We traveled to the West side of the Cascade mountain range last Wednesday and spent some time with our kids and then traveled north from their home into Canada to attend the annual MGCC Christmas party. I’ll be sharing more about that when I gather all the photos. Our travel was slow and interesting because of the weather.
On the way last Wednesday we encountered Hoarfrost and freezing fog which was very treacherous. We stopped at a couple stores in Spokane and the parking lots were ice skating rinks. We decided against going into Costco because of the danger walking posed and just hit the road to the Seattle side of the mountains. Along the way there were crews cleaning up after accidents with semis who spun out of control because of the slick roads.
We made it safely to Kirkland to our favorite Mexican restaurant and met up with our good friends for a couple hours of catching up. After that on to our kids’ home for the night.
On Thursday we traveled up to Abbotsford, B.C. for our Mennonite Girls Can Cook Christmas party. (A post will be coming soon) We had great interactions with the Border agents on both sides of the line!
On Saturday we had safe travels back to Bothell and had a meal out to celebrate our daughter-in-law’s birthday.
It was so good to be with our ‘westside’ kids to celebrate Auntie LoLo!
On Sunday we packed up the car bright and early and went to the 8am church service with Josh and Laura before hitting the road back to Colville at 9:15 am.
On Sunday Addy sent this message to Auntie Lolo from church in Colville where she would be performing with the children’s choir to start off the season of Advent. I was able to watch the performance on our church’s livestream while on the road heading back to Colville on Sunday since Greg was driving. Addy did an exceptional job with singing and hand motions.
Snoqualmie Pass had accumulated some snow and the driving was treacherous with 35 mile an hour reduced speed limits. Chains were required for cars without 4wd and for the large trucks.
Once over the pass the roads improved and the plows were doing their job nicely.
We made it off the freeway in Spokane with a sigh of relief and only 75 more miles to go.
Colville had a good drop of snow while we were gone and our grands were taking advantage of it.
We finally made it home after 5pm.
Our stars on our deck with our small outdoor manger scene greeted us in some fresh fluffy snow. It was a nice ending to our trip and the first Sunday of Advent. We had so many praying for us on our hard journey and we thank God for his care and for our prayer warriors, too.
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 
Hello Ellen,
I am just not ready for winter or snow. Wonderful photos of your family. I like your star decorations. Wishing you a blessed Advent season. Take care, have a great week!
…I have never seen such a heavy frost. Enjoy your Advent season.
When it snows in Alabama, everything has to shut down because we don’t have the correct equipment. It is so rarely needed that it would be an unnecessary purchase. Looking at your pictures made me shiver – brrrr!
Hearing about your trip reminded me of how Pop would gather us in the living room whenever we would be traveling to pray for our safety. The important little things that made an impact on me.
Hoarfrost is so pretty!!
Nice to see family photos.
Glad you made it back home safely.
What a treacherous trip you endured. Thanking the Lord for your safety both going and coming home. I know you had a wonderful time with your kids and also with the Mennonite Girls. Looking forward to your post with pictures from that fun time. Happy belated birthday to your daughter-in-law. It looks as if everyone was having a wonderful time celebrating.
You remind me why I prefer to stay home in the winter, even though I do have AWD on my car. Driving in severe weather is just exhausting; even though we know the angels are surrounding us, the task seems to require every muscle in the body and every bit of brain power. It’s lovely that you had the strength and courage to make the trip and to see your family ❤
I bet you are feeling very festive with all that snow. I particularly love the first photo. B x
I’m glad you are now safe at home. I hope you’re staying warm!
Always a relief to get to our destination in such treacherous conditions. Looks like you had a wonderful time with family and friends. Thank you for sharing your adventures.