Road-Tripping- Northern California

Day 3 of the road trip we've been planning for ages.

And yes, it's honestly been a lot of time in the car.  Because, with a baby in tow, a 5 hour drive becomes an 7 hour drive.  But I have to send a thank you card to Rachel Coleman, because Baby Signing Time has been saving this trip, keeping Cora entertained in her rear-facing carseat on the portable DVD player.  This girl is rocking the road trip from all angles.

We spent the first 2 nights in the redwoods, camped out beneath the trees.  I guess I had a pretty specific picture of our redwood adventures in my mind, complete with perfect picturesque photos of Cora beneath the giant sequoias.  But of course, my lack of photography skills and lack of a decent camera had other ideas.  So I got mediocre pictures but still managed to have a great time.  

My delectable girl apparently made a delicious feast for a handful of mosquitoes, and her sweet little face is now covered with little pink welts, but she hasn't seemed to mind.

Planning a trip via the internet these days has it's downside, though.  Today, despite the quiet misgivings I had as we made our way for a 45-minute detour off Highway 101 to find our next campsite, we trekked on.  With temperatures in the 90s (please don't find me too insensitive, since I KNOW so many of you are dealing with ridiculous temperatures this summer...) Cora and I and our heat sensitive, overly emotional selves were ready to arrive at our destination and take a dip in the long awaited lake.  But alas, the campground was virtually empty, dusty and dirty and crawling with creepies, the lake stagnant and full of clumps of things we had no desire to dip our toes into. 

Nick luckily saved the day for my red-faced little girlie, plopping her down under a faucet and letting her play in the water for a few minutes.

 We speedily packed our stuff and hit the road again, landing an hour or so later at a Best Western where we happily had a swim in the pool with a gleeful little girl, bathed her in a real tub, made ham sandwiches and tucked our happy little girlie into bed.

Internet access and a cold beer.  Complimentary breakfast in the morning without the work of breaking camp.  Aaah.  I admit that it feels so much better than a dusty patch of dirt beside a creepy-crawly lake.  I feel a little spoiled and elitist at the moment, actually, but am still happy from my perch.

Tomorrow we will drive some more and arrive at our next destination to visit one of Nick's best friends.  It's amazing how quickly a trip like this sucks up time.  What felt like a long 2-week trip now feels like a quick 2-week trip, and I find myself missing potential visits on the way, like meeting up with some blogging friends I'd love to see.

As it is, we have missed one heck of a party this weekend with my crazy Canadian side of the family.  Somehow I think they managed to have fun without us.

Until I post again from the road....