Our family was in dire need of a getaway after all that has transpired over the last year, especially Brian having not taken any time away from work that wasn't stressful in one form or another. So now that it's the beginning of a new year and his vacation time has renewed we spontaneously decided to get out of dodge for a few days and treat our family to a nice little getaway. Although it could've been longer (can't it always?), we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and came home feeling a little refreshed and ready to tackle "real life". We are so thankful to have had this opportunity and are completely humbled that God has provided us with the means to do so. As requested by a certain favorite 'Auntie', many pictures were taken and I have posted some here to share.
Our retreat was taken at Silver Mountain Resort in Kellog, Idaho. It was very appealing to us because, as you can see from the sign, there was fun to offer the kids, it was only a 4 hour drive, and we would be relatively close to our dear friends in Spokane so we could see them and meet their new baby. We were not disappointed in our choice! We actually rented out a one room condo at the lodge so there were two separate rooms to allow for better napping, etc. and there was also a full kitchen. It worked out well!
One day we drove into Coeur d'Alene and had lunch at "The Dockside" which overlooks the lake:
Another day we rode the gondola up to the ski hill and went tube sledding. Well, Brian & Ben went tube sledding while the rest of us enjoyed the warmth of the lodge! We all had a good time.
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This is where you load onto the gondola at the resort where we stayed.
It was quite a long ride up to the top of the mountain. |
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| Ricky wasn't sure what to think at first & was rather freaked out getting onto the gondola, but quickly grew to like it! |
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| "This is a little strange... can someone please tell me what's going on?" |
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| Ben & Ricky found a big hill to play on while they waited for the sledding hill to open! |
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| The boys walking over to the sledding hill. |
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| Ben is ready! |
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Ricky is not...
he decided it was too scary & opted to come sit with me & Evie in the lodge. |
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| He had fun playing games on my phone, though! |
The resort also had a large water park open to all the lodge guests. So we went at least 3 separate times & the boys had a blast! Ben especially loves to swim & couldn't get enough. There is a large tube slide that 4 people can go down at once & he would go on that ride repeatedly with either Brian or I. During one trip we took to the park Brian & Ben counted going down it at least 11 times! I think Ben would've kept going had it not been for Brian refusing to climb the stairs again without a decent break! Ricky enjoyed the park also but mostly stuck to the section they have designated for toddlers. He's a little more leery in the water.
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| Evie went swimming once, too, but it's much more difficult to take her since she still needs to be on the oxygen & for any baby it's much harder to keep their body temperature in happy place. She LOVES the water & had a lot of fun swimming but was pooped out by the time we were done. |
On Saturday afternoon (after splashing at the water park for a while of course!), we drove into Spokane to visit the Dowers family. We always enjoy our time with them & were particularly thrilled to meet the newest addition to their family, Brock Nehemiah. He is beautiful & I had brought my camera to take pictures but of course didn't. We had a lovely dinner with them & stayed quite a bit later than we'd planned!
On Sunday morning we headed home. All the kids did amazing in the car, they slept nearly the whole way!
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Ready for a road trip!
(Notice how jam packed the car is. Brian's favorite part of the trip was loading & unloading everything!) |
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| "Can I go to sleep now?" |
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| Not a great picture, but you can see that we had fun! |
You visit the earth and water it; you greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
you provide their grain, for so you have prepared it.
You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges,
softening it with showers, and blessing its growth.
You crown the year with your bounty;
your wagon tracks overflow with abundance.
The pastures of the wilderness overflow,
the hills gird themselves with joy,
the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,
the valleys deck themselves with grain,
they shout and sing together for joy.
Psalm 65:9-12
