Being that I’m nearly a year behind getting caught up on all the things, let’s bang this sucker out. Steamboat Rock State Park, take two.
The rock that is Steamboat.
We first went to Steamboat Rock State Park back in 2021. The good ol’ Covid days. Sometimes I miss those days. Where life was quieter because it had to be. This time we went, Covid is long gone and we’re back to the chaos of life. Heading to Steamboat Rock was a nice break from all of that. Not that cabining with five kiddos isn’t chaotic. But we have it down at this point.
The drive there was smooth. It was actually me driving this time. I forget why but I remember that it was me. Not that I don’t drive on trips but my role is usually all the pre-trip stuff.
The kids quickly set off to explore. It’s so nice they’re at ages where they can just take off. We trust them all. Even Maive. She’s always been so easy. If I recall correctly, there was, of course, fighting over who was sleeping where. But it was sorted out. If it’s not a fight about who sleeps where, it’s a fight about something else. Kids. With the kiddos exploring, it allowed Brian and me to get the cabin set up for the two nights we’d be there (this is so much easier without kids around).
It always amazes me how quickly we move in (and out) of a cabin. Opening the door to a near-empty cabin, with only basic furniture, and then boom—five minutes later it looks like we’ve been there for weeks. Which is exactly how it looked not long after arriving Sunday afternoon when Brian and I finished.
Our friends were arriving a bit later, leaving us with a few hours on our own. Brian and I had already decided we’d eat out Sunday night, making it easier to not have to deal with the mess of cabin cooking (and cleanup). We loaded up in the car and headed into town. We found a local Mexican restaurant and decided on that. Except Baby got a burger and fries, haha. We drove around the small town of Coulee Dam checking out the cute little houses, before stopping at the grocery store for some supplies and firewood.
It was nearing 9pm when our friends arrived, they had a hang up back at home before pulling out. They have four kids and do chaos well also, haha. Brian started a fire and the kids roasted marshmallows while their family unpacked. The older kids sat around the fire while the younger ones went to sleep. They weren’t up much longer. We had a full day of exploring Monday and they needed to be rested.
Marshmallow roasters and Saige the reader.
Monday was low-key. We never even left the state park. The kids all woke up at different times and immediately set out on bikes and foot to explore. There is a playground, basketball court, trails, hiking, all the things. The nice thing about having multiple kids is the combinations of whom and what to do seem endless (although not mathematically), especially when you add in four more kids from the other family.
Everyone eventually ate breakfast. It was time to hike. In different groups, with different adults, the kids trekked up Steamboat Rock to check out the view. It’s pretty steep and these kids did an amazing job, especially the older ones helping the younger ones (without even being asked). I love big families because the older ones instinctively help the younger ones. Whenever we have new kids over whom we don’t know if they have younger siblings, it’s blatantly obvious the moment Maive interacts with them. The only children are most amusing, because they (most) have no clue how to interact with Maive. It’s pretty entertaining. And the kids who are the youngest sibling in their family, this becomes obvious also. I love birth order and sibling dynamics
Hikers!
Getting up there is steep!
Views from above. Brian and I went up, sans kids! I think all said and done, Steamboat was hiked about eight times Monday between all of us.
Panoramic view.
Some excitement Monday was Baby got some sort of cactus spikes stuck in her leg. Thankfully the other dad was around since Brian was showering and helped her out. I don’t really do that kind of thing well. The girls then made a sign warning others. It was still up Tuesday when we left. I wonder how long the park rangers left it up?! Baby was fine after they were removed. She even went fishing with a few of the kids Monday afternoon. They had to drive there and I hear it was super windy, and no luck catching fish. Blaise went but ended up sitting in the car. I’m not even sure why he went, he’s not a fisherman?! They didn’t last long and were back within an hour.
Warning sing and fishing Baby.
The rest of Monday was incredibly chill. Time didn’t move super fast and it felt like we had an entire day. We eventually all went to bed after a full day of Steamboat Rocking.
Tuesday morning was quiet. Brian made breakfast while the kids wandered out of the bedroom they were sharing. I love the Steamboat Rock cabins because they have two rooms. Brian and I need a break from the kids by the end of the day. While he cooked, I started the packing up process. We have it down so smoothly. By checkout time at 11am, we were all fed and loaded up, and ready to pull out. I had plans for the drive home. Which I drove again.
Cabin kiddos.
Brian and I are creatures of habits. Big time. So of course on the drive home I wanted to take the kiddos to two places I went with Karann back during our failed Gorge trip. Stop one was in Quincy. Karann and I stumbled upon this amazing Mexican bakery. I wanted to take the kiddos there for treats. Not only is everything amazing, it’s super cheap. We walked away with two treats each—including for Brian and me—for $27. The kids were happy with their finds.
Next up was stop two. Karann and I went to this restaurant in George where you can write on the wall. We needed to feed the kiddos lunch and I thought this would be an ideal stop to eat. It was. The food is eh but it’s all good, and the kids enjoyed writing on the walls. We were most entertained by the I [heart] Cocker Spaniels. I’m pretty sure both Blaise and Laine snapped a picture and texted to their friends after Brian pointed it out.
Quincy and George kiddos!
We ate, the kids wrote, and we loaded back in the car for the drive home. It was Brian’s turn to drive this time. It was later afternoon when we arrived. We’re immediate unpackers, and the car was empty within minutes. The kids were all asked to unpack their stuff, and I did mine while Brian drove over to pick up Mel from his BFF’s house. We were ready for a relaxing Wednesday evening that wasn’t totally relaxing because the kids had activities even though it was spring break.
Another successful trip on the books. I’m in Greece now, playing catchup on a much needed relaxing day. When I get back, we head to a yurt the following week for another state park trip with our friends. Fun stuff!
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