Our Return from Vacation

It is just after midnight Tuesday night / Wednesday morning, and we have finally returned from our almost two week trip out West. I say finally because we were delayed in the Newark airport for three hours (we could have rented a car and driven home faster). Our trip was fast and furious, and since there is so much to talk about, I am going to start at the end and work backwards. Here is a recap in reverse chronological order:

Tuesday, July 1st: Returning Home
The difference between our house in Newport not having air-conditioning and Shelly's parents' house in Oregon not having air-conditioning is 80 percent humidity. There is nothing quite like walking into our house at 10 pm, after a very long day of traveling, and being hit in the face with the stale, hot air that has been building for two weeks. Being from the South, the natural thing to want to do is to crank up the a/c and lay on the bed half-naked, while cold, air pours down from the ceiling. Instead, we had to open up every window in the house trying to get enough of a breeze to cool down our house from the high 90s to the humid, 80 degree air that existed outside. When we finally went to bed last night I quietly worried Shelly would leave me and catch the next flight back to the West Coast.

We spent the night in Portland, since we were flying out at 07:25 this morning. Shelly's mom spent the night too, which was nice for she was able to drop us off in front of our check-in counter that morning. There is nothing more challenging for two parents then trying to get two children, three carry-ons, four bags, and a stroller from the curb to the check-in counter. I felt like I was in a shuttle race, as I ran back and forth gathering bags and dropping them off, only to do it again taking the bags to TSA for bomb screening. The other lesson learned from the airport is to resist TSA putting you in the "special needs" line when going through the screening process. Always the shortest line, one would think they are doing you a huge favor since you are traveling with children, but this is not the case. As the other lines swiftly went through the screening process, our line was held up by a group of elderly people being individually searched. I know TSA was only doing their job, but watching the process, you would think they had intelligence on a senior citizen terrorist cell.

You heard about the worst of the traveling. It was actually a pretty smooth day until we reached the armpit of the North East. Besides being delayed three hours, once on the plane we sat on the tarmac for 45 minutes. In the end we spent six hours on a 30 minute flight and could have driven to providence and back instead of flying. This last hop made what was a long, but relatively painless trip into a trip from hell. By the end Madison was on a rampage, spurred by delirium, and Shelly and I were ready to hit the nearest Airport bar.

Monday, June 23 to Monday, June 30: Shelly Returns Home

Shelly, Kate, and I arrived in Cottage Grove after spending three days in Jackson Hole, which I will later write about. Madison, having been dropped off on the previous Thursday and having four days alone with her grandparents, was already at home and in a set routine. Her nails were painted, she was bragging about sleeping in a sleeping bag, and talking about swimming with her Aunt Lindsey. She obviously missed us very little, except her for baby sister, who is the only person she ran to when we walked into the house.

(Kate meeting her Great Grandparents)

If you have never been to Oregon, you really should visit, for the Northwest is a gorgeous place
. . . in the summer. Shelly, Madison, Kate, and I also went to the coast one afternoon. It was a deceivingly cool (65 degrees) but sunny day. A unique characteristic of the town we visited are these giant sand dunes that line part of the coast. The popular thing for people to do is to bring their 4-wheeler or dune buggy and do some 4-wheeling (I don't ever want to hear that rednecks only live in the South). I made Shelly run with Madison up one of the smaller dunes. It was one of the more amusing incidents of the vacation. About halfway up, the sand became too hot for Madison's feet and Shelly had to carry her the rest of the way.

(The collapse after an exhausting run up a sand dune)

Perhaps the most notable part about Oregon this time was that the U.S. Olympic trials for track and field were being held in Eugene the week we were there. Cottage Grove, being less then 20 minutes from Eugene, was flooded with tourism they hadn't seen since Animal House hosted a giant toga party in the town for its 25th anniversary (the parade scene in Animal House took place in Cottage Grove). Needless to say, the town pulled out all the stops in an attempt to entertain those people who usually do not frequent downtown Cottage Grove. This can best be highlighted by the Light Parade held on Friday night. I am not quite sure what a "light parade" is but I don't think those who thought up the parade really know either. It can probably be best described as a Woodstock parade joins with the Fourth of July parade, runs into the Garden parade, crashes into the Christmas Parade. Though only about twelve floats, there was a little bit of everything. My favorite was the psychedelic lady dancing in front of the Christmas float that had elves on it. The parade, perhaps to make up for how short it was, did a big loop and came around for a second pass. I am sure this really confused the hippies next to us. In the end, it was a parade only a small town can pull off.

(Pictures of the "Light Parade")

Otherwise, Cottage Grove was good old Cottage Grove. Madison and Kate were doted on by aunts, uncles, grandparents, and great-grandparents. Madison got to take a ride in a raft with her cousin and ride on a tractor with her great-grandpa, Jim. I got to fly Grandpa Jack's Cessna. Kate was never put down, and Shelly had time to relax without a child constantly holding on to her. We look forwarding to returning soon, and enjoying a few more Tequila Sunrises...

(Don't Worry the water is only about 2 feet deep)

(Madison on her first tractor ride)

(Back in the air again)

(Madison and Dad attempting to feed some overly aggressive geese)

(Tom and Kate enjoying the peace and isolation of the outdoors)

Thursday, June 19th to Monday, June 23: Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Our vacation started with us rushing to the airport with our mass of luggage, carry-ons, strollers, and children. We hired Madison's babysitter to drive us, which was one of the smarter things we thought of for I don't think we could have made it otherwise. After a flurry through screening and running down the terminals, we finally boarded the first plane on our trip to Jackson Hole, via Oregon. The last time we traveled with Madison, it was less then enjoyable (i.e. it was a nightmare), but this time it wasn't too bad, for Madison at least stayed in her seat. After a long 8 hours we arrived in Portland, Oregon where we met Shelly's parents. We all ate dinner together and then Tom and Pennie took Madison to Cottage Grove, while Shelly, Kate, and I spent the night at a hotel near the airport. The following morning we set out for Jackson Hole. We actually didn't fly into Jackson Hole but had to settle for Idaho Falls. I was actually excited about landing in Idaho for it was the only state in the Continental United States I had not visited. In Idaho Falls, we rented a car and drove the two hours to Jackson Hole. Though we were in Idaho for only a limited time, I do count myself as having visited it, and all I have to say is . . .Napoleon Dynamite could not be filmed in a more appropriate place. It is a beautiful part of the country but some of the locals, wow! To best sum them up, as we drove out of Idaho Falls, there was a yellow tin sign reading, "Warning: Don't Laugh at the Locals."

Jackson Hole on the other hand is an awesome place (not to say Idaho isn't). Never having been to JH but hearing it was a favorite of Alan Greenspan, I expected a chic resort town similar to Aspen or Vail, but though JH has its ritzy resorts and some very nice specialty shops, the downtown was much more authentic to the West than I imagined, similar to Sheridan, WY or Bozeman, MT. Jackson Hole also butts up to the Grand Tetons, and let me tell you they are spectacular. In addition to the Tetons, Yellowstone National Park is only a couple of hours away. So the day after the wedding, Shelly, Kate, and I drove the Southern loop of Yellowstone. Because we had Kate and the fact we packed forgetting any type of suitable shoes to hike in (this is like going to the beach and forgetting a bathing suit), we were limited to a hundred yard radius from our rental car. All the same, we were able to see all sorts of great sights, including Old Faithful, buffalo, and Yellowstone Lodge. The worst part of the trip was that our camera broke at Old Faithful (ironic eh?) about 5 minutes before it blew; and remained broken for the remainder of the trip, so we don't have any pictures of our field trip. We bought a disposable camera, but after using a digital for so long, I worry that none of the pictures will turn out. The other great disappointment to Yellowstone is that Shelly didn't get to see a Buffalo gore a tourist. There were signs throughout the park warning of this, and Shelly really thought she might get to see it happen, but she had no such luck. We did see a buffalo stop traffic by standing in the middle of the road and refusing to move.

(childhood friends from Lexington)

What can you say about a wedding where the Tetons are in the background, except that it was spectacular. When my best friend, Ryan, told me he was getting married, I was pretty excited, and when he asked me to be in the wedding, I was honored, but when he announced the wedding was going to be in Jackson Hole, I was a little annoyed, for it is one of the harder places to travel to in the U.S. But honestly, there couldn't not have been a more beautiful place to be married. As soon as we drove into the town, I knew why Ryan had moved there. Sue, the girl Ryan married, is also one of the coolest people I have met (besides Shelly of course). Having never met her or really talked to her before the wedding, I was somewhat skeptical, but my fears were quickly put to rest after she began to inform me on the local fly fishing scene and the best micro-brews Wyoming.

Besides using the Tetons as a backdrop, their wedding was also made memorable by having a bluegrass duet as their orchestra, serving buffalo meat for the main course, and having micro brews on tap. They also let me give a toast, which I used to warn Sue about Ryan's unique habits.

All in all, it was a great wedding, an awesome place to visit, and I look forward to taking Madison there for her first fly fishing trip.

On Monday, We drove over the mountains back to one-of-a-kind Idaho Falls and flew to Eugene, OR where Shelly's dad picked us up and met his newest granddaughter for the first time.