my epic "ca-ca-tion" part ONE

last year sometime, a friend and i talked about going on a road trip.
january 2011 i began saving my pennies. i put myself on a tight budget and began to dream.

11AUG11
wyoming
utah
idaho

the morning of my trip

i laid on my bedroom floor

experiencing an anxiety attack 

it lasted over 30 minutes

(the view from my floor)

i can only speculate why i shut down...
when i was able to find the "on switch"...
my journey began.

i got to drive a Cadillac :)
(and yes they are all that AND a bag of chips!)

we made it to lava hot springs, idaho - after working a half day at work.

the secret garden by the hot pools

the moon was close to being full...

12AUG11

idaho

oregon

a little bit of idaho

i determined driving through the state of idaho, they must have got a killer deal on orange cones, cause they decorated the highway with them threw the ENTIRE state!

i also came to the conclusion there is varying degrees of "construction". for example there can be signs of "road work ahead" but the workers must be someplace else "working". lol.

i fell in love with oregon all over again.

we stayed in burns, oregon. a cute little town filled with extraordinarily nice people. we ended up walking two miles that night. see we THOUGHT the restaurant was just up around the corner. evidently it was around SEVERAL corners and a small hill. lol

13AUG11

Oregon

i went to my first farmers market and photographed my first strangers :)

 

brothers school in brothers oregon :) i couldn't help myself. it reminded me of my boys

i could NOT get enough of the fuzzy trees :)

we traveled through willamette national forest

and after many hours of traveling 

i got to see her again after about  20 years :)

all though this is the first time i have seen this side of her (the oregon coast)

she (the pacific ocean) is as beautiful as ever! 

we stayed the night in yachats, and ate fish and chips :)

14AUG11

Oregon

Washington

getting up early to see the full moon over the water.

then we drove up the coast on hwy 101. 

i had people tell me before i left, i would grow tired of this highway

(something i never did)

in fact i would forget to photograph things because i was caught up in the beauty of it all.

had some lunch and some ice cream : tillamook, oregon

then we went over "the bridge"

and just like that... we were in washington!

on yet another beach... life is GOOD :)

(but missing the boys i left in wyoming)

we stayed at a cute little bed and breakfast

we ate good food

and raced go karts on "nascar night"

it was like being 10 all over again :) 

i think i would have made my boys proud with my driving abilities

(i am certain i could have been a race car driver in another life time LOL)

15AUG11

Washington

i hung out at the worlds longest beach-and watched the international kite festival

we stopped for a potty break at a casino... $20 and 10 minutes later :)

16AUG11

Washington

Vancouver, BC

we woke up in lakewood, washington

then spent the morning in seattle :)

my happy feet at the market (i know, i know, i just can't help it)

the view

from HERE

THEN we went through THIS

and wha-la POOF! i was in another country :)

I'm still super bummed the lady that let us through the border

(the one who has to wear a bullet proof vest to work)

didn't stamp my passport!

we drove in "klicks"

then we seen THIS

iphone

nikon

i absolutely LOVED vancouver!

the photo's are right out of the camera no editing, simply splendorous :)

Playing catch up

The month of May left me heart broken. Loosing my grams has been rough. I think how truly lucky I am to have had such an amazing and influential woman in my life-for forty years. I reflect often how she taught us not only with words, but with her actions... She had been the glue to hold us all so tightly together. 

June has been filled with many highs and lows. Many changes, and adaptations... I watched my youngest son leave his teenage years behind him and start the adventures of being twenty. 

I have watched my oldest son face life changes with integrity.

Being a parent of adults - far more easier in theory...

 I am so very proud of my boys. 

a proud momma indeed

This is the first weekend of summer... the sun is shining. The air is warm.... the mosquitoes are plenty (cause the city decided they will spray sometime next month).

I have been taking the golden child for daily walks, on my lunch break...

aside from the bugs, its been therapeutic, helping me stay balanced - as the universe continues to throw her curve balls.

we have been painting :)

with our fingers

and watercolors.

We have had sleep overs

and of course...

bubbles :)

Mothers Day 2011

My Grams, who is 85, is battling with her health. Her heart, which has given more love, is wearing out (physically). It is so hard to believe! She still will answer when asked "How are you doing?"~"I'm still kickin', just not as high." My granny is the last of her generation. She has said good bye to her mom and dad, all her siblings, all her first cousins, her oldest and youngest sons, her best friend she has had since she was 12 (a bff of 73 years).

My mothers day was a day of service... to a wonderful lady.

Caz and Grams Mothers day 2011

her morning ritual... eating a bowl of Trix (cause Trix are for kids), reading the morning news paper, sitting in her favorite chair by the window.

Two days left of being TWO!!

Two more days of being two.

What an adventure this year has been. Holiday celebrations have been so exciting because he is starting to understand the concept. 

Bubble blowing is how he spent some of his time on warm summer days,

along with a little basketball :)

He went camping (several times) and slept in a tent. He had a little adventure at snowbird. He experienced his very first plane ride... saying (quite loudly) as the plane was taking off "TO INFINITY AND BEYOND". His vocabulary has tripled!! He can recite his ABC's and count to ten! Some of his favorite foods include pizza, hot dogs, and mac and cheese.

  
At the beginning of the year he wanted to take baths...

Now there are small fights to get in the tub and a battle to get him out even after telling him "max your fingers and toes look like raisin!"

 Running and jumping is the best way to travel.

This year his crib was replaced with a big boy bed. He is still a morning person. Blues clues and Ponyo are requested regularly for TV entertainment. 

He still loves his soft blanket 

and when it's time for bed he is typically "ready".

He played with puppets

   and discovered the world can be seen from different perspectives...

He loves to color

  

and draw 

however we have yet to master scissors... :).

 He can name many animals and tell you what they "say". 

He still loves to snuggle.  

He road on a pony

 and dressed up like a dragon (even though he told me he was a dinosaur.)





At the beginning of TWO, he would say "ewww gross", lately he simply states "I don't want it".  He likes to say "Sure" instead of "yes". We have been working on replacing "NO" with "no thank you". Only on occasion does he need a time out.. he typically takes this time to remove his shoes and socks if they are on lol =). 

He was involved with a small scandal at day care when he was showing everyone his tattoos... LOL

He sings and hums to music :). He likes to listen to some songs louder than others. 

Dancing is a daily activity that is never planned ~ merely inspired by a tune.

We now can roll our tongue.


Being two has been a big year for our Maximus. 

 

I am so excited for what THREE will bring (I am keeping my fingers crossed for a little brother or sister!!)