8-16-09 Cow Train

8-16-09 Cow Train
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

Today we drove home. The wonderful thing about driving home is realizing that we live in a place that is pretty wonderful too. I love to travel and see new things but I am so thankful to have such beauty close to home. We stopped in Pashastin, Wa a little town in the Cascades. The farm stand was just brimming with colorful fruits and vegetables. Thought this little Cow Train and Barn was worth a photo.

8-15-09 Sun Setting on Tea Pot

8-15-09 Sun Setting on Tea Pot
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

A bit of Americana for my photo today. This little gas station in Zillah, Washington was built during the TeaPot Dome Scandal of the 1920s. Currently, it is not being used as a gas station. The price on the pumps reads $1.76 so it has been a while. Although we did lots of driving today, I did have some interesting photos to choose from today. We started our morning in Boise. Boise is a neat little capital city, but the reason Erik likes to go there is that it is the closest place with either a Texas Roadhouse or a Sierra Trading Post. We spent time at both. Erik says that the drive through the North East corner of Oregon is boring, but I don't think so. The blue mountains are beatiful with the stark landscape and the sky that goes forever. We spotted a train carrying fuselages of air planes. I took some photos, but didn't really get a good shot. It was really interesting to see plane parts being carried by train. We also stopped at the Pendelton Mills in Pendelton hoping for a goot photo. (We have been there before for an interesting tour of the mill.) The real attraction here was a huge Great Dane named Beat who was traveling with his people from coast to coast. Beat was impressive, but no where near as cute as Roswell. We then headed up into Washington to Yakima. This part of Washington is known for fruit orchards and vineyards. We enjoyed a beautiful sunset as we rolled into Yakima for the evening.

8-14-09 Idaho Farmland

8-14-09 Idaho Farmland
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

Since we still had 3 days before we needed to return home, Erik suggested that we head to Boise today. This journey would not be on any planned route home, In fact, it is adding about 900 miles to the trip. But, we had never been in the Eastern part of Idaho and we like Boise, so we decided to go. 640 miles of canyons, rolling hills, farm land, and snaking rivers. Lots of driving and not much stopping. We traveled in the footsteps of Lewis and Clark and the Oregon Trail Pioneers. All of my photos today were shot out of the window of the car as we traveled past at 70 miles an hour. Not the best day for photography, but we did see lots of beautiful country.

8-13-09 Montana Wildflowers

8-13-09 Montana Wildflowers
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

Today we left the beautiful Canadian Rockies and headed out on another adventure. Today was all about rolling plains, fields of wheat, Native American communities and watching stormy skies. We passed by the East side of Glacier National Park. Soon after our last visit to Glacier, they had huge forest fires. Sadly, the effects of those fires is still really evident. But new growth is starting to emerge in the form of colorful wildflowers. Lots of beautiful wildflowers and the vastness of the big Montana sky graced us as we drove to Great Falls, Montana.

8-12-09 Banff Reflections

8-12-09 Banff Reflections
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

Our last day in this majestic area. We traveled up the Ice Field Parkway to Jasper National Park stopping to hike to amazingly blue lakes along the way. Throughout the day, we watched the sky do amazing things as the clouds would roll in and out. At the Athabasca Glacier, we waited out a down pour of rain. When the rain had ended, the scenes were spectacular as the sun and mountains started to peak through. We were in the puffy white clouds at the tops of the mountains. We hiked to the edge of the glacier. This is a longer hike each year as the glacier continues to recede. We stopped in Banff for dinner before heading to our hotel in Canmore. We took one more drive out to Vermillion Lakes and were treated to this beautiful reflection.

8-11-09 Urban Landscape

8-11-09 Urban Landscape
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

We left the amazing Banff landscape and headed to the urban landscape of Calgary for the day. We chose to explore Calgary today because it was supposed to rain in the mountains today. We drove from the mountains to the prairie to the surprisingly big city of Calgary. We stopped at the Canadian Olympic Center. This was the home of the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Lots of daredevil things to do there like roll down the hill in a giant hamster ball or take a Ski lift up to the top of the mountain and ride your bike down. We decided to stop on the West side and took the C-Train into town so that we could explore the city. This urban landscape doesn’t hold a candle to the amazing beauty we have seen the past few days in the Canadian Rockies, but we enjoyed a nice day of exploring a new city.

8-10-09 Moraine Lake

8-10-09 Moraine Lake
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

This morning we explored two beautiful alpine lakes. The first was Moraine Lake. Absolutely stunning blue, surrounded by mighty mountains. We enjoyed a beautiful walk around the lake. We then headed to one of the most photographed lakes in the world. Lake Louise. Lots of people, but again, absolutely stunning. We then headed to Radium Hot Springs in Kootenay National Park. The drive was beautiful. At one point, we were warned that there were wolves on the road and not to stop. We didn't see any wolves, but we did see a moose. On the way back, we drove the Old Bow River Parkway. We saw an ospreys on their nest above a bridge. Again tonight, the sky was incredible and the evening light lit up the massive mountains was awe inspiring.

8-9-09 Early Evening Light

8-9-09 Early Evening Light
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

Beautiful day in Banff today. We started off by taking the Minnewanka Loop. The lakes were beautiful this morning with the reflection of the mountains in the water. We saw big horn sheep and mountain goats along the way. We then explored the beautiful, yet crowded and touristy town of Banff. Although I have seen photos of the Banff Springs Hotel many times. I still gasped at my first glance of this massive inn. We took a walk in the evening up to a lookout to take photos of the Inn. It was impossible to take it in up close. With rain threatening we ended our day with a drive around Vermillion Lakes. There was a mixture of blue sky and puffy clouds and looming gray clouds. The late afternoon light illuminated the mountains in the distance. Great day. We are so thankful to get to spend time in this very beautiful part of the world.

8-7-09 Church at Spencer's Bridge

8-7-09 Church at Spencer's Bridge
Originally uploaded by roswellsgirl

Beautiful drive from Mount Vernon to Kamloops today. We passed through amazing, grandeur and diverse country. Not a boring, mundane place on the route. A man at a restaurant in Hope suggested we take old highway 1 up to Kamloops. This road follows the Frasier and Thomson Rivers winding through gorges and blasting through tunnels. This is the gold mining route and along the way we past several little historic towns. Hard to believe that Yale, BC was once the largest city West of Chicago and North of San Francisco. If you blinked now, you would miss it. We saw lots of old wooden churches that I am sure have many stories to tell. At one point, we were surprized by 4 big horn sheep grazing on the side of the road. My photos aren't as nice as I would have liked due to the haziness caused by the nearby forest fires. We did seem flames, but we did see the helicopters with the big buckets for water. We were surprised at how hot it is in Kamloops. Erik realized he forgot his fleece, which he will need in Banff. We went to a store to find him a fleece. When we asked where they might be, the lady looked at us like we were crazy. Why would we possibly need a jacket in weather like this? (we found a jacket on clearance)

7-19-09 Waiting at the Border

7-19-09 Waiting at the Border, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

We decided to cross the border at the Aldergrove Crossing which is in farm land. Still had quite the wait. This was the view from our car. The fireweed is pretty all over our region right now.

7-18-09 Vancouver

7-18-09 Vancouver, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

It was a spectacular sunny day in Vancouver today. We spent the whole day in out door endeavors. We started off here at Queen Elizabeth Park and then headed to Granville Island finishing our day in the historic fishing village of Steveston.

7-17-09 Baby On Board

7-17-09 Baby On Board, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Saw lots of amazing stuff today including majestic mountains, mighty waterways, quaint fishing villages, colorful sea life and a breath taking sunset. I chose to go with one of the more unusual and endearing things I saw today. Not sure about Bella’s ears and I am not a fan of motorcycles, but I thought that this photo speaks loads to the relationships we have with our pets and the important part they play in our lives.

7-16-09 Eagles

7-16-09 Eagles, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Beautiful day exploring the Sunshine Coast. Lots of neat little villages, coves, huge trees and such. The ferry from Earl's Cove to Saltery Bay reminded me a lot of the fiords in Norway. breathtakingly beautiful. As we were headed back to our camping area after dinner tonight, we saw lots of majestic eagles purched in trees along the water. My camera isn't good at getting close ups of eagles in trees. Believe me, I have tried. So, I decided to focus on the eagle in the totem pole and just point out that there is a real Bald Eagle in the tree in the background.

7-15-09 Float Planes

7-15-09 Float Planes, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Camping on the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia. This was the last photo I took before my brand new camera when caput. Luckily, I brought my old one as a back up. Since you have to cross the boarder and take a ferry, this feels really remote, but we are actually only about 100 miles from home.

7-1-09 Welcome to Seattle

7-1-09 Welcome to Seattle, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Long day including a 2 hr weather delay on the tarmac, a 6 hr flight and then crazy construction traffic all the way home. But I made it. This is what greeted me as we flew in to Seattle.

6-30-09 After the Rain

6-30-09 After the Rain, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Beautiful sky after a downpour at the Lincoln Memorial. Alison and I had a lot of fun touring the monuments at night. Check out the rest of the photos in the set.

6-29-09 Capitol Q

6-29-09 Capitol Q, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

There is just something about Texas. All around the world, I have found Texas themed restaurants. This is in Capital Q in Chinatown in DC. The sign on the outside said Texas BBQ in Chinese. My alma matter SFASU is up in the corner. Right below Viva Ecuador! (Where I frequented the Texas Grill and Bar in Quito.... :)

6-28-09 Red White and Blue

6-28-09 Red White and Blue, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

I had a great time going on a photo safari today. Wish that it hadn't been cloudy, but it was still a lot of fun and I saw some really cool things. I decided to go patriotic today since I am in the Nation's Capital. I also enjoy strolling through the Eastern Market. The botanical gardens were beautiful. The architecture was great. The food was yummy at the Folklife Festival. The Newseum is also are really neat addition to the many museums in D.C. (Just wish it wasn't so pricey.)

6-27-09 Peace

6-27-09 Peace, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

OK, I know that I am in DC and there are so many historical and monumental things that should be my photo of the day. Today I haven't had a lot of time to look for photos, but on a walk from my hotel to Dupont Circle, I saw lots of beautiful architecture, statues and art. But for some reason, when I downloaded my pictures, this is the one that stood out to me. And, it just so happened, that I was walking down the street talking to my husband of 11 years today, when I spotted this photo. Maybe that is what makes it special. As I explore DC, I will continue to post all of my photos on my Washington DC page.

6-26-09 Discovery

6-26-09 Discovery, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Another day of learning and networking with inspiring educators at Discovery.

6-25-09 Virtual Friends F2F

6-25-09 Virtual Friends F2F, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Today I am at the Discovery Educator Network Leadership Symposium. I am meeting lots of people I feel I know well from our virtual conversations and professional development. Even though we learn lots from each other even when we are on opposite ends of the globe. It is still great to get to visit and learn from others face to face. This is Dennis in person, next to Dennis' online presence.

6-24-09 Freedom Is

6-24-09 Freedom Is, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

I met this little Navajo Grandma at the Lincoln Memorial where I offered to take a photo of her with her daughter. She was excited to hear that I had taught on the Navajo Nation. I was able to use the little bit of Navajo I still remember. Which made her eyes light up. This photo was taken at the nearby Korean War Memorial. I had fun wondering around DC today and I took lots of photos. But this little lady captured the spirit of those who make the pilgrimage to our nation's capital to celebrate freedom. She is a proud American, even though our American government hasn't always done her proud.

My photos from today...

6-23-09 Rainbow Wall

6-23-09 Rainbow Wall, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Today was a travel day. Left the hotel at 4am in Seattle and traveled all day to get to another non descript hotel in the DC area. Not a lot of photo opportunities. This rainbow wall was a bit of art in the Dulles Airport.

4-4-09 Covered Bridge

4-4-09 Covered Bridge, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Just driving shots today. A long way to go and ready to get home. It has been a great trip. Fun and spontaneous, waking each morning not knowing the direction we would take. Saw this covered bridge from the freeway on the way down, but we were in search of sun and didn’t stop. This time, we decided to take a closer look.

4-3-09 California Fruitstand

4-3-09 California Fruitstand, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Today was a driving day but since we were driving through the prime agricultural region, I made sure that we stopped at a few fruit stands along the way. Had one of the tastiest oranges ever

4-2-09 Desert Surprise

4-2-09 Desert Surprise, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Very different day today as we spent the day in the resort towns of La Quinta, Palm Desert and Palm Springs. Gone is the wildness of the Mojave Desert, in it’s place, manicured lawns, irrigation and brightly colored flowers. The flowers are beautiful, but there is something special about the surprise of desert wildflowers. As we walked around the resort today, we did see a few surprises such as a road runner with a lizard in his mouth and this happy little hummingbird

4-1-09 Salton Sea

4-1-09 Salton Sea, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Beautiful day in the desert. We enjoyed our drive through Joshua Tree National Park stopping to climb on rocks and take pictures of the many wildflowers along the way. We are spending a few days at a resort in Palm Desert. (Thanks Priceline). Today we drove around the Salton Sea. Not really that exciting, but we caught the sunset.

3-31-09 Rhyolite Ghost Town

3-31-09 Rhyolite Ghost Town, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

We decided to spend the day exploring Death Valley. After a yummy breakfast burrito, we explored Rhyolite, a funky little Ghost Town near Beaty, NV. Erik and I have vague memories of being here before but can’t quite remember why we were there, but didn’t go into Death Valley. My guess is that it was during the summer and Death Valley would have been too hot. Erik, loves old mines and rocks and stuff. So we climbed up a hill and explored, (from behind the protective fences) some old mine shafts. As always, I found some wildflowers along the way. We then headed back into Death Valley. Pictures really don’t do it justice. It is so vast, stark and breathtaking. We went to Badwater Basin, the lowest point in the Americas at 238 ft below sea level. We then headed for Baker, CA. We saw some really huge sand dunes along the way. When we got to Baker, we recognized Mad Greek’s Café from Diners, Drive Ins and Dives. It is really funny to see this Greek restaurant out in the middle of the desert. I’m not much into Greek food, but it seemed the thing to do. We then headed to Barstow, along the way we were blessed with an amazing desert sunset.

3-31-09 Rhyolite Ghost Town

3-31-09 Rhyolite Ghost Town, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

We decided to spend the day exploring Death Valley. After a yummy breakfast burrito, we explored Rhyolite, a funky little Ghost Town near Beaty, NV. Erik and I have vague memories of being here before but can’t quite remember why we were there, but didn’t go into Death Valley. My guess is that it was during the summer and Death Valley would have been too hot. Erik, loves old mines and rocks and stuff. So we climbed up a hill and explored, (from behind the protective fences) some old mine shafts. As always, I found some wildflowers along the way. We then headed back into Death Valley. Pictures really don’t do it justice. It is so vast, stark and breathtaking. We went to Badwater Basin, the lowest point in the Americas at 238 ft below sea level. We then headed for Baker, CA. We saw some really huge sand dunes along the way. When we got to Baker, we recognized Mad Greek’s Café from Diners, Drive Ins and Dives. It is really funny to see this Greek restaurant out in the middle of the desert. I’m not much into Greek food, but it seemed the thing to do. We then headed to Barstow, along the way we were blessed with an amazing desert sunset.

3-30-09 Poppies Galore

3-30-09 Poppies Galore, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

My husband said today that he was glad that he married me in the digital age. I took tons of photos today. Good think to have digital and a pro Flickr account. Really, there are just two main subjects. We spent the morning at the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve. Lots and lots of wildflower shots, plus a few interesting reptile shots. We then headed to Death Valley. Lots of rocks and sand dunes. Not much opportunities for wireless, so I am not able to do all the fun things that I would like to do with my photos yet, but will clean them up, organize and geotag when I get a change. Impossible to pick just one photo. How can I pick the rattlesnake with all those beautiful wildflower scenes. And then there are the sand dunes, so very different. I finally chose a wildflower shot, because I love wildflowers. As we brainstormed ideas for our trip, the Poppy Reserve was top on my list.

Here is a slideshow of all our Spring Break Photos.

3-29-09 California Hwy 49 S

3-29-09 California Hwy 49 S, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

This morning we really did not know where we were going to go. Snow in the mountains East of us was hampering our original plans so we were just kind of flying by the seat of our pants. We decided to head towards the desert since the desert is something that would not be fun to do during the summer. Instead of heading straight there, I suggested that we drive over to the foothills and head South on 49. Wow! What a beautiful drive! We oohhed and ahhed the whole way as we drove through rolling hills covered in wildflowers. We stopped in several cute little mining towns along the way. Really a great day. Our original goal was to make it to Lancaster for the night. We only made it to Bakersfield, but the day was well worth the slower pace. I told Erik that it is going to be hard to beat day two of our Spring Break adventure.

3-28-09 Mount Shasta Drive by

3-28-09 Mount Shasta Drive by, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Day one of our journey towards the sun. We left Mount Vernon in a rainstorm and headed south on I5. Didn’t find sunshine until about Eugene, Oregon. Erik wasn’t big on stopping. His idea was that we get as far as we could in one day. Anything worth seeing we could easily go back to he said… Our goal was to get at least as far as Redding, California. Erik did stop for me to take photos of Mount Shasta, but I chose this driving shot, because I thought that it spoke to the day of non-stop driving better. We made it to Redding. Ate at a funky little steakhouse called Jacks, frequented by bikers and then headed on down to Sacramento for the night. 815 miles in all.

1-18-09 Inukshuk

1-18-09 Inukshuk, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

This morning we woke up to more fog. We couldn't even tell which direction we were facing when we looked out our hotel window. We decided to go for a walk on the beach anyway. Enjoyed watching dogs play, runners run and birds fly. This statue is an Inukshuk, an ancient Inuit sign and the symbol for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. Everywhere we went, there were signs of the city getting ready for the Olympics. So, even though this is a shot in the fog, it had to be my photo of the day. Later in the day, as we were walking along Fisherman's Wharf, the sun came out in a glorious way and I was able to get some cool photos of the boats, the bridge and the city reflecting in the water. Check out all of our photos from our wonderful weekend in Vancouver here.