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I have debated writing this post for a month now, but I would have never come to the realizations I have, or arrived at this point if an astute friend had kept silent, so I will write away and deal with repercussions later, though I have faith in my fellow man (woman) and I believe nothing much will change. 

January 1st 2011 we started potty training Darcy.  She picked up on the peeing part very well.  The poop was a nightmare.  She refused to poop on the toilet and instead held it in so she was totally constipated and runny "stuff" that could get around the big log (excuse my language here but there is a point) ended up in her pants CONSTANTLY.  I was wiping her butt at least 5 times a day.  This went on for 645 days to be exact.  That means I was up to my elbows in poop about 3200 times in the past 2 years, and that doesn't include Bree and her messes.  There were times when I was pounding walls and screaming for Darcy to poop, I had visions of running away, we gave rewards, took things away, yelled, coddled, enemas, laxatives, pull-up, underpants, diapers, you name it.  Paul even promised me a convertible if she wasn't trained by the end of this year.  The guys at work told him he was crazy but he told them I would much rather have her potty trained then have a convertible.  He was right.  I had hit my limit so many times its a wonder I (and Darcy) survived to tell the tale.  So the point of the story is that we knew a long time ago that Darcy had some issues.  I thought it was mostly potty training.  Oh, and then of course how she would absolutely freak out every time I left the room or an adult looked at her or something wasn't just right and it set her off.  I was full of anxiety over her anxiety and it was a difficult stretch we went through.

In July, during swimming lessons, I was talking to a friend about Darcy's obvious anxiety and she gave me a book, "The Highly Sensitive Child," and my world changed from that day on.  It was the biggest eye-opener!  Not only did Darcy exhibit almost every single trait of a highly sensitive person, but so did I!  After the first few pages I was crying in relief that I was not the quirky, abnormal social outcast I had always thought I was.  Well, I still am, its just that there are many others out there just like me.  If you happen to read on my 100 things about me list, take a look at numbers 29, 30, 33, 34, 46, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56 etc. and everything in between!  Not only did I realize I am highly sensitive, I am also a raging introvert.  Lucky me!  In a nutshell, that means I like to be alone.  I like to live inside my head.  I have one or two good friends that I like to have meaningful conversations with, I can't stand meaningless chit-chat.  I would much rather be home curled up in my bed reading a book than at a dinner party.  I work better alone than in groups.  I have always known this, I just didn't realize that there are so many others out there like this too, and that its OK to be me!  I don't have to apologize for cringing when I hear the words Fabulous Friday or Girls' Night Out. Its just not my thing.  And I bet there are MANY out there who feel the same way but go through the motions anyway.  I find "going through the motions" exhausting.  I get anxious before hand about preparing myself for an event and then I am so stressed trying to be polite and sociable that by the end I am just done.  Now this is not to say that every single time you see me out I am in the throes of agony, it just means that my cozy bed is shining like a beacon in front of me, as my end reward for getting through whatever it is I am attempting.  Now, I know this can sound like an excuse, or even a crutch to use as a reason to avoid social situations, and I can see that but I also say, "so what?"  So what if I don't want to sit in a room full of people making crafts?  Does that make me less of a person?  So what if I choose to attend sporting events where even though I am with a million people, I am essentially anonymous and don't have to carry on a conversation with anyone?  So what if I prefer to live in my books and find insight and companionship in their conversations and not my own?  I am a fully functioning human being, though I function a bit different than others.  I took the Meyers-Briggs personality test and came away ISTJ, which is only 10% of the population.  So yah, I am not in a large company of people but hey, that's how I like it!  George Washington was also in introvert just like me.  My joke when I went to Utah a month ago was that when I went to lunch by myself it was the best company I had had in a long time!  I have no problem seeing movies or eating in restaurants alone.  I actually prefer it.  So its a wonder I got married to tell you the truth.  Paul has been the best.  Somehow, even before my big labeling epiphany this last month or so, he knew these things about me and actually chose to spend eternity dealing with me!  How's that for self punishment ;)  There are plenty of times when he hasn't totally understood just how awful it would be if I was forced to join a certain event, but there are even more times when he has worked with me and we have found acceptable compromises which work for our family.  I have no doubt most people, family included, don't always understand, but we have learned at this point to do what is best for us.  That doesn't mean I never stretch myself and participate in uncomfortable situations, I do . . . all the time.  It just means that we don't do them as often as some would like I guess.  So anyway, that's me.  A highly sensitive introvert and proud of it.  Its up to me to take this information and try to adjust myself in order to function in society, but I am also not at all looking to "cure" myself of the personality I have been blessed with.  If I am judged in ignorance because of it, then so be it.

So labels.  I hate to label my kids but since I have had my eyes opened to who I am, I have also been keenly observing my children.  We had Darcy seeing a child psychologist over the summer.  My initial reason was to get help with the potty training but once I read the book, I included her anxiety and sensitivity issues too.  We were led to the most wonderful psychologist through a chain of events and I know we were sent there by Heavenly Father.  She had red hair just like Darcy!  She specializes in highly sensitive kids because she, too, is highly sensitive.  She was awesome.  Any one who knows my Darcy knows she has issues.  But if you have seen her lately you would hardly recognize her as the same kid.  Somehow her doctor was able to help her through her anxiety and get a hold on it.  I'm not saying its no longer there, just that she has tools now to deal with it and bring herself back from the edge and not end up in a puddle on the floor anymore.  She is functioning very well at preschool, when in March when I signed her up I was sure there was no way she would be able to cope.  Our family is supportive of her sensitivity issues, unlike mine growing up where they would tell me I must have asbergers syndrome and chase me around the room with a wooden spoon.  I am determined that Darcy have a fully supportive and loving home base because I know what it was like not to, and I know what it is like out in the real world where extroverts rule and expect everyone to be one to be a success.  I know I can't protect her from everything challening in her life, nor do I want to, but I do want to give her the skills and self confidence to deal with it in a healthy way.  It took me 39 years to figure it out.  If she can figure it out at 4 then she is worlds ahead of me.  When I got home from my recent trip to Utah Darcy was "cured."  Since that trip, and I have no idea what the magic switch was, Darcy has kept her pants clean and now poops on the toilet.  Its still a struggle but I can't express how proud and in awe I am of this little girl.  She has made amazing strides and has completely turned her life around and gained so much control.  She is such an example to me and a HUGE blessing in my life.  Oh, and if I must label her she is a highly sensitive introvert just like me.  Sorry Darce, but I know you will move mountains in your life!

Drew is also an introvert.  Her teacher asked me if she has friends because at recess she prefers to play hop-scotch alone or walks around the perimeter of play without joining in.  She has friends, she just prefers to be alone.  She likes to read, she is creative, she is an amazing friend to those she is close with, and she is a lot like me.  She came home from school last year distraught because she was nice to a girl and played with her at recess one day and the next day the girl wanted to play with her again.  Drew didn't know how to tell her she didn't want to play everyday with her.  Its something she will face her entire life, and get judged for, but hopefully I can help her through it and help her to have enough self-confidence to not let that stuff bother her.  Lucky for her she has a mom who has been there.  Now its up to me to remember and help her the best way I can.

Mason I believe is kind of both highly sensitive and also more of an extrovert.  He seems comfortable in groups of people and I think he functions just fine.  Almost too well coming from an introverted mom who likes quiet.  (Darcy's psychologist was astounded that I had 4 kids.  Uh yah, me too)  He is also sensitive.   Not quite to the degree Darcy is but now that I know what to look for, he exhibits many of the same traits.  He is a very cautious guy when it comes to new situations and he takes his time to evaluate before he acts.  But when he decides to act, watch out.  I can help him with the sensitive part but I don't know what the heck to do with the extroverted part :)

Bree is only 2 so its a bit difficult to tell at this point, but I'm betting that she is not highly sensitive.  As for the intro/extrovert part, I'm not sure there either.  I am inclined to lean on the extrovert side but we shall see.

Now my point isn't to find labels and use them as excuses for my children.  I guess my point is to "figure out" just who my kids are so I can be the best parent I can to my kids.  If I can give them some self realizations while they are young, I can hopefully help them to be well adjusted and functioning adults.  Isn't that what we all want for our kids?

Halloween 2012

 Halloween!  My favorite holiday!  One, because it happens during fall, my favorite time of year, and two, because its just my family involved.  No family drama, except for the drama I inadvertently create.  I think the kids really love this holiday too.  Until Christmas rolls around and then that is their favorite holiday.  I am sticking with Halloween though.  This year Paul brought out the big guns and sawed his way through the tops of the pumpkins instead of using the little hand-held carvers.  Genius!  We were pulling out guts in no time!

 Mason had a difficult time cleaning and carving his pumpkin this year because if his cast.  I think I ended up doing it all but he still claimed it as his.  Darcy had fun scooping the guts but Bree seems to be a bit of a scaredy cat and didn't want anything to do with it.  She watched us all work on ours instead.

 The finished product!  I don't know why Mason insisted on the silly face in this picture.  Maybe he didn't want us to mistake him for a pumpkin since he has two holes in his face from missing teeth too.

 Bree brought Nemo back to life this year.  I think all 3 of the girls wore this costume.  I will be sad next year when I realize it will never be worn again.  Its just too cute.

 Mason as Captain America.  Remember he chose a red cast to match his costume but we were able to cover it completely with the sleeve and glove, which was fortunate since it was a bit wet at times that night.

 Drew was the spider queen again this year.  We'll have to come up with something new next year.

 We bought Darcy a Minnie Mouse costume and then she found this spider costume in a bag of old costumes.  She wouldn't take it off.  She even wore it to her preschool party.  She's about the cutest spider I've ever seen!

 The crew ready to beg for candy.

 Here they are knocking on doors.  Boy were they surprised when Santa Claus opened the door and handed out candy canes!  Isn't he supposed to be in the North Pole right now making toys?

Here is Mason with his candy haul.  We got quite a bit at trunk-or-treat and then knocking on doors.  My policy is they can eat whatever they want whenever they want, as long as they still eat their 3 meals a day.  I don't know that I've ever heard of anyone dying from a candy overdose and my kids regulate it very well so I don't worry about it.  We end up sending about half of it to work with Paul anyway to share with co-workers.  They get the gross stuff like lemon heads and twizzlers.  So now its on to the wonderful holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas, and all the lovely family drama they are sure to drum up.  Its the most wonderful time of the year!

Mason's New Accessory

 So to pick up where I left off on my last post, I had been home from Utah for two hours Monday morning and in the middle of my Jillian Michael's Body Revolution work-out, when I got a call from the grade school.  Thank heaven for small miracles - those work-outs are hard!  The secretary was calling to let me know that Mason was complaining of a sore arm after a fall at recess.  So I got redressed and threw the girls in the car to check on my baby.  I walked into the nurse's office and saw Mase for the first time in 4 days.  The poor little guy's eyes filled with huge tears that rolled down his face when he saw me.  My poor sweetheart.  I asked him how it happened (slipping off the wet monkey bars) and if it still hurt.  He said no until I made him swish his arm in the air and then he said ow.  He said it felt like a million bees stinging him.  The nurse and I didn't like the way his arm looked like it had a dent in it so I took him to urgent care.  Luckily it was a slow day there so we were in and out in record time.  The diagnosis was a broken radius bone in the right arm.  Since the pediatrician there doesn't do casts, we had an appointment for Wednesday in Portland to get his cast done.  That meant 2 whole days of just a splint and sling.  I kept him home from school Tuesday and Wednesday because I figured he would inevitably bump his arm at school and hurt himself even worse.  Those were long days of sitting around for my active Mason.  Oh, he did manage to pull out a tooth Monday also, along with mommy coming home and the broken arm which all contributed to that being "the best day ever!"  I will never understand little boys.

Wednesday we took him to the pediatric doc to get his cast.  There were a million colors to choose from and I was trying to convince him to go with orange or black but he chose red so it would match his Captain America Halloween costume.  The doctor was pretty funny and she said he couldn't do anything he considered fun for the 3 weeks he has to have a cast.  He can help with laundry though, she specifically said so.  She also told him to eat lots of ice cream and broccoli - together, to help his bones heal.  He didn't know what to make of the crazy doctor.  We made sure to stop at Safeway to stock up on ice cream on the way home.  I asked him if I could sign the cast or did he want to keep it clean.  He said he wanted to keep it clean but if the kids "who are fans of mine" want to sign it at school he will let them.  Gee thanks.  I talked him into letting me sign it this morning and I signed it right on the palm where he will be sure to see it any time he does anything with that hand.  I also sent him to school with a black Sharpie so I expect it to be full of names when he gets home today.  Unfortunately he broke his right arm which will cause some problems but he should heal up in no time.  I think he sees this as an adventure and I hope the novelty doesn't wear off too soon for him or its going to be tough to keep him inactive for 3 weeks.  I'm very thankful it wasn't worse than it was and he is taking it all so well.  This is our first broken bone to deal with as parents and it hasn't been as traumatic as I thought it would be . . . knock on wood.

My Weekend

Last Thursday I flew to Salt Lake City, alone, to visit with family, see a football game, and have some Tiff time.  My wonderful Aunt Debbie passed away after a 9 year battle with a brain tumor and the main reason for my trip was to attend her memorial service.  Aunt Debbie was the best!  She was beautiful both inside and out.  She had long, thick, straight, black hair that was the envy of all us little girls with curly blonde hair.  If there was one word to describe her is was peaceful.  Every time she entered a room she brought a sense of peace with her.  Though we lived far apart and I hadn't seen her in years as an adult, I will always have wonderful memories of her and she will be sorely missed by the entire family.  Her service was nice, with lots of family together and lots of love expressed for her.  I enjoyed spending time with my cousins again, though the circumstances were not the best.  The service was on Friday evening and then Saturday 20 of us family members all went to the OSU-BYU football game.  They just happened to be in town on the same weekend as the service, and since my cousins grew up in Utah but vacationed every summer in Corvallis, they all wanted to go to the game.  They were all dressed in both OSU and BYU gear, but I think by the end of the game they had all realized they were rooting for BYU.  Too bad their team lost!  It was a great game in a great stadium with great atmosphere.  OSU is a bunch of backwoods hicks I discoverd.  After the game we did some more visiting and then I stayed with my best BYU bud (except for Jodi of course ;)) till I flew home on Monday morning.  It was nice to get to spend time with Nat and be Tiffiny again and not Mom.  I think it was Friday morning when I was talking to Paul and he said he was already sick of his name (dad) being said.  Welcome to my world!  There are times when if I hear the word mom just one more time I will scream!  Paul did an amazing job with the kids, more than surviving the weekend.  I came home to a clean house, clean kids, and stories of their adventure catching a mouse in the house.  Glad I missed that one.  I felt rejuvinated and ready to get back into potty training and life in general when 2 hours after I got home I received a call from the school.  But that's a story for the next post.

Pumpkin Patch 2012

 We headed out to our regular spot, Sauvie Island Pumpkin Patch on the 29th of September.  We weren't sure what the weather or circumstances would bring in October so we went a bit early but we had a great time.  Most of the pumpkins were still on the overgrown vines though, which made it difficult for Darcy to traverse.  Bree kept calling the vines monsters and she wouldn't let me put her down the entire time we were in the patch.  That meant Paul had to carry the pumpkins.  We were having a hard time finding small pumpkins for the kids too, so we only ended up picking 2 big ones directly off the vines, and found the others for the kids in a big pile back at the market.  We took the tractor hay ride and visited the animals in the barn.  The kids also played on the huge hay pyramid and kids' maze.  Just about the same as every other year but its a tradition and we always have a good time.  We topped off the adventure with a stop at the new Mr. Fultano's pizza place in Scappoose.  MMMMMMM!!!!!!!  When I was little we would go to the one in Astoria and I swear that is the best pizza around!  It will be dangerous having it so close now!

 We didn't get a good picture of all 4 kids posing in the pumkins so I will use this one instead.

 Here is Darcy trying to make her way through the vine jungle.

 Paul is using his muscles to carry our 2 big pumpkins back to the tractor pick-up spot.

 My kids are growing up too fast!

Miss Breezy on the top of the hay pyramid.  This girl is pretty fearless.  Unless you are a monster pumpkin vine.

We decorated the house October 1st and we are almost all decided on costumes for Halloween.  We can't wait!

 

Its Potty Time!

 Its that time again . . . time to potty train!  Bree has been ready for a few months but I was very reluctant to start since we are still having so many problems with Darcy.  I just wasn't mentally ready to take it.  Then 2 weeks ago Darcy's psychologist and I thought it was time for Darcy to lose the Pull-Ups and go to undies only, and she has to clean herself up now.  We were hoping that would be the game changer and she would poop in the toilet but so far all it has accomplished is me getting very familiar with the "sanitary" setting on my washing machine.  I decided the same day we made the change with Darcy I would start training Bree too.  I didn't want to prolong the agony so I found about 3 days in a row without major committments and went for it.  The first day we had 5 accidents and then magically 2 successes that evening!  The next day was a big improvement and now, not even 2 weeks later, I would call her potty trained when it comes to pee.  She even keeps herself dry at night and during naps!  And this was all without having to bribe her with anything!  Whoopee!  Way to go Bree!  #2 hasn't happened yet on the toilet, and I am soooooo afraid I have another Darcy on my hands.  I don't know what it is with these girls and pooping on the toilet but I can't put up with it much longer.  I want to leave this dirty business behind and move on to big kids.  I am very proud of Bree's efforts and I will admit that I just LOVE her little buns in her little undies.  Too cute!

Mason Lost a Tooth!

September 22nd Mason lost his first tooth!  It had been loose for awhile and I mentioned that if he just pulled it down in the front it would probably pop out.  So he did it!  Once it was out he gave us a huge, now holey, smile.  Drew didn't manage to lose her first tooth till she was 7 so Mason is pretty proud of the fact he is only 6 AND he did it during the school year so he gets his name on the tooth board at school.  Quite the accomplishment.  He didn't freak out at the blood like Drew did and now he can't wait to lose the other 3 he swears he has loose.  I think if they were easy to pull out at any given time Mason would be walking around with a totally gummy smile.  It makes me smile when he talks and I can see the little hole in his face.  This kid is growing up!

First Day(s) of School!

Drew and Mason started 3rd and 1st grades this year!  I am excited for Drew to branch out and learn things other than how to read and how to add 2+2.  She is excited about the science her teacher promised the first day of school and also the arts and crafts, imagine that.  She has had a smile on her face when she comes home from school and there have been no emotional outbursts so far so I think this is going to be a good year for her.  Her class is 2 kids smaller than last year and she knows almost all of her classmates already so its business as usually for Miss Drewsy!

 

Mason is in school all day now.  That means he gets to take a lunch and have 2 recesses!  As for what he's learning?  Who knows!  So far he is OK with school.  He likes his teacher, knows a couple kids in his class, and is bugging me to get his lunch account set up so he can buy pizza on Wednesdays.  Gotta have priorities I guess.  All else will fall into place I'm sure.  It looks like a good year for Mason too.

 

I was hoping I could get the kids off to school and all would be well, but that isn't the case.  I am fighting with the new bus company and the school district to get our bus stop changed.  As it is now, 6 kids 8 and under got off at a major intersection and have to cross 2 lanes of traffic to get to our sidewalk.  This could all be resolved if the bus would just go counterclockwise in our neighborhood instead of clockwise.  I have been fighting with the bus company manager, the district transportation representative, and sent an email to the superintendent who promised to get back to me Friday but has yet to make contact.  Other parents have voiced their concerns too so we are hopeful we can get this changed for the safety of our kids.  It seems the bus/district people are more concerned about being right than about doing what's right.  Unfortunately this fight pretty much ruined the first week of school for me but I tried my hardest not to let it affect the kids.  But of course they heard me yelling on the phone ;)

 

 Little Miss Darcy is in preschool!  Today was her first day and she did an amazing job.  For the past 2 months Darcy has been seeing a child psychologist about her anxiety and transition issues, along with potty training issues, and I was extremely anxious as I dropped her off for school this morning.  I was prepared for a meltdown but it never came.  She was too busy with the train set to even remember to give me a hug goodbye!  Bree and I left Darcy's school sobbing, though Bree was crying about leaving the train set, not Darcy.  I think that was my toughest drop-off yet.  Darcy is one of my little girls and it was quite a blow to my emotions to leave her in the care of someone else.  She is definitely mentally ready for preschool, I just wasn't sure about emotionally but she has proven me wrong.  I explained Darcy's situation to her teacher last week at the open house and she wasn't bothered at all by the situation and I left there feeling like Darcy would be in excellent hands.  Today her teacher let me know Darcy did very well with no problems at all.  I am so proud of my sweetheart.  I would like to say that all my anxiety over her anxiety is now over but tomorrow is another day and with Darce you are never quite sure how she will react.  Hopefully she enjoys herself enough over the next couple of days that she can be comfortable with her school and teacher and I won't have to worry about her while she's gone.  Who am I kidding, of course I will worry about her but maybe just a tiny bit less. 

So for 3 hours a day, 3 days a week it is now just Bree and I at home.  It was very strange and will take some getting used to.  I'm sure I will eventually love it but I also miss the sound of my kids' voices, even if it is just them fighting with each other.  I'm expecting wonderful things for all of my kids this year.  What a fun stage we are in!

Road Trip 2012

 

 Road trip 2012!  Usually I am having babies in the even numbered years and road trips happen in the odd years but since our family is complete and we had a birthday celebration to attend in Redding, CA we made a road trip out of it.

First stop on our trip was Crater Lake National Park.  This trip was heavy on the National Parks.  We ended up with 5 new stamps in our park passports!   I was hoping Bree would travel a bit better than she did last year on our Yellowstone trip, and in the end I can say she was much better, but that first stop we almost turned around.  Bree and Darcy were monsters to put it mildly.  Not only did they bug us, they disrupted the ranger's speech for about 75 others.  Gee thanks girls.  They were asleep when we took the sign picture so we didn't wake them, hoping they would be happy when they woke up but no go.

You can see Darcy's sour face and Bree wouldn't even look at the camera.  I have no idea how you can be so unhappy at such a gorgeous place but leave it to my girls to find a way.  But since Paul and I are road trippers we told the kids to suck it up and we moved on!

 Lassen National Park was our next stop.  Unfortunately it was too late in the season to be seeing the best of the parks we went to this trip.  All the snow was melted and waterfalls were dry.  I'm sure Lassen would have been impressive a month before.  We barely made it in to see the park because they had a huge fire burning in the north end of the park.  A few days after we were there we heard they shut down the roads we had taken to get in at the south end.  Good thing we hit this park early in our trip.  We got to see lots of fire engines and 2 helicopters with water to dump on the fire.  The smell of the smoke made me want to hop in my engine and head to the fire lines!  I loved that job!

Our next stop was in Dayton, NV to visit Paul's brother Roland and his family.  It was tons of fun getting the little cousins together.  There are 7 of them between the ages of 2 months and 8 years.  I have great memories of playing with Utah cousins every summer and I hope my kids can say the same about their Nevada cousins.

 Roland and Star took us to Sand Harbor Beach on Lake Tahoe for the day.  Absolutely gorgeous!  We swam, or floated, for four hours in the clear water and beautiful sunshine.  What a beautiful place.

 This is Maple, Drew, and Bree out on the lake.  That giraffe floatee was the hit of the day.  It was like pulling teeth to get one kid off so the next in line could take their turn.  As you can see from the pictures, Bree pretty much monopolized it.  Her screech was louder than the others I guess.

 Darcy was in heaven.  I thought she would be fried on the back of her legs but some how we managed to avoid sunburns the entire trip.  Pretty good when you consider we in California in August and swam at two different lakes all day.

Uncle Roland and Aunt Star both took turns paddling around the lake with the kids.  They loved it there.  Darcy still talks about seeing Uncle Roland which is quite a breakthrough for her since she usually steers clear of men.  After swimming at the lake we stayed at a casino in South Lake Tahoe on the Nevada side.  We ate breakfast the next morning at McDonalds on the California side!  We had a "minor" mishap as we were packing to leave and head south to Yosemite.  Let me back up.  We have had a trailer for the past 5 years that we wore out on all our trips.  We decided to sell it before it was worthless and since we didn't want to camp this trip in the 100 degree weather.  The trailer sold and Paul decided we needed a cargo carrier on the back of our Acadia.  He bought the carrier and worked very hard making the platform that would carry it.  Well, in Tahoe, the main weld decided to give way as Paul was packing it thankfully, and the whole thing fell off the car.  He was able to find a guy in town who could weld it for us and we were back on the road after about a 2.5 hour delay.  I thought all was lost but it turned out to be a minor hitch in our giddyap!

We arrived at Yosemite from the east and drove through all the way to the other side where our hotel was for the night.  On the way we saw amazing granite formations and got to walk up some granite hills.  I think they used the same granite in the roads because they would sparkle as the sun hit them.

 Like I said, we exited the park to the west that night and the road was a nightmare!  Never enter or exit on the west side!  There are no amenities at either western entrance for almost 2 hours.  We know, we took both trying to find the best route.  They were both awful and we were lucky we didn't have the trailer behind us.  It seems like such a famous place would have better accessibility.  We finally left the park the next day to the south which was probably the best road, though it put us much farther south than we wanted to be.  But it was worth it.

 This is El Capitan.  Standing at the bottom of it gave me the shivers and brought tears to my eyes.  I'm not sure why.  Its very imposing and just amazing.  We have been blessed as a family to see many of the beautiful sights in our country and they are just awe inspiring.

 The kids, on the other hand, were much happier looking at the ducks floating under the bridge.

 Yosemite Valley.  Amazing, beautiful, gorgeous place!

 We are at Glacier Point here, with Half Dome in the background and the valley down below Paul.  That was a beautiful view of the whole place.

 I think the kids liked Yosemite, though they didn't appreciate it as much as Yellowstone last year.  That park is more interactive and fun for kids with all the animals and the sulfur pools and geysers.  Paul and I would both rank Yosemite as one of our top 5 parks though, along with Yellowstone, Glacier, Grand Canyon, and I say Bryce Canyon.

Here is Mason being dwarfed my a giant Sequoia at the Mariposa Grove in the south end of the park.  These trees were huge!  I think they left an impression on the kids.

 San Fransisco was the next stop on our list.  I had been there twice before but never explored it like we did this time.  We stayed in Oakland so we got to cross the bay bridge a couple times,along with the Golden Gate bridge which you can see in the background of this picture.  We also saw the Oakland Temple where Paul's parents were married, and I made Paul drive around the University of California campus in Berkley.  We ate lunch at Crissy Beach and were able to watch the preliminaries of the America's Cup sailing race with Alcatraz in the background.  That was fun!  Well, for everyone but Darcy.  She had a seagull swipe her first sandwich and then a friendly dog grabbed her second!  Darcy will always remember San Francisco I guess.  We also drove down Lombard Street and up some very steep hills that we tried not to stop on or you might not get going up again.  We spent a little time on Pier 39 but were in a rush to get to AT&T Ballpark to catch the Braves /Giants game.  I was soooo excited when we decided to take the trip to realize the Braves would be in town the same time we were.  It was a really nice park and I think most of us had fun, no meltdowns by little girls anyway, but the Braves managed to lose.  Oh well, I had a good time anyway.

In-N-Out Burger.  My brother in law swears by it so we went there.  Twice.  The first time only Paul ate there and just got a regular burger.  The second time I was brave enough to try and we did some research into the secret world of In-N-Out and Paul ordered a 3x3 Animal style.  Look it up, its legit!  It was an OK hamburger but not good enough for me to vacation in Redding for (that's the location of the farthest north store).

The last stop on the trip was Redding for my Mother-In-Law's 70th birthday celebration at Whiskeytown Lake, near where she grew up.  It was hot!  And smokey from the near by wildfires, but we had a good time.  We swam, ate good food and good birthday cake, and visited with lots and lots of family we don't see very often.  Even Aunt Merrie and Sharron made it out from Michigan for the party!

 Darcy can be uninhibited at times I guess.  We hitched a ride on the boat Drew is sitting on in the next picture to a small island on the lake where some of the little bodies stripped naked to swim since their moms had already changed them into dry clothes for the evening.  Silly moms!  We're at a lake!  We had our own private nude beach!

We had an awesome trip this summer.  It was different, staying in hotels every night.  It was probably tough on the kids staying somewhere new each night instead of having the old familiar trailer to play and sleep in, but I did appreciate a clean room and the ability to shower every day!  Our trip next summer will take place during Paul's work sabbatical which gives us the option of being on the road for 2 months straight!  We are in the early stages of planning and I am already getting so excited!  Tune in next year at this time to see how that trip went!