Reunion - Leavenworth Style

Total number of hours traveling the last 13 days:

RYAN: 40 hours, 45 minutes

ME & THE BOYS: 44 hours, 45 minutes

Now some explanation...

Ryan's family (41 in all) had a reunion over the 4th of July week. We went to Leavenworth, WA via St. Louis and then Portland, OR. Here's some picture documentation...

Ryan and I got to go on a date, and I finally got a picture of his uncle's diner in Vancouver.
Isn't it adorable? ...and it's delicious too!

Ryan's grandparents on his mom's side surprised us by stopping in from Canada
for the first days before we headed to Leavenworth with his dad's side.

We took the long way to Leavenworth so we could go through the Columbia River Gorge.
Good memories from our BYU-traveling days.
A perfectly-timed dirty diaper from the B-Man allowed us to stop at Multnomah Falls for a minute.

Here's Brennan and I freezing for a quick photo-op.

The boys searching for Pooh Cones by our lodge

Playing Pooh Cones off the perfect bridge at the lodge

Leavenworth, WA - the cutest little German town

Leavenworth's free kiddy 4th of July Fest



"Beach" near Leavenworth: FREAKIN' FREEZING.
I got in until my toes were covered...

Ryan - the man beast - survived the "polar bear plunge" and swam to the buoys!

Our usual photo

My little boys doing what they do best - digging in the dirt/sand/rocks

Breath-taking beauty

Love these mountains. Makes you want to live in WA, eh?

After we got back to St Louis, Ryan headed back to Joliet, but I went down to my grandparents' farm to finish the cleaning before it is sold. It was a long, hilly drive with lots of work at the end. There's nothing glorious about saying goodbye to a place full of wonderful memories, but we got the job done.

It was a wonderful week together as a family. It was awesome to meet Ryan's cousins' spouses and children, since we hadn't been altogether since his grandpa died seven years ago. It was a beautiful place, albeit far too much traveling.

I am SOOOO excited for my own bed tonight!