I've always wanted to do a big road trip by myself, but the idea of it actually terrified me.  When I moved to Washington, there was a road trip involved, but it was essentially straight there and I had someone else traveling with me.   As I made the decision to move back to the Midwest, I also decided I was going to face whatever fears I had and make the trip alone.  This wasn't going to be the same route I had taken previously though, oh no no no.  I wanted to take advantage of the time I had and go places I might not ever get around to going otherwise.

Before moving, I spent a weekend in Bellingham with my friends, Jake and Kaitlyn, that I've become very close with over the past several years.  For three? four? years, we lived about 5 blocks away from each other and it was about the same time they bought a house in Bellingham and I decided to move back to WI--both big changes for both of us.  It was this particular weekend they shared the exciting news with me that they were going to be having a baby which was absolutely amazing to be able to hear in person before I left.  I seriously cannot wait to get to meet their little babe in March!  
ANYWAYS, this was my last hike I was able to squeeze in while visiting them before heading back to the Midwest and it was fantastic despite the crazy hot temps and minimal shade.  If anyone wants to go on an adventure with me in March, let me know!! 

This was my last weekend of camping in the PNW before moving and it was probably one of my favorites.  I won't tell you where it was because all involved want it to be kept secret. It was such a gem of a spot and obvious that not many people know about it, and it would be great if it stayed that way.  Our main objective for this weekend was to cook "fancy" meals over the camp fire instead of defaulting to your simpler options like brats and hot dogs.  I think we did a pretty darn good job, and the photos can speak for themselves.  I miss these people a whole bunch and am extremely grateful to be friends with them.

I'm so glad I was able to meet up with Shelly while she was out visiting the Pacific Northwest, and spent a day hiking around Mt. Rainier.  We knew going into the hike that the weather forecast wasn't the greatest, but crossed our fingers and hoped for the best.  We were met by lots and lots of fog, slippery snow, mist, cold temps, and little to no views all the way to the top.  BUT THEN, magically the skies cleared and the mountains showed themselves as though it was just for us and stayed that way for the hike back down.  Mt. Rainier didn't show itself but at that point, we were just happy to have whatever view we could get.  The wildflowers were out in full force and if you know me, you know I go a little crazy over taking photos of flowers.  Overall, the day definitely ended up being a success. 

Today was the most perfect of days for a hike.  The weather was fantastic, the skies were beautiful and the views were amazing.  

For a girl that goes nuts over taking photos of flowers, you can only imagine my love for the tulip fields in Washington.  While not all of the tulips were in bloom when we went, we were not disappointed in the least.  

I figured I'd better get a post up from my last vacation before I leave on the next one tomorrow morning!  Last month, I spent a couple of days visiting my niece in Denver, and then she and my sister accompanied me to Arizona for a quick birthday trip to the Grand Canyon.  I fell in love with Arizona in the springtime. Driving through the desert was beautiful with all of the yellow flowers covering the hillsides and the weather was definitely nothing to complain about.  The Grand Canyon was, of course, amazing.  While I'm excited to cross it off my bucket list, I will most certainly be going back to do more exploring!

This is an incredibly delayed post!  Life got busy, holy cow!! I'm so incredibly grateful though and the past few months have been amazing.  I've met tons of new families, and lots and lots of adorable children!  It's still crazy to me to call it "work".  As the busy season comes to an end, I look back on adventures like this one this past summer and look forward to having more like it.   This weekend in August took us to Cannon Beach on the Oregon coast and these are the types of weekends I cherish.  I couldn't have asked for a better mix of people to go with -- an old high school friend, and two friends made here in Seattle-- all of which who really didn't know each other very well, but it was perfect.  In the end, they all left the best of friends.  We cooked some delicious meals, shucked fresh oysters (some of us were better at it than others--meaning I'm not), wandered along the beach, enjoyed some stunning sunsets and overall it was just a nice change of pace and allowed us to slow life down a bit.  It's needed sometimes, and my goal for 2016 is to make things like this a priority.