Living the Mormon Dream: Days 15,16&17

One thing about being a Mormon in Texas is that all of your Mormon friends abandon you and "return to the mothership", as I say. Many, if not most Mormons have family in Utah or somewhere out west. And all normal people love to get out of Texas during our 1 million degree summers. So they head home. For like a month. And it's lame. (Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, most of my non-Mormon friends abandon ship for extended periods during the summer, too. I guess it's just the smart thing to do.) We have no parents or siblings in Utah (yet...one is moving there soon!), but we DO have a BFF! Chris' BFF, to be exact. So we always find time to see Ricky-boy and the awesome Freeman clan. As I like to say, the hospitality at the Freeman B&B is always unmatched. We had the best time spending a few days in Salt Lake City, living the Mormon dream with the Freeman fam.

And by living the Mormon dream, I mean visiting Temple Square, for one thing. Seeing the giant Christus statue is always a must-do for me. (Rick & I got a big laugh at the crazy look I got from a passer-by outside the building when I said to Simon "Okay, let's go in and see Jesus." Haha, I meant the STATUE of Jesus, of course.)

The grounds are always beautiful. (Got the family shot! Check out poor Lucy. She's such a good sport.) Jen's stash of Strawberry Newtons saved the day with Simon & the rest of the kids. (She's the snack queen! And don't even get me started on the cereal selection at the Freeman's. Hospitality, I tell ya!)

Other favorite things: checking out the "old" tabernacle (amazing), pulling a handcart (just like the pioneers) and the scale model of the interior of the Salt Lake City temple (amazingly detailed and super interesting).

We also visited the children's area of the church history museum...big hit with my kids. The girls loved the display about Mexican Mormons, especially the costumes! Oh, and Simon and Mason goofed off a lot, as you can imagine.

And boom, got the shot! This is the spot where Chris proposed to me in front of the temple where we were married in 6 months later. It's where it all began, baby!

And this is where all photographic evidence of our trip stopped. But for my own memory's sake, a few more SLC tidbits:

• I always have to hit a Utah mall and get my souvenir in clothing form - thank you, Down East.
• Meeting an old friend at the mall makes it even better - thank you, Jane!
• Going out to dinner with your favorite friends (and no children) is a rare treat - thank you, Rick & Jen!
  
• Pulled pork and roast beef meatloaf in a berry sauce is also a rare treat. Still thinking about that one - thank you, Tuscany.
• A trip down to visit my fabulous cousin & her awesome husband for sandwiches, cards and Legos is still being talked about by my kids - thank you, Heather & Jesse!
• Naps taken at the Freemans are extra wonderful - thank you, basement bedroom.
• Pre-4th of July BBQs complete with an amazing fireworks display put on by the entire neighborhood/valley is the best - thank you, Utah and your liberal firework laws!
• Sitting out on the front porch, looking out over the valley with great company, music and conversation until waaaay too late is only made better by break & bake cookies - thank you, Chris & Rick! :)

After all that staying up too late, we hit the road for our loooong 2-day drive back to Austin. No more pictures to prove it, but we made it home, so that's what counts. I'll wrap the trip tomorrow...then it's back to real life around here.

Reunited And It Feels So Good: Days 11,12,13&14

Ah, this is what we came for! 5 days of hanging out, eating, chatting, playing and having fun. A whole bunch of pictures coming up after I say a few words about family reunions.

• Big houses. I mentioned this in my last post. The big, shared house was perfect for a bunch of families with little kids. It allowed for a lot more hanging out and family togetherness than individual rooms does. The kids were able to stay on their usual schedules, take naps as needed, go to bed on time and the adults had plenty of time to hang out together. Which is the whole point, right?
• Food. Maybe it's just me, but I think that food is the key to any successful occasion. And we had lots of it! The reunion hosts brought TONS of breakfast and lunch foods not to mention snacks! Then we all took trips to the grocery store and added our own favorites to the mix. Each family took a turn hosting dinner, and everyone really pitched in with prep and clean-up. It was awesome.
  
• Realistic Expectations. There were 8 children in our group. (Yes, we account for half the Grandchildren on that side, though not for long...) 5 of them were 2 and under. You know what that means. Everything takes twice as long. Naps have to be taken. Diapers have to be changed. We weren't there to conquer the world. We just planned one big activity per day, and the rest of the day was spent taking a walk or a bike ride, hitting the pool or playground, or just hanging around chatting (and eating, of course).
  

We had a fabulous time at "Camp Cottam". And now, I will prove it to you with millions and millions of pictures that may or may not be interesting to anyone other than me. But that's okay.

Breakfast time! We had a bit of a co-op system going. Someone would lay out a bunch of bowls and pour the cereal while someone else was slicing strawberries for the group. I have to say, it was a handy arrangement. Is that an attractive picture of me or what?! I just wanted to model the "I don't like Mommy's glasses" glasses in person. Tell me, how do you feel about my glasses? For the record, I LOVE them, but I'm also aware that they're not for everyone.

Out for a walk! What gorgeous weather. But I was still sweating. I think it's just my natural reaction to outside air, at this point. Beautiful scenery all around. Oh, and there is Chris' favorite picture of Lucy (Cottam face, Cottam face!) of the whole trip. I have to admit, pretty darn cute. And also, my favorite picture of Chris' sister Megan. Makes me laugh every time I see it.

You've got to follow up any good, long walk with some pool time, of course!

Simon was looking for mischief up there! No surprise. Maya helped her Grandparents with dinner prep by slicing tomatoes. Simon is showing off the favorite "kid-attraction" of the house: the rubber coasters. Kids are so weird! They fought over those and then played with them all week long. And then, there are my big & little cuties.

Something fun Chris' parents did at the reunion was a Grandkids Birthday Party. Such a cute idea! Chris' mom made all the kids these adorable embroidered outfits (which they LOVE!), busted out a pinata and party favors, the works.

Trying to capture a Grandkid group photo is one of my favorite memories of the trip. Just looking at these pictures cracks me up. Olivia and Mckensie were NOT happy about taking this picture. Click the pic to see them howling away - so insulted! It was pure comedy. (Is that evil of me? I would have been just as amused had it been one of my kids, for the record...)

No party is complete without CAKE! And bubbles! And party favors! So much fun!

Maya got hold of the camera and captured some nice headshots: Audrey & Adam up top, Megan & I down below. What face am I making?

Next day: a hike! I stayed behind with some of the napping babies, and got hit by the nap truck myself! Ah, bliss. Nothing like waking up not knowing what YEAR it is! Anyway, there was a hike and a trail and other stuff, I'm told. And some Grandmother/Granddaughter bonding.

Oh, and the kissing cousins are at it again! Where are those lovebirds off to? Well, if they get into trouble, Simon will be there to rescue them with his "stickies", which he took everywhere with him.

So much cuteness, so little time. Look at these beautiful people! I like them so much.

And more of Little Lion Man, as we started calling him on the trip. Perhaps it's that wild mane of hair that inspired that.

Another day: canoeing! Only the brave ones ventured out into that frigid water.

The kids had an absolute blast.

One night we hit the town square for some fun. A few fun pics here: Chris and his siblings with their babies, all born within 9 months of each other - a #4 for Chris, #1 for both his brothers and #2 for his sister. Also, one of my favorite Cottam-kid (MY Cottam kids) pics of the trip and another favorite of Megan. She was full of it on this trip.

While the boys bounced in the bounce houses, Maya challenged everyone to races. Aunt Megan was impressed with Maya's speed and scrappy-ness. Yep, she fights dirty. Lucy enjoyed her fast and floppy race on Dad's shoulders.

We ended that night with ice cream! Can't beat that.

Next day: time for a family bike ride! Well, Lucy tolerated that for all of 10 minutes.

So they dropped Lucy & I back home and headed to the park for the afternoon. Good times.

Our final day started out with the Cottam 5k - good fun! Megan took 1st, Sam took 2nd, Maya took 3rd, Adam took 4th and I took 5th. The others weren't running because they were watching kids, but whatever! :) And Adam was sweet to run with Maya, who legit beat me in her CROCS! That girl is a machine.

All good reunions end with a family photo session, of course!

Oh, the crazy Cottam kids!

We ended our last night by throwing some poppers (cool Uncle Quinn brought those...) and then...

Pajama dance party! Awesome fun.

After the kids were in bed, the boys had a little more time to solve the world's problems, as they usually do!

Not pictured: epic rounds of Hearts, break and bake cookies, and LOTS of hot tub time. It was fantastic.

And then we were off for a LONG day of driving, which took us to our next stop: Salt Lake City!

The Whole Point of This Trip = Cottam Family Reunion: Day 10

Okay, that makes 9 days down, 10 to go! Which makes day 10 pretty much the half-way mark of this epic journey. We began the day in Medford, OR where we rushed like wild maniacs to get showered and dressed, car packed, and to church on time! Yes, we managed to find church on the road...there's an app for that! Good times. After church, we sported the Cottam Family Road Trip tees again and headed off to the big destination of this trip: Cottam Family Reunion!

But first, we donned our sandals and goggles (?) and braved the snowy conditions at Crater Lake.

Crater Lake is a big freaking WOW! It really is one of the most beautiful things I've seen. The kids were, of course, most excited about a snow-sighting. Mason even decided to wear his goggles, resulting in the best Mason-pic of the whole trip. If you think he flopped face first into the snow before long, you would be correct.

And again, we gather the family together to get the shot. And I think to myself...what a wonderful world. No really, though. Amazingly beautiful. And then on we cruised, headed for Sun River, Oregon for 5 days of family togetherness.

This place was awesome. Not only did it have the perfect fireplace/stage (well-utilized by ALL the kiddos), it was just totally perfect for a reunion, particularly when there are 8 children involved, 5 of them being 2 and under. Each family had a room (each with its own bathroom) and then there was a kid room (which contained 3 of mine and 1 other) with bunk beds. There was an awesome eat-in kitchen with bar plus a dining room, a downstairs family room with TV, an upstairs playroom with a huge TV, pool table, foosball table and a huge wet bar, a great outside deck and hot tub. It was perfect. We could put the kids to bed on time and then just hang out, play cards, hit the hot tub...I highly recommend the big house scenario for family reunions. It was awesome.

Coming up next: 5 days of family togetherness and fun. With millions of pictures to prove it. Which will be really boring for you if you weren't there...:)

The Day I Was Attacked By A Redwood Tree: Also Known As Day 9

After a quickie stop in McKinleyville, CA, we were ready to see more Redwoods! Of course, we weren't aware of what the Redwoods had in store for us...well, ME! That story after I say a few more words...

• First Aid Kit - before we left, I packed up a little cosmetic bag with baby Tylenol, kids Tylenol and grown-up Advil, Tums, cough drops, band aids, first aid ointment, eye drops, etc. I kept that little bag in my purse and we utilized it often! It was great to have those items handy.
• Sense of Humor - if you're going to laugh about it later, you might as well laugh about it now!
• Prayer - We're prayers. We'd start every day of our journey with a prayer asking for protection and safety and I'm a big believer. Somebody is watching over us! :)

And now...the story of BIG TREE!!!

There she is! Big Tree. There were signs advertising Big Tree for miles, so of course, we had to stop. Especially when we saw the sign that said "Big Tree - .04 Miles". That is the sort of hiking we can handle. And Big Tree was impressive, she was. Big. Very big.

So big and seemingly friendly, I gave her a little tap. It was a love tap, I swear.

I liked her so much, I gathered my children 'round her. "Look, kids! Big Tree! Isn't she big?!"

Chris even jimmy-rigged a fallen log into a tripod so we could GET THE SHOT! (Ta da!)

Ah, and then the kids scampered off down the trail. How picturesque, right? But moments after Chris snapped this shot we heard a crackling sound and looked up at the canopy 150ish feet above just in time to see a branch falling directly toward us. I swear that we must have looked like cartoon characters...feet moving so fast you can't see them, but not moving at all because we didn't know which way to go. Before we could even figure out what to do, BAM! And I yelled out "I'm hit!". Wait, no, that's the loogie-spitting, Keith Hernandez episode of Seinfeld. BUT, I did let out quite a yelp (perhaps wailed like a banshee...) stumbled around for a second, then landed on the ground. BOOM!

There it is! The branch of Big Tree that fell 150ish feet and smacked me on the head. I reached up and was surprised to find that my head was, in fact, still attached. And, amazingly, not bleeding. I pulled my sunglasses off their perch on the top of my head, sure they must be smashed to smithereens, but no. Somehow it just hit me on the very back of the head. Knocked me to the ground, yes, but all I got out of it was a bad headache, a giant goose-egg (record breaking) and a pretty amusing story to tell. Yes, we were already laughing about it before we got back to the car. But at the same time, I was very, very grateful that if Big Tree had to attack someone that day, that it was me and not one of my little kiddies, particularly the soft-headed baby that I was holding in my arms at the time, who was no more than 1 foot away from being smacked in the head herself. That definitely would not have ended as well. In the end, I popped some Advil (handy in my purse) said a prayer of gratitude that we were all okay, and we headed on to our next stop.

Which was the VERY awesome Trees of Mystery tourist trap. SUPER cool and highly recommended if you enjoy kitsch, which I do. Awesome for kids! We loved it. Right from the beginning, it's a hit. Paul Bunyan and Babe the Big Blue Ox are right up front, and Paul actually talks to you! Carries on a conversation! Makes you sing Deep In The Heart of Texas, if you're a Texan! Very magical to my kiddos.

Then you head off on a little "hike" (stroll) through the woods to check out the trees of mystery. I loved Nature's Underpass and the Family Tree...so amazing! As a side note, some of my favorite pictures of me on this trip were taken here. I would have thought I'd look dazed or something. Maybe Big Tree knocked some sense into me! (Is it wrong that I have favorite pictures of me?) :)

Me with the Fallen Giant, uh huh, I know a thing or 2 about that! And there's just something about being in a grove of trees that is somehow spiritual. They're simply amazing. (Or maybe that was just me sensing the Grim Reaper still lingering nearby, har har.) ;)

The Cathedral Tree was one of my favorites. They actually hold weddings here! So cool. Oh, and we got the family shot, too, ta-da! And there's the picture where I noticed what a giant Mason is becoming! Yowza!

Had to get some shots of the boys at the Brotherhood Tree. A good headlock isn't too bad, at least they didn't full-on wrestle in front of it...

Then it was time for our "Sky Trail" gondola ride up up up! Man, talk about one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen. I'm not big on heights, but for some reason this didn't bother me at all. Simon especially loved riding a "cycolator" up the hill. "I go cycolator 'gain!"

Hey hey, got the shot up top! Holla! Seriously, though, that VIEW!

It was like the world's most awesome tree-house, Swiss Family Robinson style!

And then it's time to go back down...man, I really, really love these little turkeys!

At the bottom, we're back to scrambling 'round on the trees. (Another family shot, woot!)

Baby Cathedral Tree...now booking weddings for 500 years from now! Love it.

And finally, the trail of tall tales, AKA more opportunities for the Cottams to pose & mug. Got to love it.

Unsurprisingly, the trail ends at the GIFT SHOP! And unsurprisingly, we spent almost as much time there as we did on the trail. Free fudge sample! Redwood EVERYTHING! Ice cream! Stuff your own bears! This place was a dream come true. In the end, though, we just took our free fudge, used the clean restrooms and hit the road. Next stop: Medford, Oregon, where I take a shower and attempt to wash my conehead - yowza!