June 15, 2015 - Three Forks, MT to Billings, MT

Edith wanted to sleep in this morning, but Erwin told her it was ime to get out of the bed because we needed to get things put away before we started the road trip again.  It was a gorgeous, but little windy day.  

After getting dressed up and closing the slideouts in Lil' Home (LH) we walked to Keri's house. Keri, Nikkol and Hunter were already up. The rest of the kids were still asleep. Dustin had already left for the day.

Tears welled up in Edith's eyes while she bottle fed Kalista while Keri was busy around the house. Kalista finished the whole bottle of milk.  Edith really enjoyed watching her while she was being fed. This beautiful princess Kalista is going to be missed very much. We wished we could stay much longer and watch her grow up.

After all kids were dressed we all went outside to have family pictures taken.  It is a tradition that Keri takes pictures of us with the kids on the day of our departure. Sasha kept asking me if we could spend one more night or even one more hour.  We explained that we have an engagement next week and needed to leave today. If it was possible we could stay.  The hardest part was hugging each one of them and telling them we loved them.  We thanked Keri for everything she had done.  It was a hard pill to swallow knowing the fact we are leaving them.  It was our home since April 3rd with the exception of two weeks when we traveled to Idaho and Washington. 

Edith drove the Jeep to Super Walmart in Bozeman, MT and waited for Erwin to arrive in LH.  Erwin needed to turn in the dead battery at Walmart to get the deposit back.  

At Walmart we hooked the Jeep to LH and left Bozeman at noon.  We headed for Billings MT via I-90 E. Rain clouds started to appear few miles east of Bozeman.

Beautiful view of the mountains via I-90 E

https://youtu.be/LCtChuTdMMc

We arrived at Pierce RV Store in Billings, MT at 3 pm.  This is the place where we traded our 2013 Roadtrek camper van for this motorhome we called it Lil' Home.

We got propane fill-up, dumped black/grey tanks and got water tank filled up.  We talked to a service guy about a couple things that needed to be taken care of.  There was not any 

We did a bit of shopping to get stuff we needed for our LH.Talked to a tech about a couple things, he came over to the LH to see what needs to be done.  

They will look into it tomorrow afternoon.  Hopefully, they can finish it by closing time tomorrow.  We got site #5 with electric and water hook-up for free.  Unloaded the Jeep after parking the LH.  Went to Best Buy to look at radio/CD console.  Then to Pro Audiosound and got a quote.  Stopped by Costco to pick up few items.  Lots of food samples, so that helped whet our appetites a bit.  

Edith fixed pork chops and steamed cauliflowers.  Edith chatted with Erwin's niece, Christy via Facetime, the. erwin called his sister Lorraine and got the phone number for his other sister whom we plan to visit Wednesday, June 17th.

Erwin decided to turn in early around 10 pm.  Edith was still wide awake, chatted with friends on Facebook, edited the blog a bit.  

Miles driven:
LH - 193
Jeep - 38

Today's route:
A: Three Forks, MT
B: Bozeman, MT
C: Billings, MT

June 14, 2015 - Three Forks, MT & Canyon Ferry Lake

Ahh... A beautiful morning.. It is going to be a perfect day for boating later today.

For breakfast Keri fixed cream cheese and strawberry crepes. While everybody else was busy eating and enjoying breakfast Keri packed snacks, cut up fruits, crackers, cut cheeses nuts and drinks in coolers.

Everyone of us huddled up in the SUV, off we went to Canyon Ferry Lake, about an hour drive north.  It was a treat for Hunter's 2nd birthday, but Dustin and Keri also wanted their kids to have fun for few hours.  

Kalista chillin' before boating

Canyon Ferry Lake is a reservoir on the Missouri River between Helena, MT and Townsend, MT.  The lake was formed after the completion of the dam in 1954.  It is the third largest body of water in Montana and has 76 miles of shoreline.  It is a popular outdoor destination for boating, fishing, skiing, etc. 

After Dustin received brief instruction on how to handle the pontoon we went off to a spot where the kids could go jump in the water.  After checking to be sure Conner's life vest was fastened properly he was the first one to jump in the water. We wished you could see Conner's facial expression.  The water was C.O.L.D. and Conner's eyes almost popped out! He swam back to the boat as fast as he could.  His teeth was chattering and his body shaking. 

Dustin decided to move to other spots where the water might be warm, finally found a spot and the kids went in the water.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKIYawNdOjM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPQalEOGTNs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI0epbCpkbs

All in all, we had a lovely/relaxing afternoon with the Traver family.

Once back home, Keri went in full force to decorate for Hunter's 2nd birthday party.  It did not matter if time was short, but Keri managed to pull everything together in a short time.

All smiles!

Just one blow and he did it!

"Cookie Monster, I'll take cookies out of your mouth"

Mess Time!

Oh yeah, they got me!

Zella

Everyone enjoyed the party. Lot of cleaning up afterwards... It is always a joy to see smiles on kids' faces having a good time.

Since it is our last night to spend time with the family we played games.  The kids kept asking us if we could stay another day.  Using sign language Zella asked Edith where her home is.  Edith told her that RV is her home.  She paused and thought for a while, then signed back to her "But this house is your home".  Oh, she really melted Edith's heart.  We love her! Such a sweet and thoughtful girl.

It was a very lovely and enjoyable day to spend time with the family. It is going to be very hard to say goodbye tomorrow!

June 13, 2015 - Three Forks, Belgrade & Bozeman, MT

Several loud knocks on the side of our bedroom woke us up. It was Dustin trying to wake us up and get us ready to go out with him and Keri to garage sales in Belgrade, MT.  We quickly got into our clothes that we wore the day before. We were like firemen getting into the uniform quickly when the fire alarm goes off.  

It was a beautiful morning, a perfect day for garage saling.  Keri’s girls wanted to tag along, so we all fit into the SUV. Hunter and Kalista went along, also.

First stop was to go to River Rock subdivision in Belgrade to check out about 30 garage sales. At the first house Keri spotted brown/aqua cowboy boots and called Edith over to check it out.  Great condition and at a good price.  Edith did not have enough $ on her and asked the lady if she will take an out of town check. "Yes, that is no problem", the lady said.  Not exactly the style/color she has been looking for, but at least Edith has Western boots she can wear during the summer. 

After checking out sales in River Rock we went to another subdivision, but there was not much to find for us. Keri and Dustin found some great deals.  They got the girls a nice looking doll playhouse that has an elevator!  

On way back home we suggested that we stop at New Day Bakery at E. Main Street in Belgrade to get some donuts.  We really had a hard time picking delectable donuts or pastries. The place is cozy and charming and was tastefully decorated. 

The family wasted no time in chowing down donuts/pastries
Left: Keri, Hunter and Dustin
Right: Sasha, Nikkol and Zella

You should see the load from garage sales piled up on the floor in the foyer after we got home. So many great deals were had, clothes for the kids, few boy toys for Hunter, newborn clothes for Kalista, doll stuff for the girls.

Back in January Keri and Edith were talking about going out for Mother's Day brunch at  Pompey's Grill in Sacajawea Hotel. At that time Keri was pregnant and the approximate due date was around May 8th. She really wanted to book it, but did not know if she could make it.  Keri's baby, Kalista Hope, was born premature in February, had to stay in NICU in Billings (2 1/2 hours away from home).  Keri and Dustin finally brought Kalista home on the 5th of May.  We called the hotel to see if there was any availability for Mother's Day brunch. " Sorry, we were fully booked two months ago", the other end answered.  Plan B was to go out for dinner tonight because there was already a plan for tomorrow the 14th and we leave on the 15th.  

When Sasha (9 years old) saw me dress up and asked me where I was going.  " Going out to eat with your parents tonight", I signed to her.  "Not fair, you cannot go", Sasha signed back.  Kalista Hope went on a date with us all.

Sacajawea Hotel is a luxury historic hotel in Three Forks town. It was built in 1910 and is now listed on National Register of Historic Places.

Sacajawea Hotel

Side Entrance to Pompey's Grill

Our dinners:

Keri & Edith had Bibb Wedge (split) and Grass Fed Beef Tenderloin, Montana-Ranchers Original

Erwin had Tomato-Lentil Soup and Montana Highlands Lamb

Dustin had Montana Wagyu (USDA Prime Dry-Aged American Style Kobe Beef)

Lovely date: Dustin & Keri

Our scrumptious desserts:

Erwin & his lovely date, Kalista Hope

Here, taste this

Beautiful sunset greeted us as we headed home after the dinner

Statue of Sacajawea that is across from the hotel

After we got back home from the dinner we quickly changed into casual clothes, played games all night.  It was a pleasurable day spending time with Keri, Dustin and their kids.