Mini-Soda

It seems that Hannah has been occupying most of this blog so I’ll relieve y’all for a bit.

Here are some facts about Minnesota:

• Pronounced “behg” not “bag” and not “out” but “oot”.
• The state with a thousand lakes. All of which are swarming with mosquitoes.
• State Fish: Walleye. That being said, I intend on finding me a fish fry to hit up.
• State Flower: Pink and White Lady’s Slipper. I’m sure I’ll find Hannah off taking pictures of it.
• Hard to find some high quality H20! 

Our entry into the North Star State was a bit more stressful than we had hoped for. In order to get the full jist of how these events came to be I’m going to give you little background info.

For the past few weeks Hannah has experienced four flat tires, two of which were both in the same day. She rides on WTB All-Terrain(asaurus) tires and rode on them her whole trip last summer. She raved and raved about them so of course our whole family had to furnish our bikes with no other tire but the WTB All-Terrains. Since my bike is sport specific the wheel forks are smaller and there wasn’t a size small enough that would fit. So I had to make due with some Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires. They don’t have a lot of grip or aren’t as beefy as the WTB’s (which make gravel roads and any other loose sand/gravel my arch nemesis, as I’m sure you read in the last post). Anyway, after all of these flat tires Hannah has been experiencing, we’ve re-evaluated and decided that little ol’ Schwalbe is a quality tire. There’s more…as a courtesy to riding close together it’s the leaders’ job to point out potholes, glass, metal objects that could make you eat it, etc. So whenever Hannah is leading and points out an object sometimes I just don’t have enough time to move or I’ll just go over it, Schwalbe style. Nothing I know the Schwalbes can’t handle though. Now you’re well informed for me to continue…

We crossed the Red River which is the border of North Dakota and Minnesota. We’re about fifteen miles out of Fargo, riding along this really nice state highway with a great shoulder. Well there were some evenly spaced tiny unavoidable bumps and after about two miles I heard a loud “pop”. This wasn’t the kind of “pop” that I knew my tire made after I just went over a small pebble or a piece of bark it was like an oh fudge “pop”. My back wheel immediately started to wobble but it wasn’t flat. I stopped, unloaded my panniers, and flipped the Phoenix to get a better idea of what was going on. We spun the wheel and it was rubbing against the fork…I had un-trued my wheel. Or so we thought. A quick call and we soon found out that I had a broken spoke but luckily no cracked rim. There are two things that could have made this happen: I’ve been eating way too much ice cream or Schwalbe can’t handle as much as I thought. I don’t know which one I want to believe. I just wanted to keep riding and not turn back but the next bike shop was a good two days ride and the likelihood of breaking another spoke was definitely possible. So we caught a ride back into town by a kind Minnesotan, Dave. He was kind enough to take a detour on his way to go fish (a very popular sport. We’ve found leeches and bait at almost every convenience store) at the lake. As it turns out when I was getting my spoke fixed, Hannah was doing some maintenance work as well…changing her fifth flat.

After all of the running around we picked back up where we left off and celebrated our crossing into a new state the only way we saw fit…a pineapple strawberry old fashioned soda. We then set out for Pelican Rapids which was a very cute town but in order to get there we had to go through a construction area. Just my luck, loose sand and dirt roads for three miles. We got about half a mile in before it got too deep and I was fish-tailing all over the place. We ended up walking/pushing the bikes but were able to get back on once the construction ended. We found a little treasure in Pelican Rapids, besides the world’s largest Pelican, Kettle Corn! Hannah picked up a bag at the grocery store and we ate the whole thing that night. Well Larry’s Market saw us the next day with a bag of Angie’s Kettle Corn in each of our hands (we were asked later “what’s up with the kettle corn?” our response was “it’s sooo good”). We were recommended to take a Rails to Trail route from Fergus Falls to Sauk Centre and then catch back up with our route in Bowlus. We decided to give up the rolling hills we had the day before in exchange for nothing but a…head wind. But we found the local Cafe 116 that made it all worth it. We finally got the delicious sandwiches we were looking for and more…Beignets (ben-YAY! emphasis on the YAY). 

I think we were getting too comfortable with the tail wind we were having all throughout North Dakota because we started our last 60 miles at oh around 4 o’clock. We figured that was plenty of time to crank out some miles. Funny joke. We ended up only going 40 to camp at Chippewa Park in Brandon. 

We set out the next morning for Bowlus where we had a warm shower waiting for us with Jan (yawn, German) and Jen. It was a beautiful Sunday morning and instead of making our regular oatmeal we decided to bike 10 miles to Alexandria for breakfast where a cinnamon roll held me over until around 3 o’clock. Once we were done Hannah asked if I needed to fill up my water bottle and I said no. This struck her as odd seeing as how she had already gone through both of hers. Well for one she can drink water like a camel (seriously) and I just have not been a fan of the H2O here. So in order to quench my thirst, honey boo boo gets some of her special juice (i.e. Simply Apple juice, Bolthouse Chocolate Protein, or a crystal light packet when I can’t down the water). 

We were so glad we took the Rails to Trail route because we were completely secluded and didn’t have to worry about traffic. Around ten miles before we got to Jan and Jen’s we ran into a couple of cute kittens that we stopped and fed some tuna. They were so cute and we hated leaving them but there wasn’t a whole lot we could do except for strap them on and hope they didn’t jump off. We figured they’d be better off with a bell full of tuna. Jan and Jen met us at the local cafe Jordie’s where they found Hannah and I sharing a lemon meringue pie. I know I know…yes we were eating again but we were told that we had to go there and try their pie! Jan and Jen are avid cyclists and have taken a few week long trips themselves and aspire to one day do a cross-country tour. They even started a bike club here in Central Minnesota that has over 150 members! Very cool. We of course ate the grilled salmon, shrimp, Israeli cous cous, and salad they had waiting for us. It was all soo delicious. We sat and exchanged stories with them and their friends, Jason and Beth. Such a nice end to the day, good company and really good food. 

-Chloe (aka Honey Boo Boo Child)

Truckin' it through North Dakota

Blessings were abound at the Sacred Heart Monastery! This past Monday we rode 100 miles to Richardton North Dakota! Finally, a new state. The terrain has been much of the same but we are excited to be making progress east.  

 A little information for those at home, The  Northern Tier has been re-routed due to oil development in the northern part of the state. Along with it there has been a huge increase in traffic, especially semi-trucks which we have seen on a daily basis.  The worst we encountered was through Dickinson. There was housing construction everywhere along with truck after truck fully loaded with who knows what. Luckily we made it out of there and were welcomed with open arms to the Sacred Heart Monastery! We arrived promptly at 6:30. Just minutes before we saw a group of three cyclists traveling west! Adam, Dana, and Andrea all met through "companions wanted"  on the adventure cycling website. Before the trip they didn't even know each other, but seemed to be the best of friends.   

Back to the monastery, Sister Renee showed us to our room and gave us a tour of the entire grounds. The monastery is very involved with stewardship. It has two wind turbines that have worked to provide clean energy since 1997 along with geothermal and natural gas the monastery was very up to date on clean efficient energy. Two green thumbs up! The place was beautiful, we could see all of the prairie valley. The changing color of the sky told us there  was a storm coming. We walked and talked, saw the llamas, and the sisters would not stop feeding us home made bread! I know, life's tough. We had a wonderful night and slept very well. The next morning we woke up and ate breakfast with the sisters. Chloe and I just adored them, sister Patti gave us a really nice card and sister Kathleen blessed us and our bicycles before we left. 

Unfortunately about ten minutes after leaving the safety of the monastery we found ourselves in a rain storm. (By the way I ran into Chloe while looking at the map. She was stopped at a stop sign putting on her rain coat. The wreck did more damage to me and my bum knee, I had to laugh to keep from crying. In the end I don't think enough holy water was splashed onto my bicycle.) The storm lasted   all day and really slowed our progress. After riding in the down pour for over two hours we took a break in a rest stop area. It turned out to be a nice break but we dreaded going back outside into the cold. However, I was looking forward to the warm showers host we contacted but wondering how will I ever get there?? Oh wait,  that's what I have legs and a bicycle for…  

So we waited for a break in the storm and got back in the saddle. A few more hours ticked by and just when I thought   I had enough there was Bob! He pulled over in his pickup  (I have learned there is apparently a difference between the words pickup and truck) and said "you must be the cyclists!" I cannot begin to explain how happy I was to see him. We made it to Bob and Kathy's house just outside of Bismarck. I was so relieved and happy to be inside for the rest of the storm.  

We showered and got ourselves cleaned up while Kathy made dinner. We ate a delicious pasta dinner with salad, cheese, and Kathy's homemade bread. Bob and Kathy were so much fun to visit with! They are both  avid cyclists and just finished a weekend touring around Turtle Mountain. After talking about bicycles, life, school, and traveling Kathy asked us if we would like some ice cream for dessert. I said " Kathy, I never turn down ice cream!" She also treated us to chokecherry syrup and homemade green tomato jelly! Delicious! Well what started out as one scoop for me slowly turned into three bowls... I couldn't help myself! In my defense it was a huge tub of ice-cream, Bob and Kathy would have never finished it on their own. I was merely helping. It's funny because the ice cream started to melt and Kathy finally said "well I better put this away, but don't worry if you want more it's just right here in the freezer." I honestly think she was afraid to take it away from me.  We  slept very well and are so grateful for our new friends! I hope everything goes well for Bob and Kathy, they are in the process of moving right now. After they get settled into their new place I'm sure it won't be long before they go on their own grand tour! 

Bismarck to Jamestown 102 miles. Tired. Slept next to the buffalo at the Frontier Village CG.  

Next day, Jamestown to Fargo. Another 107 miles. We took a break  halfway at a rest stop, a kind lady stopped to talk with us about our trip. She left and came back with $10 and said "here girls buy yourselves a treat later." So nice! Chloe was mapping and decided I-94 was to busy to stay on. She found an alternate County Road 10 for us to cycle on. It's strange how roads look so nice on a map but then you reach  them and find out they are just a gravel stretch of rock nothing! Chloe's favorite. Although I have to admit it made me laugh on  the inside that she chose this terrific terrain for us to cross. Only because earlier in the week  I took us through a gravel stretch of road so I could see a wetlands and bird refuge! She really enjoyed that detour.  Continuing on the dirt road was only 10 miles long. We finally reached Fargo at 3:00 p.m and had plenty of time to walk downtown and explore the city! A great way to end our day.   

Next up Minnesota!  

Thanks for keeping up with us!  

-Hannah

Sun's out, Gun's out!

Hey everyone, quick update. A few days ago we left our Pa (aka the Anchor) in East Glacier. That morning we all rode through the park together and had a great time taking pictures and laughing around Two Medicine Lake. The day ended sadly as we rode off to Cut Bank and Pa caught the Amtrak back to Spokane. We parted ways, Chloe and I both cried under our sun glasses as we rode our bicycles down the road. This time with no Papa. It was a sad feeling to know we were no longer a traveling gypsy family, now it was just the two of us. Me and sissy. Suddenly the trip seemed a little more daunting. Luckily I'm doing this with my best friend, the girl with lightening legs!  Cut Bank to a city park in Chester. Met Sarge Holmes and he watched us eat dinner for over and hour. Told us "it's a damn miracle the two of you aren't huge with as much food as you pack!" Thanks. I guess. Sarge cursed like a sailor but shared some good stories, we enjoyed listening. That night we didn't sleep very well because we kept hearing weird noises. We left our clothes out to dry and were paranoid somebody was going to try and take them.  Woke up the next morning, accidentally took one of Chloe's shoes. I wore it until she told me it was hers, I thought it felt a little big.  Rode bicycle to Havre. Stayed in a college dorm. No parties. Lame. Oh but there was one eventful moment during the night. After finishing dinner we realized we didn't have dessert! Luckily I noticed a DQ on our way into town. I'm sure you can guess where this is going. Late night ice cream run by bicycle!! I know, I know, it's nine o'clock, starting to rain, and 48 degrees outside. But let me just be completely honest here, there is very little that will stop me from getting ice cream once I have made up my mind! Yummy! Riding home in the rain was not that fun. After all the excitement it was time for bed. 92 miles from Havre to Malta. So much prairie land! Everything is so flat. But really, the crop circles I spot way off in the distance keep things interesting.  From Malta we went another 70 miles to Glasgow. We were so fortunate to meet Pastor Dan, Barbara, and their foster children Kimacia, Billy, and Curtis. They were such a wonderful family! We ate dinner with them and they were kind enough to let us use the shower and stay the night in the church.  Before we left that morning Barbara said a prayer for us and wished us luck on the rest of our journey, it was very touching!   Rode 108miles to Circle. There was absolutely nothing in Circle.  Next day to Wibeaux, we stayed in a deserted RV park.  Ok now that I have finished with this post I realize it was not that quick of an update.  P.S I desperately need to do some laundry.  -Hannah

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

Waking up in Glacier National Park was definitely bittersweet. It was a thrill to bicycle around the park the day before and enjoy all the natural life! We even met another cyclist in camp, Dylan! He is riding his bicycle to his brothers wedding in New York. Dylan is a recent grad and teacher in the San Fransisco area. He knows a great deal about literature, wears a well kept brown beard, and can pound a chili burger in no time. To put it simply, he is a man's man. But even Dylan will agree that our day riding together was nothing but cold (38 degrees) mixed with a rain that chilled us all to the bone. The forecast called for scattered showers, but we experienced much more than that. We packed up our wet gear and move onto a small town called Essex. The rain just continued to pour. I wanted to cry. Especially because I have been having some trouble shifting my gears and the bicycle is not functioning, trust me it's not an operator error. On top of that Chloe and Pops put me to break the wind in front! I was trying so hard to keep a good pace but my legs were cold and tired. So there I was, a soggy mess and my feet were wet spinning out of control, going nowhere. Then, all of a sudden who pulls up to my side with a little smile on her face, not breaking a sweat? Little Osoita, she came to save the day! It was great, or at least better, considering our circumstance. That is until Papa got a flat tire.

The sun finally started to break through the clouds. Right on cue I  was prompted into song with Annie's the sun will come out tomorrow, our day was beginning to turn around. Chloe was so far ahead of me and Papa, in what she calls " the zone". I on the other hand call it hallin' ass for no apparent reason. As I rode around the bend trying to catch up I realized my efforts were worthless and decided it would be a lot more fun to identify flowers on the side of the road. So I stopped. After a few minutes of frolicking in the flowers I noticed  something peculiar, there was no Pops coming around the corner. I waited, still nothing. Regretfully I decided to turn around and go find him. I only say this because I had just finished climbing a hill. Against the wishes of my legs, which were telling me to stay put, I convinced myself it was the right thing to do. 

It's a scary thing when you loose your Papa. Just like when you loose anything, all of these bad thoughts creep into your mind. I thought to myself "oh no where is that little old man, surely he didn't fall into another ditch, what if he hurt himself, or fell over into the road, great, how am I supposed to find him..." Just then I saw something move, but it was low in the brush and still too far away to make out any detail of the object. As I got closer I realized it was moving, slowly, it was curiously hunkered down in this fetal position. All of a sudden I saw it! A wild Pa! Cute lil' guy was sitting in the grass fixing his flat tire. I said "hey, there you are, I started to worry. Oh by the way I have no idea where Chloe is, probably at the halfway cabin with a hot chocolate in hand because that little girl don't wait for no one!" We laughed, not too much time passed before we saw  Chloe riding back. Yay! All together again. Just then our cycling buddy Dylan rolled up and we all rode together! He is such a cool guy, so friendly, and it's nice to know that someone else is on the trail with you. 

We made it to our cabin just outside of Essex. Dylan went ahead to camp at another site. The rest of the night was pretty uneventful. 

Oh wait. Except for the Grizzly Bear that we saw only  30 feet away from our cabin!! Yes it was that close. It was the first time Chloe and I have ever seen a bear in the wild! It was such an amazing animal. So big and so brown! Pa said it was a juvie. For being young it still looked to weigh about 400 pounds! It's funny because for the past two days we have been camping in the park and Osoita refuses to put her food and bags away into a bear box. She insists that "bears are nocturnal, they won't come out this early, I have nothing to worry about." Oh was she so wrong. I am now completely in love with bears. We watched our grizzly friend until he retreated into the woods. 

Five minutes later Chloe and I decided it was time to check out the country store and re-stock our depleting food storages. I joked around "better bring the bear spray, just in case." We started walking and I was stopped dead in my tracks. I grabbed Chloe's arm as she said "what, what?" There in the road right in front of us was the same juvie bear! It was a little scary to see the bear right in the open. It didn't pay us any attention and continued to cross the road. I later learned more about the grizzly bear. It's fascinating because the juvie bear we saw was about two years old, sometime last winter Mama bear  kicked out our furry friend because she had a new cub.Folks around here call the new born bear "cub of the year", and the older  bear a "yearling". When Mama bear "dens up" and has her new cub of the year, she doesn't wanna be crowded by all them kids! As a solution she kicks out the yearling. They no longer live or hibernate together. Poor little guy. That's all for now!

Hannah

Glacier National Park

It has been brought to my attention that Chloe and I have fallen behind on our blog post. To all of our dedicated followers,  I apologize. Good, now that is out of the way we can pick up where we left off!

 Where was I? Oh that's right, at a bakery of course!!  However, this was no ordinary bakery. The Pine Street Bakery in Sandpoint Idaho provided much more than just a warm welcome after a day of cycling in the soggy rain. Can you say calories!! My goodness it was like this ethereal bakery popped out of nowhere and sweetly called my name, it whispered "oh Hannah... we have delicious cookies, everything bagels, lemon drop cookies, hiker oat cake bars, rhubarb streusel bars, and bear claws, all for you to enjoy..." How could I resist?? My defenses were completely down and I was hit hard, hit with this confectioners sugar bomb! Literally I ordered, and my tastebuds indulged in every treat listed above. That's right, I ate it all.  And I'm proud if it! My moment of weakness was so completely perfect. I will never regret it, or be shocked by the cavities which come in result to my little sweet tooth problem! (They all say the first step to recovery is admitting you haves problem).  This bakery experience would not have been possible without the sugar genius of Deirdre. Thank you for creating a beautiful bakery full of happiness! I would also like to wish Deirdre good luck, she is embarking on a new and very exciting journey. She will soon follow her musical heart and become a master pianist and tuner through an artistic school in Boston! Buenas suerte Deirdre! 

After recovering from my sugar coma, last Friday. Papa, Chloe, and I rode together once again through the rain, to a cabin around Lake Koocanosa. After arriving Chloe and I went off for a walk, somehow I ended up wandering into the bar (just out of curiosity of course). There I met two wonderful Canadian friends, Gary and Pam. The night only got better from there!

We were just about to settle in for the night when Pam knocked on our door and invited us to have dinner with her and Gary. We were  finishing our own dinner and watching Grease, but there was no way we would  turn down another meal and some friendly company! So we followed Pam over to a dinner of grilled vegetables, mint greens salad, and grilled chicken. Que rico!  Pam and Gary were taking a well deserved  holiday and  traveling on Harley's. Very cool. As the night went on Gary was finally able to persuade Pops (papas nickname, courtesy of G&P) to " let his hair down"! We moved our entire party to the waterfront and decided to have a fire because as Gary put it in perfect Canadian, "any dick on the block can have a fire, I want one with a lake front view!"  And so we did just that.  All five of us moved to the water and enjoyed a warm fuego together while watching the sunset fade behind the lake. It was such an incredible view! 

The following day was finally sunny, unfortunately it didn't last long. The weather on our trip so far has been very fickle. For example, we will have one day of perfect riding weather, with warm temperatures and clear skies. Then, next thing we know our dream day is followed by a two or three day spell of nothing but rain and cold. Not so pleasant. Luckily, yesterday (6/7) was filled with warmth and sunshine as we peddled into Glacier National Park! The glaciers here are magnificent! The landscape is honestly breathtaking. Unfortunately the glaciers are rapidly shrinking. Dan Forge, the U.S Geological Survey's resident climate watcher has stated "there were once 150 glaciers in the park. Now, there are 26 left, and we expect them all to be gone by 2030." I know earlier I mentioned how wet the weather has been, but truly we  are experiencing an increasingly dry climate. It's extremely evident when one considers the lack of ice and glacial presence on earth today. Thank you. Now, I am off of my soap box and everyone should come and see Glacier National Park before it melts away!!

Cycle-Happy,

Hannah

Warhorse

Quite an intimidating name Papa Rice chose for his bike but it fits to a T.  We camped in Kettle Falls after meeting up in a cute natural food store. We were faced with a bit of a predicament because Papa had to find a place to stash his rig so he could later take the Amtrak back to it. Ideas were thrown around and we finally settled on going separate ways and meet back up in a campground just outside of Newport so that Hannah and I didn't have to bike as far.

An expected long day required waking up at 5:30 and leaving by 7. To our amazement we were actually punctual which, if you know the Rices, is a pretty good accomplishment. Just ask our pseudo sister Lizzy. Anyway, Papa Rice's journey began driving to Spokane and dropping off the Ford Exploder, finding an REI since he forgot a sleeping pad, and loading up his bike. He galloped on the Warhorse a commendable 59 miles his first day! I could tell at the end of the day by our conversation over the phone that once he reached Newport he wasn't going to move which left us with the decision of either sticking to the original plan or going all the way to Newport but we'll get to that later.

 Meanwhile, our day started with dropping down into Colville from Kettle Falls then climbing our way out. We stopped for our first break at 35 miles where we sat on a rock overlooking a waterfall. That and a trail mix were what we needed to ride until lunch which didn't happen until we hit almost sixty miles. Our conversation was short and consisted of only requests to pass food. It was like we couldn't take in calories fast enough. The only consistent sound was the background music by Juanes, Hannah's artist of the month and only soundtrack on her iTouch but it's growing on me. Awhile after lunch we were greeted into an Indian reservation with a couple of dogs chasing us. Hannah had told me prior that this kind of thing does happen and to just yell "go home!" and the dogs will eventually go home. That's exactly what we did when we were ambushed by the canines. Since I was leading I was stuck fending off the big black ravenous dog while Hannah lucked out with the short stout white one. Fluffy, he was the complete opposite, continued to chase me into the oncoming lane but after a few squirts of water and Hannah's blood curdling "go home!" yell, he finally let up. We finally made to Usk at 88 miles and to our dismay we had another 17 to go until meeting up with papa in Newport. The winds were clearly not in our favor seeing as how if we had a tailwind we would've been at our destination by then. We sat outside a gas station regaining our energy with a Take-5 and contemplating wether or not we should camp in Usk or push to Newport. We had made up our minds that we'd just stay in Usk...until a wave of crazy hit us. We bit the bullet and decided to crank out the last 17 miles and after splitting another Take-5 and a Snickers ice cream bar that's exactly what we did. We took turns pulling and was able to keep an average speed of 17mph, making our estimated hour and a half time into only an hour and fifteen. I don't know anyone that would've been laughing and joking around with me while biking in a headwind and watching our miles slowly tick to 107. It was either due to our pure enjoyment of biking or that we had a mad sugar rush, probably the latter. Either way that has been the funnest and hardest day I've had so far and I'm so glad Hannah was there pedaling beside me the whole way.

When we finally reached the American Kampground in Newport it was 7:45. We started at 7:45 and didn't end until 7:45. An adventure filled 12 hour bike ride deserved nothing but a spaghetti feast. We ran, more like waddled, to the store across the road and got our supplies. Epic meal time! Once again our conversation was limited to "can you pass the salad/bread?".

It was great to finally be reunited with Papa and we have a good story because of it. But after it was all said and done I asked Hannah "can we please have a 30 mile day tomorrow?"

Happy Pedaling!

Chloe

Estamos en Canada! The morning started out with a lovely breakfast made by our gracious host family George and Patti. Let me just say that Patti makes delicious homemade bread, topped with raspberry currant preserves made for a perfect way to start the day. We decided to bicycle an alternate route that George directed us to, it was amazing! The scenery was so beautiful as we rode along side the Kettle River all the way into Canada.

Last night we stayed with a fellow cyclist at the City Park, his name was Dwight and what a character he was! We rode 70 miles, our longest day yet.

Today we continued to follow the map that George drew out for us back to Washington. It really was a fantastic detour especially since we avoided Sherman Pass. Yay for me! We crossed back over the border and met some really nice people, Officer Stevens was very kind to chat with us and wish us well on the rest of our trip. We rode for another two minutes before Officer Brian stopped us to ask about our trek and bicycle gear. He gave us some good advice about bear safety. Rule number 1: "if you see a bear on the trail ride pass it and kick it on the butt." (Sounds reasonable). Rule number 2: "if you see a moose pedal faster because the moose here are crazy." Thank you Officer Brian!

I'm feeling really great so far and enjoying all of the people and places that Chloe and I are visiting. My only complaint is that my Brooks saddle is still not my friend yet, if you know what I mean. But I am optimistic that another 2,000 miles will change her for the better. All of the food so far has been delicious, fresh, and organic. Although, I have to admit that last night I had a bit of a fat girl moment when I started to indulge in a strawberry shake at the 50's Happy Diner in Grand Forks and decided that it would be even better followed by a homemade maple doughnut.Yes that really did happen. After inducing myself into a sugar coma, the sweet owner of the store came over and handed Chloe and I a bag filled with two more chocolate doughnuts! Yum! (But don't worry we gave one to Dwight, I won't tell you what happened to the other...)

We are meeting up with Papa Rice later today! I am so excited! We don't know where we are going tomorrow but I bet it will be someplace beautiful.

Hannah

P.S Thank you to our host families: Papa Jason & Mama Valerie you are so wonderful! I will definitely be back to Mazama for another visit. In addition to George & Patti your gracious company and kindness will stay with us forever, sending you warm wishes for the wedding!