Celebrating Crazy Kristie
This was a little different from our normal Escape Reality weekends because this time, Papa Bear and I were celebrating my crazy sister Kristie, and turning her 45th birthday into a little bigger deal because, honestly, she deserves to be treated like a queen.
My mission these days seems to be pretty simple make memories while we can. So I had planned on getting as many of us together as possible for a day filled with family, laughter, and hopefully a few stories we could laugh about later.
Both of my boys came along with their beautiful ladies, my sister Ari and her cub Paul joined us, and of course, we can’t forget her wonderful man Ryan either. T had grabbed a campsite, so we all met up there while we waited for everyone to arrive.
I absolutely loved getting the chance to catch up with everyone. I don’t get to see the boys nearly as much as I’d like, so having everyone together was pretty damn special. I also got to meet T’s lady again and, of course, her pup Gus.
Into the Caverns
Once everyone had finally arrived, we loaded up and headed up the mountain to Lewis & Clark Caverns, which was Crazy Kristie’s birthday adventure of choice.
Kristie chose the easier cavern tour instead of the longer one, which honestly worked out pretty well for everyone. We still got to explore and see some really cool formations, but I’m already thinking that next time we’re going back and doing the longer tour. Because one trip wasn’t enough.
And, naturally, no family adventure is complete without me trying to get pictures of everyone.
I told everyone we needed a selfie, and both of the boys seemed to think they had finally escaped my shenanigans and my constant need to photograph everything.
Nope.
I may love being in the moment, but I also want the pictures to look back on later. Because someday those pictures are going to be the memories we treasure.
The caverns were absolutely fascinating. I vaguely remember going there as a kid, but apparently my childhood memory storage isn’t exactly top-notch because I had forgotten so much about them.
As we made our way through the caverns, I kept seeing different shapes and images in the rock formations. At one point, the tour guide pointed something out. I think it was supposed to be the queen or something along those lines.
I thought I was being super quiet when I said, “Oh, I need to get a picture of that bitch.”
Apparently, I was NOT being quiet.
Everyone started chuckling, and that’s when I realized there were little kids nearby.
Oops.
Apparently, Mama Bear forgot to turn off her potty mouth.
What can I say? It’s a work in progress. 😂
But seriously, if you haven’t been to Lewis & Clark Caverns, I highly recommend checking them out. It’s pretty damn cool to walk through there and see what nature has created over thousands and thousands of years.
Once our tour was finished, we made our way back to the visitor center to grab some snacks before heading off to dinner.
Giant Pizzas in Whitehall
Since I don’t get to see my boys very often, I was trying to soak up as much time with them as I possibly could while we were all together. So, naturally, the adventure continued with food.
We headed to Hwy 2 Pizzeria & Restaurant in Whitehall.
We ordered what we thought was a reasonable amount of pizza, assuming we’d be getting normal-sized large pizzas.
We were wrong.
When those pizzas came out, we were absolutely bombarded by what looked like some of the biggest pizzas I’d ever seen.
Let’s just say nobody was going home hungry.
Papa Bear Shows Me How to Get Home
Eventually, though, it was time to head home. Papa Bear and I had plenty of chores waiting for our asses because, of course, we needed to get everything done so we could prepare to head back out camping again.
By the time we stopped at the gas station to fill up my truck, Papa Bear decided he was going to take over the wheel and “show me how to get home.”
Well…
Boy, did he ever show me.
He got a little impatient driving behind a few cars that couldn’t seem to decide what speed limit they wanted to drive. So he put my truck into high gear and gave her a little more gas.
And let me tell you — she gets up and goes when you get on her.
Papa Bear slides back into his lane, and wouldn’t you know it…
Just over the hill, there was a sheriff.
And he lit us up.
Papa Bear pulls over, and I immediately have a mini panic attack.
With my history of getting pulled over, I start scrambling around looking for my insurance card so I can hand it to the officer when he comes to the window.
Except…
I only had expired insurance cards in my truck.
Way to go, Mama Bear.
So now I’m digging through my phone trying to find the most recent insurance card while the officer is standing there.
Thankfully, somehow, I managed to get my fingers working properly long enough to find the current insurance information and show it to him.
He went back to his patrol car to finish whatever paperwork he needed to do, and eventually came back.
Papa Bear ended up with a $20 ticket.
Now, if the tables had been turned and I had been driving?
That probably would have been closer to a $200 ticket because apparently I have a bit of a lead foot and have been caught more times than I care to admit.
Papa Bear thought this entire situation was hilarious, especially watching me fumble around trying to find my insurance card.
He wasn’t wrong.
It’s amazing how something as simple as finding an insurance card suddenly becomes the most complicated task in the world when a police officer is standing there waiting for you.
Another One for the Collection
And that’s another memory added to the collection.
A birthday weekend with Crazy Kristie. Family all together. The boys. The pup. A cavern full of amazing formations. Giant pizzas. A potty-mouthed Mama Bear. And Papa Bear getting a $20 ticket while laughing at me for panicking.
Honestly…
I’d say that’s a pretty damn good day.
Because at the end of the day, it’s the people, the laughter, the adventures, and the stories we make along the way that matter most.
Until the next adventure…
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