On Saturday, we enjoyed our brand new car.
First, we went to the market and picked up 40lbs of peaches to can. Second, we dropped Jason off at his school so he could get organized. During this time, Rachel and I slept in the car and then we went to the local Children's museum. Adults and kids under 15months old are free. This would be an awesome place for kids 2-8years old, but Rachel still enjoyed the train table and playing with other kids. She waves hello to everyone and everything so she spent most of the time trying to wave to the other children and offering them her train, since she is learning to hold items out and offer them to anyone who will accept.
After we picked Jason up and had lunch at Tokyo Jo's, we ran some errands. This included a Costco trip that filled our new car up with all sorts of goodies and baking supplies.
When we got home, after Rachel went to bed, we attacked our office and unpacked books. Many things were re-packed and destined for the crawl space since we don't have room for all our things. So we organized the office into many piles.
Finally, it was time for bed. Meggan wasn't feeling all that well so we went to bed relatively early. At 11pm, she woke up and the illness had hit. We won't share the gory details, except to say that Jason spent the night caring for Meggan first in the bedroom and later in the bathroom, and then we tried to get sleep on the bathroom floor in between bouts of being sick. Thankfully, Rachel slept from 7:30pm until 4am and Jason was able to coax her back to sleep for another 90 minutes without any problems. This was the best night of sleep for her in weeks, and the worst for us in months.
The hardest part about this whole thing was really Sunday. Jason woke up with Rachel at her usual 5:30am wake up. Meggan felt good enough to nurse her while lying in bed, which was good because in the moving process we have no milk frozen for such emergencies. Jason then took care of Rachel for most tasks of the morning while Meggan rested. Jason tried to convince the family to go for a walk, so we drove up the hill to a short trail head with a nice view, but Meggan slept in the car while Jason took Rachel in the backpack. For Meggan, every movement of the head was a huge effort. Jason went to the library for the afternoon because he had planning to do for school, so Meggan did her best to care for Rachel. When Jason got home, he did dinner and then we all went to bed early. Not a fun day in the MOJO family.
Each of us slept quite well overnight and hopefully now we're all good to go for the week!
August 29, 2011
A brand new car!!!
Saturday, August 27 2011
The short version of this blog is that we just bought a brand new 2011 black Subaru Outback. We're really excited to have a car but also to own such a new and fancy car.
We left behind our old 2001 White Subaru Outback/Legacy and our black 2003 Impreza Outback because we didn't want to import them into the USA. It's a huge hassle and we didn't love either of those cars enough to go through all that paperwork.
We went through this buying process quite thoroughly. We each made up a list of the things we needed in a car, and came up with the possible makes/models to research. The priorities for us were AWD/4WD, big enough for a car seat and the passenger in front to still have leg room (this is one thing the Impreza didn't really allow), a big enough cargo space for the chariot to fit into (also, this was a close call with the Impreza), the best fuel economy possible. Other options we considered a 'bonus', such as tinted windows so the sun doesn't get in Rachel's eyes or heated seats so Meggan doesn't freeze in the winter.
We came up with the following models to research: Subaru Outback, Hyundai Santa Fe, Toyota Hybrid Highlander, Honda CRV, Nissan Murano, and Mitsubishi Outlander. Sadly, there are no VW models with AWD in the last couple of years. Also, sadly, we cannot afford other options like the Audi wagon. Anyway, the Toyota and the Nissan were more expensive so they were ruled out quickly. The Honda did not drive well and was smaller, without getting better fuel economy. The Mitsubishi we just didn't like as much. So we quickly found ourselves choosing between the Santa Fe and the Outback.
Interestingly, the Santa Fe has a V4 and V6 model and the V6 model drives much better with more guts and yet no worse fuel economy. Go figure! And even though the manual transmissions don't actually give you better fuel economy anymore, we both agree that they are more fun to drive. The Subaru Outback has a PZEV model (partial zero emissions) and a regular model. The PZEV model, although it doesn't improve the fuel economy, is a bit better for the environment and significantly reduces the smog rating. Sounded good to us.
A cost comparison of what was available around this area left us with the conclusion that it wasn't really worth buying a 2009 or 2010 when we could get a 2011 for almost the same price and no miles. So we decided to go ahead with a manual ruby red Subaru Outback at our local Boulder dealer. It was a 'Premium 2.5i', which means it comes with heated seats, windshield wiper de-icer, side mirror defrost, and nicer wheels than the regular 'i'. But it sold before we made up our minds. Darn! So then Jason worked some internet magic comparing what was available at most dealers in the state. We found a black one we could get in Aurora, and the agent came to the house, picked us all up (the dealership was 45 minutes away), and drove us down there Friday night to buy it. Rachel was very patient and crawled all around the showroom while we finished the paperwork.
Jason thought of his Dad during this whole adventure because Ray would have loved the wheeling and dealing for the small things. Jason did a good job of negotiating a great price, adding a rear bumper cover, and making them promise not to put on any dealership stickers, decals or license plate covers.
So we spent Friday night playing with Rachel at the dealership while they got everything ready to go. We have a temporary tag for 2 months until we register it and get a real license plate. At that time, we'll have to decide what CO state plate to get, and if we want a personalized plate. Rachel fell asleep on the way home since it was a late night for her and she had a runny nose, but we quietly enjoyed the new car smell and all the new buttons to play with as we drove home.
I'm sure this car will be full of many more adventures that we'll tell you about.
The short version of this blog is that we just bought a brand new 2011 black Subaru Outback. We're really excited to have a car but also to own such a new and fancy car.
We left behind our old 2001 White Subaru Outback/Legacy and our black 2003 Impreza Outback because we didn't want to import them into the USA. It's a huge hassle and we didn't love either of those cars enough to go through all that paperwork.
We went through this buying process quite thoroughly. We each made up a list of the things we needed in a car, and came up with the possible makes/models to research. The priorities for us were AWD/4WD, big enough for a car seat and the passenger in front to still have leg room (this is one thing the Impreza didn't really allow), a big enough cargo space for the chariot to fit into (also, this was a close call with the Impreza), the best fuel economy possible. Other options we considered a 'bonus', such as tinted windows so the sun doesn't get in Rachel's eyes or heated seats so Meggan doesn't freeze in the winter.
We came up with the following models to research: Subaru Outback, Hyundai Santa Fe, Toyota Hybrid Highlander, Honda CRV, Nissan Murano, and Mitsubishi Outlander. Sadly, there are no VW models with AWD in the last couple of years. Also, sadly, we cannot afford other options like the Audi wagon. Anyway, the Toyota and the Nissan were more expensive so they were ruled out quickly. The Honda did not drive well and was smaller, without getting better fuel economy. The Mitsubishi we just didn't like as much. So we quickly found ourselves choosing between the Santa Fe and the Outback.
Interestingly, the Santa Fe has a V4 and V6 model and the V6 model drives much better with more guts and yet no worse fuel economy. Go figure! And even though the manual transmissions don't actually give you better fuel economy anymore, we both agree that they are more fun to drive. The Subaru Outback has a PZEV model (partial zero emissions) and a regular model. The PZEV model, although it doesn't improve the fuel economy, is a bit better for the environment and significantly reduces the smog rating. Sounded good to us.
A cost comparison of what was available around this area left us with the conclusion that it wasn't really worth buying a 2009 or 2010 when we could get a 2011 for almost the same price and no miles. So we decided to go ahead with a manual ruby red Subaru Outback at our local Boulder dealer. It was a 'Premium 2.5i', which means it comes with heated seats, windshield wiper de-icer, side mirror defrost, and nicer wheels than the regular 'i'. But it sold before we made up our minds. Darn! So then Jason worked some internet magic comparing what was available at most dealers in the state. We found a black one we could get in Aurora, and the agent came to the house, picked us all up (the dealership was 45 minutes away), and drove us down there Friday night to buy it. Rachel was very patient and crawled all around the showroom while we finished the paperwork.
Jason thought of his Dad during this whole adventure because Ray would have loved the wheeling and dealing for the small things. Jason did a good job of negotiating a great price, adding a rear bumper cover, and making them promise not to put on any dealership stickers, decals or license plate covers.
So we spent Friday night playing with Rachel at the dealership while they got everything ready to go. We have a temporary tag for 2 months until we register it and get a real license plate. At that time, we'll have to decide what CO state plate to get, and if we want a personalized plate. Rachel fell asleep on the way home since it was a late night for her and she had a runny nose, but we quietly enjoyed the new car smell and all the new buttons to play with as we drove home.
I'm sure this car will be full of many more adventures that we'll tell you about.
August 24, 2011
Rachel's first bike ride
Sat Aug 20th
Jason had loads of school planning and organizing to do, so we took off for the day as a family to Lafayette (that's the area Jason worksat) and attended the Peach Festival. This was a huge farmer's market with tents, peaches, cobbler, food, jewelry, art, local services, etc.
The highlight for Rachel was the tent labelled 'The Breastaurant - Kids Eat Free!'. Confused, we went inside to check it out. It was a shaded, private area with comfortable chairs and a change table for mothers to nurse their babies outside the busy world and heat. So we took advantage of it and thanked them for this great service. Funny how things like this now excite me so much.
Also great to see at events like this in the area are the 'No Waste' stations. Every vendor gives out compostable plates/silverware/cups, etc and all the trash, recycling, and compostables go into areas guarded by the EcoWaste specialists so events like that don't create extra garbage for the neighbourhood afterward.
Sun Aug 21st
Since we all had the morning off together, we decided to try out the Chariot on a bike adventure. We found a great deal last week on the bike attachment so we rigged it up and tried it out. We also bought Rachel a helmet, which is a little bit big and annoys her a little, but she likes it more than she likes her life jacket! The biking paths in town are everywhere and make it easier to get around safely without dealing with cars. We had an excellent outing! Rachel fell asleep no problem in it and we used the Chariot to carry our groceries home.
Jason had loads of school planning and organizing to do, so we took off for the day as a family to Lafayette (that's the area Jason worksat) and attended the Peach Festival. This was a huge farmer's market with tents, peaches, cobbler, food, jewelry, art, local services, etc.
 |
| MoJo's cafe |
Also great to see at events like this in the area are the 'No Waste' stations. Every vendor gives out compostable plates/silverware/cups, etc and all the trash, recycling, and compostables go into areas guarded by the EcoWaste specialists so events like that don't create extra garbage for the neighbourhood afterward.
Sun Aug 21st
Since we all had the morning off together, we decided to try out the Chariot on a bike adventure. We found a great deal last week on the bike attachment so we rigged it up and tried it out. We also bought Rachel a helmet, which is a little bit big and annoys her a little, but she likes it more than she likes her life jacket! The biking paths in town are everywhere and make it easier to get around safely without dealing with cars. We had an excellent outing! Rachel fell asleep no problem in it and we used the Chariot to carry our groceries home.
 |
| Asleep outside the grocery store |
The moving truck arrives!
Friday, August 19th
After the initial moving truck delay, there was some more delay, so our stuff was promised to arrive Friday instead of Thursday. And then, Friday morning, still more delay. But eventually the huge orange rig pulled up to the house and the two local moving men helped our driver get all of our belongings on to our property.
While we were getting set to move everything in, SOMEBODY got into the bathroom and played with the toilet paper! Oops.
Nothing major was broken and everything seems to have made it, despite the fact that our stuff has been on three moving trucks and inspected at many inspections since we last saw it on July 26th.
The biggest challenge is where to put it all! This house is less than half the size of our last house. When the movers asked me where each item was to go, I laughed and shrugged and often said 'the backyard?!'. So we have piles of boxes, gear, yard tools, etc all over the place in the backyard.
Rachel helped us unpack some things and start putting together furniture.
Unfortunately, it has rained (hard, fast thundershowers) almost every other afternoon since we've been here. (It's hot in the morning and sunny most of the time.) But Friday was no exception to the hard rain. The movers left at about 1:30pm and then I spent some time finding tarps and covering up the piles. Jason arrived home just in time to help cover up a few more things before the clouds opened up and let go.
We'll keep you posted on how the unpacking process goes!
After the initial moving truck delay, there was some more delay, so our stuff was promised to arrive Friday instead of Thursday. And then, Friday morning, still more delay. But eventually the huge orange rig pulled up to the house and the two local moving men helped our driver get all of our belongings on to our property.
While we were getting set to move everything in, SOMEBODY got into the bathroom and played with the toilet paper! Oops.
Nothing major was broken and everything seems to have made it, despite the fact that our stuff has been on three moving trucks and inspected at many inspections since we last saw it on July 26th.
The biggest challenge is where to put it all! This house is less than half the size of our last house. When the movers asked me where each item was to go, I laughed and shrugged and often said 'the backyard?!'. So we have piles of boxes, gear, yard tools, etc all over the place in the backyard.
Rachel helped us unpack some things and start putting together furniture.
Unfortunately, it has rained (hard, fast thundershowers) almost every other afternoon since we've been here. (It's hot in the morning and sunny most of the time.) But Friday was no exception to the hard rain. The movers left at about 1:30pm and then I spent some time finding tarps and covering up the piles. Jason arrived home just in time to help cover up a few more things before the clouds opened up and let go.
 |
| Rachel with kitchen whisk |
We'll keep you posted on how the unpacking process goes!
August 23, 2011
...Hello Boulder
(written August 16th, 2011)
Jason arrived in Boulder the night of August 7th and Meggan and Rachel joined him August 12th.
Now we're here together! Yay! 'Here' is a house we've rented in the South Boulder community. It's an older, smaller home on a beautiful tree-lined street not far from trails and open park space. It's near a major bus intersection so to get downtown is an 8 minute bus ride. It's about a 30min bus ride for Jason to get to school.
If you want to take a house tour, click here (it's a bit long and shaky - sorry!)
Our moving van has not yet arrived as it broke down before crossing the border. Yikes! This has meant a house with no furniture, no linens, no dishes, no pots and pans, no toys, and only the clothes we took with us on our trip. Rachel has her travel crib but doesn't sleep that well in it, and now can stand herself up in it as a protest to sleeping. We're very tired of the same 5 books we have read for the last three weeks. Most of all, we're looking forward to getting her high chair and her nice stroller (we have a $15 small umbrella stroller with us and a BabyBjorn carrier that she's really too big for now).
Rachel is doing a great job of entertaining herself despite very little furniture or clothing.
Check her out n video:
1) playing peek-a-boo with a curtain
2) searching for a cloth during her bath (sorry for the vertical sideways videos)
3) making a walker out of a step stool
We might be a little tired of feeding Rachel on the floor, but she is happy about it!
So far in Boulder, here are some of the great things:
- Jason's school community is great and his staff have been very helpful and welcoming
- Our neighborhood is pretty with lots of green space, big old trees, and the Flatiron Mountains nearby
- There are loads of people out running, biking, walking all the time
- Most businesses and buildings here are committed to being GREEN
- We are figuring out the bus system and Rachel loves standing on the seat and 'bus surfing'
- We have all our favorite stores (REI, Kohls, Whole Foods, Target) in our own city
- The closest two businesses to our house are a library and a grocery store
- There is a very young flavor here, not only with CU campus but also everyone seems young and fit
So... cross your fingers that the moving truck arrives in a couple days. Let's hope all of our belongings are safe and that we can magically fit them into this small house. Let's hope Rachel is good at unpacking and we can keep her happy during the moving in process! Send us positive vibes for buying a new car without too much trouble so we can be more mobile and explore the area a little bit easier.
More news soon... promise!
Jason arrived in Boulder the night of August 7th and Meggan and Rachel joined him August 12th.
Now we're here together! Yay! 'Here' is a house we've rented in the South Boulder community. It's an older, smaller home on a beautiful tree-lined street not far from trails and open park space. It's near a major bus intersection so to get downtown is an 8 minute bus ride. It's about a 30min bus ride for Jason to get to school.
If you want to take a house tour, click here (it's a bit long and shaky - sorry!)
Our moving van has not yet arrived as it broke down before crossing the border. Yikes! This has meant a house with no furniture, no linens, no dishes, no pots and pans, no toys, and only the clothes we took with us on our trip. Rachel has her travel crib but doesn't sleep that well in it, and now can stand herself up in it as a protest to sleeping. We're very tired of the same 5 books we have read for the last three weeks. Most of all, we're looking forward to getting her high chair and her nice stroller (we have a $15 small umbrella stroller with us and a BabyBjorn carrier that she's really too big for now).
Rachel is doing a great job of entertaining herself despite very little furniture or clothing.
Check her out n video:
1) playing peek-a-boo with a curtain
2) searching for a cloth during her bath (sorry for the vertical sideways videos)
3) making a walker out of a step stool
We might be a little tired of feeding Rachel on the floor, but she is happy about it!
So far in Boulder, here are some of the great things:
- Jason's school community is great and his staff have been very helpful and welcoming
- Our neighborhood is pretty with lots of green space, big old trees, and the Flatiron Mountains nearby
- There are loads of people out running, biking, walking all the time
- Most businesses and buildings here are committed to being GREEN
- We are figuring out the bus system and Rachel loves standing on the seat and 'bus surfing'
- We have all our favorite stores (REI, Kohls, Whole Foods, Target) in our own city
- The closest two businesses to our house are a library and a grocery store
- There is a very young flavor here, not only with CU campus but also everyone seems young and fit
 |
| The Flatiron mountains above our house |
So... cross your fingers that the moving truck arrives in a couple days. Let's hope all of our belongings are safe and that we can magically fit them into this small house. Let's hope Rachel is good at unpacking and we can keep her happy during the moving in process! Send us positive vibes for buying a new car without too much trouble so we can be more mobile and explore the area a little bit easier.
More news soon... promise!
August 18, 2011
Week 2 Vacation - Girls Roadtrip
Monday Aug 8th - Friday Aug 12th. Susan, Karen, Meggan, and Rachel Oliver.
For those of you who follow Karen's blog, she can fill you in on the details here day to day. I'm going to give you the highlights and Rachel-specific things.
Photos:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150261633290894.329186.599030893&l=1e180dea7c&type=1
Crater Lake - beautiful! I'd been before with my parents in 2005 but this time we drove around the lake and saw many of the viewpoints. Also, there was still some snow this time and I enjoyed people play in snow like they have never seen it or touched it before.
Redwoods - I like trees. These trees were very, very tall although not as wide as the Sequoias or the Carmanah Forest on Vancouver Island. But it was beautiful and peaceful. Rachel and I did 'pushups' here and I'll try to get the video from Karen to post.
Wildlife - I asked the moose and bears to come out and play almost everyday... and saw none. But we did see deer, birds, sea lions, and pet dogs. Rachel loves dogs.
Oregon Coast - I love how public the beaches are. Thank you Oregon for continuing to keep nature beautiful. The beaches remain relatively undeveloped and open for playing. I enjoyed climbing up the sand dune with Rachel and watching people try to sand board on various kinds of boards.
Lighthouses - I didn't get too excited about the lighthouses, but I also took Rachel duty during most of our lighthouse stops. I did enjoy checking them off our list as we saw them.
Aquarium - the aquarium was cool. I like animals. Rachel was a bit sleepy during our visit but she liked watching the sea lions swim by.
The Cheese Factory - It was fun to try the samples and be able to share them with Rachel. I'm sad I didn't get an ice cream like the other 1000 people that were there that day... but Rachel had also just had the most monstrous diaper of her life and I didn't really have an appetite!
Flying from Portland to Denver - Susan and Karen left early Friday morning and then Rachel and I managed to pack up all our things and get ourselves to the airport, on a plane, and on a bus from Denver to Boulder. Jason met us at the bus station and we had one more short bus ride and a walk to our new place with all our things. Overall, the trip was tiring but it went well. Rachel hardly slept during the day and she is back now to being the Rachel that doesn't really nap. But in terms of single parents who travel with a baby, it was a good day. As usual, I'd love to thank SouthWest Airlines for being so awesome for travelers with kids. I'd also like to thank the random lady who helped my load by bags on to the Boulder bus while I had Rachel in her carrier, as I don't know how I could have done that part by myself.
Travel with Rachel - I don't think in my life I've ever stayed in a motel/hotel more than 2 nights in a row except on a field hockey tour. Personally, I found it luxurious and financially stressful. I know camping wouldn't have worked given all the other stuff we've had going on in our life, so this was a good experience for me. I'm pretty fast now at putting together and taking apart Rachel's travel crib. We used disposable diapers for most of this trip because we weren't in any one place long enough to dry them except a couple of times. Rachel did really well at sleeping in her car seat or in the stroller during nap time, and I think she managed to eat not too badly. I am looking forward to cooking again, for both of us. I think the hardest thing about this trip in terms of Rachel was sleeping at night. She typically went to bed at about 7:30pm so for bedtime routine and the next 30 min after she goes to sleep, we needed to be absolutely quiet and find darkness. The first week went quite well, I thought. Before we left for the trip, Rachel went to bed easily and slept 10-11 hours straight with no night time wakings or nursing. During the first week of the trip, I nursed her about once a night just to keep her quiet when she woke up and she went back down easily. During the second week, she had a lot more trouble getting to sleep and she woke up often. I had her in my bed with me (something I almost never do) more and more as the trip went on. I felt badly for Karen and Susan that I constantly kept shhhh-ushing themin the evenings and I'm not sure they slept that well on the trip. I know Rachel and I did not. I hope when we get settled in Boulder we can get back to a better night time routine and general schedule so that we can all get better sleep!
For those of you who follow Karen's blog, she can fill you in on the details here day to day. I'm going to give you the highlights and Rachel-specific things.
Photos:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150261633290894.329186.599030893&l=1e180dea7c&type=1
Crater Lake - beautiful! I'd been before with my parents in 2005 but this time we drove around the lake and saw many of the viewpoints. Also, there was still some snow this time and I enjoyed people play in snow like they have never seen it or touched it before.
Redwoods - I like trees. These trees were very, very tall although not as wide as the Sequoias or the Carmanah Forest on Vancouver Island. But it was beautiful and peaceful. Rachel and I did 'pushups' here and I'll try to get the video from Karen to post.
Wildlife - I asked the moose and bears to come out and play almost everyday... and saw none. But we did see deer, birds, sea lions, and pet dogs. Rachel loves dogs.
Oregon Coast - I love how public the beaches are. Thank you Oregon for continuing to keep nature beautiful. The beaches remain relatively undeveloped and open for playing. I enjoyed climbing up the sand dune with Rachel and watching people try to sand board on various kinds of boards.
Lighthouses - I didn't get too excited about the lighthouses, but I also took Rachel duty during most of our lighthouse stops. I did enjoy checking them off our list as we saw them.
Aquarium - the aquarium was cool. I like animals. Rachel was a bit sleepy during our visit but she liked watching the sea lions swim by.
The Cheese Factory - It was fun to try the samples and be able to share them with Rachel. I'm sad I didn't get an ice cream like the other 1000 people that were there that day... but Rachel had also just had the most monstrous diaper of her life and I didn't really have an appetite!
Flying from Portland to Denver - Susan and Karen left early Friday morning and then Rachel and I managed to pack up all our things and get ourselves to the airport, on a plane, and on a bus from Denver to Boulder. Jason met us at the bus station and we had one more short bus ride and a walk to our new place with all our things. Overall, the trip was tiring but it went well. Rachel hardly slept during the day and she is back now to being the Rachel that doesn't really nap. But in terms of single parents who travel with a baby, it was a good day. As usual, I'd love to thank SouthWest Airlines for being so awesome for travelers with kids. I'd also like to thank the random lady who helped my load by bags on to the Boulder bus while I had Rachel in her carrier, as I don't know how I could have done that part by myself.
Travel with Rachel - I don't think in my life I've ever stayed in a motel/hotel more than 2 nights in a row except on a field hockey tour. Personally, I found it luxurious and financially stressful. I know camping wouldn't have worked given all the other stuff we've had going on in our life, so this was a good experience for me. I'm pretty fast now at putting together and taking apart Rachel's travel crib. We used disposable diapers for most of this trip because we weren't in any one place long enough to dry them except a couple of times. Rachel did really well at sleeping in her car seat or in the stroller during nap time, and I think she managed to eat not too badly. I am looking forward to cooking again, for both of us. I think the hardest thing about this trip in terms of Rachel was sleeping at night. She typically went to bed at about 7:30pm so for bedtime routine and the next 30 min after she goes to sleep, we needed to be absolutely quiet and find darkness. The first week went quite well, I thought. Before we left for the trip, Rachel went to bed easily and slept 10-11 hours straight with no night time wakings or nursing. During the first week of the trip, I nursed her about once a night just to keep her quiet when she woke up and she went back down easily. During the second week, she had a lot more trouble getting to sleep and she woke up often. I had her in my bed with me (something I almost never do) more and more as the trip went on. I felt badly for Karen and Susan that I constantly kept shhhh-ushing themin the evenings and I'm not sure they slept that well on the trip. I know Rachel and I did not. I hope when we get settled in Boulder we can get back to a better night time routine and general schedule so that we can all get better sleep!
Bend, Oregon and the Haulin' Aspen Marathon
Sat August 6th/ Sun August 7th
Jason, Rachel and I had one room at the Days Inn and Susan and Karen Oliver had the next room. Karen and I went for a light jog down by the river and then came back for a sweet breakfast. Jason went for a longer run in the trails near the race site. When we all got organized, we went to a waterfall Jason had discovered on his run that morning. Bend is a really active community, and there were bikers and hikers everywhere. We walked through the downtown area, checked in for our races, and played at the toy store. We met up with hashing friends Rob and Andrea and their boys for lunch. After lunch, Rachel and I napped and relaxed at the hotel while Jason and Karen explored the race area to figure out the logistics of spectating.
Karen is training for a half marathon and registered for the 7 mile race; I was set to do my first ever marathon. I had convinced my friend Jehanne to do this race with me and it would be her first full marathon also. We had done okay with our training. Up until July 1st, actually, I felt great about it. But July didn't go as well as I had hoped. Still, Jehanne had done many runs at the 13-16mile distance and I'd done a few longer ones as well. I had done lots of trails and hills to prepare for this course, which was up for the first half and down for the second half. My longest run in training was 33km, or 20.5miles. I had hoped to run 21-22miles but my right knee started acting up (I think from a field hockey pelvis thing) in July and instead I tried to rest up and let this heal as best as it could. I know I didn't do the short runs, the strength work, or the stretching I should have done in July. I should have made more time for this part of the preparation. Several times Jehanne and I had considered signing up for the half marathon course (with our friends Rob, Phil, Nadyne) instead. We had also discussed starting 30 min earlier with the 'early start' group because we wanted an official finish and we weren't sure if we could complete the race in less than 6.5 hours. In the end, our goal was to finish safely before this official cut off. We didn't care how much we had to walk, if we looked good, or if it took us 6:29. As a secondary goal, I wanted to finish under 6 hours but by race day I just hoped my knee would take me through the whole course.
Now people ask me to 'tell them about the marathon' and I'm not quite sure what to say. It's harder to describe what happened on a run like that, especially compared to a field hockey game or other sport or even adventure race where there is more going on. At the beginning we were in a pack (or near the back of it) and we just ran and chatted and visited. We felt good. At some point, I remember thinking that the elevation must be increasing because things were feeling harder than they should have. My knee started hurting, and I experimented with different taping options. Jason, Rachel and Susan appeared here and there to support us. We climbed up a huge climb and walked and chatted the whole way. At the top, we had completed a half marathon and it felt totally fine, and then we laughed and enjoyed the next mile of fun single track descent. And then at about the same time, we felt nauseated and the downhill felt harder than it should have. We tried to continue to eat and drink, and we tried to continue to run. As time wore on, running became harder and walking became more frequent. My knee was quite sore, but it recovered well during our walking breaks. The scenery was fine, but it wasn't anything amazing. It began to feel dry and hot, and somewhere around 22miles we dipped our heads into the creek which was fantastic. From there to the finish, we barely ran and just willed ourselves to keep going to the end. For the last mile, we tried to jog it in again, and then it was over. I can't even remember my real time now, and just had to look it up to see that it was 5:44
Photos:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150261553610894.329162.599030893&l=bb282f3ac9&type=1
I'm really proud of myself for this accomplishment. I've never been a good runner and have always thought that maybe if I completed a marathon it would help my confidence as an athlete. After I delivered Rachel I thought nothing could ever be as bad as that and people always try to compare running a marathon with having a baby. For me, running a marathon was way, way easier. I think it's a strange comparison. Anyway, I'm glad that this post-partum fitness goal was achieved, and that I'm not back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I wouldn' t exactly say that I enjoyed the process of training for the marathon or that I'm keen to do another one. Trail half marathons seem like a good idea to me. But I do feel some wonder and slight regret... what if we had been able to run more, and walk less? Could we have challenged the fitness we'd trained for and not just gotten through it with a working knee? I think doing a marathon by running hard the whole way would be a whole different matter. Not one I plan to try or think would be enjoyable, but I can appreciate that it would be a different experience.
Anyway, back to the race finish. We cooled off in the creek and pretended to eat food and then Jason had to leave. He returned the Mazda 5 rental to the Redmond airport and flew to Denver. Then he took the bus to our new home in Boulder and prepared to start his new job the next morning.
Rachel had a rough night. She woke at 10:45pm throwing up. She'd never vomited before, so I didn't quite know what to do. She heaved on and off most of the night, but since she had no fever and didn't seem too upset by it, we just snuggled through it. Poor thing! By the morning, she seemed just fine except she didn't have her usual appetite for a couple of days.
Monday morning Susan, Karen, Rachel and I headed out in Karen's Jeep Patriot rental car for week 2 of vacation - the girls roadtrip.
Jason, Rachel and I had one room at the Days Inn and Susan and Karen Oliver had the next room. Karen and I went for a light jog down by the river and then came back for a sweet breakfast. Jason went for a longer run in the trails near the race site. When we all got organized, we went to a waterfall Jason had discovered on his run that morning. Bend is a really active community, and there were bikers and hikers everywhere. We walked through the downtown area, checked in for our races, and played at the toy store. We met up with hashing friends Rob and Andrea and their boys for lunch. After lunch, Rachel and I napped and relaxed at the hotel while Jason and Karen explored the race area to figure out the logistics of spectating.
Karen is training for a half marathon and registered for the 7 mile race; I was set to do my first ever marathon. I had convinced my friend Jehanne to do this race with me and it would be her first full marathon also. We had done okay with our training. Up until July 1st, actually, I felt great about it. But July didn't go as well as I had hoped. Still, Jehanne had done many runs at the 13-16mile distance and I'd done a few longer ones as well. I had done lots of trails and hills to prepare for this course, which was up for the first half and down for the second half. My longest run in training was 33km, or 20.5miles. I had hoped to run 21-22miles but my right knee started acting up (I think from a field hockey pelvis thing) in July and instead I tried to rest up and let this heal as best as it could. I know I didn't do the short runs, the strength work, or the stretching I should have done in July. I should have made more time for this part of the preparation. Several times Jehanne and I had considered signing up for the half marathon course (with our friends Rob, Phil, Nadyne) instead. We had also discussed starting 30 min earlier with the 'early start' group because we wanted an official finish and we weren't sure if we could complete the race in less than 6.5 hours. In the end, our goal was to finish safely before this official cut off. We didn't care how much we had to walk, if we looked good, or if it took us 6:29. As a secondary goal, I wanted to finish under 6 hours but by race day I just hoped my knee would take me through the whole course.
Now people ask me to 'tell them about the marathon' and I'm not quite sure what to say. It's harder to describe what happened on a run like that, especially compared to a field hockey game or other sport or even adventure race where there is more going on. At the beginning we were in a pack (or near the back of it) and we just ran and chatted and visited. We felt good. At some point, I remember thinking that the elevation must be increasing because things were feeling harder than they should have. My knee started hurting, and I experimented with different taping options. Jason, Rachel and Susan appeared here and there to support us. We climbed up a huge climb and walked and chatted the whole way. At the top, we had completed a half marathon and it felt totally fine, and then we laughed and enjoyed the next mile of fun single track descent. And then at about the same time, we felt nauseated and the downhill felt harder than it should have. We tried to continue to eat and drink, and we tried to continue to run. As time wore on, running became harder and walking became more frequent. My knee was quite sore, but it recovered well during our walking breaks. The scenery was fine, but it wasn't anything amazing. It began to feel dry and hot, and somewhere around 22miles we dipped our heads into the creek which was fantastic. From there to the finish, we barely ran and just willed ourselves to keep going to the end. For the last mile, we tried to jog it in again, and then it was over. I can't even remember my real time now, and just had to look it up to see that it was 5:44
Photos:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150261553610894.329162.599030893&l=bb282f3ac9&type=1
I'm really proud of myself for this accomplishment. I've never been a good runner and have always thought that maybe if I completed a marathon it would help my confidence as an athlete. After I delivered Rachel I thought nothing could ever be as bad as that and people always try to compare running a marathon with having a baby. For me, running a marathon was way, way easier. I think it's a strange comparison. Anyway, I'm glad that this post-partum fitness goal was achieved, and that I'm not back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I wouldn' t exactly say that I enjoyed the process of training for the marathon or that I'm keen to do another one. Trail half marathons seem like a good idea to me. But I do feel some wonder and slight regret... what if we had been able to run more, and walk less? Could we have challenged the fitness we'd trained for and not just gotten through it with a working knee? I think doing a marathon by running hard the whole way would be a whole different matter. Not one I plan to try or think would be enjoyable, but I can appreciate that it would be a different experience.
Anyway, back to the race finish. We cooled off in the creek and pretended to eat food and then Jason had to leave. He returned the Mazda 5 rental to the Redmond airport and flew to Denver. Then he took the bus to our new home in Boulder and prepared to start his new job the next morning.
Rachel had a rough night. She woke at 10:45pm throwing up. She'd never vomited before, so I didn't quite know what to do. She heaved on and off most of the night, but since she had no fever and didn't seem too upset by it, we just snuggled through it. Poor thing! By the morning, she seemed just fine except she didn't have her usual appetite for a couple of days.
Monday morning Susan, Karen, Rachel and I headed out in Karen's Jeep Patriot rental car for week 2 of vacation - the girls roadtrip.
Mt Rainier, Mt St Helens, Mt Hood
August 1st we left the Mt Rainier area and headed to Mt St Helens. We drove into the main visitor center from the West side, where Rachel fell asleep as we learned about the eruption and the recovery of the land since 1980. We drove up to the mountain viewing area, walked around, and then drove back out and South. Along the way we saw signs everywhere for homeade blackberry pie and fresh cherries. We stopped for some cherries at a fruit stand and felt good about getting in this important part of any real summer.
Meggan picked the hotel for the night in Longmire, WA which was the cheapest one on our whole trip. The service wasn't the greatest but it was decent enough. We had excellent chicken pizza nearby and were glad that we'd made the extra trip to WalMart to purchase a $15 stroller. Susan watched Rachel that evening while Meggan and Jason went to watch Harry Potter, which we really enjoyed. Rachel woke at 4am and decided it was morning time, so Susan blessed us again by taking her out in our new stroller and walking with her until a more reasonable wake up time.
Longmire, WA has a cute little downtown area famous for the world's only squirrel bridge. Check it out with all our pictures on facebook:
click here for photos
We hit the playground for some swinging and sliding and then decided to drive out to the coast as we had an extra day to enjoy. We made our way through a wildlife sanctuary boardwalk and arrived at the beach. Rachel had fun trying to walk on the sand, and we enjoyed the scenery.
See Rachel trying to walk:
(note - the 'jump' at the end of this video is not a PT approved move and should not be done with other children, even though we do it with Rachel)
Since Susan loves lighthouses, we checked out a couple in the area. We crossed over the bridge from WA to Astoria, Oregon and Jason and Meggan climbed up the Astoria tower. Meggan didn't have the stomach to stay up there very long, and Astoria didn't suit us. We moved on to Seaside, Oregon and had a beautiful evening on the beach.
The next morning we went to search for the Tillamook lighthouse, which required a lengthier hike to a foggy
view. It was a beautiful forest walk with a picnic lunch near a surfing beach. Kids, dogs, and old people were out surfing away. We drove back East into and through Portland (and its traffic - ugh!) to stay in a less-than-excellent Travel Lodge in Troutdale, Oregon.
This brought us to the beautiful Columbia River Gorge. There are waterfalls all along the scenic drive so we took turns jumping out and taking pictures while another person stayed in the car with Rachel. Along the way we visited a fish hatchery where Rachel loved watching the fish swim by and we laughed at lazy old 'Herman', the 450 lbs resident sturgeon. Further along the road, we stopped at Hood River to watch the kite and surf boarding and enjoy the little surf town and its ice cream, and then turned South to our first sights of Mt. Hood.
We drove up to see Mt Hood and its old lodge, but there wasn't really anywhere to stay since most places were full of ski camp kids. We pushed on to Madras, Oregon and enjoyed a dinner at the Black Bear Diner, including blackberry pie which we were very excited about but it didn't live up to many days' worth of expectation.
From Madras, we continued South and detoured to Sisters to see the 3 Sisters mountains and the lava flow in the area. It was strange to move from river to lush forest to dessert to lava flow all within a few hours. We went back to Redmond for the county fair, thinking Rachel would like to see the animals. We had lunch, went to the petting zoo, and all seemed well at first. Rachel pet a bunny, and then a sheep, and even grabbed on to the sheep's horns until he suddenly pulled his head back. This terrified Rachel and she screamed and screamed. We spent the next hour trying to show her other friendly animals but she was not convinced.
Friday afternoon we arrived in Bend, Oregon to meet up with Karen and get organized for the upcoming Marathon.
Meggan picked the hotel for the night in Longmire, WA which was the cheapest one on our whole trip. The service wasn't the greatest but it was decent enough. We had excellent chicken pizza nearby and were glad that we'd made the extra trip to WalMart to purchase a $15 stroller. Susan watched Rachel that evening while Meggan and Jason went to watch Harry Potter, which we really enjoyed. Rachel woke at 4am and decided it was morning time, so Susan blessed us again by taking her out in our new stroller and walking with her until a more reasonable wake up time.
Longmire, WA has a cute little downtown area famous for the world's only squirrel bridge. Check it out with all our pictures on facebook:
click here for photos
We hit the playground for some swinging and sliding and then decided to drive out to the coast as we had an extra day to enjoy. We made our way through a wildlife sanctuary boardwalk and arrived at the beach. Rachel had fun trying to walk on the sand, and we enjoyed the scenery.
See Rachel trying to walk:
(note - the 'jump' at the end of this video is not a PT approved move and should not be done with other children, even though we do it with Rachel)
Since Susan loves lighthouses, we checked out a couple in the area. We crossed over the bridge from WA to Astoria, Oregon and Jason and Meggan climbed up the Astoria tower. Meggan didn't have the stomach to stay up there very long, and Astoria didn't suit us. We moved on to Seaside, Oregon and had a beautiful evening on the beach.
The next morning we went to search for the Tillamook lighthouse, which required a lengthier hike to a foggy
view. It was a beautiful forest walk with a picnic lunch near a surfing beach. Kids, dogs, and old people were out surfing away. We drove back East into and through Portland (and its traffic - ugh!) to stay in a less-than-excellent Travel Lodge in Troutdale, Oregon.
This brought us to the beautiful Columbia River Gorge. There are waterfalls all along the scenic drive so we took turns jumping out and taking pictures while another person stayed in the car with Rachel. Along the way we visited a fish hatchery where Rachel loved watching the fish swim by and we laughed at lazy old 'Herman', the 450 lbs resident sturgeon. Further along the road, we stopped at Hood River to watch the kite and surf boarding and enjoy the little surf town and its ice cream, and then turned South to our first sights of Mt. Hood.
We drove up to see Mt Hood and its old lodge, but there wasn't really anywhere to stay since most places were full of ski camp kids. We pushed on to Madras, Oregon and enjoyed a dinner at the Black Bear Diner, including blackberry pie which we were very excited about but it didn't live up to many days' worth of expectation.
From Madras, we continued South and detoured to Sisters to see the 3 Sisters mountains and the lava flow in the area. It was strange to move from river to lush forest to dessert to lava flow all within a few hours. We went back to Redmond for the county fair, thinking Rachel would like to see the animals. We had lunch, went to the petting zoo, and all seemed well at first. Rachel pet a bunny, and then a sheep, and even grabbed on to the sheep's horns until he suddenly pulled his head back. This terrified Rachel and she screamed and screamed. We spent the next hour trying to show her other friendly animals but she was not convinced.
Friday afternoon we arrived in Bend, Oregon to meet up with Karen and get organized for the upcoming Marathon.
August 16, 2011
July 27th -July 31st: White River 50 miler
July 27th we left our house (for good!) and made our way across the border. Meggan and Rachel had to enter the USA as visitors, so they went with our friends Stacey and Kristen. Imagine 3 women, a dog, a baby, and all sorts of gear crammed into the car to get us all down to Washington State. Jason followed later in the Subaru Outback and successfully crossed the border and declared himself a US Citizen moving home. Thankfully, these border crossings were very simple and we all had a great sleep at Stacey's cabin in Twisp, WA. The best part of the day was having Rachel play with Dora the dog. Rachel LOVES dogs!
July 28th - Meggan, Jason and Rachel continue on in the Outback to Seattle to pick up Susan Oliver who arrived from Sterling, VA to come cheer Jason on at his race. We enjoyed the scenery along the way and had a happy reunion of Rachel with Grandma.
Check out the video of Rachel 'trail running'
July 29th - The Olivers rent a Mazda 5 and drive this and the Outback to Crystal Mountain to get settled in and organized for the big day. Rachel eats pickle for the first time and decides it's great to chomp on.
At the pre-race pasta dinner, athletes scare Susan with how much pasta they can devour.
July 30th - Jason starts his race very early in the morning.
We reconnect with Kristen, Stacey and Dora the dog as Stacey is also running in the White River 50 miler. We spend the day trying to cheer on these two amazing runners as much as we can throughout the day, while playing with Rachel in between.
Stacey has an excellent day and finishes her first 50 miler in under 9 hours as the 4th female. Jason has a tough time on the second climb and comes in at 10:44 - delighted to finish.
Click here for more pictures
July 31st - After a slow start, Kristen takes her Outback and says goodbye. Dora and Stacey return to Penticton. Susan, Jason, Rachel and Meggan move on to sight seeing in the Mazda 5. We spend the day exploring Mt Rainier National Park's beautiful waterfalls.
Check out the video of Rachel 'trail running'
 |
| Grandma!! |
July 29th - The Olivers rent a Mazda 5 and drive this and the Outback to Crystal Mountain to get settled in and organized for the big day. Rachel eats pickle for the first time and decides it's great to chomp on.
 |
| last ride in the Outback |
 |
| view from top of 2nd climb |
At the pre-race pasta dinner, athletes scare Susan with how much pasta they can devour.
 |
| Jason, Stacey, Kristen, Susan, Meggan, Rachel |
 |
| pre-race pasta |
July 30th - Jason starts his race very early in the morning.
Stacey has an excellent day and finishes her first 50 miler in under 9 hours as the 4th female. Jason has a tough time on the second climb and comes in at 10:44 - delighted to finish.
Click here for more pictures
 |
| One tired little gal waiting for Daddy |
July 31st - After a slow start, Kristen takes her Outback and says goodbye. Dora and Stacey return to Penticton. Susan, Jason, Rachel and Meggan move on to sight seeing in the Mazda 5. We spend the day exploring Mt Rainier National Park's beautiful waterfalls.
 |
| Rachel loved this bear skin |
 |
| Mt Rainier shows itself for a few minutes |
Goodbye Penticton...
Things are happening in the little Oliver family. Jason accepted a job teaching high school business/marketing at Centaurus High School in Boulder, Colorado. He accepted the job at the very end of June and then things sped ahead: selling the house and both cars, packing up, emptying the house, preparing paperwork, planning for school, quitting jobs, renting a place in Boulder, saying goodbye to friends. Rachel is growing up fast. In the last month, she has learned to crawl, explore, pull up to stand, and cruise. She can quickly get herself from one area of a room to another and explore what is around it. She is particularly motivated to move rapidly toward food, electric cords, or boxes of interesting looking objects. She loves to unpack boxes and throw the contents around the area. She wasn't a huge help in the 'packing' department, but we're expecting great things when it comes to unpacking.  |
| We're doing WHAT?!?! |
 |
| Enjoying all the food left in the pantry |
 |
| Last day at the beach |
 |
| Jeff's family came to visit and say goodbye |
July was quite hectic, to say the least. Jason was home with Rachel full time while Meggan worked some extra hours covering for summer locums. Jason had a lot to organize with getting ready for school and moving into a new home in Boulder. His first day of work was August 8th!
We had so many great friends and family help us out during this hectic time. Meggan's parents helped us clean the house to show and sell it. Our friends Tricia and Chris bought our house. Our friends Rachel and Kristen bought our cars. Tamsyn, Jehanne, Kristen, Amber, Penny, and Caithy and Sean all helped us pack up and/or watched Rachel. Meggan's brother Jeff and his family came to stay with us and watched Rachel during most of their visit. We are so lucky to have such amazing friends!
Check out videos from the beach:
Things we're really going to miss about Penticton: the running/hashing community, the lakes, Skaha park, having friends visit us and the wineries, Nickel Plate cross country skiing, and, most of all, the great friends we made there.
 |
| Bye Bye House! |
 |
| Moving truck arrives in front of sold house |
 |
| This truck held about 8 families' belongings |
August 1, 2011
Cathedral Lakes Trip July 8/9/10
We're a little behind in the writing, but we can't update you on our lives until we tell the story of our trip to Cathedral Lakes. Our family joined forces with Tamsyn, Kory, and Keiran Hendricks (5+ months old at the time of the trip) to go into the high alpine above Keremeos, BC.
FRIDAY
We dropped Jason off at the bottom of the trail so he could run up the hill to the lodge, while the rest of us put our packs and bodies into an old Suburban shuttle and caught a ride. While Jason saved himself $80, he missed the thrill of the narrow, bumpy road near cliffs. The driver we had was not the regular driver, which became obvious when he drove off a bridge and nearly sent us into the river below. The wheel of the truck was stuck, and he told us we were nearly there and could walk the rest. He told us the lodge was about 500 meters away. So we grabbed a water bottle each and set off, confident that we could have the kids in the cabin before lunch and that the lodge staff would bring us our luggage shortly. Tamsyn and I each had our baby bjorns (since we didn't have car seats on this ride, we opted to attach the babies to our own bodies as we bumped along the potholes in the truck) but I didn't grab any food, drink, or clean diapers for Rachel. After 10 minutes and no lodge in site, I was skeptical about our location and wished I had at least grabbed a diaper. The dodgy road climbed straight up and we were sweating and angry at the lying driver. Our kids became less thrilled with this plan as we marched in frustration for another 80 minutes before making it to the lodge area.
Once there, we saw that Jason had successfully finished his run and was waiting for us amongst the remaining patches of snow. The weather was sunny but cool as we were at altitude and snow was still visible on many of the surrounding peaks. We had rented a 'rustic cabin' for the weekend, and set to work making a fire in the wood stove. Poor Rachel had no diapers but we fed her what we could and waited for our luggage to appear from the rescued truck (this took a couple of hours).
We spent the afternoon walking around the flatter trails. Kory had come off night shift (as a police officer) so he slept while the rest of us hiked around. The alpine was beautiful! After hiking around Pyramid lake, we ventured around the larger lake that the lodge sits next to, in search of a waterfall. No problem... until we hit the other side of the lake which remained covered in snowy patches. Tamsyn proved herself to be a 'SuperMommy' by taking a fall on the snow, sliding a bit, and protecting Keiran the entire time so he remained completely safe. Still, after that we took it a little easier.
After dinner we put the babies to bed and Tamsyn drew the short straw to stay on duty while the others went into the main lodge to enjoy the hot tub. Jason relieved Tamsyn after a few minutes in the scalding water and after that we went back to bed. Rachel and Keiran took turns crying here and there, but Keiran settled well and had a decent night. Rachel did not have a very good night, and Meggan froze herself trying to snuggle as still as possible with Rachel for most of the night.
SATURDAY
The big plan for Sat was to hike the Cathedral Rim trail. This is the same trail Meggan dragged Steph/Kim/Dana on years ago but at that time we were tenting and there was only a dusting of snow. We knew it would be a long and challenging day for our families and we weren't sure how it would go.
We set out to Glacier Lake and quickly found snow and beautiful scenery. The kids took turns sleeping in their carriers. Rachel was happy in her backpack (thanks to Tony and Adri for the awesome pack) and Keiran alternated between his pack and the Bjorn.
Above Glacier lake, we climbed into scree but part of the trail was obscured with snow. We negotiated a route we felt safer than the marked route, but there were sections that were steep, slippery and a little scary. We were all relieved to hit the rim trail and have lunch, and even saw a mountain goat mum and kid above the ridge.
Hiking along the ridge was amazing - views of the Cascade peaks to the south were endless. We hiked along through the Devil's Woodpile and Stone City.
Keiran's patience was tested as we searched for our trail to descend, hoping for no major snow. The moms took a break with the kids while the Dads explored the rock formation 'Smokey the Bear'.
We then headed down, heading for a partially frozen lake, enjoying the fact that the trail was safe and snow-free... until we came to the snow. It started out really fun, and the kids loved their first glissading experiences.
After a while of this, the snow became monotonous and our progress was very slow. Melting snow meant post-holing with many steps and trying many routes to stay on a safe trail. Bad words were said and moods faltered, but all in all the kids fared well. We made it to the frozen lake and rejoiced in the idea that the cabin wasn't much further. Alas, it took us much longer from this point than we had hoped and we were tired, hungry, and cranky by the time we made it home. Another dinner, bedtime, hot tub routine preceded a good night for us all before we woke up laughing about it all Sunday morning.
SUNDAY
Sunday we packed and then tried to go for a row on the lake. Unfortunately, Rachel screamed for most of the life-jacket experience. Instead we enjoyed a short hike and a picnic by a lake. Rachel slept here while we snacked and watched the snow melt into the lake below.
We returned to our cabin, put our stuff into the jeep, and relaxed for an uneventful ride down.
Jason ran down the mountain and back to the car, and we enjoyed the comforts of home when we returned to Penticton.
FRIDAY
We dropped Jason off at the bottom of the trail so he could run up the hill to the lodge, while the rest of us put our packs and bodies into an old Suburban shuttle and caught a ride. While Jason saved himself $80, he missed the thrill of the narrow, bumpy road near cliffs. The driver we had was not the regular driver, which became obvious when he drove off a bridge and nearly sent us into the river below. The wheel of the truck was stuck, and he told us we were nearly there and could walk the rest. He told us the lodge was about 500 meters away. So we grabbed a water bottle each and set off, confident that we could have the kids in the cabin before lunch and that the lodge staff would bring us our luggage shortly. Tamsyn and I each had our baby bjorns (since we didn't have car seats on this ride, we opted to attach the babies to our own bodies as we bumped along the potholes in the truck) but I didn't grab any food, drink, or clean diapers for Rachel. After 10 minutes and no lodge in site, I was skeptical about our location and wished I had at least grabbed a diaper. The dodgy road climbed straight up and we were sweating and angry at the lying driver. Our kids became less thrilled with this plan as we marched in frustration for another 80 minutes before making it to the lodge area.
Once there, we saw that Jason had successfully finished his run and was waiting for us amongst the remaining patches of snow. The weather was sunny but cool as we were at altitude and snow was still visible on many of the surrounding peaks. We had rented a 'rustic cabin' for the weekend, and set to work making a fire in the wood stove. Poor Rachel had no diapers but we fed her what we could and waited for our luggage to appear from the rescued truck (this took a couple of hours).
After dinner we put the babies to bed and Tamsyn drew the short straw to stay on duty while the others went into the main lodge to enjoy the hot tub. Jason relieved Tamsyn after a few minutes in the scalding water and after that we went back to bed. Rachel and Keiran took turns crying here and there, but Keiran settled well and had a decent night. Rachel did not have a very good night, and Meggan froze herself trying to snuggle as still as possible with Rachel for most of the night.
SATURDAY
The big plan for Sat was to hike the Cathedral Rim trail. This is the same trail Meggan dragged Steph/Kim/Dana on years ago but at that time we were tenting and there was only a dusting of snow. We knew it would be a long and challenging day for our families and we weren't sure how it would go.
 |
| Glacier Lake (Pyramid Mtn in background) |
 |
| Glacier lake - Rachel's pink toque just visible |
Above Glacier lake, we climbed into scree but part of the trail was obscured with snow. We negotiated a route we felt safer than the marked route, but there were sections that were steep, slippery and a little scary. We were all relieved to hit the rim trail and have lunch, and even saw a mountain goat mum and kid above the ridge.
Hiking along the ridge was amazing - views of the Cascade peaks to the south were endless. We hiked along through the Devil's Woodpile and Stone City.
 |
| Jason hikes into Stone City with Cascades in background |
Keiran's patience was tested as we searched for our trail to descend, hoping for no major snow. The moms took a break with the kids while the Dads explored the rock formation 'Smokey the Bear'.
We then headed down, heading for a partially frozen lake, enjoying the fact that the trail was safe and snow-free... until we came to the snow. It started out really fun, and the kids loved their first glissading experiences.
 |
| Rachel and Jason still smiling after hours out hiking in the snow |
SUNDAY
 |
| Rachel naps during shorter hike and picnic |
We returned to our cabin, put our stuff into the jeep, and relaxed for an uneventful ride down.
Jason ran down the mountain and back to the car, and we enjoyed the comforts of home when we returned to Penticton.
 | |
| Jason, Kory, Tamsyn and kids in front of our cabin. |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)