He loves having gears!

Nice run this morning next to Lake Casitas but getting hot. I took Jack to the playground for an hour this morning and then we packed up.
We spent a couple of hours at the water park next to the campground and then we drove home to San Diego. The drive was long ... lot of traffic around LA but we got home before 8.
We found the pets all alive and the house full of fleas because a raccoon has been living in our garage so Andrew spent the next couple of hours defleaing while I unpacked the truck. Lots of laundry over the next couple of days!
The kids had to sleep together in the boys room because it was the only place in the house (other than our bedroom) that was not full of fleas.
I am happy to be back home.

The morning view was really cool! Mist hung over the valley but bellow us, so from the top of the sunny, warm hill I could look at the mist in the valley.
I had a nice run on the trails at Laguna Seca but it was hot. The trails went over the hills in the valley below the hill of our campground.
We sent the kids to the playground and we packed up. It was hot and it would have been tough on the kids to help with.
We stopped in SLO for lunch at a burger place. The burgers were really good and I was really hungry. Andrew got a speeding ticket just before we got into town. I didn't mind that he got a speeding ticket; it happens right?
We drove into Santa Barbara and stopped at the beach for a couple of hours. The kids and I had a good play together while Andrew read. I started by pulling Nadia by the legs through the sand, and then I pulled Peter,'then Nadia pulled Jack. Then Nadia and Peter tried to pull me but their hold on my legs was really painful and I could not stop laughing and screeching, so they stopped. Then Nadia started rubbing sand on top of
Got to Casita Lakes in plenty of time to set up before it got dark. I took the kids for a walk to find a log bridge but never found it. It got really dark, they got really thirsty. Big dog ran up to us and barked at Slinky.

Not a bad run on the roads next to the campground. Then back for breakfast. The kids were happy to jump on the trampoline all morning while we packed and then we got on the 101 south to make our way home.
We drove for half an hour and we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco. Funny. The skies were sunny and clear all morning but once we got close to the bridge there was a thick mist and we could not see the top of the bridge because the mist was so low. We stopped in Golden Gate Park and parked by Stow Lake and walked around looking at the water fowl and the pedal boats. We climbed up Strawberry Hill and hung around at the top for a few minutes. Nadia and Peter were totally engaged in Nadia's phone ready about funny things people could do at Walmart and they were not really paying much attention to the surroundings; they were somewhat attentive but happy chattering and laughing and it was funny and pleasant hearing them chatter as they walked. They are such and awesome pair! Jack found a good fallen tree to climb on. There was a group of kids there slightly older than Jack, probably on an adventure camp and he played with them for a while. It is funny listening to kids talk. That certain age has its own language of super mega guns and space ships and speeders and energy packs. I seem to spend a lot of time listening to kids' conversations, not really eavesdropping but curious to hear what they talk about and engaged by their chatter and laughter and noises that they make.
I was hoping to spend a bit more time in the park but Andrew wanted to get going so we went down the path and looked at the Chinese Pavilion. We walked by a rock cliff that looked like it would have a pretty waterfall that fell into a pool of water at the bottom but the waterfall was not falling and the pool had very little water and covered with black scum. Nadia asked if she could jump around on the rocks in the pool and I said "Yes, of course", and she jumped on the first rock and ... promptly slipped on the scummy rock, fell on her butt, kept sliding on the rock in the water and got herself and her phone thoroughly soaked and very scummy. We pulled her out and fortunately she was not really injured; her tailbone hurt for a couple of days and she was laughing. After making sure she was all right we started laughing too and we walked back towards the car so she could get cleaned up and changed. She looked pretty ridiculous walking around in very wet, muddy pajama pants and shark rash guard. Fortunately there was a bathroom and a play park right across the street from where we parked the car and I helped Nadia get cleaned up in the bathroom while the boys played in the park.
We got on the road again and found a campground at the Laguna Seca Mazda Race track and recreational area. We were thinking of stopping close to Monterey so we could go to the Monterey Aquarium in the morning. Supposedly this is the aquarium in the Finding Dory movie. The campground was at the top of a hill overlooking the racetrack and I could see how awesome it would be to camp there if there were races going on. No races tonight, so the campground was pretty much empty. It actually looked desolate. The sky looked really weird. It turned out that there was a fire nearby and the whole sky was hazy and pink and the sun was shinning a eerie red through the haze. It was also cold and windy and we could not decide which camping spot to settle for in order to be most sheltered from the wind.
We finally set up but we didn't want to hand around the cold, windy, desolate campground so we drove into Monterey and found a Papa John's (the kids had been asking for Papa John's for about four days but we could not find one until now). Amazingly this Papa John's had a few tables inside and we stopped in and had delicious pizza, yum! After dinner we walked a bit around Cannery Row, decided not to go to the Aquarium next morning because it was ridiculously expensive and stopped at a gift shop to buy a couple of inexpensive souvenirs. We walked to the waterfront and saw a pretty cool sculpture inspired by Steinbeck's Cannery Row (gotta read that!) and then headed for some ice cream and then back to the campground.
It was pretty dark at the campsite, Andrew made a fire but the kids settled in the tent, I read Harry Potter to Jack and went to bed myself.

I woke up and it was damp and cold. Andrew went for a run and I got up to make a cup of tea and read but I cold not sit out as usual. It was really misty and somewhat windy and the dampness made me feel the cold deep in my bones. So I sat in the truck and read. When Andrew came back I didn't want to go for a run; I could not face running against a cold wind. So I sat in the truck and finished Beloved. After I finished I felt more brave and I did go for a run. I ran along the 101 and then down on the beach for a while; got my feet wet.
We packed up and we drove south, sticking close to the coast, taking route 1 when we came to the split. Lots of curvy, slow driving. We stopped at a state park for lunch and hike but there was a cold wind and I could not face a hike or cooking lunch in the wind. We hung around in a sheltered area and inside the visitor center for almost an hour, eating pistachios and chatting. We are all tired of traveling and camping. I drove the next stage through Bodega Bay and south on narrow twisty roads and Nadia got car sick. The beaches looked beautiful and they were very busy but it was still windy and not very warm and I was happy admiring the view and not stopping. We went inland a big to find warmer, sunnier weather and a campground. Andrew found a KOA near Petaluma and we stopped there around 4 o'clock. The campground was awesome! Andrew complained about the price but I was so happy to stay there! The campsite was very basic but the amenities were great. Bouncy trampoline, pool with hot tub, petting zoo, awesome play structure, hay rides, movie at night and other things that they didn't have time to try. The kids played nonstop until bedtime.
I took the kids to the pool for an hour and it was lovely sitting in the hot up and on the ground by the side of the pool chatting with Nadia and Peter about random stuff and making them laugh while Jack played in the water.
Then we went to the store and I got them slushies and we went to find the playground. The hayride started there so they went on a hayride also. We came back to the campsite just before it started getting and I cooked dinner while they went back to the bouncy thing. Nadia came back with a sore neck and head because she fell on her head doing a backflip.
I sat in the truck for an hour working because the Wifi at the cam was quite good and the kids went to watch a movie by the pool.

I was worried that I could not find a place to run this morning. I had to run along the 101 for 5 minutes before I found a side road that went towards Arcata. After that it was fine. I met an older gentleman when I got to the main road and he asked me whether it was safe to run the way I was going and I told him that I thought so and we ran in the same direction for 20
minutes before he turned back. I love seeing other people run when I am camping. A lot of them are obviously tourists like me and it is cool to see others trying to find runs on their travels. There was another time that I met a runner, at Crescent Lake in Washington and another one at 8000 ft at Porcupine Flat in Yosemite, both of us struggling up the hills and with getting out breaths in the high altitude. It is nice to get that smile and wave of runners' solidarity and companionship from total strangers.

We drove south on the 101 for a couple of hours and stopped at a place called Confusion Hill; really strange place. We looked around a bit, kids checked out the "shoe" and the kids climbed on the carved Panda. There was a sign in front saying: "Climbed at your own risk" so the kids took the advice climbed on top. All of a sudden we heard shouting for the kids to get down, and they did and we drove on. We found a state park on top of some cliffs leading to a beach, Westport Union Landing State Beach. It turned out that there were campsites available there so instead of driving further we set up there for the night. We went down a steep path to the beach and we basked in the sun for a couple of hours. No wind! It is so nice to get warm! Jack and I came back together a bit early. I love it when we spend time alone together. He is such a sweet little curious chatterbox. He also wants to be very independent and do things for himself. I needed to stop at the bathroom and he wanted to take Slinky and walk ahead to figure out which was our campsite by himself. I finished pretty quickly and walked behind him slowly, not wanting to catch up to give him the chance to figure it out. He did very well and he was waiting for me at the campsite picnic table mocking me because I was so slow. We made snacks and gave Slinks water and food until the other came back also.
Andrew wanted a meal out, so we drove to Fort Bragg, 20 minutes away and walked around town a bit a found an Italian restaurant that suited us. The kids had pizza, I had pesto linguine and Andrew had the mussels. The kids were well behaved but excited and curious and they had some adventures with the pepper grinder. First, Nadia figured out how to grind the pepper, and for some reason that surprised her more than it warranted. Then Peter unscrewed that knob from the top of the pepper grinder and the bottom fell off and most of the peppercorns and the knob rolled on the floor. The server decided to make an appearance exactly at this moment and observe the going ons. She was pretty cool! With a straight face she told Peter that by the time she came back, he needed to fix the pepper pot, scoop all the peppercorns off the floor and put the back in the grinder. It took Peter a few seconds to figure out that she was joking. At this point Andrew told Peter to be more careful and as he said that, he lifted the drinks menu to get it out of the way and promptly knocked over the lamp in the middle of the table that was hidden by the menu. The ladies at the table next to us jokingly said that we are trouble magnets and that we should be kicked out of the restaurant. After this we were all out of our chairs looking under the table for the knob from the pepper grinder causing more ruckus. Andrew finally found it, Peter put it back on and we settled down to wait for our food.
After dinner we walked over to get ice cream at this very popular place called Cowlick's Ice Cream Cafe. From the one lick I got of Jack's ice cream, it was good stuff. Fort Bragg was a likable town, with interesting looking shops and businesses in the city center area. Nadia and Peter were being silly, reading the signs in the Windows. "Help Wanted" became a search for this person called Help who was a wanted person. Nadia found some pretty funny postcards in a shop window, the favorite being: "I enjoy long walks especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."
"I don't like morning people, or mornings, or people"

Nice run on the road/trails at the Sutton Park to the beach overlook. The people were right yesterday, there was no beach access there but beautiful nonetheless looking at the dunes.
Breakfast, pack up and on our way south on the 101. The drove was beautiful, especially around Coos Bay. The bridges in Oregon are quite something; I love the towers at each end of the bridge. There must be some history around these that I need to look up. The kids are so used to the drives that they don't really complain much of we go long stretches, although we try to not go longer that 2 hours before we take a break.

We stopped just north of Gold Beach at Otter Point State Park. It was really windy but we spent a couple of hours there just laying in the hot sand and reading (me) and running around, the kids flying the kite with Andrew (that was really fun) and getting in the water. There was the mouth of a river that came to the beach and didn't quite make it into the ocean and it made a nice pool of clear, fresh water right on the beach. Peter and Jack were horsing around in the sand and at some point Jack decided that Peter had been mean to him and he needed to take revenge. So he took Peter's shirt and threw it in the water. We watched it float for a while and then sink to the bottom. The boys argued over who was going to go get the shirt and finally Peter did and Jack got a smack from me.
We went back to the truck and make delicious tacos and burritos on the tail of the truck while the wind was whipping us sideways and making all our food, played and bags fly around. The kids just climbed in the truck and ate inside to get away from the wind.
We drove on (long drive day) and we found an rv park just off the 101 south of Arcata. The site small and no separation between neighbors but the amenities were nice: playground just across the campsite, hot showers, laundry.
We had pasta for dinner and tofu and then settled in for the night. I read Jack Harry Potter again and the kids and I had a lot of fun with the Hagrid
parts. For some reason, I think Peter though my rendition of Hagrid sounded Canadian, I started saying eh after each sentence of Hagrid's. Then we all had to say eh! For instance: "Harry, yor a wizard" eh? (Me) Eh? (Peter) Eh? (Jack) Eh? (Nadia)

The RV park/marina was quiet enough overnight and I got a good sleep. I drove a couple of miles to the same beach where we spent yesterday afternoon and ran there. It was really beautiful. Oregon beaches have a certain character, different than California or Washington beaches: dunes, rocks on the sea ...

We packed up and headed south on the 101. Half an hour away we stopped in Tillamook to take a tour of the cheese factory. It was quite fun. The tour was self guided and it basically consisted of eating cheese samples, looking down at the factory floor at people/machines cutting and packing cheeses and reading a bit about the cheese/dairy farming in Oregon and buying cheese and salt water taffy at the gift shop.
Today we stopped tried to find a place to stop for lunch but it was really windy. Fortunately we found a park in this town (Port Oxford?) with a gazebo, right at the head of a path to a beach. So we brought our stoves out and cooked chicken burgers and then had an hour on the beach playing and flying the kite.
Jack is pretending to be Slinky 1, Nadia and Peter being silly and horsing around with each other and Jack joining in, growling climbing all over each other. They make me happy!
We drove on and enjoyed the view and stopped again at a Walmart for supplies. Peter and Jack bought some arrows for their bows. We looked at a couple of campgrounds and stopped at Sutton Beach state park. Nice campground, drier that others we looked at. We set up and hiked on a trail that was marked as "beach trail" but we found out from a couple going the other way that it was a couple of miles long and didn't really give access to the beach so we went a bit further and we turned back. It was a good hike, though, with Jack happy and not complaining at all. The boys brought their bows and arrows and practiced shooting in the trees.
Campfire, smores, more target practice with the bows and arrows and I tried playing paper telephone with Peter and Nadia but between trying to make smores and Jack getting tired, the game didn't really take off.
I got Jack settled to sleep and started reading him Harry Potter. He seems ready for it, cool!

Decent run around Aberdeen but not very exciting.
I drove south on the 101 for a while. The day started overcast but as we got to the coast it got warmer and sunnier. God, I missed the sun so much! We stopped at Cape Disappointment and got out and had a look at a lighthouse and then we stopped at a picnic area for some lunch.
There was no easy access to the beach from the picnic area so we drove on further to the next campsite on the map. Unfortunately it was full but I was not surprised because it was really close to the beach and people seem to be out in droves camping this summer. We checked a couple of commercial campgrounds and we found a marina where we could pitch a tent. Not as nice as the first campground would have been but we made do. We set and then we found a beach just a couple of miles down the road. It was a typically beautiful Oregon beach, with dunes, driftwood and almost deserted. Nadia read, Jack and Peter and Andrew flew a kite. I flopped down in the sand trying to avoid the wind and get warm in the sand. I was feeling tired and lazy and since I had internet I spend the time on my phone looking for available campgrounds in the next few days.
It started getting chilly so we headed back to the campground. We had dinner and sat around the fire a bit but I started feeling the cold more and I read to Jack and then went to bed myself.

I had a nice run on a very quiet road on the north side of Lake Crescent. I caught glimpses of lovely views of little waterfalls and the lake as I ran. I met another snake.
Back at the campground, Peter and I made blackberry and apple pie and had one for breakfast. Nadia got put off by all the sweet stuff and she lost her taste for blackberries. I ended up eating almost half of a pie by myself, yum. I've been eating crazy amounts of sweets and of food in general and I am afraid of the scale when I get back home. I seem to be always hungry. I think it's partly because I am cold all the time but also because I've been feeling low.
We packed up but we didn't pay for the campground because we had no American money left.
We drove into Olympic Park and stopped at Sol Duc Waterfall. There was a lovely hike to the falls and the falls were really awesome but we got annoyed; it was too crowded on the trails and some woman who claimed to be a ranger told us off for bringing the dog on the trail.
When we got to the falls the woman was there and I was reluctant to let the kids clamber down and play on the rocks and in the water when she was close by. When I finally told them they could, she interfered and told us of horrible injuries and a thousand broken bones of people that didn't listen to her advice. I was done and herded the kids back up the path fed up with so many people and interfering busybodies.
The next few hours were a bit frustrating. We searched for another waterfall and we drove on this road and back for about 30 miles and we never found it. We were quite happy driving and not stopping because it was cold and rainy. On our search for that waterfall we stopped at a shop to look for an ATM and get some snacks. An interesting Australian woman ran the shop and tried to sell me licorice ice cream. Interesting taste, but no thank you. No ATM and no waterfall and we got back on the 101 south in search of a campground. We stopped at Thriftway just for something to do and to get out of the rain and bought some hot food from the deli and ate it in the cafe there. I was starving even though I've been eating nonstop for three days and ate lots of bread and potato wedges. We got some cash, yay! We stopped on a beautiful beach for an hour (Beach 4) and it was warm and sunny and I was really tired. I laid on the warm rocks with Nadia and Peter and then ran after Jack and Slinky for a while.
We never found a campground. The first one we tried was full. On the second try, I saw the sign but with no indication of how far it was and I drive for 20 minutes into the hills in these dark, rainy, spooky forest and I gave up and turned back to the 101. Then 20 minutes later we tried three more campgrounds and we either did not find them or they were reservation only. By this time it was after 9 pm and getting dark so I decided that a hotel would be our best choice for the night. The sky was incredible on the drive. It was still light after 9 o'clock and we could see a huge full moon through the trees on the left and a beautiful pink and red sky because of the sunset.
When it got almost dark a deer jumped in front of us unexpectedly and unfortunately I could not avoid it and I hit it. I stopped on the side of the road as soon as I could but we were some distance from the deer. I could see it in the distance stumble on the side of the road and then lay still and I think that I killed it. The kids were quite shaken up (so was I) and poor Peter cried and got a hug from Andrew. Poor creature, I was so sorry that I hit it. I wish I could have avoided it.
We found a Best Western in Aberdeen and it was lovely and warm and comfortable. Andrew took the kids to the pool while I collected laundry and worked and they watched some TV and lights out at 11:30. I stayed up until almost 1 working and Andrew was doing laundry.

This morning I ran down to the beach and just ran back and forth on the beach a few times. The beach was about half a mile long so this was not too awkward. I met some very enthusiastic dogs on the beach and I was all right with that but on the second pass they were a bit more aggressive so I cut my beach run short and finished the hour on the trails around the campground.
For breakfast, I decided to take one of the tubs of blackberries that we picked the day before and make blackberry jam. It turned out awesome and we had them with pancakes. For the next day the kids planned to get whipped cream and use the rest of the berries to make blueberry pie.
The plan for today is to go into Victoria, look around a bit and see if we can catch the 3:30 ferry back stateside. We had no problem driving in and found a good parking spot. First stop was the British sweets shop that we remembered from last year and we loaded up on super sour balls, English toffees and millions. Then we walked by the water front and we were heading toward Beacon Hill Park but we got a bit distracted and we stopped by the Parliament Building. Andrew and the kids went inside for 20 minutes for a little tour while I wandered outside with Slinks. The tour was kinda boring but they got a couple of nice postcards from the gift shop.
We never made it to Beacon Hill park. We wandered slowly towards it and admired totem poles next to the BC Natural Science Museum and by the time we were done it was time to go and see about the ferry.
Oops. The ferry was full and we could not go across the strait. We debated about staying another night in Canada but we would probably have to catch the late ferry anyway but a day later. So we shopped at Save on Foods and we got lot of candy and a hot meal for the kids and the went back to the ferry to park the truck and buy tickets. Then we walked over to Beacon Hill Park and we spend a nice hour there eating our late lunch/dinner and letting Jack have some much needed playtime. On the way back to the ferry we walked by a historical school (St Ann's Academy) and we found loads of apples on the grounds. It was a pleasant surprise to find that the apples were extremely tasty and we picked as many from the ground that we could that were not too bruised.
We had to get back to the truck at 6:00 in order to be there for the customs officers but the kids were happy to sit in the truck and play Plants vs Zombies and read. Next to the bathrooms I found some discarded firewood that someone must have discarded there earlier that day and Andrew and I picked it up hoping the officers would not ask many questions about what we had in the back of the truck.
The ferry crossing was really nice. The wind and the clouds and the sky were pretty awesome. I spent the first hour with Jack inside because he was to chicken to go out in the wind but I got 20 minutes of wandering on the deck first with Nadia and then by myself. Nadia was super hyper and drunk with the wind and cold and love of life. I wanted to spend most of my Canadian money and I found some really neat kids books in the bookstore based on Pacific Northwest native themes with beautiful artwork.
We didn't get off the ferry and past customs until after 9:30. We drove to where I thought there would be a couple of campgrounds just 15 minutes away but they area was closed because of floods so we drove on another half an hour to a campground near Crescent Lake. The woods and lake looked really cool in the dark, spooky and beautiful at the same time. The neat thing is that even after 9 o'clock there is still light in the sky.
The campground was really full and we started getting worried but we finally found a campsite and we were set up by 10:30. Bad luck, something leaked and out mattresses got wet so I had to wrap them in big trash bags to keep from sleeping on wet bedding.

I went for a run around Rolley's Lake. It was a very pretty trail but I found it hard going, probably because of mental exhaustion. Then I ate all day. I can't stop eating. Stress? Anxiety? Being cold all the time?
We drove to the ferry terminal at Horseshoe Bay. The wait for the ferry was quite long, more than two hours and the ferry crossing pretty uneventful. Jack didn't want to stay outside so I went inside with him and missed the views. I wasn't really bothered about looking at the views anyway. I was trying to use the unreliable Internet to find a campsite and I was not really in the mood to be awed by natural beauty. Sad, really.
I found a campground near Nanaimo, Brannen Lake and we settled in. We got there fairly early, 5ish and there was plenty of time for the kids to play in the playground. Nadia and I and Slinky went exploring in order to see where the lake was and we found a really awesome path with blackberry bushes everywhere and with slugs! on the ground. We came back to get the boys and we drove to the lake and had a picnic. The kids went in the water for a bit but the water was cold, so they came out and played in the playground there while eating ParleGs and singing silly songs. We went back to the campground and the boys wanted to play in the playground again and I thought, why not? It's nice and safe, so I walked them there and the. I walked to the office to get wifi and do an hour of work. Nadia went to sleep early because she was exhausted. Andrew brought the boys to the office around 10, got the a slushy and then we walked back to the tent and we went to bed.

I repeated the run from yesterday and I still hated it but this time I met a snake. I took a much needed shower when I got back and we packed up while the kids played and hanged around the playground in the sun. I put the sleeping bags in the drier for 10 minutes; everything seems to always be damp.
We planned to take a ferry across a little bay and go to Butchart Gardens. The ferry terminal was only 20 minutes away. We got there with half an hour to spare and Peter noticed blackberry bushes just outside our car window. There were loads and loads of ripe ones and we spent the next haft hour filling four tubs of blackberries while waiting for the ferry. It was lovely and sunny out but the ground around the bushes was wet and muddy, so we got wet muddy feet in the process and lots of scrapes and scratches from the thorns on the bushes; totally worth it!
Butchart Gardens were beautiful and we were able to take the dog in there too. The gardens were not too big and after two leisurely hours we pretty much saw everything, kids went on the carousel and had ice cream. I liked the Japanese gardens the best and the overlook at the little bay at the other end of the Japanese gardens. I confess that I like the Japanese gardens at Balboa Park better, there is more space there and they are a lot less crowded.
We cooked lunch at a picnic table next to the parking lot and we drove in search of a campground. There was a provincial park close to the gardens but we drove through it and around it and could not find any sign of a campground. We decided to drive south and see if we could get a space at French Beach on the south coast. No problem with that and we were set up by 6:30. For the drive down to the south we followed this random road that seemed to go through the island instead of going around and taking the highway. It worked out OK: the road took is down to where we wanted to be AND it was a cool twisty road through nice forested parts of the island.
Nadia and I went exploring the campground at French Beach with Slinks and we found a trail that led to a gorgeous beach with gorgeous sky and driftwood. We went back to finish setting up and pay for the site and brought the boys to the beach. We had fun climbing on driftwood and exploring for a couple of hours. At one point we took a trail that led to someone's back yard and we had to trace our steps back to the beach and take the proper trail back to the campsite.

I didn't feel like running this morning, feeling low and mentally exhausted. I knew that the run to the lake would be nice but I just could not bring myself to it. I let the kids go to the playground for the morning and they had fun for a couple of hours playing on a rope swing and not having to pack for a change. Andrew and I packed.
We drove through Nanaimo but there was not much there and we headed south to our next campground. My map lied to me and we ended up 20 miles out of the way. We ducked into a parking lot and found wifi and figured out where we were supposed to go, Cedar Springs campground. It was a private campground and at first glance it didn't look that great but it turned out to be a nice choice. Jack made friends at the playground right away. Then the kids found a games room and they played air hockey and fussball for more than an hour. I found a trail and went for a run and it was hilly and rocky and hard but it made me feel better.
When I came back, we went in the pool for and hour, then I did a load of laundry with the kids. We brought a couple of camp chairs and we sat in the laundry room because we could access wifi there and the kids watched Netflix while I did a bit of work.
There were no fire pits in the campsites but there was a really nice one next to the pool and there was no one using it, so we started a fire there and made smores and soon a couple of other families joined us and it was nice and companionable and a lovely way to end the evening.

Everett is a much nicer town than Kent. I ran through a lovely residential neighborhood and it smelled like the sea. The breakfast was really good! Awesome fresh biscuits and fruit.
We packed up (Andrew gave us a deadline of 10am) and headed north towards Canada with a stop at Walmart to get supplies.
We got into Canada and promptly lost all connection on phones and devices. I was desperately trying to find campsites and maps while waiting in the queue to go through the checkpoint.
Funny thing: we left Slinky's red water bowl on the back bumper of the car when we stopped at Walmart and and 30 miles later it was still there. A guy in another car got our attention and asked "what's up with the red bowl?"
We lost it by the time we got to the campground. We headed east of the city and an hour later we got to Rolly Lake campground. It said that it was full but we managed to find a space. We set up and found the playground and the lake. The kids went in the water but the wind was picking up by then so they got cold and we didn't stay long. We went back to the playground and they were much happier there playing with other kids. Jack is interesting to watch when he plays with other kids. Another boy came, who looked like he was about four but the same size as Jack and Jack promptly told him they were going to play tag. Jack generously offered to be "it" first and quickly tagged the boy and then spend the next ten minutes being chased by this boy and taking breaks at "home" after each lap around the playground. The boy was good humored and didn't mind chasing Jack around and stopping to pet Slinky once in a while.
Then some older kids came and they were playing Sardines on the slide and this is when Jack became more petulant because he wanted to get his own way and it was a bit harder with the older kids.
Nice place but it was wet and damp again. It started raining at 8 and we headed back to the campsite to huddle under the tent and try to get warm by the fire.
I chatted and played with the kids. They were silly. I played one word to the next with Nadia and Jack and Peter were exploring the campsite.
I tucked Jack in, Peter and Nadia went to bed and I tidied up the campsite and put the fire out. I went to bed a read a bit before going to sleep.

It is so hard to wake up early in a hotel room and why am I waking up early anyway? I am on vacation! But I did get up and went for a run at 7:30. The run in Kent was awful. Not a nice part of Seattle and I inhaled lots of car exhaust. I got back and ate breakfast and went back to the hotel room and it was still pitch black in the room and everyone was still asleep. It was really hard getting the kids to wake up and they missed breakfast. We packed up and parked close to the aquarium and spend a couple of hours there. Funny but we did not see much in a couple of hours but the stuff we saw was really interesting. We caught presentations and feeding for the harbor seals, the octopus and the diver in the tank show. Then we went to the cafe and we got some much needed food. I love the Seattle Aquarium because it exhibits local habitats and not so much exotic stuff and it is very interesting that way.
Next we took the narrated harbor tour. The day was absolutely gorgeous, the view lovely and the narration very interesting. Jack was contrary but I let him wonder around the ship by himself and with Peter and he had fun and I could enjoy the tour.
Next was the Ferris wheel with lovely
views of the bay. The kids were crazy and hyper and funny.
Next we headed to the Space Needle park to spend the afternoon there. Andrew parked by the waterfront so he could take Slinky for a walk and see the sculpture garden and the kids and I walked up the hill to the park. I got on Peter's case because we were crossing a really busy road and he insisted on asking me if he could keep a wheel that he found on the street.
We took our time and got ice cream for Nadia and cotton candy for Jack and stopped at the food court for bathroom, water and free internet. By the time Jack was done with his cotton candy Andrew met us at the park and we went to the EMP museum. I love the building and the random stuff that is in there. We watched a couple of cool music videos on the screen in the front and then headed upstairs to play with the instruments. I tagged along withJack and we went into a couple of studios to play drums and learn how to mix. Then we looked around at the wearable art exhibit. By the time we were finished there, Jack was done and I took him out to play at the play park. Jack would much rather play outside that go around museums. I was content to watch Jack play and look after Slinky for the next couple of hours while Andrew, Nadia and Peter went to see the Chihuly museum. Jack and Slinky and I headed to the fountain and met the others there and they played at the fountain for a while and of course Peter and Nadia got soaking wet and cold.
We headed back to the car and everyone was hungry. Andrew refused to eat at the food court and Nadia refused to eat Subway or Thai food and Andrew went ahead to the car and I got pizza for the kids at the only place that was still open in the food court. Nadia was super cold after she got wet in the fountains. She used to be able to get wet and cold and be all right but she is really feeling the cold right now. It bothers her that this is the case.
We headed to our motel in Everett and settled for the night. We were all pretty beat up.

A pleasant run at Seaquest this morning but not very exciting. I crossed the road through the underpass to Mt. St. Helen's Visitor Center and ran a few laps around the nature walk there. It was pretty.
After breakfast we drove towards Mt. St. Helens for an hour and took a nice hike at the base of the mountain. The top of the mountain was shrouded in clouds but the day was clear and the lake was lovely and peaceful and we had a very pleasant walk. The kids climbed over fences there were not supposed to climb over, they scrambled over rocks and trees and we ate blackberries. Some grumpy old woman told Nadia off for breaking the rules and not staying on the path. We laughed at her but not to her face.
​We drove on to Mt Rainier and stopped at a campground close to the park entrance, Ohanapecosh.
The campground was great. We set up close to a stream and we spent the evening playing next to the river climbing rocks and driftwood and throwing rocks in the water. Some poor guy was trying to fish but he gave up once we got there because we were making so much noise. Peter found some nice bendy wood and he made bows when he got back to the campsite and he and Jack practiced shooting arrows in the trees.
After dinner we tried playing a game but Jack was tired and I took him to bed and read him books and tucked him in.

I had a hard run on the trails around the camp site. Really, really great trail through the forest to a waterfall but relentlessly uphill. I ran five miles in one hour and 15 minutes. Well, I did my 5 miles, right?
We drove through the park to Paradise and we stopped there at the visitor center. I had in my mind that we would go for a hike around there but when I got out of the car I was so miserably cold that I could not face it so I didn't even suggest it. We spent and hour in the visitor center and the gift shop and I was cold even inside so I bought myself a pair of really thick socks.
We drove on and found a good patch of snow and let the kids play for 20 minutes. Peter got the shovel out and he had fun digging. Jack was sliding glass on a little hill on his coat and I gave Jack a pair of my socks to put on his hands so he could touch the snow.
When we got back in the car Nadia started making a list of all the rules that we break during a day of our travels. We drove on towards Tacoma and then Seattle and decided to go in town first since it was not too late. We ate a hurried burrito and did the 5 o'clock underground tour. Then we headed to the Space Needle park, Andrew parked the car and looked around with Nadia a bit and I watched the boys play at the playground and bought the city passes. We went up the space needle at 8:30 and stayed until after sunset and then drove to our motel. The motel is pretty shabby in a not very nice part of town but it is nice to sleep in a dry bed for a night. We won't be here long because we have a full day planned for tomorrow.

We woke up to rain and stayed in the tent for a while. I didn't think I would go for a run because I didn't fancy running in the cold and wet but by 8 the rain stopped and I seized the opportunity. I ran on the bike trail so I would not get my shoes even wetter but of course I encountered puddles and that didn't work. Really nice run.
We packed up and drove a couple of miles and parked at the trailhead for Upper North Falls and had a nice stroll down the trail to see the falls. Absolutely beautiful. The kids of course did their best to jumps rocks, climb over logs and such to get as close to the falls as they could. Nadia got right there and took a shower and was sopping wet and happy by the time she was done. Peter got pretty close to the falls too but didn't take s shower.
Slinky lost his footing on some rocks and fell in the freezing river and was cold and shivering and miserable, so I stuck him inside my coat to dry him off and warm him up while watching the kids play. Unfortunately, my feet were wet and cold and my coat was damp and there was a cold breeze and I started being pretty cold and miserable too. We walked back, Nadia changed in dry clothes and we drove on.
We made a stop to a big 5 and both Andrew and I bought some nice, dry, warm hiking shoes and warm socks and my feet have been happier since.

We drove to Seaquest National Park at the base of Mt. St. Helens and set up camp. Unfortunately I put the small food cooler on top of the mattresses and the stopper was open so the mattresses got pretty wet. I pulled them out and we took the covers off and set them out to dry hit the sun was not shining and it looked like we were going to sleep on wet mattresses. Andrew found a laundromat in Castle Rock and we drove there. The laundromat was next to a grocery store so we did a load of laundry, dried out stuff and did some shopping. Andrew sent me and the kids to Target down the road and he took care of the washing and the kids and I had a mooch around Target for an hour. We bought a fishing game for Jack and weird squishy ball things for Nadia and Peter and lots of chocolate for me. Still feeling cold and miserable even with dry shoes!
God! It turned out that we were not paying very close attention to what we were doing and we left one of the back doors to the truck wide open. Forty-five minutes later we came out of Target and when I noticed the open door I started shouting at Peter (the door was on his side) but quickly apologized because I realized he left the door open for Jack.
Back at the campground, Jack was happy running around getting rid of energy, the kids played with the fishing game and Jack got all mad at Nadia and Peter and then I played with him and let him thoroughly beat me and he was really happy. I played a paper telephone game with the kids that was a out if fun and funny and went to bed.

It rained all night but not heavily and I woke up in Bogus Creek to the sound of rain. The campsite was sheltered well by trees and I was not sure whether it was still raining or the trees were dripping water on the tent. I got up and it didn't look very wet so I took the trail that I noticed the previous evening and it led me to a great run on top of a ridge overlooking the road and a stream. Great run but my shoes and feet got thoroughly soaked.
We had Momma Cakes and veggie sausages and watermelon for breakfast.
We headed north joining interstate 5, intending to drive out of Oregon into Washington state but we encountered really slow traffic so we found a campsite nearby, Silver Falls and we stayed there for the night.
It turns out that we stayed here last year too, funny coincidence; I was thinking of this place last week but has no intention of revisiting it. It is a lovely place and I am glad we stopped. The campground and park are incredibly well maintained and I had a very much needed hot shower.
After setting up we had a walk to the kids towards the South Falls Lodge but we didn't actually make it there. We stopped by a stream to watch a boy and his dad play with an RC boat and Jack got mad because he wanted one too. We walked on and came across a clearing with a gazebo and fruit trees and the kids climbed trees and we tried to eat very woody, tart green apples. It started sprinkling so we headed back to the campground. On the way back we walked by a pet exercise area and we let Slinky off the leash and he ran around like a crazed hare chased by a coyote. Good for him to get some exercise. We played tag on the way back and somehow Tag turned into Shmefty and Nadia and I were cracking up all the way back. The boys went ahead to buy a wheelbarrow of fire wood from the wood shed before it closed at 8.
I took Jack and Peter to the playground and they met some kids and played tag for half an hour but then it was getting rainy and cold. The kids were moving on to play somewhere else and Peter and Jack wanted to go with them but I said No. I am not sure why I said No, I think that I was getting cold and tired and didn't want to make the effort to think about where they were and make sure they were safe. I need to work on being less lazy in that respect.
Rainy evening and we went in the tent to sleep and read and retired for the night. I love hearing the rain fall on the tent but the damp and cold gets me; it saps all my energy. I wish I was better in the cold.

Feeling better today. The low mood is gone and I am ready to travel some more. I didn't run because I had no energy and because the only place to run was by the side of the road and I didn't fancy that today.
Andrew and I looked at the map and we planned the next few days. The kids woke up, we packed and we drove towards Oregon.
We stopped at a lava rock monument where the Modoc Indians and US army had a dispute over land. There was a nice trail where the kids could climb on rocks and found little caves to explore. At the end of the trail there was a pole sticking out of the ground where people left things, hats, bandanas, charms, etc and we struggled to find something to leave also. I had a beer bottle cap in my pocket that Jack and Peter found on the Lake Tahoe beach with the metal detector. I also found a red doggie poop bag and Nadia tore a bit of her Tshirt and tied the bag to the pole with it. I hope it wasn't offensive, it wasn't meant to be. Jack tried to take a charm with him from the shrine but we convinced him not to and he left it reluctantly. It turns out that the name of the Modoc chief was Captain Jack! so Jack had fun pretending that he was Captain Jack as we were exploring the area. The info booklet said the Captain Jack lived in a cave with his two wives and young daughter and the kids created this whole story about what their names were and who was which wife and who had the baby etc ... Darn, I forgot the names; I need to ask the kids. Peter was Jenny who had the daughter Penny and Nadia was Lenny, the other wife and she was also Sac, the sister. Nadia wanted to be the wife without a child. She is telling us that she does not want to have children. OK with me but I can't help wondering where that is coming from. Captain Jack got a bit annoying insisting that he was Captain Jack and throwing a fit if any of us suggested that he wasn't Captain Jack. Captain Jack and I pretend dueled with swords and then with more and more fantastical weapons that Captain Jack imagined on the spot. He likes to win even pretend games.

Back in the car and headed towards Klamath Falls. The name sounded cool but I could not be bothered to find if there were any points of interest that would make us stop so we drove on to Crater Lake. I wanted to see Crater Lake last year but we just ran out of steam. The weather was overcast and as we climbed and approached the park, it got wetter and colder. It was absolutely gorgeous in that light. I am sure that it would have been beautiful in sunshine also but I often like looking at things when it is wet and overcast. The trees were majestic and there were rivers that cut deep ravines into the mountain. We stop at an overlook to see Annie's Fall. The air was damp and cool and the view was amazing. We drove on and got to the park entrance and the ranger told us that it was very misty and we will probably see nothing of the lake but we were OK with that and still wanted to drive through and see it. We stopped by the campground to see if there was space but we decided that it was too cold and wet to spend the night on top so we drove on to look at the park. As we climbed higher we started seeing snow and the kids wanted to stop immediately but we knew that the higher we climbed the more snow we would see. We stopped once for ten minutes so they could touch it and Andrew took a very pretty Christmas card picture of us. We stopped at an overlook but it was cold and truly all we could see was thick mist above the lake; eerie.
We found a great place for snow with a nice steep hill and the kids spend an hour getting frozen and soaking wet sliding on their butts. I was wearing shorts and was NOT dressed for the weather so I sat in the truck holding Slinky and watching the kids play. The dog is funny; he really wanted to go play with the kids so he was all tense watching them but he was too chicken to get cold and wet; the dog and I are very similar in that respect.
Lovely park and we really want to stop by again on the way back if it is a clear day so we can hike a bit and see the lake and spend the night there. However, today we drove on until it stopped raining and found a campground, Bogus Creek, and we settled for the night. Still no showers.
We had dinner outside but it started raining so the kids and I went inside the tent and played Ludo until late. The kids got sillier and sillier.

I went for a run and it felt great! We must be at a lower altitude here than in Sequoia because I didn't feel like dying.


Trips are great and camping is great but I need to be mentally strong to maintain a good, positive attitude. Jack is very trying this trip, obstinate in the extreme. Peter can also get in these complainy moods and Nadia loves to bicker with the boys, it's her favorite hobby. I can deal with this most days, but this was a trying day.


We went on a hike to the Toulumne Grove (we went there last year too) and it was kinda hot so Jack started being obstinate early. By the time we got to the grove he was in full fighting mood, Peter was not happy either and Nadia was bickering with him.

Andrew decided that he had to go back and see if Slinky was OK and finally I could spend a bit of time with the kids alone and relax with them and I started to enjoy myself.
We climbed through the fallen, hollow tree. I made it to the first exit; Peter, Nadia and Jack made it the the very end. Then we climbed on top and walked to the roots. I climbed down the roots to the ground and Jack tried to follow me but it did not feel safe even with me helping him so I convinced him to walk down the easy way.
Andrew came back. The one mile walk back to the parking lot was tough. Jack and Peter were really hot and tired and we ran out of water. Andrew and Nadia and I took turns to give Jack piggy back rides.


We drove on towards the Tioga Pass and we stopped by a stream to have lunch. Then the kids wanted to do some rock hopping in the stream and we spend an hour doing that, Peter leading, Jack butt naked and Andrew following him, making sure he was safe, Nadia jumping from rock to rock like a mountain goat. I followed too but at a slower pace. I jumped across a set of rocks and sat with Slinky on the other side and this couple tried to get across too but the woman was kinda nervous so I helped them a bit by holding their phones just in case they fell in and I gave a hand to the woman to help her balance.


We came back together and I immersed myself in the stream, Nadia and Andrew and Peter followed me. I tried to convince Jack to go in too but the water was too cold and the stream too quick and he was scared. Fun afternoon.
We drove on and decided to pull into Porcupine Flat to see if there were any campsites and stopped there for the night. It was fairly early so we had a relaxing evening. Jack and I worked in his activity book. He is such a fun, bright boy and so eager to learn.
Nadia and Peter collected wood. Then we sat around the campfire with chocolate and smores and Nadia's guitar.
The kids got to ride on the tail of the truck for the first time ever. Andrew was in a fun daddy mood. He is in such a great mood after fights! I really despise that.
We met the couple next door and chatted with the for 15 minutes and it was nice to be friendly to people.
It got really cold and I read books to Jack and I could not face going outside again to face the cold so I read a bit and then fell asleep.