Moab or Bust

Friday morning, we packed up the tiny guy, his gear, our stuff and headed out on the road a little before noon.  Along the drive, I recognized many cities and landmarks from my past trips to Moab, but it had been a long time, and it was surprising to see what had changed.  There are now giant windmills at the base of Spanish Fork Canyon.  The classic Arby's where I ate so many lunches in Wellington is now gone.

We stopped about halfway, around Wellington, to eat a late lunch.  Frankie had slept pretty much the entire way by this point.  Then we continued on to Moab.  Frankie slept the rest of the way!

After checking at our hotel, we headed out to Arches National Park to meet our friends Aroon and Aarthi at the visitor center.  From here, we drove to Balanced Rock and combined cars to head toward the northwest corner of the park.  We ended up hiking all the way to Landscape Arch in quite a bit of wind.  There's a lot of sand on this trail, and Frankie didn't care for the blowing sand.  He doesn't like to keep his sunglasses on, so it's hard to protect him from the wind.  Misty forgot to put her hiking shoes on and had hiked the entire way in her sandals.  At this point we weren't so sure about going to Delicate Arch in the morning.

Upon returning to Balanced Rock to reclaim our friend's vehicle, we notice the full "super" moon was out and in great view behind Balanced Rock.  Aroon got out his tripod and I snapped some hand held shots. It was at this point that Aroon somehow 'lost' his tripod. We have come to the conclusion that he accidentally put his tripod in someone's car!

After sunset, we drove back to Moab and ate dinner at Pasta Jays.  Dinner was tasty. Misty had the 'Baked Lorenzo,' linguine baked in a tomato cream sauce with crumbled sausage, topped with freshly grated parmigiano cheese. Yum!

We found that Frankie had admirers at the nearby tables.  One lady, as we were getting ready to leave, stopped us and said something like, "You probably wonder whether your baby is really cute, or if it's just your parental bias... well let me tell you, your baby is *really* cute!"

After dinner we headed back to the Moab Valley Inn for a much needed night of rest. For dessert we took a piece of the 'Lemon Berry Cake' to the hotel and it was light and perfectly sweet. It was such a big piece, it took us two nights to finish it!

Montana, Final: Heading South

Sadly, all good things must end. The family visit was refreshing. The trip south, home, was not as quiet as the trip north. Tiny had a tough last hour of the drive. But considering the amount of time he did well, we feel the trip a success.

Leaving Butte I am always sad. It seems stuck. Never changing. Everything is right where I left it. Someone should dust it off and shake it up a bit. I appreciate the things of my past but I wish for the people and town, a happier existence.

Next up, we have an exciting trip to MOAB! We met up with Aroon and Aarthi and enjoyed the sites and treats of the small desert town. I'm excited to say that it being only 4.5 hours away means we will visit more often!

Montana, Part 5: The Visit

We were lucky enough to have awesome family that let us just hang out. Good meals and good conversation. Frankie, as always, was a real charmer. Below is some video and pictures, please scroll through...

Montana, Part 4: Eating Out

We picked up Grandma Dorothy and headed to breakfast before heading to Bozeman. I LOVE a good diner breakfast. In fact, I compare all breakfasts to Bobo's in Tucson, AZ. Seriously. If you haven't experienced Bobo's, you have not had a true diner breakfast. Apple pancakes... enough said.

Anyway, we hit Joe's Pasty Shop and it was perfect. Just eggs, hashbrowns, toast, and bacon. Little man just hung out in his chair. We invert the old wooden high chair and set the car seat in it. It is stable and he is at the table with everyone. Then of course he dosed off, sideways in his chair. We were able to enjoy our meal and he got in a morning nap, score!

After breakfast, we headed over Homestake Pass in search of more family and the beautiful Bridger mountain range. I dislike driving Homestake. It is curvy and in the winter, a real pain. Luckily, our trip was nice weather. A tad on the windy side for driving but I'll take wind over snow any day.

Our tips for eating out with little folks:

• Choose a child-friendly location. Children's menus and courtesy highchairs indicate that tots are welcome. This being said, I am a parent who loves that there are restaurants that are adult only.
• Avoid busy places and avoid dinner rush. If the wait is too long (or the service too slow) baby may be ready to leave before you even get a table.
• Make sure baby is safe and comfortable, do not rely on availability (or condition) of restaurant high chairs.
• TOYS!!! Bring along some new/interesting table toys. Empty plastic cups, plastic spoons, and jelly packets work too
• Do you like to watch people eat? No, baby probably won't either. Feed the tot too! Pack your own foods in small containers or take a jar/pouch of baby food. Or if done correctly, baby can enjoy some of your food (without risk of choking).
• Don't leave a mess. Don't be that wet-cracker-ground-into-the-table-and-carpet mom. It isn't right for the restaurant to clean up after tot invasion.

If baby keeps busy, you can do more eating and enjoy your time and meal. If it doesn't work out, eh. You tried! You have plenty of time to try again. And one last thing, don't forget to tip. ;)

Montana, Part 3: Babies in Hotels

This was the first time we stayed in a hotel with the little man. I was terrified that they would come toss us out in the middle of the night because no one wants to hear a crying baby. I'm here to report, happily, that there was no tossing and we all survived the night. We even managed to watch a couple episodes of Restaurant Impossible with Robert Irvine on the Food Network (a treat because we don't have cable at home!)

Tips for babies in hotels:

• Keep to your nighttime schedule as much as possible. If you are exhausted and fussy, the baby will be too!
• Toys, a small handful of ones that he doesn't always play with so they seem new and exciting.
• Let the hotel staff now ahead of time that you have a new traveler and hopefully you will get a smile and maybe even some encouraging advice.

We stayed at the Hotel Finlen and for as old as this hotel is, I was quite impressed by the room. It seemed classic in a good way. It was really clean, the furniture was nice, and the room was a decent size. The bathroom was small and only had a shower but I actually thought that was a better setup. The lobby is stunning and reminds one that Butte was once a elegant city. For those of you traveling through Butte, I recommend this as a place to stay.

Montana, Part 2: The Arrival

We arrived just in time for dinner with my grandma, Uncle Con, and his daughter, Kyla. The first stop, Pork Chop John's! I get mine with cheese, mayo, pickles, and onions. Alan prefers their hamburgers. It was Good Friday so we picked up halibut and chips for the others (no meat on Friday). Also, the fries and vanilla malts are a must try! This is definitely a Butte thing, they only exist there. They tried a store in Bozeman but it isn't there any more.

When we were waiting at the drive through, I noticed that the place across the street had licorice shakes on their sign. Licorice ice cream in Butte brings back lots of memories of going to North Star Ice Cream (I think that was the name) with my grandpa.

My grandma is still in pretty good health and we enjoyed visiting with her. She has been painting, knitting, and right now she is traveling a bit. Go Grandma!

Montana, Part 1: Going North

Note: The Montana posts will be heavy with pictures! 

The little guy had not met most of my family in Montana and we were craving Pork Chop John's (I was craving, not really we), so north we must go. My grandmother, mom, and aunts, uncles, and cousins live in and around Butte and Bozeman. Bozeman and the Bridger range is probably my favorite area to visit. I cannot put my finger on why that is but it is true. I cannot wait to get back there, go hiking, camping, and even just walk around downtown.

Just to be clear, we did take a short trip south to St. George when tiny was first born so we had a trial 'travel' run. We had a good idea of what gear to bring so we packed the car all up and zoomed north.

The ride normally takes about 6 hours and we made it in under 7 hours. Not bad. We stopped once at the Army Surplus Store just to stretch our legs and for a snack.

When we first started traveling, we posted about the clothes we were excited to hear about and use. We still have the clothes that we bought for that first trip and we used them to travel to Europe several more times. The clothes have held up well and still look great. In addition to the clothes, we thought it would be helpful to mention some gear that we use. With the newest addition to our pack, we cannot leave home without:

• Pack and Play Crib (if you are staying in a hotel ask if they have one for you to use!)
• Bjorn (We have a black one courtesy of the Tots but they come in all sorts of neat colors now!)

Check garage sales and buy these items used! We got one pack and play crib for $25 and it is in great condition, hardly used.

Other than that, just some clothes and diaper stuff and we are set. I would like to point out that the little guy is only 7 months so we can travel on the light end. We don't need much in the way of baby supplies now but as he gets older that will change. We also figure that if we get in the habit of traveling with a baby, it will only get easier.

We did see beautiful skies and landscapes on the way. There was also a truck with giant wheels!

PS: Tiny guy wore his best onesie (purchased at WeChooseJoy on Etsy) just to me Great Grandma Green!