Oregon Coast Road Trip

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We took a road trip to Oregon in the fall of last year. It was one of those trips I wanted to take for years, and one I often think about since.

Sometimes we even dream of buying a little cottage along a river nestled in those pines and wild blackberry bushes, minutes from the coast, even for just a year or two. It’s a happy thought I dream of from time to time.

Someday we’ll be back, if for nothing else than to feel the thrill of our heart’s content.

This was a last minute trip (as most of our trips are). We had hardly a plan except to explore and enjoy, which landed us on top of a volcano, through the cityscape, and to the sands of the pacific just on day two. We struggled to find a place to stay each night (it was Labor Day weekend) but ended up with just what we needed.

In four days we totaled 31 hours of driving in the car, but we mixed it up with park stops, beach play, and lots and lots of snacks. And the drive was half the fun with all the beauty we got to see together!

It was an incredible trip, one of my very, very favorites.

Oregon Coast Road Trip | thatwemighthavejoy.com

31 Hours

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A few weeks ago we decided it would be really great to see our families. It had been three and a half months since we saw them, but with winter it just seemed A LOT longer. And we missed them! So we packed up the car on a Thursday, spent three days PACKED with beautiful family time and packed up again for a LONG ride back to ND–for a total of 31 hours in the car!

And it was so worth it! Sometimes family time just is.

Now we’re over here cooking up eggs and really wishing we were cooking up eggs at Grandma and Grandpa’s or playing with the kitties at Grammy and Grampy’s (Hyrum especially. He LOVES cats. He follows them around squealing “puppy!”) Somehow both kids ended up with the stomach flu on separate days while we were there (somehow that always happens) but it was STILL an awesome trip.

We had a beautiful drive through Utah, Idaho, and Montana, and we made sure to stop and “run through a field,” “stand in the snow,” and “sit by a river” (Ava’s relentless requests.)

Long Drives

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I don’t think we’d be able to do so many road trips if our kids didn’t enjoy them too. But of course we all get a little stiff being in the car for so long, so we reeaally appreciate our quicks stops, especially Hyrum. He gets all sorts of excited.

Family Time

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We LOVE being with our families. We both come from big families, and we feel like we can never get enough togetherness with them.

So why do we live so far away!?

It’s interesting how that works. We feel like North Dakota is where we are supposed to be, for now. We love being out on our own, exploring new places and growing together as a little family of four. We love our life here, AND we love being with our family in other states. Eventually we would like to live near them, but for now we can be just as happy.

With that said, we had a BLAST with our families in Utah. We packed our days full of Christmas parties, potlucks, game nights, lunch dates, late night chats, downtown lights, charades, dodgeball, basketball, settlers, sledding, backyard ice skating, and a whole lot of togetherness. It was such a good trip.

Reunited

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We arrived at my parents’ house on the evening of the 19th. Ava’s eyes lit up as we pulled up to their house, wasting no time running up to them with big hugs. She ran from room to room and up and down the stairs piecing together her memory of the place she dearly loved.

Sunday morning we ate eggs and cinnamon rolls and drove through the drifting snow to attend church with Jake’s parents. We walked into his home ward 20 minutes early and sat on a bench toward the front. When Ava saw her grandpa come and sit down in the pew a few rows over, completely unaware of us, she ran over and sat down right next to him.

With a quiet gasp of surprise and his smile beaming, he wrapped his arm around her and kissed her forehead. He looked back at me with that same smile, and I could feel the love he had for this little girl. She smiled and closed her eyes for a moment, seemingly so content and perfectly satisfied that she was once again reunited with all her grandparents. She has missed them so. #mamanotes