Road Trippin!

We do a lot of driving as a family.
We make a lot of pit stops as a family.
and
We eat a lot of chips in the car as a family.

Country roads take me home!!!

Lessons from Grama

Grama has so many life lessons to share.
On a recent road trip adventure we revisited the art of whistling grass.

Old school fun!  ha.

Life lessons I tell ya people.  LIFE LESSONS!!

Road trippin…

May I first just point out (in case it isn't obvious) that this vehicle is not in motion, not running, and not on a road.

We are parked in a stall for a potty break.

Keeping these two three entertained during road trips is HARD work.
Well, at least keeping the littlest kid happy is hard.
Pass the other two some Timmies, Doritos, and an iPad and the boys are happy campers.

We make stops.
We have to.
It's survival….

We feel fortunate to have a safe vehicle and the opportunity to get out of the city!

The BURMIS Tree

En route to Fernie House 2 every week I want to stop and capture this amazing tree.
Yesterday I finally had the chance.

The Burmis Tree is a limber pine located in south western Alberta in the community of Burmis, Alberta, along the Crowsnest Highway and east of municipality of Crowsnest Pass. The tree died in the late 1970s after losing its needles. Limber trees are known to survive harsh conditions and are one of the longest living trees in Alberta. The Burmis tree was estimated to be between 600 and 750 years old. In 1998, it was toppled by wind, however members of local community refused to leave it lying. Efforts were made to fix the tree back up using rods and brackets. In 2004, vandals cut one of the tree's main branches. Locals fixed it again with glue and a prop pole. The community rallied to have the new Highway 3 built around the tree rather than destroy the heritage symbol it has become. The tree is the only point of interest in the once prosperous town of Burmis. It is the subject of many paintings, poems and other forms of art, and it is said to be the most photographed tree in Canada, and perhaps even the world.

It is indeed a dramatic tree and on this overcast day it stood out that much more.
Glad I finally had the time to finally take a few shots of this Alberta legend.

Happy long weekend everyone!

Road trip with the Dads!

#roadtripwiththedadstomontana

That hash tag above is where I stored all these iphone pictures in INSTAGRAM. It helped to keep my mind off of missing my mini for the one nite we were away road tripping with my Dad (and also for entertainment value to my IG pals of course).

First night I've been away from the Bean.  BRUTAL!!

Grama stepped up and stepped in and I'm pretty sure A didn't miss us... well maybe he did a bit!

We purchased some new wheels in Tempe, AZ a few weeks back.  Had it shipped to Great Falls, Montana to pick up.

Last Friday we did just that.

These are some pre-trip sillies before abandoning Andrew.  I hugged and hogged him all day!

AND WE WERE OFF!
First stop... Timmies.  The three of us all have a strange addiction to TH!  I think mine is a bit less psychotic because I "only" drink steeped tea, not coffee.
Uhm, just let me think that makes me less of an addict.

Next up... farm equipment dealers!
A childhood memory from road trips would not be complete without farm equipment dealer stops.
Strangely, this was enjoyable this time around.
I must point out that the combines below are the "wrong color" and brand.  We are a John Deere family, not CASE (I'm pretty sure that means nothing to most of my readers, but anyway...)

Hello Montana!
Hello heart attack for $6!
Shelby Montana is a small rural spot on the map.  Very small.
I'd been looking forward to this burger and fry stop though ever since the trip was decided.
DASH INN is a must stop kinda place. FAST, FAB, FATTENING food.
DO NOT PASS IT UP!
Milk shakes and fries to remember! Not my first stop to this old school drive up greasy delight!
It will not be my last.

Montana has so much to offer.
It is rural meets small town.
It is small town meets small city.
It is beautiful prairie meets rolling hills.
It is TARGET meets BIG R!!!
BIG R is a store where you can buy candy, guns, and welding supplies under one beautiful roof.
Seriously.  That store kicks ASS! Hey, you never know when you might need welding supplies.  For real!
And they have a section of mini Carhartt clothing for littles. I may have brought home mini overalls for some very special little boys.
And another thing... MONTANA is not a dry state.  Not even on Sunday!
Good wine.
Good company.
GREAT prime rib dinner!
JAKERS! Home of an awesome salad bar.  YES, I love a good old fashioned salad bar!  Don't judge.

As promised, Grama sent us many pics of Bean enjoying the Spahhhhh a la Grama.
What a little farmer!
He is now addicted to popsicles.

Great Falls has an amazing pathway system for biking and running.
I saw a few triathletes doing bike and running sprints while we were cruising.  Sigh.
They also have a series of beautiful dams.  GORGEOUS!
Along with the many supper clubs and fast food stops, this town is clearly big on biking and outdoor activities.
LOVE!!

The night without Andrew was fine.
No party, no fireworks, no staying up late, no epic hotel linens.
We did survive the distance and it was a good exercise for all of us (so I'm told).
We recharged with Papa and I had a really great 30ish hours with the two older men in my life.
Sadly the US is missing the secret of Tim Hortons, but we managed to hit up SBucks before bringing the new baby back to Canada (5 hour drive).

If you've never exported/imported a vehicle from the US we need to chat!

The process is slick and easy and if all your duck are in a row it is saweeeeeeeeet!

We were only gone 30 hours but it felt like wayyyy too long. So nice to make our way back to Beanie.

He was in amazing hands.  The best really.

Very grateful to have Grama and Papa help us with another crazy adventure to save $$.

As we approached the farm Darcy and I discussed how we would welcome back Andrew.
It was suggested to me that perhaps we play it cool and high five him like we were not even gone.
WRONG...
I may have jumped out of the truck before Darcy had put it in PARK to run and grab my mini. GOODNESS I missed him.  That hug felt so good.  Almost like the first time I saw him.

Yes I'm a drama queen.  Maybe a bit over protective.  Dare I even say CONTROLLING?
But being away was good for us.
Coming back was sooooo wonderful.
I wish I had something really philosophical to add here about developing ourselves and handing more along to our wee ones with distance between us...
But honestly, I just simply like being with little Andrew ALL THE TIME!

I'm GRATEFUL for my caring family.  My healthy family. My generous family. My D in shining armor and my little wee Bean.

#roadtripwiththedadstomontana = TWO THUMBS UP!

Have a wonderful CANADA DAY WEEKEND everyone!
We are playing it low key in hopes or little Bean is on the road to health.
He has a nasty ear infection and it is the PITS!