Spring Break

In years past, my parents have come to Washington for Paige's spring break. It has been a way to celebrate her birthday and to have a whole week with them when Paige is not in school. This year since my parents are coming to Washington in June for a baby, we decided to meet in the middle in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho- a 5 hour drive for us and a 7 hour drive for them. We got an Airbnb and Amy, Juliette, and Emily were able to also join us which the girls all loved having this extra time together.

We both got there a little early and before we were able to check in, so we met up at a park and walked around a small portion of Tubb's Hill and enjoyed the gorgeous view of the lake. It was the one afternoon that was beautiful weather and the rest of the days the weather didn't cooperate with us at all but we made the most of it.

We got into our house for the next few days and I made a spaghetti dinner for everyone. Grandma brought the girls something to play with each evening and for the first night, they got some play dough. They kept each other entertained the entire time and they always have so much fun together. It was great to visit and catch up.

It was very cold in the morning so the majority went and checked out some new thrift stores. Baylor was not acting herself and said her stomach hurt and so during the stop at the first store I had Nate take Baylor and I home and she ended up taking a nap which was great and I was able to get lunch ready while everyone was out and about. 

After we had lunch, we went to Big Red's Barn Indoor Animal Experience and Education. It is pretty much an indoor petting zoo and the girls loved it and we spent about 3 hours there.

This larger petting area was where we spent the most time. The girls had fun going from animal to animal and petting them all. There were the cutest baby goats that were the favorite!

Amy was not a fan but once she did start petting it was pretty entertaining. She definitely had a connection with LeRoy the Llama. :)

This was "Munchers" which was the name Paige came up with for this very cute little baby goat that loved to munch on your shoes, zippers, sleeves, etc. and Baylor took a liking to him and followed it everywhere and wanted to pet it the entire time and was begging for us to take him home. 

Grandma and Baylor having quite the conversation while watching the river otters.

There was a reptile room and we got to watch a couple of the snakes get fed which was interesting though I still think snakes are creepy.

The three older girls got to hold the ferrets which was a perfect way to end our experience at Big Red's and it was such a fun place to go and see.

It was still pretty cold but warmed up enough if we all had coats on and we wanted to hike another small portion of Tubb's Hill that had a suspension bridge. It was a good little hike and Paige and Juliette could have hiked even farther. It would be great to hike more in the summer when all the leaves are out because it had some gorgeous views of the lake and it would be really pretty when everything is in bloom.

The suspension bridge

Some cute girls and we found the perfect "Little Mermaid" rock but I couldn't get the right angle so Amy had to go on it backwards which was pretty entertaining and we were both laughing.

We walked along the water towards the end and the girls had fun exploring the beach area before heading home for dinner.

Another thing from Grandma- some coloring pages

We woke up Friday morning to snow! It was super disappointing but I guess that's what I get for going to Idaho for Spring Break. Since most of the things I wanted to do were outside, we ended up going to more thrift stores in the morning and Grandma and Poppy stayed home with the two younger girls.

Then a favorite place for the girls was going to The Salvation Army Kroc Center. The older three girls and Amy got to go rock climbing for about an hour. Paige absolutely loved it!

There was a play area for younger kids that Baylor enjoyed while the other girls were doing their own climbing.

Then it was time for swimming! The girls were very excited about this part of our trip. This pool is ideal and so much fun for kids. They have a water slide, a lazy river, a splash area, and a small pool area but the best thing was the the deepest it ever got was around 4 1/2 feet and since Paige can now swim, I didn't have to worry too much about her since she could stand wherever she went. Juliette and Paige hung together and went down the slide as many times as possible. Amy was with Emily and I was with Baylor. It worked out perfectly and everyone had so much fun. I would have loved to try out the water slide but being 7 months pregnant I figured it wasn't the best timing for me.

It was fun watching Paige's progression of going down the water slide. The first time she was very timid and plugging her nose way before she got to the end and trying to slow down and then seeing her come down with her hands in the air with a big grin. I love seeing my kids try scary things and realize they can do it and have fun while doing it. I also love how swimming lessons has given her so much more confidence in the water which made this experience even more fun for her.

This little cutie liked to be where she could stand and just "swim" around on her own and she loved to play on the stairs and splash Aunt Amy.

Our last night we enjoyed dinner together and Grandma brought things to make resurrection rolls with it being Easter on Sunday. The girls loved the down time at the house. Emily and Baylor enjoyed watching shows together and playing hide and seek. Juliette and Paige were inseparable the entire time and loved sharing a room.

Goodbyes are always hard especially for Paige. She just loves time with her Idaho family and it breaks her heart every time we have to leave. It is hard having your heart in two places and loving both of them. On our way out we stopped in Post Falls to check out Falls Park. It was a place that Paige and I both wanted to see. It was freezing cold but it was a gorgeous view.

The girls did awesome in the car and we made it home later in the afternoon on Saturday and we are all excited to Easter. It was such a fun couple of days and I loved every minute of it and the girls loved all the cousin time!