Life Without Rosie...

And they're off! 

Timo, Becca, Rosie, and John left earlier this week to spend a month with Mom in Seattle. They are already having loads of fun, and I have not even caught up on the laundry yet! Will their absence mean that I will catch up on a lot of overdue blogging? We shall see I guess... :-)

Westward ho! (part two)

In the second half of my adventure I took the train from Seattle, Washington to Los Angeles, California to spend a few days with Grandpa Ron and Bubbie.

I actually took this picture out the train window while going around a very tight curve! :)

Union Station! (one of the many:))

Somewhere in Oregon out the window.

Somewhere in California...

The train ride took two days so I had plenty of time to look out the window. :)

One of our many stops was in San Luis Obispo, CA where I saw my dream car... So I took a picture. :)

An interesting tree at one of the stations.

And the Pacific Ocean at last!
After two full days on the train I was glad to be on solid ground again. (although a bit unsteady) :)

Bubbie and I

Grandpa and I
I spent 2.5 days with Grandpa Ron and Bubbie, and we had a wonderful time!

We went to the beach on the first day and I was so enthralled that we went back the second day too!

I sat on this log to read for a while, but the tide came in and soaked me...

So I decided to do something a little more adventurous...

Like go for a walk!

"Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me." -Psalm 119:133

"You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them." -Psalm 89:9

At the end of the beach there were several big rocks that the waves wore and crashed over.

The waves rushing in

I climbed over the big rocks and this is what I saw on the other side. I immediately decided to go rock hopping. :)

"Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea-the LORD on high is mighty" -Psalm 93:4

"He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea." -Job 9:8

On our way to the beach the second day we stopped at a big sand dune, so I could climb it and tell Grandpa what it was like on top. This is the view from the top.

And this is what it looked like up there...

Complete with some lovely desert flowers!

On our second day at the beach I went exploring even farther. This is one of the many tide pools.

While we were there, a tour bus full of people came by and when they tried to get back on the highway they got stuck because the bus was so long. They had a bunch of cops holding back traffic, and a tow-truck came and pulled them out. Very exciting!

It was very fortunate for us too because our battery had died. The tow-truck driver kindly came over and gave us a jump. :)

All too soon it was time to say goodbye. Grandpa tried to convince me to move to California, but... I'll be back though! Thank you Grandpa Ron and Bubbie, I had a wonderful time!

Westward ho! (Part one)

I know, I have not blogged in a loong time. As always though, I have an excuse! :-) 

I spent nearly 2 weeks traipsing around the country, having a wonderful time, and I got back only a couple weeks ago. Not to mention, we have been haying up a storm, as you know. 

So there is my excuse, and now...

Part one in the chronicles of my adventure!

Mom and I drove from here to Seattle, Washington, taking our time and seeing the sights.

 Day #2: we drove through Custer State Park, up through the Black Hills, and stopped at Mount Rushmore.

Custer State Park had quite the array of wildlife, including these deer things whose name I do not know. :)

There were a lot of buffalo. They literally owned the place and we even had to stop for a herd that was crossing the road!

More buffalo...

Those guys are huge!

We also saw a wild donkey. Made me think of Job 39:5-8...

The Black Hills were Beautiful!

Mount Rushmore!

Up close. :-)

Tada me! At Mount Rushmore.

The next day we stopped to see Devil's Tower in Wyoming.

We hiked all around the base of it, which was very neat.

To give you a better idea of its size. It was magnificent!

Looking out the other direction.

Some crazy people climbing the tower! :-)

Nowhere is it too hard for beauty to grow...

That same day we drove up to the Little Bighorn battlefield in Montana. For those of you who didn't pay attention in school and don't know what that is, it is the location of Custer's Last Stand.
This here is the memorial over the common grave of the men in the 7th infantry.

The battlefield. The stones mark where each man fell.

Custer's marker

There also was a small military cemetery there...

We saw quite a few stones like this.

The whole place was very honoring and sobering. Made me cry for all the brave hearts who lay down their lives for us and our beautiful land.

Montana. I think the sky was a bit bigger there... :-)

On day 4 we made it to Spokane Washington, and stopped to spend a day with Daniel and Katie.

Daniel took Mom and I on a 5 mile hike down along the Spokane River. Sadly Katie had school and couldn't come with us.

Mom hiking like a pro. We were very impressed. :-)

Me perched on a rock...

And me hiking!

The Spokane River.

"I stand in awe of your deeds O Lord" -Habakkuk 3:2

I thought this tree growing out of the rocks was pretty neat.

The Spokane River runs right through the city of Spokane and there is even a set of falls downtown.

The rushing of the water was amazing.

The pedestrian bridge

Another angle looking upriver. It was Beautiful!

After leaving Spokane we drove straight across Washington through the Cascade Mountains. It was absolutely beautiful as well!

I was only in Seattle for one full day, which Mom and I spent playing tourists.

We went on a boat ride through the Puget Sound. (not on this boat, this is a tugboat that we saw. :-))

Going through the Ballard Locks that separate the salt water and the fresh water; with a drawbridge in the background.

The Seattle skyline from the boat.

And of course, the Space Needle.
And there you have part one of my adventure! Hopefully I will get around to posting part two before I am an old lady. :-)