Oregon

Here's an update on a family trip I went on in July.

My mom came to visit me in Phoenix in July and I drove her back to Las Vegas on a Sunday night. I decided to stay for a couple of days and do some networking. My family was heading off to a family reunion (for my mom's dad's family) in Oregon on that Tuesday, and somehow (I still can't quite figure it out) I got talked into going with them. Keep in mind, I had two changes of clothing and underwear. . . and that was about it. I borrowed a few outfits and some toothpaste from my sisters and my mother and we headed off.

So let me first set the scene: myself, my mother, three sisters, two nephews, sleeping bags, luggage for the aforementioned passengers, a 1-year granola bar supply (well, it felt like it), several stuffed animals, and way too many pair of shoes were all crammed inside my sister's 7-passenger minivan. We had to drive from Las Vegas to McMinnville, Oregon (about 1 1/2 hours southwest of Portland), roughly 975 miles, in three days. Fortunately, we had four drivers!

We spent the first night near a town in northern California called Redding. We pulled in at nearly midnight and left the next morning at about 8, but it was a very pretty area! We went the Crater Lake, in southern Oregon, the next day. If you've never been, Crater Lake is really cool. A long, long time ago a volcano blew off the top of a mountain and the remaining crater filled up with water - hence, Crater Lake. It takes quite awhile to get to it (there are many towns nearby), but it is so worth it. We were supposed to take a boat ride across the lake (very fun - we did it many years ago at a previous family reunion). Unfortunately, our reservations were messed up and they only had us down for three people rather than seven and the boat was full. Right after we found that out, the person at the reservation desk informed us that we had all been bumped anyway because. . . well, we couldn't exactly figure out why. It was all strange and confusing and we were all starting to hallucinate a bit from being the car for so long. Instead, we walked down to the lake edge and splashed around in the (cold) water for a bit. When I say we went "down" to the lake, I really mean it. The lake edge is a steep 1 mile hike, and coming out can be challenging. Especially for my 6-year-old nephew. On the way out we were no more than 50 feet along the trail when he decided it was time for a break. And it went that way for the next probably half-mile. Every 10 to 20 steps he was sitting on the trail or on the side of the trail or running the other way back down the trail. I thought I was going to scream. Then Ernie and I stumbled upon a great solution. I had a granola bar (because remember, we had about a 1 year supply in the car) and promised him a bite of the bar if he went 20 steps. There were benches all along the trail - at the end of almost every switchback and sometimes in the middle of a switchback. Ernie decided we should take a break and a bite of granola bar at every bench. The breaks were brief - no more than 1 minute, but I was amazed at how motivating this little technique was. He was like a different kid, practically running up the trail. Ernie has always been a pretty high-maintenance child, but he also does really, really well with heavy amounts of structure and tangible incentives. I just wish we would have thought of this earlier!

We spent the night in a dumpy town about 2 hours away and about 3 hours from our final destination. We decided to take a bit of a scenic route the next day and we drove along the coast and went to a fun aquarium in Newport. Below are some pictures of us hanging out on the coast. You can't see it, but there was a whale way out in the distance. We couldn't see it really well, but every once in awhile you could see it breach and see its tail come up. Very cool!

Whale watching with (from L to R) Layne, Micah, Ernie, Melissa

Along the coast - (L to R) Claire, Melissa, Micah, Layne. Ernie took this picture and it took numerous attempts before our heads were actually visible. :)

We finally made it to the retreat at about 9 or so that night (Thursday). Most of the rest of the family rolled in Friday afternoon and evening. The retreat has a lake, and a really fun giant swing (you get harnesses in and they swing you way out over a gully and lots of trees) but because of liability issues we were really restricted on what we could and couldn't do without staff and lifeguards around. :( However, there was a big lake nearby (a state park), so we piled in the car (again!) and drove about 25 minutes to go to the lake. My aunt, my cousin, and my cousin's son (3 years old) were with us, as well. We hung out on the shore for a few hours and my mom and aunt also rented some paddle boats. It was really fun to watch the three boys play in the water. I love how carefree and excited children are. I also love watching my older nephew, Ernie, with younger children. Kade is three years younger than Ernie and Ernie did such a good job watching out for him and helping him. It was really sweet!

The next morning we relaxed at the retreat and then my parents drove me into Portland to catch my early afternoon flight. It was such a beautiful drive! We were about 1 hour from Portland and that area is farmland and wine country. It was really a stunning drive up hills and through forest-y areas and past lovely farms and vineyards. It almost made me wish I lived someplace a little greener. :)

All things said and done, it was a nice vacation and it was great to spend time with the family. I just wish we had flown. :)