Vacation; noun: an extended period of recreation, especially one spent away from home or in traveling. We took a “vacation” and it was an experience! I joked I was going to look up the definition of vacation when we got home because I don’t feel like we took the standard vacation. Rest. Relax. Rejuvenate. Those things didn’t really happen but we still had a good time. I read a caption by @taylergolden about traveling with children and it really changed my views. “Deciding not to travel with your children while they are young because ‘they wont remember’ is a little like saying you’re not going to read to your children because they wont remember the books you read. You read to your small children because of the sounds they will hear, the words they will see, the skills they will acquire and the habits you hope they will form. Traveling with young children is very much the same.” How true!

We love Oregon! The people are so kind. Everyone greets each other and asks what’s going on for the day. I know Seattle is known as the emerald city, but Oregon is just as green and beautiful. If I could move anywhere, it would definitely be to the PNW. We ate, we hiked, we had date night, my mom and I got massages for her birthday, we ate some more, Dane played in the grass, we saw deer and squirrels, and ate some more, went to the high desert museum, Dane caught a cold, drank some yummy coffee, collected 5,000 pinecones. We had a grand ol’ time but we are (I am) happy to be home.

Stayed tuned because I am going to share my research in entertaining a busy bee, toddler on an airplane!