Day 3: Missoula MT to Bozeman MT (doh!)

Well, we are still in Montana.  Today didn't exactly go as planned.  The "light dusting" of snow on our car this morning turned into a full on, 1/4 mile visibility, squeezing the black out of your steering wheel kind of snow storm pretty much immediately as soon as we hit the highway.  Our original plan of making it to Wyoming changed last night as we decided to stop at the Museum of the Rockies and then stay the night in Billings...but that quickly changed when we got on the road.  Within the first 30 minutes we saw 3 separate cars in the highway ditches and by the end of the day that total would rise to 11!  After some very slow and steady progress we eventually made it to the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman MT and decided we were good for the day.  Luckily, there was also a "C'Mon Inn" in Bozeman so we changed our reservations, threw on our suits and hit the pool and hot tubs.  Have we mentioned that we love C'mon Inns?  Best hotels in Montana if you are ever up this way!  We need to make up ground tomorrow but the weather looks promising and we are optimistic.   Rapid City or bust!

Maybe we should have stopped here.

Slippin and Sliding all the way to the museum.

"A real T-Rex!?"

"Big Mike"

Hot Tub #1 at C'Mon Inn

Hot Tub #3 at C'Mon Inn

Day 2: Leavenworth WA to Missoula, MT

The first long driving day in the car went relatively smooth.  The boys started in Kate's car and after about 3 hours swapped into Erik's for the remainder of the day.  All said and done we made it the rest of the way through Washington, the pan handle of Idaho and into Montana.  As soon as we hit Montana we experienced snow through the passes and even pulled over just so the boys could play a little on the massive snow banks.  The rest of the drive was uneventful as we make it to the "C'mon Inn," changed into our suits and spent the rest of the evening relaxing in the pool and the hotel's 5 hot tubs spread throughout the lobby.  Tomorrow we plan to head to Billings (another C'mon Inn) after stopping at the Museum of the Rockies. 

Snowy Montana Passes.

Snow bank at the rest stop.

C'mon Inn "waterfall"

One of the 5 main floor C'mon Inn hot tubs.

Day 1: Anacortes to Leavenworth, WA

Today we turned the keys of our first home over to our renters and set out through "the pass" on our way to Leavenworth, WA for the evening.  Over the last 6 years we had the best intentions of making our way through the mountains to the Christmas themed town, designed like a Bavarian village, but have sadly not had the time or energy to make it happen.  So, for our first travel day we elected to only drive 3 hours and explore this quaint little town.  Fortunately, the weather gods were on our side and we had clear skies and 60sih degree weather.  We were able to walk around all afternoon, taste an assortment of local beers and dine on traditional Bavarian cuisine (aka Pretzels and Brats!) all within walking distance of our Hotel.  Leavenworth...check!  Tomorrow we are off to Missoula Montana for a hotel with 5 Hot Tubs!  Stay Tuned.

Yes, we had pretzels and ice cream at 3pm for no reason...road trip!

The main drag.

Family Selfie!

Setting sun on day 1.

"Make your best nutcracker face."

Our Next Adventure

After over six years, three different Squadrons and two deployments it's time to leave Whidbey Island for a little bit and try something new.  Over the past seven months we have been preparing for our move to Millington, TN and after months of planning (to include a deployment) we are finally on the road.  We were fortunate enough to find a wonderful young couple to rent our house in Anacortes while we venture south for a few years.  The boys have had their last days of school, Erik is growing a PCS beard and we are going to enjoy some qualify family time as we make our way across the country.  Stay tuned for exciting Halvorson adventures as we embark on the 7 day, 2,400 miles journey to our new duty station.

Our temporary digs while we move out of the house.

Evening Views.

Trucks here!  No turning back now.

Before.

After.

Anders Turns 4

My little, sweet boy: You keep doing big boy things but I still keep seeing you as my baby. Maybe it's because you still have those round, kissable cheeks and cupid bow lips when you are sleeping. Man, you are growing up fast. Your imagination and love of role play such as superheroes and Star Wars is EPIC. And when you are not currently destroying villains and saving mankind, your kind heart and friendship to others shines so very, very bright. Gosh, I love you. More than all the stars in the galaxy (and even another galaxy - far, far away).

Birthday morning scone.

Cheesing with his best buddy George at his party.

Jedis on a speeder.

Funny Landon.

Sweet friend transformed to Kylo Ren.

That's my sweet baby boy!

Yum.

Again - our sweet little girl friends picking some fierce masks.

Young Padawans battling together!

Cupcake break!

Some friends brought their own light sabers. I provided robes made out of felt and cording - thank you, Pinterest!

The kids getting a kick out of funny birthday cards.

Landon Brick Build

Like many other kids these days, the boys have fallen into the black hole of YouTube when their screen time and settings allow. And YouTube for kids these days is a hoppin' scene. I imagine it parallels my obsession with CareBears and MTV at a young age. Anyhoodles, the channels Landon particularly enjoys are related to "Brick Builds" in which people put together Lego sets. And as life imitates art, Landon wanted to also make a brick build.

I totally forgot about this video we made after Christmas. Landon must have gone through a major growth spurt since then - he looks so young to me when rewatching this!

Memorial Day 2016

This past weekend we headed about an hour south to the Jim Creek Naval Recreational Area for a few days of camping with the boys. Catering solely to military members, the site was nicely maintained and they have over 5000 acres of land, largely untouched. We will definitely revisit when it is not raining and 50 degrees for three days straight. But you know what? Rain on a tent makes for the most delightful white noise when sleeping.

I threw together a quick video using some captures I got with my phone. Nothing fancy, but hoping it helps with my memory long down the road!

Anders vs Orange

One time, about a year ago, Anders was peeling an orange and a shprinkle of juice took a dastardly trajectory into his eye. And he still talks about it, affronted by the fruit and it's evil byproduct. But! He loves clementines and I commend that he came up with a solution - to always find a pair of sunglasses before eating an orange. This has been going on for a year and I so hope it continues for a long while because I adore this quirk of his.

Safely enjoying citrus.

You Do the Hokey Pokey

Man, I love a good roller skating rink. Armed with fantastic memories of disco balls and limbo bars from 25+ years ago, I took the boys last week to weigh down their little legs with some big honkin' skates. They asked about inline skates (and, admittedly, the rink did have them), but I wanted them to have the authentic experience. Let's lace up some 5 lb fungal hooves on your feet.

They practiced for a bit on pint-sized walkers and locked wheels. And then: we loosened the wheels and they skated awkwardly like little newborn giraffes trying to walk for the first time. I loved it and I think they did, too. When the lights went down and the laser lights started with some horrific Alvin and the Chipmunks cover of Destiny's Child songs began, they were all like, "Say Whaaaat?" And I said "What, boys. What, indeed."

The rink on a Tuesday morning is the perfect time for learning the Hokey Pokey on wheels.

Kindergarten on the Horizon

We have submitted the paperwork. We tried out a school bus. This is happening.