The Yosemite road trip

About a week ago, I left Port Orchard to embark on a drive to Yosemite. It was a long drive. Roughly 40 hours round trip, done over about 3 days.

But I'm so glad I braved the road for it, for so many reasons:

1) First of all Green Guy got married! Now, I've been blessed to have some amazing men in my life - ranging from my family members to friends who have become my family.  Until that day, I wasn't fully aware how much I consider Green Guy like a brother. I am speechlessly honored to be a part of several major events in his life. His wife is stunningly beautiful inside and out. There was a nearly-tangible connection between them and I've never seen Green Guy so happy. In his happiness, he remains one of the most inspirational people in my life. Congrats Green Team! I'll be writing more about this one later, once I have more photos to post.

2)YOSEMITE! I can see why they love this place so much. To say it's "amazing" or "beautiful" would be doing it a disservice. It's the kind of place that reminds me why I love living a more rural. Driving to Glacier Point on Friday brought tears to my eyes. It felt like nature at it's best. I can't wait to go back with My Sailor when we have time so we can really go hike and explore. Even the 10 feet drifts of snow on the way didn't dampen my spirits.






3) I stayed healthy! Usually, a road trip would mean a tour of drive-thrus and french fries. Aside from having to deal with diet soda to help with the caffine necessary, I filled my cooler with veggies, fruits, protein bars, and

But the best part of the entire trip was the feeling of community I felt. Green Guy's family and Green Girl's friends truly adopted me into the group. It made me realize that I do enjoy living in the mountains, but I miss that sense of community that I took for granted while living around my family.  I wish I had brought my camera so I'd have more pictures, but I'm sure I can find photos through Facebook and the other guests.

Anyway, I was VERY happy to get home on Sunday afternoon too. My Sailor made sure I came home to a happy dog, a clean apartment, a potted orchid (my favorite), and a salmon dinner! Sometimes you don't realize how much you miss someone until you're parted for a while. If this is any sign of things to come, homecoming from his deployments will be wonderful.