Quick Trip to Bend 

For some rest from our labors this year we decided to take a quick family trip over to Bend Oregon. We both love it there, and separately we've both spent time there for different reasons, but never much together. We decided it would be a great place to take the kids and enjoy some time together--just the four of us.

It was so nice having some alone time with the kids without any other distractions. They drove us nuts at times, but we were able to give them all the attention they are constantly wanting but never quite getting in the ordinary routine at home.

We were both blown away by all there is to do in Bend. We loved the endless bike trails, rivers, and hiking all around.

This is at the High Desert Museum. It as pretty interesting for both the kids and ourselves. They had some interactive things for the kids and we got to see some beautiful art and history of Oregon and the surrounding areas.

This display cracked me up "Whose scat is that". It was actually very educational to read about the different animal "scat" and how they can detect who has been where by the scat they leave etc. but the immature side of me was giggling under my breath the whole time. Especially watching the girls make heads or tails of the fake scat placed around the display room.

We toured the lava caves and it was a nice escape from the heat. The girls were pretty scared of the dark at first and really wanting to turn around until we bribed them with chocolate and then all of a sudden they were more than happy to go frolicking through the cave (it's amazing what power chocolate has). It was actually really fun.

It was a quick trip for us, but we realized a few things, 1. It was great being together, just the four of us. 2.We love Bend Oregon and plan to head in that direction more often now. 3. If we see bear scat we better turn and run.