we caught up and hugged Jarrod she turned and shouted "Look mommy, my uncle Jarrod!" and then proceeded to hold his hand and jabber about her being in an airplane. *heart melting all over again*

We got our bags and headed to Portland where Jarrod and Evan caught up a bit and all the giddy-ness and "We're really here!" bliss almost suffocated you in the car. We were a bit hungry and with the time change it was still too early for lunch so Jarrod took us to Slappy Cakes for brunch. WAY COOL PLACE just fyi. You pretty much buy batter and your own toppings and make pancakes on a griddle in the middle of your table. So fun! I got Lavender Honey and dried cherries, Jarrod got blueberries. So good. We had a fun time seeing who could make the better pancake. Then it went from that to making Avery mickey mouse and heart shaped pancakes and seeing which looked better.. (Again, I failed to take pictures)

After brunch we headed to Jarrod and Sarah's place where we got the tour, met the kitties and relaxed for a little bit deciding what to do. We finally decided to go check out a park and stopped at a store to buy a kite and a huge hello kitty bounce ball and bubbles and made our way to Laurelhurst area in Portland (I told Evan if he bought me a house there, I'd never complain) Long story short (since I have days left to cover) Jarrod took us to the wrong side, we walked around forever trying to find the play area, all the kids swarmed us due to being so awesome with our toys and then we went grocery shopping to make home made pizzas for dinner. Time change hit me and Avery hard and we both went to bed at 7:30 Portland time.

Day 2:

After a lazy morning we all packed into Sarah's car for a drive to the coast. Such a beautiful drive!!!! We ended up in Cannon Beach which was so amazing and Evan and I are thinking of doing a summer vacation there. It was close to raining so we ate lunch on the beach at Mo's which is known for their Clam Chowder. Their homemade bread was outstanding and melted in your mouth!! I had the chowder and it was amazing as well, so good and the view was amazing as well. Avery and I had never been to the ocean or beach so we were very excited. (I've been to Normandy Beach but I don't count that, it's a sacred place and very odd and calm and not the type of place you want to go swimming and strolling along). Anyway, after lunch we debated on walking along the beach but it started raining and Avery freaked out once we went down the barge because of how cold, windy  and wet she was getting, I also think the loud waves crashing scared her so we headed back to wait out the rain. The guys however, decided to get their feet wet since Jarrod said the water was super cold.

Headed to the Ocean!

Lunch at Mo's

Our view from our table.

Getting caught in the rain.

sooo windy!

So stinking cute.

Getting their toes wet.

<3.

After drying off a bit we drove to the actual town of Cannon Beach and walked around the shops. There is a candy store called Bruce's Candy Kitchen that Sarah and Jarrod wanted to go to for their Sea Salt Caramels (which were fantastic, yum!). The sun started to show so we walked back to the beach at the end of town where I got my turn to put my feet in the ocean and Avery wasn't so afraid since there was no wind and it was more calm then where we had been. The water wasn't that cold actually and I loved it!!

Soo much fun and it was so beautiful. We headed back to Portland where we took a side trip to the Japanese Rose Garden for the City view and walked around making fun of the names of the roses. We ate dinner at Burgerville which was a neat place that made it's mark by being all local and fresh and recycled and reused a lot of it's material (Something Portland is very big on!).

 Day 3:
We packed our bags and made the 3 hour drive to Seattle!! I had booked us a hotel in Bellvue which is on the other side of the Washington bridge which is maybe 15minutes away from Seattle. Once we got settled into our rooms we went to Seattle and had dinner at a Pizzeria called Bambinos which was pretty good. Service inhaled vigorously, won't lie there, but the pizza was different and prepared in a fire so it had a crisp taste with the fresh ingredients they used. After walking around the space needle a bit we headed back to Bellvue where we stocked up on snacks and rested for our day in Seattle.

Day 4:
We spent the majority of our time in the market which it being Saturday was super busy. I really liked Seattle, after the market and lunch on the pier we headed to the space needle before making the drive back to Portland.

 Once we got back to Portland we had dinner then went and grabbed donuts from voodoo doughnut a big hit in Portland. I wasn't too fond of them but I don't really go for donuts anyways. cool place though and very creative.

Day 5:
Jarrod had to go to work that morning so we lounged around until lunch time. Sarah drove us to Rocky Butte where we checked out the views of Portland and where Jarrod worked and enjoyed the sunshine for a bit before going to lunch. Sarah and Avery have a huge thing in common food wise and that is their love of grilled cheese sandwiches. Sarah took us to this awesome double Decker bus called The Grilled Cheese Grill where we enjoyed grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup and this amazing dessert called the Jayme which was Marscapone cheese, bananas, and nutella grilled in a sandwich. OMG, so good!!!

We got back to the house where Jarrod waited for us. The three of them headed to Saturday market while Avery and I enjoyed some quiet time and watched a movie. Once they got back Sarah and I went to Powells city of books which I L-O-V-E-D. Biggest book store I have been in and the smell alone was what I love so much about books. We wandered around for an hour or so before heading back to the house. Evan and Jarrod headed out for some brother time while us girls made dinner and relaxed the rest of the night.

Day 6:

With an early flight we pretty much spent all morning packing up before we made our way to the airport. Security took forever and by the time we got to our gate we were already boarding! Made for a fast flight process. Once again Avery was awesome and sat quietly and colored and watched a movie. The end of our flight was horrible though I mean so turbulent and shaky. Poor Evan was a bag of nerves and in such a bad mood, even I was so nauseous and a little nervous while Avery just kept calm and let me read to her for the last 20minutes which were VERY rough. We had a 2 hour layover in Albuquerque so that helped calm Evan a bit after lunch we lounged in the terminal where Avery fell asleep on my lap and slept the entire boarding process and flight only to wake up once we landed in Dallas.....again, seriously easy to travel with!! Dad picked us up and we had dinner at The Foundry in Dallas, definitely worth checking out if your in the Dallas area. ;)

Got home around 10:30 and we all slept until noon the next day thanks to the time difference. :)

Such a great trip and the rest of our pictures are on FB too. It was so good to see Jarrod and Sarah and it was so nice to get out of Texas for a bit.

Thanks for sticking around this long :)

-Brittnye

New Mexico, Colorado & NYE Oh My!! Part 3- NYE

So Saturday we woke up bright and early from a few hours sleep in Dumas at I might say, a very nice Holiday Inn express. Since Evan was super sweet and drove the majority of the evening and into the night the day before to get us safely to Dumas (I can no longer drive at night due to my vision, getting glasses next week since he is now convinced I don't want to drive at night just because...) I took the wheel and off we went.

Pretty much a dull day on the road, we had breakfast in Amarillo and the day was BEAUTIFUL. So much so that we pulled off outside of Childress and let Avery play at a playground for an hour to enjoy the sunshine (and wind!).

Once we got to Wichita Falls we stopped for a late lunch and a little shopping at Kohl's. Avery picked out two very cute dresses and a pair of Hello Kitty jammies and proceeded to walk around the store with them hanging behind her back like a little diva. Evan and I thought it was so cute because she was being so girly and the dresses she picked out were fancy. Evan bought 2 shirts and I got a pair of boots. It was fun, especially since I'm usually alone when shopping because all 3 of us together never seems to work so it was an extra treat for me. :)

We got to Denton around 6:30. unpacked, started laundry, thanked my mom for house-sitting and then hopped in the shower while Gary came over to watch Avery for us. We had two parties to attend despite being on the road all day and we were determined to go to both and be home before midnight. Success.

I'll spare the party details but it was nice to semi-dress up, put on some heels and be around people I don't see often enough. The main party was for a friend of mine who lives in Hong Kong, he was back in the states for the holidays so a NYE party seemed fitting for a going away party as well. I've been friends with Daniel for over 13 years. It's always good to see him.

Evan and I had a lot of fun but we're just not as young as we used to be and were home in our jammies by 11:30 and rang in the New Year with Evan playing a game and me doing laundry (we stopped to share a kiss). Such is the life. Ha!

-Brittnye

New Mexico, Colorado & NYE. Oh MY! Part 2- Colorado

We didn't get to stay in Colorado nearly as long as we had wanted to but we still had a great time visiting with Evans Aunt Cheryl, Uncle Jim and Cousins Emma and Cal. Evans Grandmother lives with them and we drove her home from New Mexico.

The drive wasn't too bad at all. I drove us the first 3 hours until we stopped for lunch in Albuquerque at this really fun and neat diner called Route 66 Diner.So neat, try one.

After lunch I sat in the back with Avery and we watched several Disney movies and her new Princess and the Pop Star VeggieTale movie. She is seriously a VeggieTale fanatic and we're A-okay with that.

We watched it 4 times in the car to Colorado.

I wish I had taken more pictures but we seriously had a very relaxed and laid back visit. The one thing we did that Avery LOVED was we went to the Denver Zoo and went through their "Zoo Lights". After the zoo closes they re-open later and the entire zoo is covered in beautiful color changing lights through out the entire park. They have hot chocolate and lights for the kids to play with and a few of the animal exhibits stay open like the penguins, giraffes, elephants and hippos. It was really pretty and Cal and Emma were super cute with Avery as they chased after her. We really had a good time. :)

After we went through we meandered in the gift show for awhile where we bought Avery and Cal these neat Tiger light sabers in which Avery quickly challenged Cal to a duel and won. Hehehe

                                                           Such sweet cousins she has.

On Friday it was Evan and I's Anniversary. 6 years!!! Hard to believe that we've been married that long but it's been amazing and even thought we didn't get to celebrate it he still sent me off with the other ladies and we went and got manicures and pedicures something I have not enjoyed in months!

I was a happy momma/wifey.

After my pampering we were back on the road and headed to Texas. We decided not to drive all night with Avery in the car so we reserved a room in Dumas and took our time on the road. We also stopped in Pueblo Co. for our Anniversary dinner at Cracker Barrel where we also celebrated Avery going tee tee and poopie in the potty (it's the little things, I tell ya!) all in all a nice Anniversary. We plan on going away a weekend soon and letting Avery hang out with Nina and Pawpa to officially celebrate.

BragBox*

I might add that my 3yr old was FANTASTIC in the car! She never cried, never struggled, never fussed she was so chill and relaxed in her new booster seat. She literally made the trip worth it. She just kept busy with her dvd player and her leapster explorer (best gifts ever!) and occasionally asked for a book to be read to her or for a snack. SO awesome and I am beyond impressed with her. Just sayin'

-Brittnye





New Mexico, Colorado & NYE. OH MY! Part 1: New Mexico

   No need to lie when I say that coming back to reality has been a bit of a bummer. We had such a good time in New Mexico playing in all the snow and enjoying a nice fire every night. The driving part was a bit much but you know, the scenery was like nothing Texas has to offer.

Day 1: Dec.23rd

So Avery left around 6am with Evans parents and grandmother because Evan couldn't get off work. So off she went while we had the car loaded with all the Christmas gifts and every ones luggage. Jarrods flight was arriving in Albuquerque that evening and dad was set to pick him up. So that left me with the majority of the day to finish packing, making my lists and getting amped up over this amazing trip. What we didn't expect was a huge snow storm to hit New Mexico and parts of west Texas...it took mom and dad a very long time to get to New Mexico and due to the weather all 3 main ways to get to Jarrod were closed due to snow and ice!! So dad calls me and asks if we can pick up Jarrod by going north to Amarillo and taking I-40 (an extra 4 hours in the car, no biggie) so I call Evan and explain how mom and dad got to the cabin but the roads were closed and Jarrod was stranded at the airport 3 hours away from them for the night. Evan talks to his boss and within 10 minutes is on his way home and rather than hitting the road at 1am we're on the road by 9:45pm heading to Amarillo to head west on i-40 to get Jarrod. We knew we'd be driving through the night and wouldn't get to the cabin until close to noon the following day.

Day 2- Christmas Eve:

 Everything is going great, we're making great time, we realize about Witchita Falls that we forgot Evans coat and the majority of the snacks and plan to stop in Childress to buy what we forgot so we don't have to delay any further once we get Jarrod. The roads are very  EMPTY.  One funny thing that happened was Evan bought me a 5 hour energy shot (he takes them from time to time for work). I've never had them or had a desire to try them but since we were driving through the night I figured, why not? Those things are so nasty!!! It wasn't so much the taste when you shoot them down but the after taste! Not to mention about 30minutes after I took it I suddenly kept burping and every time I burped I was revisited by that nasty taste that made me shudder and spaz out to Evans delight. By the time we got to the Wal*mart in Childress I was ridiculously jittery, enough to have me worried about being behind the wheel so Evan bought me a water and a snack to eat and took over once we bought what we needed. (We were also the ONLY customers in the wal*mart, WEIRD!)

 We got to Amarillo by  2:30am and again I note how EMPTY the hwy is, I mean we were all alone! It was so bizarre to me. We stop in Vega, TX to fill up before crossing into New Mexico and at this point I'm drowsy and in and out of sleep. Evan is super paranoid about things and tells me he thinks the tire on the front passenger side is low and asks around for a air gauge. Checks the tires and figures we're okay and he's just being how he is. (much to my annoyance) So on we go and I am delirious almost since I kept asking Evan about this building on the side of the road and yet we were in the middle of NOWHERE! Seriously he thought it was funny but there's a reason I do not sleep in the car and that was part of it.

We were on the road maybe 30minutes when suddenly....we got a flat tire!
Yep. Flat tire. 4am. Middle of nowhere. Christmas eve. Awesome.
 So Evan gets us to this entrance ramp for one of those picnic rest areas you never really wanna stop at and we pull off since the tire is just shredded. We sit for a few minutes, try to asses where we are to begin with, if we have a spare, who can we call, etc. Luckily (so we thought) Evan had just signed me up for AT&T road side service from my cell phone (which had barely any service at all!) so we call them.... TWO hours later they call us back to let us know they are not sure where we are and the nearest tow they can find is 60miles away and it'll be $400. Excuse me?! What are we paying for if it's $400 for a tow driver to come out and help us change a flat?! (apparently it being Christmas eve made the difference) So I tell Evan we'll just sleep until the sun comes up because it's pitch black and we can't see what we're doing anyways.....we also realize we moved into mountain time so it wasn't 6am but really 5am! wonderful.
 I didn't sleep. Evan did though and I was so glad because it allowed me to have my inner freak out and to just let the tears flow. I was cold, I missed Avery, poor Jarrod was waiting for us, we had everyones presents and clothes with us, it was Christmas eve...you can get why I got emotional. I also called Evans dad, Gary to let him know what had happened and he was immedietly upset and determined to come rescue us (in true Gary fashion) but I told him I had a plan, we were fine and I'd call him once we were on the road but he would have to go get Jarrod if the roads were opened. Thankfully one way opened up and he went off to get Jarrod very slowly.

I remembered something my friend Beth had told me about the back of your Texas Drivers License having a 800 number to call for help.

Oh. My. Goodness. Never again will I forget this number. I collected myself, called the number and within 5 minutes I had a state trooper dispatch tell me exactly where I was, how far we were to the nearest town and how a Trooper was on the way to help us!!! (We needed a lug wrench to get the spare free and remove the old tire) 15minutes pass when the dispatch calls me and asks me what landmarks are near me because the trooper can't find us, I tell them the mile marker in front of us and he was on his way.

 The trooper arrived right at sunrise where we had already unloaded all the presents to the side of the highway (in the melting snow!) and were trying to unlock the spare from the bottom console. The first thing out of his mouth was "How long have you two been out here like this?!" to which I just started crying while Evan looked at his phone and said with a shrug..."4 hours?". In which he stared at us then said "Why didn't you call 911!?" well.....I didn't see this as an emergency to be honest. Sure we were stranded and yes, nobody had stopped to help in the middle of nowheresville but was it an emergency that would require 911? no. He then rubbed my back and told me the dispatch was urgent to get me help because "They said you sounded like you were scared and very young and they thought you were alone." haha

 Over the next 2 hours that trooper not only fixed our flat using 2 jacks, OU jokes and pushing me out of harms way when the jack fell and the car moved towards us! but he totally went above and beyond his duty!! He was determined to get us on the road and to our family for Christmas!!! He was so sweet and wouldn't let Evan and I help much, he even called a buddy who owned a towing company in Vega but told him nevermind because he wasn't going to have us towed when he could get the tire off. He was a muddy mess when it was all said an done and he hated seeing me cry as much as Evan did and begged me to stop haha (I was just exhausted and cold). He helped us load all the gifts back in, get the shredded tire where the spare went and then gave us specific directions to the better tire shop for us not the nearest 2 (27 miles away!). He was so amazing and kept us smiling through it all and by 9:15 we were slowly on the road to the NM border. (we got his card and will be sending a gift soon to his PO Box)

 2 hours later after the tire shop he sent us too didn't have the tire we needed (but we're waiting for us!). We were in Clovis, NM at a Discount Tire where we got 2 new tires (to go with the other 2 new tires we bought the day before the trip) and warranty on all of them and were headed south to Roswell to get to Ruidoso where Avery and our family were. I passed out from exhuastion and awoke to a very tense evan driving in this!

When we left Clovis, there was ZERO snow on the ground but in the time of my 20minute nap we were suddenly in a white out! To add to that, the roads hadn't been plowed and people were sliding everywhere and going about 15-25mph. We got behind a huge 18 wheeler hauling new vehicles and were stuck behind him for an hour with a huge line of traffic behind us on the hwy to Roswell. I tried to lighten the mood by proclaiming "I spy with my little eye...something white!" but Evan was not amused. After awhile I finally convinced Evan to go around the truck (slowly). Once we did we were soon on our way to Roswell and watched as the snow plow had cleared the other side of the hwy but not ours until we got to Roswell! *Sigh* an hour later it was lightly snowing but we finally made it to Ruidoso only to be stuck by this hill leading us to the cabin since we didn't have 4 wheel drive only 2. Evan lost it then for a few minutes and who could blame him!? 18 hours in the car and we got 100 feet from the cabin only to know we couldn't drive up that stupid hill! We parked at a nearby house that the owner was gone for the holidays and Evans dad and Jarrod (who arrived 20 minutes before us) unloaded the car while we just walked in and grabbed Avery.

We didn't do a single thing the rest of the day except play in the snow with Avery and enjoy an amazing dinner of Dads chili and Jarrods Red Velvet cake balls. I'm pretty sure the hot shower I had that night was the best I've had in years!!!!

Day 3- Christmas Day:

 We all woke up around 7:45-8am and set up the gifts by the fireplace. Avery was the last to wake up (she's not a morning person) and then the wrapping paper flew like crazy!

Needless to say I was spoiled yet again my my amazing In-Loves and I have been using my new Kuerig everyday! Avery got so many barbies and dolls and Hello Kitty clothes it's like a mall exploded in her room now. Such a fun Christmas and full of so many sweet memories.

Shortly after lunch it was time to take Jarrod back to the airport. :( so everyone said their goodbyes while Evan, Gary and I did the 3 hour drive there and back for the day but at least the roads were plowed and safe to travel on!

 He is so amazing and even though it was only for a day and a half we LOVED getting to have him with us. Avery sure misses her uncle Jarrod and the pictures of them playing in the snow are some of my favorites!!!

Day 4 & 5:
We played in the snow a lot, Avery tried sledding for the first time and is a mountain girl! She is such a pro daredevil and just giggled like crazy every time she zipped down the hill. We had Deer a plenty all around our cabin and I took some neat shots very close to them before a buck rounded everyone up and let me know I was getting too close. :) We also wet into town for a little shopping and I really like Ruidoso, such a fun little town and if you ever go be sure to eat at Grace O'Malleys Irish Pub. Super yummy food.

Day 6- Off to Colorado:
 We cleaned the cabin and packed up in the morning before saying bye to Nan and Gary and continuing on to Colorado to take Evans grandmother back home since  she was visiting us for the holidays. As we were loading up the deer came to the front of the cabin! Avery was barefoot and in her jammies rushing out the door to say hi to them while I asked dad to give me some left over bread. I started sweetly baby talking them and before you know it this happened!!!

 It was so sweet. I loved it and the one brave deer who kept coming right up to me only had half an ear on one side so he was extra adorable. Evan geeked out about how all week I was the only one able to get so close to them and then to feed him I just told him it's because I'm a mom...


Ruidoso is so much fun and our cabin was awesome!! Check out Dan Dee Cabins, you'll love it. I think we're going to plan an after Christmas trip for the family as a new tradition whenever we can. It was so worth it, even with the craziness getting us there. Being a family, having so much fun and enjoying a truly white Christmas was just spactacular! Hard to compete with that for Avery she is so spoiled on Christmases.

Up Next Part 2!

-Brittnye :)