273/365

Darin back to work, Gavin back to school & no worse for the wear!
HOWEVER, we will make sure that our next trip south is padded with more travel days.

272/365

Still in the lost iPhone pictures period, this was the only photo we ended up with today--the Colorado River in northern AZ. We drove ALL. DAY. with an extended stop at Ikea in Draper, UT to get some exercise & dinner. We got home at bedtime tonight & were glad to sleep in our own beds (or any bed!). Lucky for us, our kids are troopers & really great travelers. The electronics help quite a bit in that area--with an iPhone each, there were not many complaints from the back seat! Total miles today: 807

271/365

 We left by about 7:00 this morning & headed to Tucson for Corey & Lindsay's wedding! Darin's mom had arranged for babysitters to watch Greyson during the wedding/reception, so when we arrived at their house, we visited for a bit, then changed & headed to Tanque Verde Guest Ranch where the wedding was held. It was a beautiful set-up. Ellie was the flower girl & did great in her part! Gav did great too. The reception included a beautiful formal dinner with special coloring page booklets for the kids. We enjoyed it so much & visiting with Darin's family--we wished we didn't have to leave that night, but we needed to get back home before work/school on Monday morning. So, after the toasts & cake cutting, when the dancing had just gotten going, we said goodbye (around 9:30) & headed out. Picked up Greyson & changed clothes to get on the road & put some miles behind us. Our original plan was to get to Vegas, but since we left later than we thought, we set our sights on Flagstaff for the night. Long story short, there were NO hotels there to be found due to it being "Family Week" at NAU, & we ended up sleeping a few hours in the car in a hotel parking lot in Tuba City, AZ. Caraaazy! Still, glad we got to be at the wedding & enjoy that night. Total miles today (morning & night combined): 766

270/365

 Beach day! We spent the morning at the playground, pool & splash pad, then a few hours on the beach with the Heflins. Gavin loved the boogie board & went back in again & again with good success riding the waves! The Skidmores & Brett with Colton arrived this afternoon (Williams were at Sea World today). The weather was perfect. We visited & hung out in the courtyard by the playground overlooking the beach, & we all had dinner at the BX food court--quick & convenient! We learned some tips & tricks for our next visit to make it easier to get around--my parents had to escort us around on base. (& we ARE planning a next visit! This place is awesome.)

269/365

 SeaWorld today! We used the return trip pass that came with our tickets in July. Meanwhile, the Heflins, Williams & my parents were arriving at Coronado Island. We met them there this evening & got checked into our room at the North Island Navy Lodge which my parents had reserved back in January--very nice & right on the beach! All our rooms had kitchenettes, & tonight's dinner was in my parent's room--shredded beef burritos/tacos/nachos Mom had brought from home with all the fixins. Tragically, we lost some iPhone pics this trip due to backup user error. :(

268/365

 Long day of driving... we left our hotel before 7:30--Darin woke up early (like 5:30), so we used that to our advantage to get a jump on the day ahead! Stopped for lunch at Schat's Bakery in Bishop, CA, then pressed on until dinnertime. Spent a couple hours walking around Ontario Mills Mall (probably half that time was inside the Lego store & Disney store!) & ate at Pick Up Stix. Got back in the car for the last stretch of the day... to our hotel in San Diego. Kids did great! Total miles today: 691

267/365

Well, it took some patience, but we finally got Darin home safe & sound! His rescheduled flight out of Hong Kong was delayed almost 5 hours, causing him to miss his connecting flight in Chicago (by 15 minutes!). He spent last night in Chicago & arrived in Boise just after noon today--the same day as our pre-planned Coronado Island/Corey's wedding road trip was to begin. Darin rented a car at the airport to spare our car the 2500+ mile whirlwind trip. He stopped in at the office for a couple hours on the way home, so he didn't get home until just before 3:00--an hour before we were to pick up Gavin from school & head out of town! He wins the prize for the "Shortest time spent at home after a China trip EVER!" We actually left town about 6:00 & drove to Winnemucca, NV... 245 miles & counting! 

266/365

 We had been thinking about letting Ellie's bangs grow out but decided to chop them again instead!

265/365

 Ellie's room turned out cute--she loves it! We took the tape off & moved everything back into place.
Took an evening walk to feed the ducks--66 degrees out at 7pm. Fall is definitely in the air!
Darin was supposed to come home tonight, but his flight was cancelled due to a typhoon nearing Hong Kong, which ended up being not so bad. He's at the airport as I type, waiting to board in about an hour. We'll see him late tomorrow night!

Turned the light on to take this picture, & she didn't budge!

264/365

Ellie's been wanting a pink room for a long time. After an hour+ of prep, Gavin & Ellie each took a turn with a roller--they wanted to paint so badly, which was a little stressful for me! I refilled their rollers each time & they did pretty well actually! I was relieved though when they opted out. Funny--Gavin painted right over two electrical outlets even though he helped unscrew the faceplates. Made me realize my instructions were lacking... Ellie slept in a sleeping bag in another room tonight so I could finish up (in peace) & let it air out overnight.

263/365

One week later, still working through that big stack of books... they're staying on the piano bench until we've read them all at least once.

262/365

 Halloween spoiler! I'd gotten these pirate costumes a couple weeks ago, then, what do you know, today is "International Talk Like a Pirate Day," & I find out Krispy Kreme is giving a dozen donuts to anyone who comes in dressed as a pirate. When Gavin heard that, there was no turning back. We were in line for just over an hour & walked out with 3 dozen free donuts. What was I thinking?