Montana Family Trip '09 - Morning Thoughts

Well, it's early Thursday morning, & all are sleeping. Being in one room together really seems to amplify their snores! So, the symphony of Aaron and Henry got Mom up and showered at 3am this morning. So, to make the best of it, I got ready for the day. Feels good to be the early bird. I can see why my dad, & Maxwell enjoy getting up early.
I'm gonna take a minute to write a bit about our time spent, while I wait for the family to awaken. :-)
Wednesday: Aaron was working from midnight until afternoon. So, I planned to take the kids out for a lesson from Mom in landscape art.
We started with breakfast at Jack's Pancake Parlor. The kids ordered Chocolate Chip/Caramel Pancakes (gross) w/sausage & bacon (yummy). I got the Sourdough Pancakes (Yucky, Mom's are way better!), poached eggs (yummy). I think that place is all about know what to order & what to stay away from. They cook with a grease that I'm not used to, definitely not olive oil. It has a funky smell, just might be lard? Anyhow, it seems to be a local favorite whole in the wall that sells logo'ed tie-dyed t-shirts for 20 bucks!
My favorite quote of the day came from Max as we were driving through a seedy part of town. Might I also mention that it is Earth Day, how apropos. He said, "Mom, we REALLY need to put a clothes line in our yard!". I explained that they have clothes lines, because they don't have a dryer. He quickly interjected, "But, we will save energy if we stop using our dryer!". I do love that boy so.
After breakfast, I took the kids over to Staples to get some art supplies--we had fun there. I think art is most definitely a favorite thing for all of us! :-)
Then we got a call from Aaron that the judge postponed the trial till next week, because the parties didn't have their cases ready to go. So, off we went to pickup Dad! Super cool, now it REALLY has become a family vacation!
After picking up Dad, we started our art inspiration journey with a nature walk along the Clarks Fork River, previously called Missoula River, and before THAT it was Hell's Gate River. We saw big fish statues in the lawn that the kids climbed all over! AND, we had perfect timing to catch a dude surf the river wake. We have photos to upload later!
We then took a mountain canyon drive for more art inspiration! We went to Elk Canyon & the Snow Bowl Ski Resort. Wow! It was so beautiful! There were some lovely homes, & Grand Ranch w/cattle. The kids got to play in the snow a while. Snow angels, snowball fights, & their 1st memory of painful numbness in their extremities! :) The coolest house we saw had a mini lake, pirate ship, play house, play barn, and swing set all in their backyard.
After play time, we took a moment to complete our landscape art work, & headed out for some grub at the Riverside Pizza Company. Which, BTW, was phenomenal!!! What a lovely day.
So, Wed (yesterday) was a perfect sunny 77 degrees, & today is supposed to be a rainy 49 degrees--dramatic difference. Can't wait to see what we conjure up for ourselves today!