Washington, here we come!

Okay, more like here we went, but anyway...on to the last half of our Road Trip Adventure!

Is it just me or was anybody else under the impression that each state is supposed to have a cool sign saying. "Welcome to..."
This was just a wee bit anti-climactic for us:
Since the drive from Portland to Seattle is only about 3 hours I wanted to stop at a Visitors Center for Mt. St. Helens that was just off the freeway. We'd asked for directions and suggestions at a little tourist info office a few miles earlier and the lady working there had a few ideas for us. We stopped by the Silver Lake Visitors Center first. I didn't get a chance to take many pictures but Zack did pose for me by the glass mosaic of Mt. St. Helens, which is almost the best view we got of the mountain. Outside it was hazy from the fires all the way down in California, so visibility was pretty poor. Still, we could just barely make out the mountain 50 miles+ from the Visitors Center and we saw the movie all about the blast/eruption, so we decided against the 90 minute drive (one way) to the top to Johnston Ridge.



Our tourist info friend also recommended that we stop for lunch at this cute little place, the 19 Mile House Restaurant.

Brynnly and Quintin enjoying the view from our table outside on the back side of the wrap-around porch.

Zachary took a moment to describe the "The Blast" while we waited for our food to arrive. Note Brynnly's "special effects."

We saw this pretty bird in a tree just a few yards away from our spot. A random thing about me: I like birdwatching. I've never actually seen one of these birds in real life and I'm a little rusty since my bird class in college, but I'm proud to say I was still able to identify it.

This place serves really yummy homestyle burgers. It's also known for it's cobbler a la mode. At least that's what we were told, but we were way too stuffed from the burgers to try it. I was kind of sad about that.

Since we weren't going to drive all the way up to the crater we drove another mile to see a few more things to make it worth the trip.

The "Buried A-Frame" is a house that was just built and almost move-in ready when Mt. St. Helens blew it's top and the mud flows filled it up. We could see the appliances in the kitchen. So sad. But perhaps even sadder still is the fact that I had no idea that this was Sasquatch country! This guy is made from concrete and the ash from the blast.

Somehow our little side trip ending up taking 3 hours. We were only 20 miles from the freeway but we still didn't get cell phone coverage. Meanwhile, Mom is wondering where the heck we are because even Lisa, who left Portland after us, made it to Mom's before we did. We finally made it in around dinner time.

The next day was Rehearsal day for David and Angela's Wedding (which I'll have to post about another day because I have nothing to show for it just yet). I agree with Michelle - everything in Washington is far away. The kids were so confused how we could drive so long and so far to get to rehearsals and dinners and weddings and still be in Washington. They managed to entertain themselves with this cow mask from Tillamook for quite a while. Zack was convinced he was Batman when he wore it.

We all met at the venue for the wedding to rehearse. The little flower girls and ring "bear" were pretty excited and I think just a tiny bit nervous. I know I was!

After the rehearsal we all drove (far away and nearly onto a ferry) to the BBQ at this cute little cottage. Hello! Secret Garden! I kid you not. And the inside of the cottage was so darn cute and quaint too.

Quintin was thrilled to find a nice little murky pond to explore with his cousin Tyler.

A couple of months ago my Dad bought himself a classic car to work on. A red '55 Chevy. He loves it. And I have to admit I'm a tad bit jealous. So I asked Dad if he'd take me for a spin in it and he said yes! Here he is trying to get it started with a few pumps on the gas pedal and a couple of cranks on the ignition. But it fired up and we rumbled away. It was such a blast from the past.

Zack called Grandpa's car Red Doc, because he thought it looked like Doc from the Disney movie, Cars.

Even Braxton got in on the fun with a little help from Grandma!

Checking out what's under the hood. Not much back in those days. Kind of crazy.

Look at the proud look on his face. Priceless.

Pretty cool, Dad. Pretty. Cool.

As if our own private ride wasn't enough, Dad took us all the the LeMay Museum the next day to check out their collection. There were so many cars, and they didn't even have all of the ones that they owned on the property.

Here's a fun one. Quintin's making a wonky face about the wonky steering wheel. It's an oval.

Honk! Honk! Old-fashioned style.

Look at all those tail fins! There's even a pink Cadillac near the end.

A few of our favorites:

Here's the closest one we could find to the real "Doc." What a day!

Alright, time to hit the road again. We left for Utah on Sunday morning and had to drive it all in one day. Ugh! Awesome Auntie Michelle let us borrow some audiobooks, namely Flush by Carl Hiaasen, and that really saved us. The kids hardly noticed the hours go by for most of the drive. And since it was Sunday I felt like we should try to do something on the brink of spiritual. So without further ado, I leave you our Road Trip FHE:

Opening Song: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam

(Warning: We are NOT the VonTrapp family)

Brynnly shares a scripture

Quintin gives us a 45 second lesson, and yet Zack's attention span is still too short.

Happy Summer!!