VEM Does Rainier

The next morning started early, with Brady and I switching off for quick gym workouts and rushing down for our kids' favorite part of hotel stays--the buffet breakfast.  Next, we spent 2 hours racing around Target, frantically attempting piece together warm outfits for our days in the mountains.  We brought one pair of sweats each but realized when we walked outside that we were ill-equipped.  After running back to get ice, shattering a glass jar of salsa all over the parking lot, and loading up our tiny styrofoam cooler with food to feed an army, we raced off to Rainier park.

It was tricky to meet up with our VEM family (Varneys, Edwards, and Millers) since no cell phone were out of range.  Eventually we found each other, finished off fifteen trips to the bathroom with various kids, purchased a "Zachary" pocket knife followed by an exchange of said knife when it broke in the first use, ran clear back to the lower parking lot to retrieve a child carrier for Owen.  It takes FOREVER to do anything with huge groups and for some reason on this trip, that did not bother me one bit.  At 2:30pm, we embarked on the first alpine hike of the week, a 5.5 mile loop that started off with a quote which most certainly got our hopes sky high.

Walking at a 4-year-old pace means slow going but it was also charming and endearing.

Marmot sighting #1 of 1,000.

Zachary (10) and Trey (13) picked up right where they left off, getting along like besties the entire trip.

The marmot teaching school.

Risa, Kate and Savannah took a little longer to get reaquainted but were holding hands and skipping up the mountain within a mile.

Owen's new sweats and new kicks.  This was his first time wearing tennies and after fifteen minutes of awkward walking, he decided he loved them.

Mackadie (13) worked on a relationship with Owen and it paid off.  He was her snuggle buddy, held her hand, and gave her smooches through his binky.

SNOW!  The kids were thrilled and immediately started throwing it at each other...and eating it.  Looks refreshing to the taste buds, eh?

Zachary and Trey bet $10 they could outlast each other in the cold temps without shirts.  Zac, the Hawaii boy who wears a wet suit in the warm Pacific waters, verses Trey, the boy who never wears pants, a sweatshirt or shoes even in the winter.  Good luck, kiddo.  I wore a wool shirt and sweatshirt the entire time and my hands and face were freezing.

Mountain goat sighting!

These purple bell flowers were my favorite and we saw them on every hike.

Squirrel!

Still shirtless...

Making it to the top and creating caryns while a squirrel begs for food in the background.

The backdrop opened up briefly but by the time our group assembled, it was like standing in front of a white sheet.  Shrug!

The mountains were socked in for much of the hike up, but at the top, we turned around and there was the peak of Rainier!  It felt shockingly close, a mammoth mountain right behind us. 

Selfie time!

The trio.

Our hearts dropped when the girls told us they walked through this tunnel, especially after hearing an avalanche on the opposite mountain.  Yikes.

Oh, you beautiful mountains and valleys.  You have my heart.

Back at the visitor's center!  Zac and Trey tied and no one owed the money to the disappointment of both boys.  I could not believe my child lasted 5 hours without a jacket in those cold temps!

We pulled into the cabin around 8pm and Zac ran from the car and straight to the cabin's hot tub.  The kids swam for ages while we prepped dinner.  After a late bedtime, the VEM adults chatted and laughed at stories and memories for an hour in the hot tub, too.  What struck me and Brady was that despite our distance and time away, our political, social and religious views have all similarly evolved with time.  It was so refreshing to talk candidly about real issues and feel so validated and like-minded.

The next morning started off slowly (read: it took hours to get out the door), and the kids were ready to rebel if we told them another 5 miler was in store.  We opted for only a couple miles of easy "walks" for them through giant trees and over charming bridges.  The best part of the day was hearing the trio plus Owen wail "A Million Dreams" and the entire soundtrack of "Greatest Showman".

Sleep-deprived Kate was a bit sensitive that morning but Brady handled her volatile emotions with extra love.  This picture captures the kind of father he is--attentive and gentle even in frustrating circumstances.

This rickiddy, suspended bridge requested one at a time, which meant our huge group and the groups on the other side were waiting a while and wondering if it was worth it.  Coleman the engineer nixed the one-at-a-time rule for the kids and had them cross in small groups.

The other side was perfect for rock skipping and throwing competitions--just like the good ol' days!  We spent a solid hour chucking rocks in.  I had a mishap and while attempting to teach Zachary how to skip rocks, I held on to mine too long and let it go to skip across the ground and barely bump into a woman's back.  She turned around, a bit alarmed and ready to chastise a kid, and I had to step up and claim the error.  Argh.  It was hysterical for everyone involved and I guess I'm okay providing the entertainment.  The boys competed to hit targets.

We tried to have the kids hold hands and circle a huge tree but that idea crashed and burned with hungry, emotional toddlers.

Andersen is only a few days younger than Owen.

Miri is a snuggle bug, too.

The way back, Owen jumped across the bridge, bouncing it all over and giggling the entire time.

After a loud lunch filled with lots of singing and begging to go back to the cabin, we still forced the kids on another adventure to yet another gorgeous bridge and waterfall.  Kids whine about hiking and forget the love it until they get going.  Lunchtime also started the "Owen" chorus, with the kids picking a note and going up by thirds and holding the chord: "Owen, Owen, Owen, Owen!"  Owen caught on quickly and shocked us by singing the correct note at the top of the chord.

Trail blueberries.

I took off with the trio of girls and we made progress up the loop after the bridge.  On the way back, we played "Red Light, Green Light," and Aaron played traffic cop to the girls running red lights.  We played Simone says (not to be confused with Simon), and giggled over the bridge spanning Laughingwater Creek.

That night at the cabin, we made chicken in a tiny crock pot, feasted on gigantic s'mores over a fire, and spent the evening again in the hot tub with Roni and Coleman.  (The hot tub turned out to have a broken filter, and my kids and I have dealt with some nagging skin reactions since.  Ew.)  After heading to bed at midnight, we noticed Zac and the preteen still wide awake in the tent, watching a movie.  It was hilarious to watch my early-to-bed child stay awake that late.

The next morning, we attempted an early check out and start to the day, hoping to hit the nearly-7-mile trail early so we could arrive at Aaron and Julie's place at a decent hour. 

Early start ended up meaning leaving by 10am, and driving 90 min to the park entrance where our next hike started, and waiting for a full hour to get into the park.  They minimize the entries into Rainier to help with the parking lot congestion, and Saturday means huge crowds.  The kids played on the roadside and I did planks, which struck everyone as a completely normal activity in a traffic jam.

We saved the best hike for last on our final day in Rainier.  Despite our late start, the kids and adults were all happy to get on the trail.

The views were stunning.

The boys and a few adults ran up ahead and missed the baby cub sighting!  The bear crossed the path twenty feet away from us.

Everyone spotted the mountain goat and her baby.  There were also pastures full of mountain goats below.

"The Mountains are Calling, and I Must Go."  Someone, please buy me that shirt.  I love the mountains as much as I love the ocean.  My heart ached as we hiked and I begged Brady to bring me here every summer.

Zachary was really concerned about crossing snow fields on this "cliff" but realized it was safe after his first anxious steps.

More of the lovely bells.

Group photo, this time with a mountain background.

Torquoise water in between lush green trees.

Owen walked almost the entire way down.

He kept playing with my hair when he was in the pack.

I was worried Brady would not capture enough flowers and found myself leaning over precariously with Owen again and again.

What if I missed the shot of the Dr. Seuss flower?

"I want to throw this rock, Mom."

This looks like the back of a woman's head.

Brady did a lovely job snapping up images of the wildflowers and landscape.  We were the last ones across the finish line.

Goodbye, Rainier!  We will have to see you again soon. 

The drive to the Varneys was 2.5 hours and we pulled in just after midnight.  After such a scenic afternoon, no one was complaining or concerned.

The next morning, Owen burst out of bed (many times throughout the night, in fact) to play with the kitty.

We were grateful for 11am church, and laughed hard at this sign on a Mormon church building.

I went on a walk outside their home and found another interesting sign (not on their property):

The kids were in heaven, playing in the Varneys' 5-acre wonderland, complete with dozens of bikes, a treehouse, gardens, wild blackberries, a fast slide, trampoline, basketball hoop, and fire pit.  We roasted wieners and had another round of s'mores, followed up with campfire songs and an "early" bedtime of 10pm in anticipation of our 2:30am alarm to get up for our Mount St. Helen's climb on Monday morning.

Coleman scored us the permits after all 6 of us struggled to get on the site and secure them months ago.  We did not realize Aaron planned on having us there so early, but he insisted on the early start to avoid shriveling up with heat on the exposed side of the mountain.  Once we were up, the hour was no biggie.

The boys jogged ahead while we encouraged our whole group to finish.  It was 5 miles up, gaining significant elevation on difficult terrain (pumice pictured here).  

Aaron cracked us up, busting out his rock launcher and shooting off rocks into the crater.

The Varneys surprised us with about 10 group shots of our gang framed on a mantle in their home.  We added to their collection with this adventure.

The tweens:

The crater in all it's glory.  We could see plumes of smoke still coming out of the center and in the lake behind, thousands of felled trees.

My favorite part of the hike was climbing down boulders as I hiked with Roni.

While the crater segment at the top was unique and interesting, it was not beautiful.  The alpine sections below were much more scenic.

On the way home, we stopped at Burgerville and I ordered a fresh raspberry milkshake.  I had dreams about it later, it was so delicious.  That night was miserable as I struggled with skin issues in the aftermath of the dirty hot tub.  Zachary begged to sleep with the older kids in the treehouse and we ended up finding him the next morning, still asleep at 10am.  

Aaron set up Julie's trainer for me to peddle on in their "Fairy Garden".  This is only 500 times more charming than my typical experience biking in my garage.

The girls wanted one last photo of their friendship jewelry boxes purchased in Rainier.

We said goodbye, sad to leave the Varneys.  The Millers came with us to the Woodland Zoo, where we barely had two hours due to a traffic accident.  We had plenty of time to cover the small area, and then took our gang out for Taco Tuesday at Cafe Rio.

The funniest moment of the trip was discovering that Coleman and I are third cousins, once removed.  Our ancestry is linked through the Belliston line.

Roni and Coleman made fun of me and Aaron for writing "Hallmark Card" farewell texts to the group.  It is so refreshing to have friends like this that pick up right where we left off.  It's so lucky our kids get along so well, too.  The VEM will always be family.