Day Four of The Unplanned Plan

On Day Four of The Unplanned Plan, the kids and I slept in a bit while Josh met up with some of the Halfway locals for coffee at 6:30 a.m.

And when he got back (all jacked up on coffee, because apparently, old men from Halfway drink a lot of coffee) we walked across the street for the best continental breakfast ever. (We were the only people staying at the Pine Valley Lodge so the whole breakfast was for us.)

And then the kids played cards for awhile.

And then we headed down to Jacob's Dream to do a bit of yardwork. (While Josh was at coffee, the Reverend of the local Presbyterian church had mentioned that Jacob's Dream had a lot of leaves that needed raking.)

Jacob's Dream is a local consignment shop in Halfway that is run by a lovely gal named Betty and all of the profit she brings in goes to help fund local school programs, scholarships for local college students, etc.

And they weren't joking when they said that they had a lot of leaves that needed raking.

We were short on rakes though, so Betty put Annie to work inside. 

And the reverend's wife (also named Annie) sent some popcorn down for us to snack on while we worked.

And the we headed back to the "Main Street Shack" where we were staying. (It's the oldest standing building in Halfway.)

And then I went for a walk to to the grovery store (to get groceries and to clear my mind) and when I got back, Josh and Cole were working on math problems (for fun) and the girls were upstairs playing.

And then we headed out for Hell's Canyon.

With a few sightseeing pit-stops along the way. (I couldn't get over the way the mountains and the sky were reflecting in the water, so I kept making Josh pull the truck over for more photos.)

We spotted those stairs while we were driving and then we all took a guess at how many steps there were before climbing them. (Courtney Lee was the winner.)

That was our reflection through some of the grates.

And on our way back, Josh pulled the truck over so we could all cross #19 off of our Scavenger Hunt list: Fully submerge your body in a stream, worth 5 points. (Josh is the Scavenger Hunt judge so he decided that holding our heads underneath this freezing cold run-off water would qualify us each for 5 points.)

Yans decided that it wasn't worth 5 points to her.

And then Josh dropped me back off at the "Main Street Shack" and took the kids to the park for a few minutes so I had time to set up for Courtney Lee's birthday party. (Her birthday was on the 21st, but we had just celebrated with a Birthday Muffin for breakfast and dinner with family at Courtney's favorite Mexican restaurant - with plans to celebrate again while we were on vacation.)

She requested a coconut cream pie.

Part of which ended up on Cole's face, by way of a finger-full of whipped cream on his dad's finger.

And she also requested Barbies. 

And a certificate redeemable for lunch and shopping (one outfit) at the mall.

And a plush rabbit (because Courtney has been asking me for a stuffed animal and for a pet rabbit, so I figured I might as well try killing those two birds with the same stone.)

And then there was Monopoly.

And then the boys went off to do 'boy things' (Shoot squirrels? Get tattoos? Start a bar fight?) while us girls ate pie and laid in bed together, watching The Biggest Loser. (Because nothing goes better with The Biggest Loser than a big slice of coconut cream pie.)

Comments

[Doris D.]

Such a fun vacation. I love that you helped out the neighborhoods along the way. I hope you will publish the Scavenger Hunt list. It sounds like fun. Thanks for sharing your wonderful family with us. Love to you and all.

[Angie]

Looks like such an idyllic spot! Spontaneous outings are the most fun. Enjoyed your photos. :)

[Addie]

Oh my, now I must go to Hells Canyon! It's so beautiful! Loved all the pics!

[Cate O'Malley]

gorgeous photos! i love unplanned plans, they might be my favorite.

[Jennifer M.]

That shot of the mountains and the water looks like a painting!

[EBPItcher]

Fabulous photos of the mountains reflecting the water! Don't you just love it when you discover something in nature that you know were you meant to photograph just to appreciate its beauty?!? I'm loving hearing about your travels, too!

[karlalala]

you sure you didn't do some fancy tricks with those shots of the water and the mountains?!?!? those were awesome!! and i always love looking at your pictures/stories!! smoochers!!!

[karlalala]

you sure you didn't do some fancy tricks with those shots of the water and the mountains?!?!? those were awesome!! and i always love looking at your pictures/stories!! smoochers!!!

[karlalala]

you sure you didn't do some fancy tricks with those shots of the water and the mountains?!?!? those were awesome!! and i always love looking at your pictures/stories!! smoochers!!!

[karlalala]

you sure you didn't do some fancy tricks with those shots of the water and the mountains?!?!? those were awesome!! and i always love looking at your pictures/stories!! smoochers!!!

[janel]

Such beautiful landscape shots...but when you put the kids in the photo..absolutely perfection. Looks like you are making great memories. I appreciate you posting and working on sharing your shots during your family time. Thanks so much!

[janel]

Such beautiful landscape shots...but when you put the kids in the photo..absolutely perfection. Looks like you are making great memories. I appreciate you posting and working on sharing your shots during your family time. Thanks so much!

[janel]

Such beautiful landscape shots...but when you put the kids in the photo..absolutely perfection. Looks like you are making great memories. I appreciate you posting and working on sharing your shots during your family time. Thanks so much!

[janel]

Such beautiful landscape shots...but when you put the kids in the photo..absolutely perfection. Looks like you are making great memories. I appreciate you posting and working on sharing your shots during your family time. Thanks so much!

[Kelli]

The landscape reflecting in the lake shots are gorgeous!
I love that you all put your head in the waterfall!
Off to see if this is on the route we are taking, I think it isn't but it's worth checking!

[Deneen]

Courtney Lee and I love the same pie! Coconut Cream yum. Looks like quite the adventure and I love your shots of the reflections :)

[Wendy]

I just tripped across your blog... And I have to say, those were the best pictures, what a fun family! I loved the picture of the three kids on the railing of the bridge, each one higher than the one before. Pretty fun. I will be back to see more great pics! Wendy

[Holly Heinz]

You are a marvel, Karen. A beautiful, lovely, talented, inspirational marvel! Thank you for each and every photo & blog post XOXOXO

[april nowotny]

Ever since you posted day one of the trip, I have been amazed. Now this is my kind of trip...and unplanned plan. I love it! Wouldn't mind doing something like that (if I can convince my hubby, that is). I love that you incorporated spurts of helping others throughout the day. As a teacher, I can say that this is a great lesson for those wonderful children of yours. Kids have so much these days and it's a great life lesson to learn how to give back to others. I agree with Doris D. (from the first comment) I'd love to see your scavenger hunt list. How fun! Thanks for sharing. And inspiring.

[Kat]

although I truly appreciate the landscape/reflection shots as an artist, I am IN LOVE with the pic of Courtney Lee holding her hand over Annie's mouth so there was no impingement on the attempt at blowing out her own birthday candles in one blow, thus securing her birthday wish!!! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!

[Julie in Aust.]

Magic Karen..love the pics... esp the one with Courtney Lee holding her hand over Annies mouth and the last one.