Welcome To My Corner Of The World

Hello BlogTrotters! Happy Friday and welcome to the North West. I know it's a bit of unfamiliar territory since we've been spending a majority of our time on the other side of the nation, but trust me, you'll enjoy it here! 



I am from Idaho. Some of you may wonder where that is, some of you may furrow your brows and ask if I'm from Iowa or Ohio because you can't remember and some of you may nod your head and think about potatoes. Well, to clarify a little bit for you, I live in north Idaho which is located in the Pacific Northwest and isn't anywhere near Iowa or Ohio (but I'm sure those states are cool too!) Also, because I'm in northern Idaho, we get our potatoes from Washington. The Idaho Potatos are grown in Southern Idaho - a place that I don't really know that much about.

Right now I go to school in Moscow, Idaho NOT Moscow, Russia. Here was say Mos-Coh instead of Mos-Cow. It's a little town with not a lot to do except go stare at the cows with Plexiglas stomachs.They really do exist. I promise even though I can't find any pictures of them to share with you.

I would talk a lot about Moscow, except I don't know very much. I'm not really from around here because I primarily am a student. But I do get really funny looks and people ask me why I'm in Russia. 


Apparently, there is a worm hole that we drive through that magically transports us to Russia when we arrive in Moscow. Ha, ha. But today I am going to tell you more about the town where I grew up. Because right now this is Moscow:

Moscow is primarily a college town. We have a Main Street and a nice little walking around down by Friendship Square, but besides the Wal*Mart there's not a lot going on.

I grew up north of where I'm currently located, in a place right outside of Coeur d'Alene, a city known for its huge resort and The Floating Green.

The CDA Resort is located right on Coeur d'Alene Lake and houses all sorts of events year round. It also has a few restaurants, including Dockside which is where the teens like to go after prom to score one of these delightful treats. In addition to the Floating Green of the golf course, the resort also has a spa area where you can kick back and relax supreme.

We also have the longest floating boardwalk which attracts tourists from all over, as well as locals who want to get out and walk. You can catch some mighty pretty sunsets on the boardwalk and if you're lucky you might get to see a plane take off on the water!

You can also go for a pleasure cruise down around the lake. 5th grades go eagle watching, 8th graders have their graduation party on the boats, the fireworks on the Fourth of July can also be witnessed on board, and in the wintertime you can see all the lights that the Resort displays. 

Downtown Coeur d'Alene not only houses the Resort, but also has Sherman avenue where you can weave in and out of the little boutiques. And if you're downtown you might as well visit Hudson's Hamburger's - a burger joint that doesn't serve burgers with lettuce or tomatos and good luck getting fries. They have 18 bar stools that people fight over for seating. But they've been here for 100 years and sport some of the best burgers around. Mmmmm I'm making myself hungry!

Just a short jaunt from the Resort and all the wonderful downtown shops is Ft. Sherman Park. It was built by volunteers whose names are carved into the fence surrounding the structure. Ft. Sherman was also a legitimate fort here in the North, and I wish I could tell you more about the historical side because Coeur d'Alene is full of that stuff, but I learned it all clear back in fourth grade and memory serves me not to well in this area of life.

But the park isn't just for the little kiddies, although that's clearly who it's geared for, but us big kids play on it to. And not only do we play a form of tag where touching the ground is something you only do if you're 'it' but we also take lots of pictures.

 

 

Our town is also full of moose. They aren't real moose, so quite quivering in fright! These moose are big statues and were painted by local artists and auctioned off to raise money for the schools. You can spot them in front of businesses, restaurants, in people's backyards, and on street corners. They're all beautiful and different and largely entertaining.

On the other side of the resort, there's Tubbs Hill - a place where people hike, go for a run, cliff dive in the summer time. There's even a rope swing if you are so inclined to try it out. Tubbs Hill is also where I had my senior pictures taken, where I took my friend's senior pictures and where I will take my brother's friends senior pictures.

If the lake and beachfront aren't your scene, then you can check out Riverstone. Riverstone has a huge movie theater, a Cold Stone Creamery, Pizza Schmiza, and a sports bar that I can't remember the name of to name only a few of its eateries. There's also a little bit of shopping and park across the street including it's own man made lake. Perfect for late night photoshoots with the girls:

The farther away you get from Coeur d'Alene Lake, the closer you get to where I live. I'm from the small town just outside of the great CDA called Hayden. And in my opinion, Hayden Lake is better than Coeur d'Alene lake as far as swimming and tubing are concerned. 

This is the kind of fun we have in the sum-sum-summertime! 

 

 

 

If you more of a winter person, we live within hours of several mountains. The top three being Schweitzer (the biggest), Silver (the longest gondola ride to the top of the mountain) and Lookout Pass (the smallest, but my favorite). 

Lookout is where my dad takes me on Father/Daughter ski days. Schweitzer is where his heart is. Along with my brother's hearts as well. 

If you find yourself in Coeur d'Alene and you're just itching for the "big city" you can hop on the freeway across the border and right into Spokane, Washington. I place both loved and hated by the good people of Coeur d'Alene.

Spokane has Build-A-Bear, my grandparents, outrageous for us Idahoans traffic, and bigger department stores. But I try to avoid trips across the border because their street system is so backwards and if you're not careful you can take a one way street to nowhere.


But let's end on a happy note, shall we? With a sunset on lake Coeur d'Alene:

And I didn't even mention Silverwood! But there is a theme park located about a half hour away that makes for some pretty fun times. 

Actually, there's a whole lot I didn't even begin to get to, but hopefully I didn't bore you too much and I've sparked your interest to come for a visit!