We stayed Sunday night at Colleen's with the intention of shaving an hour off our home-bound trip. Unfortunately, when we got to Colleen's Sunday evening, Aubree informed us, "Uh oh. I left my violin at Kira's!" Mark hopped back in the van and returned to get the violin while I put everyone (including myself) to bed. I probably needed to be sent to bed the most because I was super grumpy.
We got up well before the sun and were on the road home by 3:30 am. All the kids were able to fall back asleep, though Nellie surprisingly had the hardest time initially getting back to dreamland.
It was somewhat pleasant to drive in a quiet car, but I was nervous and on-edge because we were driving at sunrise through deer migration zones and on our drive south we'd seen tons of road kill. On the upside, the nerves probably helped keep me more alert.
We didn't take a single picture on the drive, but we did the whole distance and were home by late afternoon. The drive wasn't without hiccups. We had to stop and add oil to the car when the low oil pressure light came on, and a few hours from home Thane developed a headache. His malaise wasn't entirely unexpected. Before we left Kira's a number of the nephews had shown signs of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease. Apparently Utah was a hot-bed for the illness during the time of our stay. We hoped we would escape falling victim, but knew that with how highly contagious it was, our hope was likely in vain.
So, we returned home with an extra, unwanted souvenir of our trip. After Thane, Bryce, Nellie, and Aubree also succumbed. Somehow Graham managed to avoid getting sick. Thankfully, our crew experienced only minor, yet very consistent, symptoms. First they got a bad headache, then a fever, then spots in their mouths. They never got spots on their hands or feet, nor did their spots really turn into full blown sores. Hallelujah!
We put ourselves on quarantine-status to avoid becoming disease vectors. That meant we had a pretty boring week stuck inside and away from friends and activities. We were pleased to come home to plenty of raspberries and blueberries on our backyard bushes.
We didn't take a single picture on the drive, but we did the whole distance and were home by late afternoon. The drive wasn't without hiccups. We had to stop and add oil to the car when the low oil pressure light came on, and a few hours from home Thane developed a headache. His malaise wasn't entirely unexpected. Before we left Kira's a number of the nephews had shown signs of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease. Apparently Utah was a hot-bed for the illness during the time of our stay. We hoped we would escape falling victim, but knew that with how highly contagious it was, our hope was likely in vain.
So, we returned home with an extra, unwanted souvenir of our trip. After Thane, Bryce, Nellie, and Aubree also succumbed. Somehow Graham managed to avoid getting sick. Thankfully, our crew experienced only minor, yet very consistent, symptoms. First they got a bad headache, then a fever, then spots in their mouths. They never got spots on their hands or feet, nor did their spots really turn into full blown sores. Hallelujah!
On the morning of the 4th of July, everyone was feeling pretty healthy (Bryce and Thane were on the upswing, while Nellie and Aubree hadn't yet fallen). We knew we couldn't be around people, but we figured an isolated hike would be safe.
It was glorious to be back on Pacific Northwest trails! The weather was cool, the hike was entirely shaded, and the surroundings were lush and beautiful.
We found a local trail we'd heard about but hadn't yet traversed. This particular trail, the Gnome Trail, has gnome and fairy figurines hidden all along. It was a lot of fun to look for them and added an extra element of excitement to the hike.
It's not exactly how we'd planned to spend the 4th, but it was better than being cooped up inside. I guess this is just one more year we didn't take our kids to see a fireworks show. Maybe someday...?
Oh, and this is Aubree showing off the dress that my sisters helped her find when we stopped by Deseret Industries one afternoon.
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