Idaho

When Matt first told me that he was born in Hawaii and moved to Idaho when he was eight, I raised my eyebrows and said, “Idaho?” Who would leave Hawaii for Idaho, right? Hawaii is a tropical paradise, while Idaho, I thought, must be a big, ugly potato field located...somewhere in the middle of the country.

I visited Boise with him over winter break when we were dating, and it was much pleasanter than I expected, but since I contracted food poisoning early in the trip and because I was overwrought with nerves about meeting his parents, I didn’t give as much thought to my surroundings as I might have done otherwise. We visited again when Lily was about 20 months old to see Matt’s elder brother’s wedding. Again, it was a pleasant trip, and Boise was nice in the autumn, but with the wedding events, I still did not soak up the location. Last week, however, with big thanks to Matt’s mom, we visited a third time, and I think I may understand Matt’s attachment to his home state a bit better now.

Idaho is beautiful. It is not Hawaii, of course, but it has its own loveliness in swiftly flowing rivers, intricately textured hills, pine-covered mountains, and crisp, cool lakes. I got to see all of these  thanks to Hindi, a friend of Matt’s family, who let us stay for a night at her home in McCall, a town 90 miles to the north of Boise. I had high expectations for this place, given that during our pre-marital counseling nine years ago, our book asked “What is your favorite place on earth?” and Matt answered Paradise Point, a small peninsula on the same lake as McCall. We did not go to Paradise Point itself (it is the site of his church’s summer camps), but we did catch a glimpse of it across the water. When we arrived in town, Lily wore her Gretl dress in honor of going to see real mountains, and she insisted that we “have a picnic on a mountainside, just like in the Sound of Music!” So the next day, we took a hike through Ponderosa State Park, and the hike had the added pleasure of wild huckleberries, which the kids and I had never tasted before. Finding the berries was a mixed blessing, really, because Corin lost almost all interest in hiking once he figured out that there was food to be had in the bushes. He stopped walking and just stood in front of the bushes, arms outstretched, shouting “More! More!” We ended the hike with a swim in the lake.

Boise, too, is a truly nice town. It has friendly people, expansive parks, and abundant local businesses. (It is amazing how differently one thinks about a city when one views it as a parent and a homeowner rather than a college student.) The kids got to spend time with all of Matt’s family, including our new niece, Emma, and the city felt even more welcoming because we could see reminders of the family all around it. Bread from Uncle Mark’s bakery was in our sandwiches at Whole Foods, around our Burgers at Boise Fry Company, and in a stall at the Farmer’s Market. Goodies from Aunt Lida’s restaurant magically appeared on Grandmom’s counter while we slept. A replica of the Wright Brother’s plane built by Uncle Andy hangs in the Boise Airport. How could the kids not feel special? They also stayed awake...a lot. In case you didn’t know, Idaho is not in the middle of the country. It’s actually pretty far north and pretty far west, bordering on Oregon, Washington State, and even a little bit on Canada. It stayed light in Boise until after 10:00, so they extra hours of daylight to enjoy.

I’m not saying that I’m ready to pack my bags and move. I really, really like Austin, and I think I’ll be a Texan at heart all of my days. But I enjoyed savoring Matt’s hometown and favorite place with him, and I won’t tease him about the move from Hawaii anymore.

Gretl in the Mountains

Corin after a swim in the lake.

Lily at the trail head.

Hiking!

Freshly picked Huckleberries. We had to get this picture of me rather than the kids because they wouldn't stop long enough for a picture; once a berry was in their hands, it went straight to their mouths.

The view at the end of our hike.

The boys at the overlook.

Sunset over Boise.