Smith Family Road Trip

This past week we went on our very first Smith Family Road Trip!! It was a blast! We left on Sat night at 11:00 so that our kids could sleep for most of the driving. On Sunday morning we arrived in Sacramento, CA. We went to the Sacramento Zoo. Chandler loved the zoo! We got to ride on a train at the zoo and Chandler was so cute walking around saying "Tickets Please!"( He loves the Polar Express) When the kids were ready for their naps to we loaded back in the car and continued our journey. As much as we LOVED the GPS,this time it took us a little astray and instead of taking us on a main highway it took us on a 3 hour journey through the mtns where we ALL about puked the whole time. And Thank Heavens we survived. When it was my turn to drive I got carried away watching the GPS and we nearly went off the cliff. We were totally skidding and I about had a heart attack. I had to have Todd take over because I was to shaky but needless to say we arrived safetly in Crescent City, CA. Crescent City is a beautiful town along the coast but it is also near the Redwood National Forest. We stayed in a really nice hotel that was right on the beach, literally. We ate breakfast and watched the ocean. It was incredible. When we pulled up to the hotel Chandler asked "is this Tys condo?" After all of the stops he was ready to be to his cousins house!! The next morning we went to a fun place called Ocean World where we got to see Sea lions and fish and Chandler even got to pet a SHARK! It was fun to teach him about the different sea creatures! We then headed to the Trees of Mystery, in the Redwood National Forest. It was so incredible to see all of the huge trees. My favorite tree was the Family Tree, which was 12 trees all growing out of the same root system. It was awesome. We took the gondola up to the top of the trees and Chandler loved the ride. It was a beautiful view and we were so happy we decided to go through California. We ate lunch on the beach and Chandler loved exploring and running to the waves, even though it was freezing! Brody was just happy to be out of the car and he loved eating the sand!! That afternoon we finished the rest of our journey to Portland, OR!! Just as a side note OR speed limits SUCK! They can only go 60mph not 77 so watch out. They love to give tickets to out-of-staters!! We were so happy to be at Ryker and Brookes and were so grateful we had made it safetly! Chandler was SO happy to be with his cousins! We had a great week with the other smith family!! Brody loved having a 2nd mom, Taylor. She was so cute with Brody. She wanted to hold him, and feed him and give him his binky any chance she could! She just couldn't get enough of Brody! Taylor is such a doll and she has the biggest heart! She would sing songs for Brody and when he cried she was right there to help him. Chandler loved playing basketball with Ty and LOVES the basketball shorts Ty gave him. He wanted to wear those things EVERYWHERE!! We went to a high school Basketball game and the kids were hilarious. They were jumping around and warming up to the music. They loved giving the mascot high fives. We has so much fun riding bikes, going to Chucky Cheese and Bullwinkles, playing at the park, bowling, swimming, going to the library, going to the Childrens Museum and mostly just being able to spend time with everyone!! Todd had the chance to go to the Trailblazers and Cavaliers game with Ryker and go golfing a FEW times!! I was glad he had the chance to get in some male-bonding with his brother. I loved spending time with Brooke and learning some new things I want to try with my boys. She is an incredible Mom and has taught her kids so many things, they are so smart. She is so involved with them and always right there on the floor playing with them and helping them use their imagination. We had fun shopping and even playing volleyball!! These 2 are a riot and we had such a fun week. They felt like they had to entertain us but just sitting around listening to them talk was entertainment enough! Brooke was so nice to cook for us and let us invade her beautiful home! We are so thankful we had the chance to go out and see them. The kids had so much fun and Chandler was sad to leave. He learned a lot from his cousins and unfortunately taught them a few things! We also had the chance to go see my Uncle Rapheal and Aunt Jodie and their family. It was good to see them and let them meet our little family! Friday night we reloaded the car and headed to Evanston. We made it their at about 11 the next morning and the kids were so ready to just run around. Chandler helped Grandpa Smith plow the snow and he got to ride the sled again. He loves the snow and was so happy to run free in it!! We came home Sunday and we are so happy to be home!! We are proud of our boys and how good they were on this trip!! Traveling at night is definetely worth it!! We love you Ryker and Brook and the Thank You so much for letting us come see you.