Spring Break 2024

How exciting can Spring Break in Rexburg, Idaho possibly be? Pretty exciting if you are hanging out with this crew! Tyler and I left Spokane at 4:30 am the day after Easter and headed for Southern Idaho. Bryn's sports schedule did not allow her to come with us. Sigh. It's nice having Reilly close by for things like this.

We stopped for breakfast in Missoula and made it to Rexburg around 1pm. We were able to check into our hotel early which was wonderful! We dropped off our stuff and went over to Ailey's apartment as soon as she got out of class. We got the tour of her new apartment. It was really cute. Unfortunately they don't have any contracts for Spring semester so she and her roomie Ellie will be moving yet again. After that we needed to do a little shopping for Ailey. She needed a temple bag and we found her the cutest ruby red bag. It is darling! We got her all organized and packed her bag for her trip to the temple the next day. Then it was back to her apartment for a bit to see Ellie and to meet her other roommates.

Kameron had class all day and then had to work that afternoon/evening so Tyler and I went to dinner at the Hickory with Ailey. I think it is my favorite Rexburg restaurant. It was really good! It was nice to have to some time alone with her before we met up with Kameron and then met all of the significant others aka Erin and Luke! Of course we didn't want to wait until Kam's shift ended so we went to the ol' Walmart and played "Where's Waldo?" Ailey, Tyler, and I all went separate directions in search of our boy. My motherly instincts won out. He was in the gardening section and NOT surprised to see us. LOL. He was like "I knew you couldn't help yourself!" So true! 

It was also in the Walmart gardening section where Kam dropped the bomb... although a good bomb...that not only was he excited for us to *meet* Erin...but he has also decided that he wants to marry her. I was like..."Didn't you want to know if we even liked her before you got that serious?!" And with a quirk of his eyebrow... he told me "NOPE!" But he did assure us that we would like her. Kam does have good taste in girlfriends so we weren't too worried.

After dinner we went back to Ailey's apartment. Her boyfriend Luke had stopped by while we were gone. On her bed were gifts from him to US?! What the heck? He left us a giant box of Crumbl cookies, a bouquet of roses, our favorite redbulls, and a note that said, "Welcome to Rexburg Mr. and Mrs. Johnson!"  So sweet! Ailey went to go grab Luke and Tyler and I went back to our hotel to await the arrival of all our people. We couldn't wait to meet the kids that our kids were dating! 

I knew that we would really like both Erin and Luke and we sure did! We've facetimed with both of them a few times and we knew that they were fun and good for our kids. They were even better than we could have imagined!! The kids all came over and hung out in our hotel room until around1am. It was so fun!! I had some Easter surprises for all of them. They are such great kids. Tyler and I were so impressed. Hooray!

The next day was Ailey's big day at the temple. This stands out as one of the most perfect days that Tyler and I have ever had. It was an AMAZING day for sure! Incredible and unforgettable. The sun came out and it was a gorgeous! Ailey came over to our hotel that morning and had breakfast with Tyler while I got ready. Then she left to pick up Luke and we all met up at the temple. We were all so excited for Ailey. This moment was extra special because about 10 years ago we were on Spring Break in Utah and we stopped in Rexburg to see the new temple. We all got out and walked around the grounds. Ailey and Bryn were peeking in the doors and I took a picture of them. How serendipitous that this would be the temple where Ailey would receive her endowment. Very cool! 

The Rexburg Temple is very beautiful! We are used to the small Spokane Temple so it seemed enormous. Ailey and I were greeted so warmly and lovingly and she was able to go to the office of the temple president and we were able to talk with him while he got her paperwork ready. He told her that she was the "Queen of the Temple" and that he wanted today to be very special for her. Then we got our sweet temple escort who took us into the dressing room and then Ailey did her initiatory work. After that we were ushered into the Brides Room which was stunningly beautiful with gorgeous morning light streaming through the windows. There it was explained to Ailey all about the covenants that she would be making and she could ask any questions and discuss any concerns that she had about the temple. Then it was time for our session. Our cute little escort got the Johnson Party...we had a group with us! FINALLY! I love it! It was so fun to see Tyler, Kameron, Luke, and Erin come in. The whole experience was so special and unforgettable. Tyler and I had some very special spiritual experiences while in the temple with these kids. Life changing experiences. Being in the celestial room with all of them and Tyler too was the height of happiness. But one of my favorite memories from that day was of all of us leaving the celestial room. We were walking out and going downstairs to the dressing rooms. Ailey and Luke were in the front of our group holding hands and walking down the hall and down the stairs, followed right behind by Kameron and Erin holding hands and walking down the hall and stairs, and then right behind them it was Tyler and I holding hands and doing the same thing. It was such a special moment. I looked at Tyler and he looked at me and we knew that if this group was meant to be we were all for it. We could see these two new people as part of our family. We had such peace about these couples, their futures, and our growing family.

We are very proud of the decisions that Ailey is making and it is fun watching her mature and make her way in the world.

After the temple we grabbed some lunch at Millhouse and talked about some of our experiences.

Then we all changed out of our church clothes and headed to Idaho Falls. The weather was sunny and warm. It was a picture perfect day!

Luke had just purchased his first car so we took the obligatory 1st car picture. LOL.

We rented electric scooters and rode all over the place. It was so much fun!!

We also did a little shopping and then grabbed dinner at Texas Roadhouse.

Then it was back to our hotel room for a hilarious game night. Erin surprised us with a box of my favorite Country Time Lemonade in a can that we can't get in Washington and chocolate covered cinnamon bears for Tyler that we also can't get in Spokane. The kids that our kids are dating are so sweet and incredibly thoughtful! Our intense, hysterical, and extremely competitive game night showed Luke and Erin who the Johnsons *really* are and it showed us that Luke and Erin fit right in!! Ha ha! It was another late night and we were sad to say goodbye to Kameron, Erin, and Luke. 

The next morning we slept in a bit and then Ailey came over and we went to breakfast at Kneaders. I have to get my raspberry bread pudding fix. I love that stuff! My mom did too and anytime we were near a Kneaders we would eat one and get one to go. Ha ha!

We also got sandwiches and food to put in the cooler for the ride home so that we didn't have to stop. We also brought Bryn home her favorite eclairs. I love that Ailey likes to squeeze in every possible minute with us before we go. She's always lot of fun!! We did a little shopping and then stopped in at her work so that she could show us around. Then it was time to head back to Spokane. It wasn't quite as sad driving away this time and leaving the kids in Southern Idaho...especially as we knew that they were both doing well, were happy, and dating really wonderful people. It definitely helped! We left Rexburg around 1:30 pm and got to Spokane around 7:30 pm so not too bad. When we got home Bryn and her friend Kalli had just made a fresh batch of hot chocolate chip cookies for us! Great timing! It was a quick trip but it was perfection.

It was nice that when we got home we still had a few days of Spring Break and then that weekend it was General Conference. I loved that Easter and General Conference weekends bookended our special Spring Break trip! It was amazing!

Spring Break and Easter 2023

Tyler, Bryn, Beverly, and I headed out of Spokane at 3:30 am. Bryn and I started feeling sick around Montana. Ugh...we felt fine just hours before. Suddenly we had colds kicking in. Thankfully our colds were pretty minor and just a nuisance. But it was seriously crappy timing. (Tyler started feeling sick on the drive home.) The roads were pretty good except for a nasty patch at Monida Pass and then they went back to being okay again.

We arrived in Rexburg around 1pm and headed over to the kids apartment complex. Ailey was fully packed up. Kameron was not. This kid. He is such packing procrastinator. We ran another load of stuff over to Ailey's teeny tiny storage unit. You know that you are adulting in our family when you have a storage unit. It's a problem. My mom had 4. I have 2. Reilly has one. And now Ailey has one. Sheesh.

Rexburg was a mad house due to graduation. Ailey wanted us to try the Red Rabbit Grill so we went there for a late lunch. Kam met us there. It was really good!

After lunch Kam went back to his apartment to pack. He had to pack up everything because he wasn't sure if he would be returning to Rexburg in the fall. We drove around and looked at some of the Rexburg sights. We also did a little St. Anthony tour. I wanted to see if I could remember anything from when my aunt and uncle lived there. Nope. Not much. Ailey wanted us to drive out to the sand dunes. They were covered with snow but it was still really pretty!!

She also showed us the house of murderer Lori Vallow Daybell. Horrible. I didn't need to see that.

The hotels in Rexburg were all booked due to BYU-Idaho's graduation. We opted for an Airbnb this time instead. Since Beverly was traveling with us; this was a much better option. We had a house and a big yard out in the countryside (not really but it felt and looked like the country). So much of that area is rural but yet still near stores etc.

Kind of pretty. 

The sun was shining and it felt good to sit on the front porch and soak up the sunshine! The best part of staying at an Airbnb was that we could leave Beverly there while we ran around and did all of the things that we needed to do.

After our late lunch at Red Rabbit Grill, we weren't super hungry. Kam was *packing* and hanging out with friends. Ailey's friends had already headed home so she hung out with us the whole time. Tyler, the girls, and I did a Broulim's run and grabbed some ice cream from DQ. Kameron came over briefly to drop off some of his stuff and then headed back to his apartment to spend the night there.

Early the next morning Kam headed to Provo to go through the temple with his friend and roomie who was going for the first time. Kam got to go to The Provo City Center Temple for the first time. He said that it is his favorite temple so far. The girls, Tyler, and I also left early but we headed to Jackson Hole, WY. I haven't been there in about 25 years. When I was a kid we would go to Jackson every Labor Day weekend. We would stay in a condo at the ski resort. We would hike, ride horses, river raft, and once we went for a helicopter ride. We loved shopping in downtown Jackson Hole. I have lots of fun memories of my mom there. I also remember going to Jackson Hole with my Grandma and Grandpa McKinnon several times. Tyler and I took a road trip there too when we were in college. Our college kids love it so we were excited to go check it out.

The drive was gorgeous! It was sunny and the sky was blue. There was a lot of snow on the ground but not on the roads. The Tetons were out in all their glory and can you believe that we didn't take A SINGLE PICTURE?! Sadness.

We had brunch at Persephone which we all LOVED! It was fabulous. People were taking pics of their food left and right. We did too. So good!

Tyler and I both got our favorite Croque Madame sandwiches and the French greens were the best that I have ever had. Ailey got a brussel sprout and grilled cheese sandwich (amazing combo) with pomme frites. It was so good! Bryn got a ham, egg, and cheese croissant. The girls also ordered pastries and chocolate croissants. I loved that they served water in recycled wine bottles. It is such a darling place! We can't wait for a return visit!

After brunch it was time to walk off all of that food. We had to get our pictures taken at the antler arch. Did you even go to Jackson if you don't do that?! LOL.

We walked all over and had such a fun time! We did a ton of shopping!! We all bought sweatshirts, stickers, clothes for Karson, a Christmas ornament, candy, and even a couple of books! There is a fantastic bookstore there that we loved. Bryn picked out some birthday gifts for herself since her birthday was coming up in a few days. Kam wanted us to pick him up a shirt from there too.

We found this book. LOL. I texted it to Kirk and Meki. I almost bought it but Kirk and I said that we could compile our own multi-volume series of sh*tty texts that we have received!! That is a fact. This book was pretty tame compared to our *delightful* collection. I am glad that we can laugh about all of that BS now. Estrangement ain't so bad. ;)

Late that afternoon we stopped at Snake River Roasting Co. for some much needed sustenance. I had the best hot chocolate that I have ever had in my life. A browned butter hot chocolate. No words. Everything we ate from there was so good.

Then we were back out and doing some more shopping and looking around. I really wanted to find a cool piece of jewelry but I never did find anything that I was jazzed about. My mom always found the coolest jewelry in Jackson. Not me. We stopped at the Wort Hotel which reminds me of my mom. We've eaten many meals there and that was where she would always take us to go to the bathroom. LOL. My mom was famous for saying that if you want a nice bathroom go to a hotel, library, or hospital. We adhere to her rules as much as possible. We also went into the Cowboy Bar. I remember my parents telling us as kids to go "bum around" while they would go have a drink at the Cowboy Bar. You've gotta love the 80s!

We were in Jackson all day and still didn't get to the ice cream place that Kam recommended or the restaurant that he wanted us to try or the fancy restaurant that Ailey went to with her roommates. So there are still sights to see for another trip. We did go to Teton Village and I tried to find our old condo. Nope. That place has exploded and it is awesome. We'd love to stay there the next time we come and bring our bikes. I pointed out The Mangy Moose Steakhouse which was another McClellan family favorite. My mom would've loved to spend the day in Jackson Hole with us and it felt like she did! We drove back to Rexburg via Driggs and the Targhee area. I haven't been to Targhee since I was probably 12 and we last went skiing there. It was an interesting day and brought back so many memories. 

We got back to Rexburg right before the campus store closed. We ran in fast because Ailey said that they had some really cute dresses that she thought Bryn would love. They both picked out Easter dresses and Tyler found himself an Easter tie. I ran into my friend Amy from Spokane and her daughter Taylor. We always see Spokane peeps when we are in Rexburg. LOL. We also stopped at the DI that my aunt has raved about for years. I wanted to see if there was anything good for Sister Creed. Nope. 

By then it was getting late. We talked to Kam and he wasn't going to be back in town until really late. We were starving. Kam recommended a little Italian place in Idaho Falls. He and his roommates had met the owner at the farmers market. His roommate Jared served his mission in Italy so they struck up a friendship and their whole crew went in one day for some authentic Italian food. That sounded great so we went there for a late dinner.

Kameron was right! It was really good! We all got four different entrees and they were all delicious. Unfortunately the Tiramisu that Kam said that we "Had to have!!" was sold out. Bummer. It was a really pretty night and the restaurant is near the falls and the temple so we walked over and took some pictures. After we got back to our Airbnb; Ailey realized that she had left her lululemon bag at the restaurant with her wallet and everything inside. The restaurant was closed but she called the next day and her bag was never found. Annoying. Kameron made it back from Provo but went straight to his apartment and hung out with friends all night. He rolled into the Airbnb around 6 am. Tyler wasn't thrilled since Kam had to drive the next day.

We all slept in the next morning and then headed to brunch at Kneaders. We love Kneaders. They were doing some special brunch items because it was Easter weekend but I just ordered my usual. I love their raspberry bread pudding and their pancakes with caramel syrup. I got both! 

They were doing a bunch of giveaways. We all won something...eclairs and cookies. But Bryn won a $40 Easter gift basket! Lucky girl! She kindly shared her loot with all of us.

On the way out of Idaho Falls we stopped at the DI. The last time I went I found a few things for my booth. This time. Zip. Southern Idaho yielded no vintage goods. Then we were on the road headed to Missoula, MT. We never hang out there and we keep hearing from so many people about how awesome Missoula is now. We only stop there to get gas and to eat. So since the next day was Easter we decided to only go part way and enjoy the weekend. 

While stopping for gas in Dillon, MT we found the perfect pearl snap cowboy onsie for Karson! LOL. Can you believe that we couldn't find a single one in Jackson Hole?! The Cenex gas station in Dillon for the win! We also made a little detour and stopped in Butte to see a giant bookstore. It was really cool with lots of vintage books but they were all so expensive. I didn't buy anything. It was pretty amazing though!

We got to Missoula that afternoon. Tyler booked us a suite at a hotel. It was really nice and Tyler and I had our own room which was delightful! There was a little creek nearby with a paved path alongside it. We took Beverly for a walk and then walked to dinner. We ate at the Montana Club. It is one of our favorite places to eat in Missoula.

We had a delicious and leisurely meal! It was so nice to be able to relax and enjoy the night!

The next morning was Easter. We all slept in. I played Rob Gardner's The Lamb of God music while we got ready. I love it! Tyler and I took Beverly for a nice walk while the kids packed up. We went back to the Montana Club for their special Easter Brunch. We had the nicest non-hectic Easter morning. We enjoyed a delicious holiday brunch and then explored some of Missoula. We checked out the college and the darling eclectic downtown. It looks really fun! It is quite the hipster town now. Tyler and I want to come back for a little getaway this summer with our bikes and kayaks.

We stopped at the park to let Beverly out and walked along the river path and went to the carousel. It started to get a little rainy so we grabbed some snacks for the road and headed back to Spokane. (The drive from Missoula to Spokane is less than 3 hours.) We had such a fun trip! We thought it was just going to be a quick trip to pack the kids and their stuff home but it turned out to be a really nice little getaway for all of us. We got home in plenty of time to unpack and enjoy our evening. The college kids took off immediately and headed over to Reilly and Hunter's apartment to see this cute little Easter Bunny!!

Happy Easter!!