Grandma in Seattle

One our last day, we took Marty to the airport for a week long business trip and the kids, Grandma and I hit the road for a loooong 6 hour drive.  About 5 minutes into the drive Josie started feeling sick.  We pull over, she eats a few carrots and feels better.  In the end, Benjamin ended up throwing up while driving through the mountains about half way home.  It was really fun and easy to clean up without wipes....Obviously, I'm being sarcastic here.  But we eventually made it home after a quick stop for lunch. 

 Josie and Grandma on their devices while Benjamin slept in.

 The young teaching the old or the old teaching the young.  It went back and forth.

 Josie made a list of things to do while Grandma was visiting.

 With all that reading on her list we headed to the library.

 And stopped by the park on the way home.

 Grandma, as always, keeps herself busy organizing my messy and cluttered cupboards.

Bend, Oregon - The Bat Caves

Last year, we enjoyed our scenic and rather challenging hike at Smith Rock. And also the year before that. Josie, on the other hand, has not!!  On the way down to Bend this year, she declared, "I will NOT climb Smith Rock again!"  It was a pretty difficult hike for a 5 or 6 year old.  She did it both years but was not happy about it.  Part of the difficulty is that you are hiking in direct sun the entire time.  No shade for Josie (and Marty and Benjamin) translates to nearly devastating conditions.  So, to try something new and keep Josie from melting we decided to try the bat caves, under round, very cool... in fact, 42 degrees cool.  Josie and Benjamin happily hiked along the entire way, underground, in the pitch black with our only light source being flashlights and head lights.  She loved it.  As did we. A very fun experience for all of us. 

We didn't see any bats but it was certainly an adventure.

Bend, Oregon - Hanging Around

This was our third year traveling to Bend with our good friends Markus and Jen along with their two daughters, Mia and Ellie.  Josie and Mia are in the same grade and Benjamin and Ellie were born about 12 hours apart! 

We brought a bin of toys and games with us to play in the condo.  The big hit of the trip was a fun game Franziska brought to us from Germany called Geistesblitz.   A very fun game for young and old

 There were bikes we could borrow from the condo so we were able to ride to dinner a couple of times.

Benjamin and Ellie getting a free ride in the trailer. 

 Of course, we had to stop at the park on the way to dinner and "hang out" for awhile...

 And then after dinner we headed home.... SO much fun to be able to bike or walk to dinner each night.

Bend, Oregon - The Beginning

A couple of days after Josie's school got out we packed up the car and headed down to Bend.  We made a pit stop at Government Camp near Mt. Hood.  Such a beautiful mountain with or without snow.  We walked around for a bit, the kids sat on the non-operating chair lift and then after a bunch of photos headed back to the car for the second half of the road trip.  

 "No more photos" says, Benjamin.

We received a warm welcome from Grandma and Papa and we were all happy to be out of the car and back together again! 

 Overlooking the Deschutes River with Grandma on their deck.

Little did we know at the time that Josie had a double ear infection.  She was up most of night in severe pain.  We had to take her to an urgent care clinic the next morning.  She was put on antibiotics and thankfully was feeling relatively back to normal within 24 hours.

Bend... a Great Way to Kick Off Summer

Heading to Bend right when school got out was a great way to kick off the Riemer 2014 Summer of FUN!  

No trip to Bend would be complete without several trips to one of our favorite restaurants where the kids make their own pizzas. 

We had fun getting together with my friend, Katie, and her 4 year old son, Jesse. Being surrounded by the girls, Benjamin enjoyed having another little dude to play with. 

 Marty and I are always thankful for the night out we get while the kids enjoy an evening with Grandma and Papa.  Most of the time we head to Joolz for awesome Mediterranean food.

And some fun, last night, hot tub time on the deck. 

Lava Butte

After hiking down in the bat caves he went up to the top of Lava Butte. With the red lava rock and the view, it was beautiful. 

 SOOO strong... or maybe it just looks that way. The lava rock was so incredibly light.