Monday morning, Kellan woke up and he was good as new. We were SO glad to see two baby blues on this cutie pie.
Monday was a tiny bit of a drive as we departed Missoula, but there was much more visiting than driving. We had two stops on our agenda before landing in Coeur d'Alene, ID.
The first stop was to see Great Grandma Garner. We haven't seen Grandma in quite some time, so it was great to get to see her again.
Grandma always has photos to show off. Here, she is showing the boys pictures of the snow. They may be wondering if she has ever seen how much snow we get in Colorado?
Photos with Great Grandma Garner!
This was Kellan's first time meeting Great Grandma Garner but as you can see, he wasn't shy and snuggled right up. As we were leaving he said, "I really like her." Such a sweetie.
Oliver and Kellan weren't the only ones buttering up Grandma.
When Grandma said, "I could use some fans out of the Attic," Keith didn't jump right up. Fortunately, someone was stopping by that afternoon to help Grandma out with this.
When Grandma said, "I just can't get the VCR (yes, VCR) to work," Keith jumped up and fixed it within minutes.
He would have helped with the fans, but Grandma insisted that he didn't need to go into the attic to tackle the spiders, so he didn't.
Grandma receiving a lesson on how to switch between the TV, DVD and VCR.
Keith was already quite high on Grandmas list, but this may have catapulted him to the top.
Grandma was SO happy to have her VCR working.
Meanwhile, the boys found the magnets that all of Grandma's Grandchildren played with at kids their age. Now, her Great Grandchildren are playing with them.
The boys also enjoyed playing with Great Grandma Garners stuffed animals. Especially Kellan, who has a big soft spot for the fuzzy friends,
After a great visit with Great Grandma Garner, we headed out to visit with Carrie's Godparents and Carrie's Dad's Aunt and Uncle; Neil and Carolyn.
Neil and Carolyn have always been very special to me, even if we don't get to see them very often. They were definitely a 'must stop' on our agenda.
The boys were fantastic while we visited with Great Grandma Garner, followed by Neil and Carolyn. Toward the end of our visit with Neil and Carolyn they discovered their tractor sprinkler outside, which also means that they had fun getting completely soaking wet. Oh well, that's what summer is for as well as a suitcase full of dry clothes. As we were working on leaving, Kellan had decided to take a run down the path. Do you see that tiny little white spec to the bottom left of the tree. Look closely. You'll see him. He ran all of the way down there and all of the way back. Whew! Nothing like the thick air of Idaho.
Carrie, Neil and Carolyn
Oliver and Kellan with Carrie, Neil and Carolyn
We had a great visit with Neil and Carolyn as well. We don't get to see them nearly as much as we would like, but we are so glad that we get to see them when we do.
As we headed over the pass toward Coeur d'Alene, a rain storm moved in.
We were pleasantly surprised that we had a room with a lake view. We had reserved a room with a restricted view, since they rooms were quite pricey. I expected to be looking at the parking lot. Instead, we had a view of the lake with a few building obstructions in the way. We loved it!
We could see the lake as well as the staff frantically moving a party from outside to inside.
The windows were fantastic. They slid open like french doors, which gave a very open and airy feel. Plus, there were super comfortable loungers with ottoman that we turned toward the window to enjoy the fresh air and view when the boys were going to sleep.
Since it was raining outside, we sprinted across the street for dinner at Bonsai Bistro.
Kellan had enough visiting today to drive him to double fist his drinks. Apple Juice and Water, whew, it's been tough.
We had an awesome family style dinner. It is fun that our kids are willing to try new things. When in doubt, they'll always go for asian noodles and pot stickers.
Bonsai Bistro had an awesome koi pond. The people next to us gave us fish food to feed the koi, but it came with one request, to feed the turtles because they were the woman's favorite. We have no idea how they got the fish food, but we were thankful that they gave theirs to our boys. We think that they also enjoyed watching the boys have fun with it and feed the fish and turtles with care.
Kellan feeding the turtle, very deliberately and carefully.
By the time we were done with dinner, the rain had stopped and the clouds were clearing.
It was a perfect opportunity to take some classic tourist photos in front of the Coeur d'Alene resort.
I have been wanting to bring Keith here for vacation since I've known him. I'm so glad that I was able to bring Keith and our two boys. I remember watching this resort being build when I was a kid. I remember my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles talking about this big resort being built right on the lake. At the time, Coeur d'Alene wasn't the vacation destination that it is today. It was so fun to be here as a guest of the hotel and experience a tiny bit of vacation in a city that has always felt like a family destination to me. You know, yours truly was born here in Coeur d'Alene, ID. and I spent much of my youth here. It's like home away from home to me.
We sauntered down to the lake so that the boys could put their toes in the water.
BRRR... It's COLD!
Mommy wanted to go for a walk on the boardwalk.
The boys wanted to go swimming in the pool.
The boys won. They had been true angels on this trip and I knew how much they were looking forward to the pool.
It was a good thing that we did go to the pool. Not only did it close about an hour after we got there, but we also were informed that the Coeur d'Alene Resort also had an outdoor pool that we put on our agenda for the next day. Who knew?! Not I.
Our Oliver is like a fish. He loves to swim and he prefers to be underwater as opposed to above the water. Give the kids some goggles and you'll be lucky to see him surface.
Kellan is still enjoying the sidelines of the pool. We think that next year he will grow his gills as well. Until then, I'll eat him up and take tons of photos of those blue eyes above the water.
Yet another fantastic day on our 12 Day Road Trip and we are only a quarter of the way through our vacation. We have done so much, yet we have so much more to do.
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