Road Tripping...part one of...a lot!

We decided to drive to Calgary for Christmas this year since the airline prices seemed even more out of control than usual. We planned out the trip and waited to see what the weather would do. We hoped for good weather, but we had everything planned for a nice Christmas at home too in case things fell through at the last minute.

The weather couldn't have been nicer! We barely saw snow the whole time. A bit in Washington, and then a bit more in Calgary - but the roads were clear. The entire trip the weather just got nicer and nicer and by the time we were ready to leave all the snow was gone and we lucked out both ways.

We were a little worried about how Carter would do on the trip. The trip from SF to Calgary was mapped out to be a little more than 26hours each way. That's a pretty long time in the car for a 5 year old! Steve's brother bought Carter a portable blu-ray player right before the holidays, so we went armed with that. I also packed Carter a backpack full of art supplies and a few small toys - and lots of snacks.

The first day we left about 2pm and got the Klamuth Falls, OR about 7pm that night. The second day we got up early and were in the car by 9am. We drove all day, only stopping for a few bathroom breaks and got to Spokane, WA about dinnertime that night. The last morning we were on the road about 9am and got to my parents house about 7pm that night - after a stop for dinner.

It was a lot of driving, but it went better than I could have imagined! Carter was great! He just drew and read, and kept himself content the whole way. The last day we finally broke out the DVDS and he watched about an hour of a movie. I was super impressed! Steve and I traded off the driving about 50/50 so it wasn't too bad for us either. We lucked out on nice hotels both nights so everyone got a great sleep too.

Carter in his "secret bed" (aka a couch bed - which he LOVED) the first night.

It was a little chilly the next morning - glad he had his pillow pet and cozy blankie!

 A stop at Sonic makes his day!

 These trees were really cool. Tons and tons of them all planted and growing in exact perfect rows. You could see right down the middle of each row.

 The one and only nap Carter took in the car. The last hour of the trip...of course!

Heading home!

I really miss living in the mountains...sigh...