Summer travel and other musings
With 5 days of school left for students (and seven and half for teachers, but who's counting!?) I've actually been entertaining considerations of taking a road trip or two.
My first daydream road trip had us on the ferry to one of the San Juan Islands. I haven't really analyzed that option yet, or rather, dismissed it too quickly perhaps, and probably should revisit it.
I've also contemplated driving to the redwood forests of northern California. Pros: Live natural wonders to stare in awe at, lots of fun places to stop along the way, even awesome ones in their own right (beaches! dunes! lakes! even caves!), many good camping options on the way too. Cons: It's at LEAST eight hours of driving each way, on my own, and that's not even considering any sidetrips, etc. And besides the driving itself, there's the considerations regarding my old car, the price of gas, etc.
An alternative that did not sound as attractive to the young'uns as I thought it would, at least initially, is the John Day Fossil Beds in Central/Eastern OR. We could include a trip to the Gorge and camp around there for one or two nights first, then head on East and South to the breathtakingly amazing-in-pictures Painted Hills. The pros: Considerably less driving, maybe between 4 to 5 hours total one way. Landscapes that we are less likely to encounter in our 'regular' lives on this side of the Cascades. Certainly as much of an adventure as the first option. Cool educational opportunity at the fossil beds (which of course is true for the other trip as well as for any trip, but with the added bonus that the fossil exhibits have this way of leading to discussions about evolution and then indirectly into belief systems and the like...my kids are very much into that and I think the experience of seeing the fossil site with their own eyes as opposed to in a book could make a lifelong difference to them). The cons: Considerably hotter weather (particularly at the arid destination, in contrast with the redwoods which I've mostly found described as 'shrouded in fog' at that time of year), which may not be that much of a problem as long as I stay alert about keeping everyone (particularly myself, which I'm most likely to neglect) sunblocked and hydrated. Far fewer state campgrounds (where we can stay for free as a foster family) and less information about places to stay and about the whole route in general, which in turn makes for fewer adventures to look forward to (although that also could mean more unexpected adventures...for better or worse!)
The final choice of course is the entirely likely (and likeable, in its own way) scenario of a summer devoid of big road trips and filled with calmer, day- or, at the most, one-night-or-two trips to the coast, never further than Newport to the south and possibly Astoria to the North.
One thing I've decided FOR SURE is that we won't be taking in exchange students this summer - even I (sometimes) know when too much is too much! Tempting as it was to say yes to the recent calls and emails with requests for hosts...it felt good to say with confidence 'not this year', while knowing that the option is there for some time in the future (I'm sure it would be a great experience for C. when he is a little older, as it was for K. last summer -we even still keep in touch -albeit more and more sporadically as time goes one- with a couple of those girls!)
And another thing I ambivalently decided against, after, I'll admit, brief but serious consideration, was the possibility of taking in another foster placement - this would have been a very temporary one, just through the summer break - an infant! It's obviously just not the right time for my current family - I don't even know if it will ever be. For now though it feels good to concentrate on my own two - and on deciding how much driving I really want to take on this summer!
My first daydream road trip had us on the ferry to one of the San Juan Islands. I haven't really analyzed that option yet, or rather, dismissed it too quickly perhaps, and probably should revisit it.
I've also contemplated driving to the redwood forests of northern California. Pros: Live natural wonders to stare in awe at, lots of fun places to stop along the way, even awesome ones in their own right (beaches! dunes! lakes! even caves!), many good camping options on the way too. Cons: It's at LEAST eight hours of driving each way, on my own, and that's not even considering any sidetrips, etc. And besides the driving itself, there's the considerations regarding my old car, the price of gas, etc.
An alternative that did not sound as attractive to the young'uns as I thought it would, at least initially, is the John Day Fossil Beds in Central/Eastern OR. We could include a trip to the Gorge and camp around there for one or two nights first, then head on East and South to the breathtakingly amazing-in-pictures Painted Hills. The pros: Considerably less driving, maybe between 4 to 5 hours total one way. Landscapes that we are less likely to encounter in our 'regular' lives on this side of the Cascades. Certainly as much of an adventure as the first option. Cool educational opportunity at the fossil beds (which of course is true for the other trip as well as for any trip, but with the added bonus that the fossil exhibits have this way of leading to discussions about evolution and then indirectly into belief systems and the like...my kids are very much into that and I think the experience of seeing the fossil site with their own eyes as opposed to in a book could make a lifelong difference to them). The cons: Considerably hotter weather (particularly at the arid destination, in contrast with the redwoods which I've mostly found described as 'shrouded in fog' at that time of year), which may not be that much of a problem as long as I stay alert about keeping everyone (particularly myself, which I'm most likely to neglect) sunblocked and hydrated. Far fewer state campgrounds (where we can stay for free as a foster family) and less information about places to stay and about the whole route in general, which in turn makes for fewer adventures to look forward to (although that also could mean more unexpected adventures...for better or worse!)
The final choice of course is the entirely likely (and likeable, in its own way) scenario of a summer devoid of big road trips and filled with calmer, day- or, at the most, one-night-or-two trips to the coast, never further than Newport to the south and possibly Astoria to the North.
One thing I've decided FOR SURE is that we won't be taking in exchange students this summer - even I (sometimes) know when too much is too much! Tempting as it was to say yes to the recent calls and emails with requests for hosts...it felt good to say with confidence 'not this year', while knowing that the option is there for some time in the future (I'm sure it would be a great experience for C. when he is a little older, as it was for K. last summer -we even still keep in touch -albeit more and more sporadically as time goes one- with a couple of those girls!)
And another thing I ambivalently decided against, after, I'll admit, brief but serious consideration, was the possibility of taking in another foster placement - this would have been a very temporary one, just through the summer break - an infant! It's obviously just not the right time for my current family - I don't even know if it will ever be. For now though it feels good to concentrate on my own two - and on deciding how much driving I really want to take on this summer!