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In case you missed our stories, we left WA on Saturday to head south! First stop was Portland, where we got to have a long-overdue reunion with one of Gerald’s buddies whose wedding he officiated and that we photographed! We had breakfast together, showed them our home, and then drove out to Multnomah Falls together (towing the rig behind). We got a nice break in the weather to view the falls and enjoy some hot cocoa before hitting the road again. (It was so great to see you @rockii12 and Rachel!) 😘
Bedroom renovation Before & After. Ta-da! Even though the renovation pushed our departure from WA out a few days, this was totally worth it! I can’t believe we waited two years to paint the bedroom. I love it so much - it’s like a whole new RV. Watch our stories to see the boys’ reaction. :) Eventually we will update the lights, window treatments and cabinet pulls, but for now, we will enjoy this beautiful light-filled space with legit shoe storage! 🙌🏻🎉
Happy National Sons Day to the boys that inspired our adventures! 💙 We love you so very much! 💙
Chicago Part 2… I have had the architectural boat cruise on my wish list for Chicago for 20+ YEARS. And we finally made it happen! When deciding who to do the tour with, our decision was easy - it only made sense to go with the Chicago Architecture Foundation @chiarchitecture and they did not disappoint! #notsponsored Not only did we learn an incredible amount about the history and growth of Chicago, but I’m not sure I’ll look at any city in the same way again. Learning to “see” through this lens was fascinating…the city was literally built in layers, or waves, and it is really cool to see how each era has left their stamp. I highly recommend this experience for teens and adults! (For younger kids, I would take a shorter, less information-heavy cruise, but I would still go!) After the cruise, we wandered around Millenium park and happened a free concert and of course, took some obligatory photos with “the bean.” I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again - Chicago is such a cool city! You simply must go.
Chicago! We recently traveled to Chicago, and believe it or not, it was our first flight/getaway without our kids! I know that parents will find that hard to believe, but the truth is, we enjoy traveling with our kids and have never felt the need to leave them behind, plus we don’t have an awesome Gramma on the road with us. 😭🥰😆 That said, this short 3 day getaway was so much fun and perfect timing for us after a few crazy months. We only had a day to explore the city because our other days were booked with wedding events, so we decided to do some things that we had skipped this summer (more on that later) because they weren’t as kid friendly. So upon dropping our bags at the beautiful Chicago Athletic Association Hotel we headed down to the Riverwalk! Now, if you haven’t been to Chicago in the last decade, then you’ve been missing out! The city has transformed itself significantly since I went to college there, and the riverwalk is so accessible and simply beautiful. There are tons of restaurants and wineries, with ample seating all along the water. The day we went, it was perfect weather, so had the privilege of seeing some pretty incredible boats go by while we enjoyed our lunch. So I want to know - especially you fulltime travelers - have you taken a flight together away from your kids? If so, was it weird? We kept feeling like we had forgotten something! 😆
One of the biggest lessons we’ve learned through travel is that sometimes the best moments are born out of “failed” plans… We were supposed to leave NC bright and early last Monday morning. But when we got up at 5:15, we had an alert on our phones that our flight was delayed two hours. So we went back to bed. Much better rested, we headed to the airport a few hours later, checked in and headed to our gate…only to discover that our flight had been delayed again! It turns out there was a mechanical issue, but since we were booked on the only nonstop flight back to Seattle, we chose to wait versus switching to a flight with a layover. And then the flight got delayed again. The pilot shared that the part needed to fix our plane was still in Atlanta and that the flight would be delayed at least three more hours, maybe more. So, after 4+ hours at the airport, we decided to scrap the whole thing and rebook our flight for the next day. And that’s when the unexpected fun began! Our kids have always loved getting to ride on Papa’s boat, whether fishing or going fast, it is one of their (and our) favorite activities. So, when we saw Papa & Mimi at lunch, they agreed that a sunset cruise would be a great use of our unexpected night together. We only had about 45 minutes to ride, but the water was gorgeous and the fish were biting. And, for the very first time, Benji got excited about fishing. In fact, he got so into it that at one moment Asher looked at me in disbelief and then one of the happiest smiles I’ve ever seen spread across his face. He was thrilled that his brother was having fun doing what he loves most. Now that’s what I call a blessing, not a setback! ❤️ (Listen to the audio on the second video, when we are heading back to the dock and Benji is declaring that we need to find another fishing spot.)
As many of you know, we’ve taken 4 flights over the last 3 weeks, and the most common question I’ve received is “do you really think air travel is safe?” So I thought I’d address it here… To be honest, i feel safer flying than driving or going to the grocery store! The air filtration systems in planes is incredible, and most airports have air circulating constantly. Many food and beverage services have gone touchless, which is really nice. Also, I can’t speak to other airlines, but since the pandemic started, we have flown @delta exclusively because they have a number of increased safety measures in place. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the cabins have been clean, they give you a disinfectant wipe upon boarding to use on your seat (if you choose), and they require masks throughout the flight. They even go so far as to say that when you are eating and drinking, you are to lower your mask for the drink/bite only and then replace it right away (which makes so much more sense than all these contradictory dining policies out there)! These are all things that our family appreciates (we can agree to disagree if you’re on a different page ❤️). In sum, what I would say is this: if you are putting off seeing a loved one or if you’re feeling stifled and just need to get out and explore, take a trip! Your mental health, and spending time with the ones you love (safely) is important too. Feel free to reach out with any questions, and please know that this post is not in any way sponsored or meant to start a debate. I just want to encourage you to travel by sharing our experience. P.S. Have you ever seen an airplane with a window in the bathroom? I thought it was pretty awesome, see photo 4 😂
If you’ve been following us for any length of time, you know that I love sunsets. In fact, my entire extended family knows that I love sunsets so much that if the skies at the beach are shaping up just right and we haven’t eaten dinner yet, I may not eat. 😆 So I’m really glad we made it priority to eat dinner early so that we could enjoy as many golden hours and sunsets as possible! The kids would play and the men would fish, my sister in law would chase my niece, and I would take more photos than I possibly know what to do with. And it was such a sweet time.
24 species of fish in one week. Now that’s what we call a good week at the beach. My (Gerald) brothers, dad and I love to fish wherever we go, but we have been fishing the waters of Atlantic Beach every year(almost) for as long as we can remember. It’s been especially fun to see all of our boys get in on the action with their us and their Papa over the last few years. This week, we fished from the beach in front of our condo, at Fort Macon, off a dock in Beaufort, from a boat in the ocean and even from kayaks. Asher reeled in 10 different species on his own, including one that no one in the family had ever caught! If you know the Pope family, you know that’s saying something! So we’re curious - who are our fellow fisherpeople? And where is your favorite place to fish?