"On the Road Again"

I got to spend my first full week at home last week. It felt good. I was so homesick after spending December in 4 other states outside of Idaho.


It made me appreciate all of our bedrooms (even if it means more square footage to keep clean, it means more square footage than a hotel room or a family members' bedroom that we can spread out in).


It made me appreciate control over the thermostat (sorry, Mom).


It made me appreciate our giant flat screen (in comparison to the 19-inch TVs in our hotel rooms).


It made me appreciate our refridgerator & my washer & dryer.

(It's the little things in life that you often forget about when you are caught up in the excitement of traveling.)


It also made me appreciate Boise's beautiful, yes, I said beautiful weather. In comparison to the below zero weather of MT, I was so glad to be home where there was no slippery, snowy roads & I could walk to my mailbox without my coat, hat & mittens.


Most of all, it really made me appreciate all of my sweet Boise friends. Man, I missed you all. Absence certainly makes my heart grow fonder (not that I didn't love you all before.) Cramming visits & events all into a week sure makes time fly, but it was so worth it to see you all.

Nevertheless, we're on the road again (as Willie might say). We are back in Cali yet again & not complaining at all about the 50-60-degree weather.

The trip down was far less eventful than the last trip (although we did take the same route, we are in a different town this time.) All of Shad's markets are in towns typically with fewer than 15,000 people.

This time, we hit no snow, (but we did hit up at In & Out Burger again - & still not losing baby weight) & no accidents, we mastered the feeding/diaper-change schedule as well as the packing list. "Cashe doesn't need his pack n' play, but he does need his bath" kind of thing.

After leaving Reno, we took a 2-lane highway that had us in the middle of these gorgeous woods, then through single-wide-trailer-farmland-galore, some wine country, a few orchards, down another super windy highway, & up a long dirt road to the tippy-top of a mountain, leaving us at our destination: Lake Oroville Bed & Breakfast.

We were a little concerned about staying at a Bed & Breakfast with a 2-month old, but Cashe has been quite the trooper. He sleeps through the night (uh huh, a full 9 hours!) & he fusses a little during the day, but most travelers are out sight-seeing during the day, & peak season certainly isn't in January, so it's been fabulous!

The weather has been beautiful. The view is beautiful. The hospitality is wonderful. (Do I sound like PollyAnna yet?) It's really amazing; however the cell reception isn't fantastic & we're 30 miles out of town.

Nevertheless, Shad has quite a commute into work & I'm afraid to venture out into the woods alone with my baby in fear of being eaten by the black bear in the area. So ... I think we'll move into town soon.

In the meantime, we're enjoying the yummy hot breakfasts, the jaccuzzi tub, the gorgeous view, & having the whole place to ourselves!