Road trip!

Road trip to Spokane, Washington, today.

Just the mention of a road trip and I beckon back to my childhood road trips.  My dad... the man wouldn't stop at rest stops, only when the car needed gas.  He never asked for directions... and his map reading skills lacked.   Once at a gas station in rural Arizona a man tried to sell us a pig, not to mention that the bathroom lacked stalls, a door, and running water.

So I vowed to not be that kind of road trip parent!  The boys are pretty good travelers and the trip to Spokane only 4ish hours, depending on the driver.  Notice the cooler between them to lessen the fights over space.

The beauty of the cooler, it makes for a fine pillow too.  He only lasted about 30 minutes before he conked out.

We stopped for lunch in St. Regis.  While waiting for our food we watched a DVD on fly tying... as in fly fishing.  Typical Montana propaganda, but I like that kind of thing.

This is the best smile that I could get out of our 14 year old.  He probably only smiled because he awaited a cheeseburger and fries!  At least he still tolerates me... most of the time.

I have never seen a Moose in the wild.  Why am I rambling about Moose?  Because I saw 2, yes, 2 in a spring outside of Coeur d'alene, Idaho!!  I am totally over the moon about this!  Moose!!!  Of course, now I expect to see at least one on the way home.  The sighting also made for good car conversation about the plural of Moose---- Mooses, Meese, Moosen----endless possibilities.

Outside of Coeur d'alene the hubs (he is going to love being called that) spots a sign for the Lake Coeur d'alene Scenic Byway.
Hubs:  Should be take the Byway?
Me:  Sure, why not.
Okay, we have been through Coeur d'alene millions of times usually pressed for time.  We thought the Byway would wind around the lake and then pop out to meet back up with I-90.  Well, about an hour later we popped out 10-15 miles BEFORE the exit to get on the Byway.  To be fair, it was a beautiful drive and we were running early for our hotel check in time.

Our youngest only wanted to come on this trip to eat calamari at Olive Garden.  He ate at an Olive Garden in Seattle a couple of summers ago and LOVED the calamari.  I don't know why we can't have calamari at a restaurant in our area...  He is 9, who knows the reasoning.  Good thing that he liked the calamari and breadsticks because he hated the entrees.

Spokane boasts many waterfalls used for hydroelectric power.  Riverside Park is an awesome place with pedestrian footbridges.  We also took a cable car.

Picture from the cable car.

 Of course, the point of this trip is not forgotten.  The hubs has a medical appointment for a surgery that isn't routinely done in our neck of the woods... cervical disk replacement.  After two rounds with the insurance, they finally decided to pay for it!  I hear that this is nothing short of a miracle.  Hopefully, he is a candidate and the surgery can be scheduled soon.

Look at those crazy eyes...... He would buy a pig if someone tried to sell one at a gas station!