Oh Yes! Wyoming!

At the end of May I arranged to fly down to Las Vegas to help Paige drive her boys up to Wyoming so she could spend a few weeks with our sister DeNae.  She didn't want to drive all the way by herself and I was more than happy to get out of the house and have an adventure!

Wyoming Part 1:

My first flight in many months.  You had to wear a mask the entire flight and there was hardly anyone  on the airplane.  So many people are just staying home during this pandemic...which is totally understandable.  It sure made for a comfortable flight!

Silly Remy.  We hung out in Vegas for a few days before making the drive up to Wyoming.

Having fun in the pool with the babies at Chisa's house.  They are getting so brave.  They would stand on the side of the pool and jump right to me in the water!

It's always so beautiful driving up through southern Utah.  We decided it would be easier if we drove through the night to get to Wyoming so the kids would mostly just sleep in the car.  They did so great!  Our GPS said it would be about 14 hours to get to Gillette, Wyoming but with a few stops to let kids run around it took us closer to 16 hours to make the full drive.  The kids all slept in the car and when we got to DeNae's house (at about 6 in the morning) we put them in their beds and they all slept for another 4 hours!

Having fun at Doda DeNae's house.  She has such a fantastic playground in her yard and so much room to run and play.  It was great for Paige's kids because they had been cooped up in the house in Vegas because it's really too hot to go outside in the summer there.

Emmett and Cecil reading with Tia Tanya.  That's another great thing about visiting Wyoming, I have 3 sisters that live there so I got to hang out with them all, plus Paige!  It was a little reunion:)

Riann and I helping to paint Tanya's kitchen cabinets.  We worked hard on painting some walls and rearranging some furniture to make Tia's house look fabulous!  I have to add that I also successfully installed a ceiling fan for her...super proud of myself!

5 Johnson girls all together...so much fun!

Little Emmett turned 3 while we were there, it was so fun to celebrate his birthday.  He is such a cutie!

Emmett helping to prepare a salad for dinner...this kid loves to be naked!

We took a day trip over to Devils Tower for a short hike.  Here are all the cousins (plus a family friend) at Devils Tower

Sisters having fun hiking

All the kids were real good hikers.  These little guys even hiked most of the way around the 1.5 mile loop

Me with little Graham hiking along.  I love his big steps:)

The kids had so much fun climbing around these boulders and rocks at the base of the tower.

It was super sad to say goodbye to my wonderful family in Wyoming but I had to get back to Portland to take care of my kids that had been home by themselves this whole time.  Paige stayed on in Wyoming and the plan was for her husband, Zach, to fly up to Wyoming and then help her drive back to Vegas in a few weeks.

Wyoming Part 2:

Due to COVID-19 military personnel were banned from flying.  So Paige now had no way to drive back home to Vegas because her husband is in the Air Force.  So I bought a plane ticket and headed back to Wyoming to hang out for a bit and then help Paige drive home.  It didn't really work out that way but it was a fantastic time anyway!

Back in Wyoming playing on Uncle Stans 4 wheelers with these 2 cuties!

Owen and Remy (waaaay up in the tree)

The twins got their toenails painted and loved showing off their "special toes"

The twins loved DeNae's cat (not her cat) Bert.  It's really the neighbors cat but spends a lot of time at DeNae's house:)

On my second trip to Wyoming we got to celebrate Ethan's 16th birthday...what a treat!

I love these 2 boys so much!!

Restrictions on military personnel flying got lifted so Zach was able to fly up to Wyoming.  Which meant that I was going to fly back to Portland from Gillette.  No problem, right?

So, so hard saying goodbye to these 2 guys.  They were hanging on me and calling after me "Doo Ah" which is how they say Auntie Chelle:)

It was hard to say goodbye to my wonderful sisters as well.

BUT...then I missed my flight to Portland, so I got to stay in Wyoming!  Gillette has a really small airport and I must have gotten to the check in counter about 5 minutes too late to check in.  It was super stressful because I had never missed a flight before but the airline was really nice and rebooked my flight for the next available time with no charge.  So I guess things worked out for the best, even if I did feel really dumb for missing a flight!

We went on a beautiful hike through the Big Horn mountains.

Just chilling by the campfire.  We roasted steak and hot dogs and made s'mores...it was a wonderful evening...I was sort of glad I missed my flight:)

Nothing cuter than babies and marshmallows!

Yee-Haw Cecil:)

Checking out the baby geese on a little walk around a lake

Having fun with cousin Owen at the playground

Swimming at the Gillette community pool, everyone had a blast.

Wait!  What?  Why is Hyrum in Wyoming?  Well, since I missed my flight and the next available flight out of Gillette wasn't for 4 days Hyrum decided to pack our boys in the van and drive from Portland to Gillette to pick me up and take me home...what a treat!

I wanted to show Hyrum and my boys Devils Tower so we headed out there one day for a hike with our whole family and a few extra cousins for fun.

The cute prairie dogs at Devils Tower

All the "big kids" climbing on some rocks at Devils Tower...

...Remy didn't let his size stop him though.  He was right there exploring with all his big cousins.

The Durtschi's at Devils Tower.  I'm so glad I could show my boys this beautiful place.

We found a wonderful spot for a picnic lunch

Having fun at a indoor trampoline park

All the "older cousins" and their dads went for a fun mountain bike ride in the Big Horn mountains.  Stan had enough bikes so that there were plenty for my family plus Zach.  All the moms stayed back and played at the trampoline park.  From the description it sounds like it was a pretty tough bike ride but they hall said it was super fun.

Biking through the beautiful meadows with wild flowers

After they boys bike ride we headed home for Portland.  We drove over 2 days, stopping in Montana for the night.  It was so wonderful for my boys to get to meet their cousins and hang out at their house for a few days.  It was truly like a mini family reunion.  I had so much fun with my sister and all their kids!  What a great experience:)

We Bought a Boat!

With COVID-19 shutting the world down and with nothing to do except sit at home we decided to buy a sailboat.  We thought it would be a fun distraction for us and something new and fun to teach the boys.  We bought a 1975 O'Day 22 for $2000.  We decided to start small and old because we just weren't sure if we would even like sailing or if the kids would think it was fun.  We didn't want to invest too much money into this new hobby.  Hyrum had a little sail boat growing up that he had played around on but I had never really been sailing so everything was new to me.  It has been a lot of fun and Hyrum and I even took a 3 day sailing class together to learn the basics and how to feel confident on a sailboat.  I have to just add here that I got 100 on the final written exam for the sailing class, Hyrum got 99 😆 I just have to rub that in a bit because I was super nervous about taking the class and thought I wouldn't even pass the requirements to get certified.  But, I will admit Hyrum is a better sailer than me.  He is much more confident with handling the boat and tying all the many knots you have to know for all the rigging.  I just think it's fun to be out on the water and have found that it has given our family something to do while the world is mostly shut down.

The nice couple we bought our boat from.  They took us out for a sail before we bought the boat and showed us how it all works.

Townsend and Emerson drove down with Daddy to pick up the sailboat.  It looked so huge behind our little mini van but our van had no trouble hauling it 3 hours home.

Our new boat at our little sailboat dock on Sauvie Island.  The previous owners named the boat "Lil' Shelby" after their granddaughter.  We had a fun time as a family coming up with a new name for our sailboat.

Our newly christened boat, the "Skinny Dan".  A few years ago we were walking around a mall in Salt Lake City that had a water feature running through the center of it with trout swimming around.  For some reason Emerson named one of the trout "Skinny Dan" and it has stuck with us all these years.  We thought that was a perfect name for our new boat.

Julian and Daddy out for a sail

Heading up the Multnomah Channel to get out to the Willamette River for our sail.  It takes about 30 minutes to motor up the channel before we get to the river to sail.  

3 boys on a boat.  They enjoy sailing as long as it's about once every 2 weeks.  They don't like when we want to take them out every few days:)

We like to anchor off the shore of Sauvie Island and the boys can jump in the water and swim around for a bit.

Hyrum's fathers day gift, a Captains Hat:)

It's been fun taking friends out on the boat.  It's not a big boat but we can fit about 5 or 6 people on it. Emerson and his friend Landon chilling on the deck of the boat.

Julian with his friend Jacob

When we bought the sailboat the previous owners had just thrown down some old outdoor furniture mats to use for cushions.  Hyrum measured out the benches and then his sister Katrina sewed these beautiful cushions for us.  It makes the cabin look so clean and cozy.

Hyrum with our sailing instructor, Harold, in one of our sailing classes.

The newest graduates of American Sailboat Association Keelboat sailing course with our great teacher, Harold.

The sailboat has been a lot of fun.  I love just being outside and having something to do with my kids during the summer.  It has been a lot of fun learning to sail with Hyrum and I hope we have many more sailing adventures in our future!

Corona Virus Life

To steal a quote from my favorite musical, Hamilton..."The world turned upside down."  On March 13th the State of Oregon closed all schools due to COVID-19 concerns.  We were told they would be closed until April 3rd.  On April 8th we were told schools would be closed for the rest of the 2019/2020 school year.  Life has been pretty insane here at the Durtschi house.

At first my anxiety was completely out of control.  The news kept changing and policies would change overnight so you never really knew what the next day would look like.  Can we go to the park?  Can we get food to go from restaurants?  With all the schools closed and everyone staying home from work how will people afford their rent or feed their families?  Each day I was barely hanging on and I cried a few times.  Some days I still cry but it is getting better.  It has been almost 7 weeks of "quarantine" life and I feel like my anxiety is better because things have sort of stabilized.

 My kids are now doing what they call "online learning" which means they have assignments and things to complete online but it's definitely not the same as being in school full time.  Last week the high school announced that if you had a passing grade as of March 13th you WILL NOT fail any classes no matter what you do or don't do...so that means my twins now have no incentive to do anything because they were getting all A's on March 13th.  Julian's 5th grade teacher is still grading his work and he has a class meeting every day at 11 online with his teacher and classmates so I feel like he is at least doing something for school.  My twins...not so much.  But what do I do?  Do I force them to do lame busy work online that isn't even new to them just so they have something to do?

We try to get outside every day for at least an hour.  I have cut back on getting food "to go" from restaurants and we do that only twice a week now.  We still eat dinner as a family every night.  We watch movies together, go on family bike rides and hikes.  Yesterday we drove 45 minutes just to get lunch because I was craving Costa Vida and the closest Costa Vida to us is in Washington State!  At least we have the freedom to be outside, to get some fresh air.  We have enough food (and toilet paper) and Hyrum can still see his patients via online video chats.  We are blessed so much more than so many people because we don't have to worry about how we are going to pay for things and keep a roof over our heads.  And yet I'm still living at a low level of stress everyday.  It affects my sleep and it affects my mood.  I watch a lot of tv, I feed my kids lunch and get them off their screens for a few hours each day.  I keep the house clean.  I watch more tv.  It's lame but seriously all we can do.

*Non-essential businesses are closed
*Churches are closed
*Concerts, parades, sporting events...even the 2020 Olympics are cancelled
*Panic buying led to a shortage of essentials like toilet paper and sanitizing wipes
*Outdoor playground equipment is closed off for kids
*At first we couldn't gather in groups of 50 or more, than 20 and now 10
*Weddings and Graduations have been called off.  Funerals can only be attended by 10 or fewer people


These are just a few of the crazy things that have turned my world upside down.  And it doesn't help that the United States has a crazy person (Donald Trump) as president.  The idiot even suggested the idea that people should inject themselves with bleach to wipe out the virus!  It's not good!

So...What have we been doing during the last 7 weeks??

Using our back yard more.  For chilling and hanging out or for roasting hot dogs for dinner

Hiking, the boys complain but it's still allowed so we make them do it.  This was a 4 mile hike out to a light house on Sauvie Island

Played lots of games together

I got so bored one day I even baked carrot cake cup cakes...I hate baking!

Took the family snowshoeing through the forest near Mt. Hood

Fun times in the snow

I watched all three episodes in the Lord of the Rings trilogy in one day!

Made the family drive 45 minutes to Costa Vida for my birthday lunch.  We had to eat in the van because the restaurants are only open for take out

Katrina organized a "drive by birthday" for me.  About 20 people drove by my house and threw chocolate and other treats from their cars.  It was so much fun and I felt so loved.  I still miss hanging out with my friends for my birthday but this was the next best thing.

All the loot I got from my "drive by birthday"  I especially appreciated those that gave me toilet paper:)

Happy birthday to me.  Just the family could celebrate but I still had a fun day

What the toilet paper isle in my local grocery store looked like

We have pulled out toys the kids haven't played with in years!

Hyrum bought a game called Kubb for Christmas and we finally got it out of the box and played it

This is what "hanging out with friends" looks like

Playgrounds are roped off so kids can't play on them

Julian's 5th grade teacher packed up all the students things they had left at school on March 13th and we went to the school to pick them up.

More hikes, this one is at Jackson Bottom wetlands

Our Easter tree trying to bring some joy to people that pass by

The Easter Bunny still came by for a visit. We had to order all the treats online this year because chocolate stores were all closed.

My Johnson family having a chat on Easter Sunday

A hike at Fernhill wetlands

We took the canoe out for the first time in a few years

Made my boys ride their bikes to the library just so we could feed the ducks

And finally, this is what my view is everyday while I sit on the couch and watch tv.  At least Peter is loving that I'm home more:)

I asked each of my kids to write a little about how they are feeling about this whole situation. 

Emerson:

Quarantine shut down everything.  We aren't allowed inside other peoples houses. You wear a face mask to the store. School is also shut down. We are doing online learning. Staying in school would have been better, because my teachers were good this year.

Townsend:

There is a pandemic right now and everything is shut down. Literally you can't do anything. I'm away from school for at least 5 months. It sucks not being able to see people. The whole situation is just a long boring summer break!

Julian:

I don't care what's happening much.

Arizona Funeral

I was able to go to Arizona this past weekend for my Grandma Merrill's funeral.  This was my Mom's Mom and she lived to be almost 100 years old!  I have some great memories of my Grandma Merrill but we always lived so far away from my Grandparents that I was never super close to her.  She was always happy to see me and made me feel she loved me lots.  She was kind, generous and always smiling.

When I was about 15 years old my family was in Arizona for a family reunion.  My Grandparents had about 36 grandchildren and my Grandpa couldn't remember everyone's names.  At one point I overheard him say to my Grandma, "Fern, which one's that one?" and my Grandma replied, "That's Rachelle, dear" and then he said, "Well tell her to get over here and rub my feet!"  This was the perfect example of my Grandparents.  My Grandma was the sweet, kind and loving one and my Grandpa was pretty gruff.  They complimented each other perfectly.

I will always love my Grandma and remember her for making me feel loved and special even among her many, many grandchildren.  I received a birthday card in the mail every year of my life with a $1 bill from my Grandparents until just about 3 years ago when Grandma no longer had the energy to write out a birthday card.  She was amazing how she could remember everyone and make everyone feel her love.

Some of her children and Grandchildren performed "Love at Home" which was one of her favorite hymns.

Grandmas 5 children.  Aunt Jeanne Goodman, Uncle Tim Merrill, Aunt Marilyn Bigney, Uncle Phil Merrill and my Mom (DeAnn Johnson)


This was known as "The Wall" in my Grandmas house.  Anytime you would send her any photos from your family it would go up on the "The Wall"  It was always so fun to see all the pictures of cousins and their families and it made you feel special to know that Grandma would have your photo on her special wall:)

My parents and all 8 of their children were able to attend the funeral.  It was wonderful to spend the weekend with my family.  None of us had our spouses or children with us so we just got to hang out as siblings and we had a lot of fun!

Good times eating gelato!

In line for Cafe Rio...yum!!

Me with my Mom and Dad...and a cactus!  I'm not a huge fan of Arizona...it's way too hot for my taste but there is a certain kind of beauty there that is fun to enjoy.  My parents and Grandparents were all born and raised in Arizona so it's in my DNA to love this place:)