Yosemite

We arrived in Yosemite without any issues, thank heavens! Yosemite was absolutely beautiful & the park was full & was unique in that it was filled with people riding bikes everywhere. There was a creek by our campsite where the kids played every day. We stayed 3 nights & had the most beautiful view from our campsite:

The kids were so excited to see deer right by our campsite, & then later a raccoon came walking through. 

But this picture was perhaps the most glorious moment in Yosemite for me. After days of no cell reception, I was sitting outside our camper & I heard my phone start to ring. Cell service! In the middle of a National Park! Hallelujah!

Starting the hike to Yosemite Falls 

The kids loved this rock "slide" & climbed up & went down time & time again. Nature's playground. 

Yosemite Falls in the background 

This was such a fun hike! We had to climb up boulders for much of the way & Noah was so terrified at first. At one point he sat down on a big rock & refused to keep going. "I'm not going any further! I'm just going to sit here & wait till you guys come back!", he said. Despite the tears, Tyler made him finish the hike so we could at least get to the Lower Falls. And when we did, Noah cautiously started to explore & then was waist deep playing in the water. He didn't want to leave when it was finally time to go & it ended up being his favorite part of Yosemite. I loved seeing his confidence grow & how proud he was of himself for doing something he was afraid of. 

Such a beautiful view!

The next day we rode our bikes & then hiked to Mirror Lake where we swam & played in the cold water with Half Dome as our backdrop. 

On our bike ride back to our campsite, Tyler started shouting to get Noah in the bike trailer (he was on his balance bike at the time). I didn't know what was going on & then heard Tyler yell, "Bear!" I could hear Ruby up with Tyler crying hysterically as I rushed to get Noah in the bike trailer as quickly as possible. Sure enough, there was a bear right on the side of the road that was making its way up a tree trunk after it saw us, & then came down & started wandering through the trees. All of our hearts were racing & then I understood why there were bear boxes for food literally all over the park. Yikes!

The next day we hiked to Vernal Falls which was a hike that was entirely uphill. The kids were amazing - they had their moments, but they both made it up without being carried. There were so many adults high-fiving them & saying, "Good job!" as they made their way to the top - I was really proud of them. 

We made it! I can't believe how much we walked, hiked & biked in Yosemite. It definitely wasn't as family-friendly as some of the other parks. The kids were troopers the whole time. The last night we were there, we carried our huge bag of laundry to the laundromat in the park that we thought was really close. It ended up turning into quite the adventure that took hours, & once again reminded me how much I love the convenience of my home. But as we sat on a bench reading books to the kids & eating ice cream & trying to do anything to pass the time while our laundry was going, I felt grateful. Grateful for Tyler for always being such a great leader in our family & planning such a great vacation that couldn't have been more outside of my comfort zone. He put up with my emotional breakdowns when our toilet was backed up & when I desperately just wanted to be surrounded by modern-day conveniences. I've never been much of a crier, but I think I had an emotional breakdown about every other day or so. In fact, I think Tyler may have seen me cry more on this trip than he has the past 15 years of our marriage. But there were also lots of highlights - I loved watching our kids make fast friends with the little kids on the bus & try to speak the other languages they were hearing all around them. And I loved being in such tight quarters with our family & spending every moment of the day together. Then we headed to our next stop - the Redwoods!

Sequoia National Park

After leaving Joshua Tree we headed to Sequoia for 3 days. It was beautiful & I think it ended up being our family's favorite. But first let me back up a bit...

As we were driving down the freeway on our way there, between the music playing & the kids talking, & the a/c blasting, Tyler & I both thought we heard something but then dismissed it. A few minutes later we had a car flagging us down pointing at our tire. We had a total blowout on one of the trailer tires & Tyler managed to change it on a precarious edge of the freeway. After a 3-hour detour finding a tire place & getting a new tire we were back on the road again, way behind schedule. Just as we pulled up to the entrance of the park, a Park Ranger informed us we couldn't enter on that side of the park with a trailer because the switchbacks were too narrow. So, we had to go back down the way we came & go to the other side of the park. It was another 2+ hour detour & we decided to take a road that looked like it would be a little shorter of a route (even though the Park Ranger had suggested a different one). It started out great, & we couldn't figure out why we were the only ones on this incredibly beautiful road. After about 30 minutes we realized why - it was a never-ending winding road that actually wasn't a short cut at all. By the time we finally reached our campsite, it was pitch black, I felt like I was going to throw up, & the kids were bouncing off the walls. I think that was the first time I was genuinely concerned about what I had gotten myself into. 

But, we survived the night & somehow the sun always brings renewed hope with it. And in the light of day, we realized just how beautiful the park was - it was incredible!

Our first stop was the Sherman Tree Trail (the world's largest tree) & it was such a great family hike. The trees in Sequoia are so unbelievably huge!

Then we hiked to the top of Moro Rock. It was a hike up a lot of stairs with an awesome outlook at the top. The kids both hiked it completely by themselves & we were so proud of them. 

Hooray for bus systems with a/c!

Look how huge that pinecone is!

The next day we hiked to Thorp's Log in Crescent Meadow. We saw some deer & a yellow-bellied marmot & the meadows in Sequoia were so beautiful! It was such a family friendly park with a little creek the kids could play in right by our campsite & the weather was perfect. 

Thorp's Log - years ago a man built his hunting cabin in the trunk of a fallen tree. 

I think Sequoia may have been the favorite National Park for our family - we had such a great time here & there was so much to do. And those trees - there's nothing else like them! After 3 nights in Sequoia we left for our next stop in Yosemite. As we were pulling out of the campground and reached the top of a hill, all of a sudden we heard a terrible sound & turned around to see our camper coming off the truck hitch & sliding down the hill. It was headed straight for a van that was parked at the bottom of the hill that had people sleeping inside. I can't even describe the sickening feeling as I watched it all happen & I started praying out loud (which is when you know things are serious!) that it wouldn't hit the van. Miraculously it slowed & came to a stop about 6 feet away from the van without hitting anything. We were so fortunate. 

Here's what the tailgate looked like after it happened. 

And then here's our camper at the bottom of the hill. Tyler just stood there in shock staring at it, not even knowing where to begin. It took me about 5 minutes before I could even work up the courage to get out of the truck & face the situation. Thankfully RV'rs are some of the kindest people on the earth & in a few minutes we had a group gathered around helping us problem solve the situation. There was the cutest older man who was patting Tyler's back & saying, "It's okay. It's going to be okay." Meanwhile the people in the van we almost crashed into came out & surprisingly hadn't heard a thing. They looked out their window & thought they had gotten neighbors so came out to say "hello". As all of the possibilities of what could have happened were rolling through my head & I was fighting back the tears, these older men were so kind & reassuring. They kept saying, "Everything is going to be okay. You're going to look back on this someday & have a great story to tell. Everyone is okay, & that's what really matters." I've never seen angels who looked like unkempt men in flannels & crocs, who smelled like campfire until that day. And I couldn't have been more grateful for those beautiful faces & the kindness they showed us. They helped us get the trailer back on & wished us well as we sheepishly drove away, continually looking over our shoulder to make sure the trailer was in fact, attached. When we got back in the truck the kids were totally unphased by the whole fiasco. In a tone of impatience & irritation Ruby said, "Dad, can you finally help me find a spot to put all my stuffed animals in?!" Ummm, wow. Those kids live a charmed life. I promptly burst into tears & once again wondered, "What on earth am I doing here??" Then we were off to Yosemite or bust! Which suddenly seemed like a very real possibility...

Summer Vacation

Tyler loves to camp - it's something he's passionate about. He loves the outdoors, hiking, living simply & being disconnected from everyday life. Tyler has instilled a love of camping in the kids as well. They love it, & tend to be the best versions of themselves when we're out in nature. So for the past I don't know how many months, Tyler has been planning his dream vacation. We have a 5th wheel & he mapped out a 3-week trip to eight different National Parks & stops to see family in Washington & Utah. The amount of effort & detail he put into this trip was pretty amazing. He had everything planned out & we definitely had a lot of adventures. This is a trip that I think our family will always remember. Our first stop was at Joshua Tree National Park in California. 

Joshua Tree was so interesting - really cool rocks everywhere that the kids loved to climb & then of course the Joshua Trees that it's famous for. I've never seen anything quite like it. 

The kids were really brave as we climbed up these big rocks & loved getting to the top where we could look out at everything.

Dancing down the trail

Noah dancing down the trail as well.

We went for bike rides all around the park at sunset & it was so beautiful. It's taken me years to appreciate the desert beauty, but now it really has my heart. 

Tyler & Ruby went on an early morning hike to Skull Rock while Noah & I stayed back & slept. Win-win! 

 Skull Rock

My mom got the kids Lego sets & they spent hours throughout the trip playing in the camper at the table with them. 

We spent one night in Joshua Tree & then headed off for our next stop - Sequoia National Park.