Best. Vacation. Ever.

Ever.

18,000 flight miles.
112 hours in transit.
31 happy hours.
29 people surprised.
12 plane rides.
7 borrowed cars.
6 little nephews.
4 U.S. cities
3 U.S. states.
2 pacific crossings.
1 car rental.

COUNTLESS smiles and laughs shared with family!

Absolutely incredible. How incredible? For the adventurous, bungee jumping is at the top end of the fun-o-meter.   Getting to return to the U.S. summertime to spend five-weeks with our families broke the scales. Warm elation and welling gratitude are still putting a smile on my face.

Unfortunately for my blog, the good times were non-stop. My dedication to making memories with loved ones is greater than my dedication to writing regularly. Since I’ve let the five weeks fly by without a single entry, this page in the record books will have to settle for highlights.

My littlest sis, Jerrica, her son Kyler, and my Gma J were first on our surprise list.    After tackling two days in transit, sharing my first blessed Mexican meal with my padre, and a tasting tour of Tucson breweries, it was go-time! With all parties seated on the patio, cameras rolling while Kyler recounted his trip to Sea World, we weary travelers snuck (sneaked?) around the corner. Shouts of joy, bewilderment, and happy tears were the prelude to a week of fun!

Translation for the first part of the video: “We’re about to, uh, surprise them.   It’s going to be really fun!   My heart’s in my throat, I’m so excited!   Okay, let’s go.   Come on!”   Why does my nephew think I’m my sister Jeana?   Because he was devastated to find out that, for the first time ever, his cousin wasn’t going to be at Grandma’s house with him.   He asked his mom all week, “Mom, why does Aunt Jeana hate us?”   He obviously had Jeana on the brain. 🙂

We BBQ’d ourselves silly, including my dad’s famous, incredible wings. Many rounds of card games accompanied our happy hours, which we later worked off with swims at Gma’s neighborhood pool, kayaking trips to the lake, yoga and line dancing at Gma’s clubhouse, and lunchtime walks at the UofA campus near my mom’s work. Regularly, we got out of the house to enjoy sushi, the cinema, karaoke, mini-golf, an old-west town, the children’s museum, and a trip to the San Xavier Mission. You’d think summer in Arizona would be killa, but we arrived during “monsoon” season. I miss the pounding rain of the continental U.S., and am in love with thunderstorms. Getting stuck out one night was FUN! And of course saying goodbye to my sis and nephew I was back right where I started with a monsoon of tears.

The week-long interlude between sisters was meant to be a “work-week,” but we still managed to squeeze in a few patio parties with their friends, games of Spades, a visit to the Titan Missile Museum, a shopping day with Grams, a few dinners out (including a trip to my dad’s favorite pizza joint), and an awesome 5k downtown fun walk. (Meet Me at Maynards.) For the first time in probably ten years, I got to celebrate my mom’s birthday with her! We arranged a surprise evening of karaoke, blindfolded her, drove her in circles, and carried her piggy-back into the bar. It was a fun night!

Next to surprise were my middle-little sis Jeana, her son Izziah, and her man Mark. We shared giggles and hugs at the Texas Roadhouse Grill outside the Phoenix airport before our convoy road trip to San Diego.

Our hotel ended up being so horrible that it was actually funny. From the toilet not flushing EVER, to Pat stepping off the elevator and into a police interrogation it was a barrel of laughs in disbelief.

Upon arrival, we headed straight to Ocean Beach since neither Izziah nor Mark had played in the ocean before. We jumped in the waves and got ourselves thoroughly soaked just before sundown. We shared some seaside sushi before recharging for our Sea World visit the next

day. The aquatic mecca has undergone a serious face lift since the days of my youth. Not only had the shows gained plot, depth, and texture, but now there are RIDES! Most surprising are the shows that seem to have little to do with the sea — Pets World and Cirque de la Mer. In the former, pigs, birds, cats, and dogs galore have been trained to perform feats that are hilarious in context. In the latter, a spin-off of Cirque du Soleil, human acrobats contort themselves into amazing configurations while also ascending to great heights and eventually plunging into the bay. The evening seal shows, because of clever scripting, are also non-stop laughs! And Izziah loved the dolphins and the giant jungle gym (okay… so did I)!

Our next few days were spent at the Coronado Beach and San Diego Zoo. We boogie-boarded non-stop and barely managed to put away some delicious Mexican before crashing at the hotel. Sadly, we dropped Mark at the airport the next day before an amazing breakfast at the Hash House in SD’s GLBT district. The zoo was an all day event — organized more like a shopping mall than a museum. The African exhibits were cool — rhinos and elephants. Izziah and I had an awesome time up close and personal watching the baby gorilla and its mother play. They even banged on and into the glass right in front of us several times. Eye contact with ‘wild’ animals is awesome! Our last day consisted of a few more laps around Sea World, more ocean fun at Mission Beach, and stuffing ourselves with amazing

pizza and microbrews. Our time back in Arizona was brief, but we made the most of it with an awesome evening fiesta (which didn’t end well for Pat), Izziah’s first horse ride at the Colossal Cave Park up the road, and a few visit’s to Gram’s neighborhood pool. Our drive over to Phoenix was sad for me, and in the morning I was devastated to be leaving. I love family!

They packed us onto the shuttle, and it was off to the Minnesota cabin-on-a-lake-in-the-woods family gathering. It was a tough sell convincing Pat to surprise his mother. Sweet man that he is, he was unsure that the overjoyed reunion at the end would make up for the weeks of disappointment. We had three close-calls: sneaking around twenty other people is hard to pull off! A covert parking job, duck-and-cover observation from the road, a hushed conversation with the cabin neighbor, and crouching in the woods awaiting the perfect moment had our adrenaline pumping. Finally young Andrew caught a fish, providing the perfect distraction. Pat sprinted across the lawn and onto the deck, a finger to his lips to quell his wide-eyed sister whose mouth was now open in a silent shriek. It was a Publisher’s Clearing House moment. Sally screamed and screamed, and the deck became a mob of laughing, crying, crushing [airborne!] embraces, and excited chatter.

Pardon some of the cinematography, running while excited and being swung around in circles while filming doesn’t make for the best screen shots! 🙂

Jet-skiing, fishing, pontoon boat rides, kayaking, sunning, happy-hour-ing, eating, playing, volleyball, biking, visiting the Logger-fest, a trip to the Mississippi headwaters, and an endless supply of Bud Light and margaritas with family made for an incredible week. Too soon, it was time for tearful goodbyes . We headed back to Minneapolis with Grandma Johnny and Aunt Di and spent a fun two days window shopping at the Mall of America, touring old neighborhoods and schools from Williams girls’ youth, getting to experience the Science Museum where Di works, exploring nearby Stillwater, and scouring the genealogical treasure troves Gma Johnny has collected.

Finally it was time for the last stop on our summer tour of America. We landed in Humboldt County without any foggy fanfare (phew!), to the tall grin of one Tobias Haskett (whom I madly adore). Our stay with the Shaw-Haskett’s — our second family with whom we’ve shared endless holiday celebrations and countless backyard BBQ’s — was all too brief. Goal #1 was to spend as much time with my CASA kid as possible having missed the last eight months – approximately 32 in-person visits – of her life. It’s the first time I’ve been able to have her as my sole focus. I didn’t make any plans with friends… didn’t even tell them I was coming… so that there would be no pressure to do anything but hang out with her. It was like being a kid again, with nothing to do but play! We cooked lots of meals together, watched lots of Glee, and visited our usual haunting grounds around town. Saying goodbye was tough!

Our five weeks in the States was literally the best vacation of my life. I am so thankful for every single moment. Can’t wait for next time!

Click the links for photos!

Week 1:   Jer, Kyler, monsoons, rattlesnakes, tarantulas, sushi, and happy hours caught on film.
Week 2:   Mom and Dad to myself, desert sunsets, mom’s birthday, and the Titan Missile Museum
Week 3:   Jean Bean, Izziah & Mark, beach, zoo, sea world, and patio party shenanigans!
Week 4:   Pat’s side of the family, five mohawks, chainsaw art work, biking madness & family photos
Week 5:   Redwoods, Ritas, and Rabble Rousing