Our drive to Missoula, Montana went smoothly with Drew taking a nap around 10:30am. Poor kid has been so worn out, I was thankful for his early morning rest. I guess our swim first thing this morning paid off!
The weather was cloudy, which made for perfect driving conditions and the roads were WIDE Open! While the speed limit said 75, I think that was just a suggestion. Such wide open spaces surely calls for more than 75 mph....needless to say, the trip was shorter than we had expected. Less than four hours after pulling out of Idaho we were in Missoula.
I was excited for our time in Missoula and had done quite a bit of research on the city knowing we'd be here for an extended period of time (more than 24hrs). I was pleased to find that all within walking distance were parks, restaurants, a library and a Children's Museum. Dan would be gone all day, so our day was going to have to be full, seeing as we were going to be in a little hotel room. Or so I thought. After we checked in, we went to check out our room and I discovered that not only had Dan picked my favorite hotel, the Doubletree, but he had also organized a suite for us all! The room was huge - and there was plenty of space for us the boys to romp around in! The room had also just been re-decorated and was beautiful!
While both boys had napped in the car, Dan and I were exhausted. We flopped down on our huge heavenly bed, and let the kids have the run of the hotel room while we 'rested.' They had a blast jumping on the big pull out bed (which we surrounded by pillows so they couldn't get hurt), and racing race cars under our large four poster king bed. It was delightful for them and for us!
We headed out later that afternoon in the rain to check out the mall. I had seen on a billboard there was one just down the road and we hoped they would have a decent play area for the kids since it was raining. We eventually found the mall thanks to Aunt B, our GPS, just as both of the boys dozed off. Their romp around the hotel room wore them out flat!
We perused the mall, found some great deals at the Eddie Bauer store, and then headed to Outback for dinner! It was such a treat to head there as my last visit to the Australian restaurant had been over 3 months ago with my best friends Michelle and Beverly. On Dan's last road trip to New Mexico he called while eating dinner at an Outback and I was so incredibly jealous! (Not only for the food, but also for the peaceful quiet dinner he was enjoying without kids). As any good husband would do, he promised me a dinner at Outback on our Westward road trip!
Our drive this morning had been quite uneventful, and while only four hours long, we had not come across any sort of town. So our graham crackers sufficed as our lunch. Needless to say, by the time we sat down at Outback the kids were starving. As the waitress greeted us with a loaf of that delicious brown bread in her hand the kids nearly attacked her. She had no more than finished our drink order - than they had scarfed down an entire loaf of break. Dead. Serious. She thankfully noticed my two malnourished children and had a manager bring another loaf for us while she got our drinks together. She did question if the manager had brought it by though, because as you can guess - it had already been eaten by the time she returned with drinks. She sweetly took our order, and promised to bring another loaf of bread. I can happily report that by the time the third loaf of bread had been eaten, the boys finally started to settle down and were content to wait for their dinner. I thought for sure that their little bellies were full and there would be no room for their Mac-N-Cheese, but I was wrong. They both put a good dent in their bowls, and even enjoyed the green beans that Dan had ordered for them. It was a delicious meal - and worth the wait, oh, and even better with the kids! They definitely add the spice to our family, and to each meal!
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