Erik is FIVE!

Our baby is five, a whole hand! I remember having mixed emotions when the girls--especially Elsa--turned five. It seems like such a milestone; kindergarten is looming and time accelerates. While I still had moments of nostalgia, there was too much excitement with this birthday to be sad. (I'll save those feelings for the end of preschool.)

Erik continues to delight and amaze us, and I have cherished the extra time to spend with him during this season of life. He is every bit of a five-year-old boy, however, complete with silly jokes and wrestling matches with Dad. It is so fun (for now, anyway) to watch his antics when he's with his friends at school. Bless all preschool teachers everywhere.

In addition to school--three days a week until after the holidays when he will attend every day--Erik started playing soccer this fall. Once he got over the realization that he was not in fact "going to score a million goals," I think he enjoyed it. The trophy and donut after the last game certainly helped. 

Erik is still a master at super-focused solo play and has recently gotten into Legos. Despite the ever-present danger of stepping barefoot on a brick, we are fans of this development (especially engineer Dad) and are very impressed both by his original creations and ability to follow building directions.

Master Builder

Luckily for Erik, he received several Lego and building kits for his birthday to keep him...and Dad and sisters busy. Before that, however, he had a great birthday weekend. One of his buddies from school also has an early November birthday, so we joined forces for a joint party at the park. It was a very chill affair that once again included a piñata (filled with bonus Halloween candy, of course).

The celebrating continued that night as we were gifted tickets to the monster truck show. Having never attended one before, I was skeptical, but it was actually really fun! For the uninitiated, these shows are set up as a contest with the trucks earning points for various stunts, which were pretty cool. Plus, there was an amazing dirt bike exhibition in the middle. Pro tip: wear ear protection because it gets very loud.

Erik's actual birthday landed on a Sunday, so after church, it was time to open the aforementioned gifts. The girls had ballet rehearsal all afternoon, which allowed Erik and Jon ample time to build to their hearts' content. We also took the opportunity to take the customary sheep photos of course.

A big kid but still snuggly

Once ballet was done for the day, the birthday boy requested our favorite Chinese restaurant for dinner. That kid can put away some duck! Fortunately, he left some room for cake and ice cream when we got home.

All in all, a pretty excellent way to kick off the fives. Erik must have felt older because about a week later, he essentially taught himself to ride a bike without training wheels. Apparently we are in for quite a ride this year!

Camping at Giant City State Park: a Giant Surprise!

Who would have thought southern Illinois would have some excellent camping? Not us. But after spending part of our fall break at Giant City State Park, we can say with authority that it does.

Around here, the default camping location is Arkansas. We've camped in various places in the Natural State over the years, and it doesn't disappoint. But this time, Jon was looking for something different, and for some reason, his search took him northeast. Illinois is a tricky state. It is mostly farmland with Chicago at the top. But there is an area of rolling hills in the south near Carbondale that is just lovely.

Once again, my fall break did not align with the kids', but as soon as I finished teaching on Wednesday afternoon, we hit the road. This meant that we arrived at the campsite at night, but this certainly wasn't the first time we set up the tent in the dark. Since it was mid-week, we had our pick of sites, although the campground was far from empty.

After a leisurely first morning, we decided to check out the Giant City Lodge and Visitor Center. There we learned that the beautiful lodge was constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps as part of the Works Progress Administration, so we also got a cool history lesson to boot.

Giant City Lodge

Next we hit the road to explore a bit, and on the way, we passed an orchard, or more specifically, the orchard stand. We just had to sample some cider and apple dumplings while we were there, and we of course, grabbed some cider and apples to go. Yum!

We found a cool place to hike and did just that before heading back to the campsite for dinner and the obligatory s'mores.

On our next full day, we headed back to the Lodge, but this time, we climbed the water tower where we saw a flock of vultures flying about. It was less ominous than it sounds; this area is known for turkey vultures and even has a music festival in late October (right after our visit, unfortunately) called, you guessed it, Vulture Fest.

Giant City State Park is also known for its climbing, so after a picnic lunch, we found some rocks to climb. Paradise for our little spidermonkeys for sure. We spent a long time on the rocks (I was mostly on the ground taking pictures) before going back to camp.

Devil's Standtable

Since it was coming on the weekend, the campsite had begun to fill up even more. There was a big group of kids and families directly across from our site, which our kids watched from afar. But in the tradition of "park friends," our kids (the littles, at least) eventually got absorbed into the group. It didn't hurt that they were willing to share some super-cool lightsabers.

On our final full day, we split up for a little bit. Jon and the girls went horseback riding, and since Erik is still too young, he and I went to town to get the oil changed in the car. Multi-tasking even on vacation!

We reunited at the Visitors Center, where there was some kind of small environmental festival happening with music, crafts, and activities. 

We came away with three very decorative walking sticks, and then checked out the coolest park. Boo Castle Park is a fairy tale/Dungeons and Dragons-themed memorial park with, as the name implies, a castle right in the middle.

After dinner and s'mores, the kids were invited to join our neighbors for an outdoor movie (our definitions of roughing it being slightly different) while Jon and I hung out by the campfire to reflect on yet another great camping trip.

Our time in Giant City wasn't quite finished, however. After taking down camp and being the smelly visitors at church, we decided to stop for brunch/lunch on our way out of town. The wait at the local breakfast spot sent us back to the Lodge, and I'm so glad it did. Every Sunday, they serve family-style chicken dinners. Yum, yum, and yum!

The best trips are marked with fun adventures and great food. Camping at Giant City definitely checked off those boxes. 

Going for Gold on the Olympic Peninsula

When I was a kid, most of our family vacations were connected to my dad's work trips, so I am fully accustomed to doubling up on travel. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to me that we would attach our vacations to family visits. This summer we once again took some time out from our Washington trip to do a little exploring on our own. However, what was a little different was that we didn't exactly plan this exploration until we were already in the Pacific Northwest. 

Spoiler alert: it all turned out okay, despite a few hiccups along the way.

This year, we decided to take the kids to the Olympic Peninsula. Jon obviously has been there, and the two of us traveled there many years ago as well. I really had my mind set on going back to the rainforest as that is a unique area from what our kids experience in the Midsouth. (But that's a hiccup to be described later.)

We sandwiched this trip in between visits to Jon's parents' houses, so after several days of acclimating to Washington--which included some bonus Seattle time with friends who recently moved there from Memphis--it was time for the next adventure. I kid you not, however, that we (but really mostly Jon) were researching routes and accommodations literally the night before we set out.

We started our trip by taking a ferry across the Puget Sound to Port Townsend. Like so many things, ferry travel has changed a bit since we lived in that part of the world, the most significant being that they now take reservations. This is a great improvement for those who rely on the ferry and take it regularly. For us, it seemed less practical, so we decided to roll the dice and show up when we showed up. I think we learned our lesson when we had to wait through an entire ferry cycle, just barely making it on to the second boat. 

But we made it to Port Townsend and had a good time exploring Fort Worden State Park, including the officer's quarters and Artillery Hill. 

The view from Artillery Hill

Hiding out in the bunker

We continued on to Port Angeles that night with plans to check out the Hoh rainforest the next day...along with everyone else. We are so thankful for our National Parks and always enjoy our visits to them, but admittedly, we have not spent a lot of time in the big ones lately. Therefore, we were totally unprepared for the long line of cars to even get into the park. Upon further investigation, Jon and the girls discovered that the wait was nearly three hours to even get to the parking area. That didn't sound like a fun time to us, so we re-calibrated and went to the beach instead.

Our view of the rainforest...from the car

Thankfully our children were super-flexible with the change and had a blast on the beach at La Push (yes, that La Push for any Twilight fans out there).

After an afternoon of splashing, digging, running, and climbing, it was time to drive to Clallam Bay, our homebase for the next couple of days. Rather than stay in a hotel or traditional AirBnB, Jon found an RV rental, and it was awesome! It was a great way to try out this sort of travel without the expense of owning one, the challenge of driving one, or the hassle of hooking one up. Plus there was a TV with a complete set of Star Wars DVDs.

Home sweet home

The next day was our most "vacation-y" of the trip. We started our morning with a visit to the Sol Duc Hot Springs. What a treat! Summer weather in Washington is amazing, but it's not exactly what I would describe as hot or conducive to swimming. But relaxing in what is essentially a giant hot tub? Sign me up! We were relieved to discover that the next session to soak/swim was available, and we took full advantage.

Rested and relaxed, we next headed to Neah Bay on the Makah reservation, the most northwestern spot in the contiguous United States and hiked the Cape Flattery trail to reach the most northwest tip. 

Happy hikers

 

Hey kids, there's Canada!

The last time Jon and I were in Neah Bay, we stumbled upon the best smoked salmon we have ever had being sold out of someone's garage. On a whim, we decided to try our luck and look for it again...and we found it! The kids were equally impressed, so much so that Jon had to go back for a second plate.

Satisfied customer

Fittingly, our final morning on the Olympic Peninsula was July 4th, and we rang in our nation's birthday with a walk on the beach at low tide. We found lots of cool creatures in the tide pools and enjoyed our time immensely. Totally worth waking up early for.

It was then time to return inland for the remainder of our family visit. We got to ride the ferry again--we wisely made reservations--and were back with plenty of time to celebrate Independence Day. We had a great rest of our trip in Washington and continued our adventures with lots of swimming and boating in the lake, an epic hike up Mount Pilchuck, and a stop at the Museum of Flight with cousins. Despite our lack of planning, it was a great trip, and I'm so glad no hiccups slowed us down. 

Elsa is ELEVEN!

Even though she's a pro at the double digits, turning eleven was still a big deal. This birthday coincided with all kinds of milestones, like taking a school trip to Washington D.C. and completing elementary school. We blinked and our little girl grew up.

Fortunately, she is still the sweet girl we know and love even with her increased responsibilities. She has earned the right to stay at the house by herself for short periods of time and even "babysits" her siblings on some of those occasions. Honestly, she's more fun than I am, planning out crafts and activities for her brother and sister.

Elsa continues to do well in school, managing multiple teachers and different classes. Not only has she continued in chorus, she also performs in the recorder ensemble. This means four early mornings a week, which has proven to be a good motivator to get out of the house. (Thankfully, Lena likes to tag along and hang out in the library.) Her school has added both a climbing wall and a climbing club as well, which is perfect for our spider monkey. Watching her in action during their monthly climbing gym meet-ups is impressive. Between those school activities, ballet, and basketball, Elsa is one busy girl!

Not too busy for a fun birthday celebration, however. May 10th fell on a Friday this year, so after a week of ballet, chorus, and recorder performances, it was time to shift our focus to partying. In fact, her morning started with an end-of-the-year chorus/recorder party at which the birthday girl was serenaded by her fellow musicians.

We were able to squeeze in a call from Grandma and the customary socks-underwear-book combo (this is the year for Anne of Green Gables!), saving the rest of the birthday activities for the afternoon and evening. 

So glamourous 

Elsa chose to have a sleepover again, and as a part of the party, I took Elsa and her friends to the AMUSE Adventure Museum. AMUSE is kind of like an escape room, but rather than one room to solve puzzles in, there are a number of rooms with different puzzles and challenges. Your admission is for a certain amount of time, so once you are inside, you can try as many games as you want, as many times as you want. The girls were so excited that I had a hard time just keeping up with them, let alone trying to play the games with them. Needless to say, we all had a blast.

The whole family enjoyed an 11-shaped chocolate cake (my easiest creation yet) before the regular sleepover shenanigans ensued. We are fortunate that Elsa has chosen some sweet friends, so besides staying up too late, there were no parental complaints.

The rest of Elsa's birthday weekend was spent preparing for the big DC trip (with Mother's Day thrown in there as well), but we did get to enjoy some freshly baked cookies delivered straight to our door as we sat on the porch opening presents and watching an impromptu (to us) movie at the park. Not a bad way to celebrate turning eleven!

It's not every day giant cookies get delivered to your door

Total Eclipse of the Heart...er, Sun

Way back in 2017, we got to observe a total solar eclipse with some dear friends. It was both super-fun and awe-inspiring. At the time, we made plans to observe the next one in 2024--the way you make plans far off in the distance. But, lo and behold, we actually stuck to those plans and had yet another amazing experience. 

On April 8, 2024, another total solar eclipse was happening, and Memphis was near enough to the path of totality that we would have the chance to view it. Our dear friends flew all the way from California for the event, spending the weekend prior with us.

Our friends were more knowledgeable than we were (although they couldn't travel with the cool viewer they'd created in 2017), but the kids and I did attend an event at the public library to learn more. While it was informative, our biggest takeaways were that "there's an app for that" and also that Moon Pies make excellent eclipse snacks.

We really leaned into the theme for our snacks

The wife and kids of our "framily" arrived first and slipped right into our family routine, even attending Elsa's recorder performance. We had planned to take care of a few odds and ends before the big event, like picking up a rental car since we had a group of ten that planned to drive to Arkansas to be directly in the path of totality. However, we learned that a rental car reservation does not always equal a rental car. Apparently, lots of other folks had the same idea, and there wasn't a rental car to be found. Trust me, we tried. Thank goodness for community, though, because some friends and neighbors completely saved the day by lending us their tricked-out camper van, which proved to be way better than a rental car anyway.

Having taken care of that crucial item, we spent the remainder of the weekend enjoying each other's company once our final friend arrived, hanging out a brewery, grilling out, and watching our kids get super-competitive at various card and board games. Delightful!

The adults worked on a game plan for the big day and had both vehicles packed with plenty of provisions. We weren't entirely sure where we would end up, but the guys finally decided on Lake Charles State Park, which proved to be an excellent location. There were lots of other eclipse watchers, but it didn't feel crowded at all, and we arrived in plenty of time to stake out a good spot.

After several hours of hanging out, enjoying the beautiful weather (hooray for no clouds!), it was finally time. The eclipse did not disappoint. It's hard to describe the exact moment of totality, but I'm not exaggerating when I say that it is incredibly moving, almost spiritual. The air gets cooler, the shadows get stranger, and the nocturnal animals begin their nighttime rituals.

Photo taken and shared by our friends

And just when you feel overwhelmed at your place in the universe, your kids bring you back to reality by shouting, "Is it Moon Pie time?"

So we ate Moon Pies.

We took our time packing up and getting ready to head the 2-ish hours back to Memphis. We knew that the drive home would not be as easy as the drive to the lake, but even we were surprised by just how much traffic there was. We had taken the kids out of school for the day and probably would have taken an extra day to stay over, but our friends had an early flight the next morning, so we had no choice but to brave the traffic.

Our plan to take alternate roads was a good one. So good in fact, that everyone else had the same idea. We found ourselves at a complete stop more than once. 

Taillights as far as the eye can see

The drive was long and tedious, but at the same time, so much fun. The moms were in a car with the boys while the dads were with the girls in the camper van. While I can't speak to their experience, I know that we laughed a lot and had more inside jokes than we could count. And we introduced Erik to classic rock, discovering that one of his favorite songs is now "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osbourne. Who knew?

It was hard returning to reality, especially when our friends had to leave at the crack of dawn, but I am eternally grateful that we were able to witness such a cool phenomenon with such cool people. According to the Internet, the next total solar eclipse visible from the US will be in 2044. We'd better start making plans now!

Return to Reelfoot

It's almost become a running gag at this point that we can't seem to figure out what to do on these school breaks...as if they haven't been on the calendar all year. But once again we found ourselves staring at a glorious break from work and school without a clue what to do with it. 

Jon and I came up with a couple of ideas for spring break, but the kids were the ones who ultimately decided. When given the choice of where to go and what to do, they enthusiastically proclaimed without hesitation, "Let's go to Reelfoot!" And so, to Reelfoot we went.

We first traveled to Reelfoot in February 2020, blissfully unaware of what the coming months--and years--would look like. Erik was a tiny baby on that trip, so it was time to go back to the beautiful area just a short two hours up the road.

This time, however, rather than stay in a house on the lake, Jon booked a fishing package complete with cabin, boat rental, and bait with the hopes that our nightly dinners would be caught earlier in the day. Spoiler alert: we instead learned that the nearby lodge served a great meal.

The first item of business upon arrival was to take part in the "Real Foot Challenge," which consists of dipping one's toes in the chilly lake water. Last time I was able to use Baby Erik as an excuse not to participate, but this time, all five of us took the (mini) plunge. I have to say, it was actually quite refreshing.

All smiles before the challenge

We are clearly not serious fishermen/women as we were slow getting going the next morning. The pull of sleeping in and watching Bluey on the "rustic" cabin's giant TV was just too strong. But we did take the boat out and had just that: a nice boat trip. We did get some nibbles, and we did actually catch one fish early on, giving us a false hope that we would be reeling them in all day. Technically, I was the one who caught the fish, and I don't feel boastful admitting it because just a few minutes later I literally spun out of my chair and fell on the bottom of the boat...much to the delight and laughter of my children.

Jon really enjoyed taking the boat out, and once the kids got used to it, they did as well. They even got to drive a little on the open water, which was lots of fun. It really was a great day on the water--minus the not catching many fish part. Jon and Erik decided to try their luck again in the afternoon while the girls and I drove into town for provisions, but alas, no more fish.

  

The next day was more of the same. Fun, but no fish. Jon decided to get serious, so on Wednesday, he and Erik woke up early and were on the water shortly after seven. The girls were more than happy to snuggle in bed a little longer, and I was fine with sharing the glory that is 1980s American Gladiator reruns.

What the boys were doing...

What the girls were doing...

 

The boys returned unsuccessful and hungry, but we did salvage the day by going to Discovery Park, quite possibly the most eclectic museum/science center ever. Once again, it did not disappoint, and we easily spent the day both indoors and out checking out exhibits ranging from military vehicles to dinosaurs to farm equipment to a hedgerow maze.

Learning with a side of shenanigans

And then it was time to return to Memphis...with the most expensive fish fillet packed carefully in the cooler. But before we left, we made a quick stop at the Reelfoot Lake Visitor Center and got to see some of the eagles the region is known for. So, despite our lack of planning, it was another wonderful family adventure.

  

Our little eagles in their nests