Hi Ho Hi Ho

Carver and I didn't get to spend much time in our new home at first. We threw all our stuff into the house and then took off for a little vacation. Well I did. Carver headed back to Utah to finish up his finals. A strange way to plan things I know but that's how it happened.
So while Carver got to spend another two days in school I got to fly up to Spokane and see my old roommate and friend Mallory Kipp get married! It was awesome to see her again and to see her so happy with her new husband. It was also one the craziest receptions I have ever been to. There was a beautiful set-up in her parents front yard with lights, a dance floor and beautiful tables. Well 20 mins before it started the rain began to poor and the power went out! Everyone rushed stuff inside and instead we ended up having a candlelit reception in the house. It still looked pretty cool and Mallory is so easy going that the night was still a success.

After the wedding Carver met me in Spokane and we took off on a tour of Washington/Northern Idaho. Carver is in love with this area of the country and it was fun to see him pointing out a lot of the places he went to as a kid.

And away we go!

The main reason we took this little road trip was for Carver to do some research. He is writing his senior paper on the Mining Riots of 1892 which took place near Wardner and Wallace Idaho. We spent a lot of time checking out museums, scouring the libraries and touring some of the ghost towns nearby. It was actually pretty fun to see these little towns and the history behind them. Even without the paper Carver loves history and it was fun to roam around and see what we could find.

We had to stop and read every historical marker, apparently he gets it from his grandpa

We even got to take a tour of a gold mine, just to get an idea of how the mining process went and what types of conditions they worked in. Our tour guide was great and it was very informational. Mining would definitely not have been my career of choice if I lived back then, but I guess somebody had to do it!

End of the line at 500 ft under the mountain!

That's some good color there

After the tour they gave us an hour of free gold panning. We are really big nerds and have always wanted to take a gold panning class. They actually offer a class at UVU! This was the perfect opportunity to  see if we have what it takes. The rain that followed us all week had started to pour so I didn't last long, but  Carver was determined to make his fortune.

We had planned on camping along the way, but it ended up raining every day so we decided to check out some of the local accommodations. There were some interesting hotels in those small mining towns. I contemplated bringing in our sleeping bags to sleep on the bed a few times. But they were cheap and it's all about the experience I guess. We did find some awesome restaurants though. Carver and I both really like food and we like trying out new places. One little gem was Frank's Diner. It was made out of an old railway car and the parking lot was completely empty when we pulled up. It was 6:30 p.m. which is prime eating time so I was a little nervous that no one else seemed to want to eat there. I was so wrong, they served some amazing breakfast food and the place was pretty full by the time we left.

Frank here sat right in our booth with us, he was a great dinner guest.

In Lewiston, Idaho, Carver took me to a place called Waffles N' More where I found some of the best looking waffles I have ever seen. It was so hard to decide, but I settled on the Coconut Cream Pie Waffle. The waffle itself tasted like cake, and then it had coconut cream pie filling on top with whipped cream, coconut and coconut syrup. I almost died. It was delicious and I can't wait until we go back. Next time I'm trying the strawberry cheesecake waffle!

In Lewiston we also got to spend time with Grandma Stellmon and Carver's aunts Lorna and Kristi. It's always nice to see family and to see where Carver grew up. Then we headed off to the Lochsa River for Carver to get in some fishing time. Even before we were dating Carver would talk about the Lochsa as one of his favorite places in the world. I was really excited to see this place I have been hearing about for a few years. It did not disappoint. It was so beautiful with thick trees everywhere and the winding river, the rain even made the mountains look great. We will definitely be back.

I'm really thankful for our road trip and for the chance I had to explore my new state of Idaho. Things are going pretty well so far and  I think I'm going to like it.