We're here in Memphis - decided to skip St Louis completely and get on down the road...
Went to Graceland today.
My outgoing email is blocked so I won't be able to answer any messages until tomorrow night when we get to the hotel.
Almost home!!!
Showing posts with label Big Trip 3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Big Trip 3. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Day 22
August 10, 2008 – Sunday – Day 22
0740 Wake up
Enjoy a nice quiet morning then leave to take Grandpa R to the airport.
1052 Pigs! Finally! We have been looking for pigs since we left and these are the first ones we’ve seen.
1113 Leaving the Peoria airport. I went inside to use the bathroom and bought some postcards and picked up a free Home magazine while I was in there. Some funny quotes from Felisa so far this morning:
“The corn rides again.”
Upon sighting many many cornfields along the road once more.
“I’m the expert.”
She had been “navigating” us to the airport and we mentioned something about knowing which way to go and that’s what she told us.
1140 Felisa rolled her window down while we were driving through Farmington. It scared me since she hadn’t asked first but she did meet my open window requirement of “not on the highway”. I have no idea why that girl always wants the window down in the car. Anyway, she had put the window down so that Hot Dog could get some fresh air.
1230 Bella has developed some sort of fixation with her lips. What is that noise called? Raspberries? But not against the skin. Just flubbing her lips to make cat purring sounds, horse sounds, car sounds… She has been doing it seemingly almost nonstop for over a week now. Good thing she sits all the way in the back row so I don’t hear it as much.
1235 Back at Grandma’s and starving for lunch. Yummy ham salad again and other assorted leftovers.
After lunch we went to Uncle Ron’s house and the kids played with Tegan while the rest of us hung out on the porch. The weather has been amazingly perfectly glorious ever since we got to NM. I love it!
Dinner out at the café in Bushnell then home to unpack and repack the van. The last repack was in Albuquerque and we were in serious need of reorganization! While I was doing that the kids were practicing a play. We watched “Animal Band in Birmingham” then it was bedtime. I started putting together a small package for Ron to mail from here tomorrow.
0740 Wake up
Enjoy a nice quiet morning then leave to take Grandpa R to the airport.
1052 Pigs! Finally! We have been looking for pigs since we left and these are the first ones we’ve seen.
1113 Leaving the Peoria airport. I went inside to use the bathroom and bought some postcards and picked up a free Home magazine while I was in there. Some funny quotes from Felisa so far this morning:
“The corn rides again.”
Upon sighting many many cornfields along the road once more.
“I’m the expert.”
She had been “navigating” us to the airport and we mentioned something about knowing which way to go and that’s what she told us.
1140 Felisa rolled her window down while we were driving through Farmington. It scared me since she hadn’t asked first but she did meet my open window requirement of “not on the highway”. I have no idea why that girl always wants the window down in the car. Anyway, she had put the window down so that Hot Dog could get some fresh air.
1230 Bella has developed some sort of fixation with her lips. What is that noise called? Raspberries? But not against the skin. Just flubbing her lips to make cat purring sounds, horse sounds, car sounds… She has been doing it seemingly almost nonstop for over a week now. Good thing she sits all the way in the back row so I don’t hear it as much.
1235 Back at Grandma’s and starving for lunch. Yummy ham salad again and other assorted leftovers.
After lunch we went to Uncle Ron’s house and the kids played with Tegan while the rest of us hung out on the porch. The weather has been amazingly perfectly glorious ever since we got to NM. I love it!
Dinner out at the café in Bushnell then home to unpack and repack the van. The last repack was in Albuquerque and we were in serious need of reorganization! While I was doing that the kids were practicing a play. We watched “Animal Band in Birmingham” then it was bedtime. I started putting together a small package for Ron to mail from here tomorrow.
Saturday, August 09, 2008
Day 21
August 9, 2008 – Saturday – Day 21
Wake up when Bella comes back to bed. The kids were all playing musical beds last night. All 3 of them started in my bed watching Looney Tunes. Bella, the only one who didn’t want to watch the movie, was the only one awake at the end of the movie. Since Ryan was asleep in her spot, she went to sleep with Grandpa R. In the middle of the night, Ryan woke up and said, “Why am I sleeping in this bed?” and went to Grandpa’s room. Sometime in the early morning Bella started roaming and eventually came to my room and went back to sleep.
Breakfast and coffee then a trip to the post office to check the mail. Grandma was going to go without me but I made her wait. When I was a kid I always walked to the post office with Grandma.
Lana went to town to get a haircut and buy more bags of Kitchen Cooked chips for all of us to bring home. Yum!!! Unfortunately I forgot to get my entertainment out of the car so no cross-stitching or crocheting or reading (except the newspaper) until she gets back. There’s no internet so I can’t even waste time online. Oh well, maybe I’ll work on a few scrapbook pages. My next quarterly deadline for CM is September 30 so I need to get at least one book finished by then.
Uncle Ron came by with Tegan to play with the kids. She was shy at first but then didn’t want to leave. We promised to come up to their place to play after lunch.
Ham salad and chicken salad for lunch – yum! And Kitchen Cooked chips of course.
The kids had fun playing at Tegan’s. Felisa and Tegan got wet watering the flowers so Tegan reluctantly loaned Felisa a dress for the day. Once again Tegan didn’t want to see the kids leave. It was good for all of them to play together since Tegan’s an only (though not for long!) child and my kids haven’t had many other kids to play with this trip.
We drove to town so Emilio could see downtown Macomb. Then home in time for dinner. Grandma made goulash and mashed potatoes (she dug the potatoes from her garden just this morning!). After dinner it was time for our daily park trip.
The kids are watching Pink Panther and the grown-ups are watching Family Feud on GSN. Lady (Grandma’s cat) is looking at me… apparently I’m sitting in her chair. So she walks over to my black bag with the scrapbooks inside and sits down on top of it. I guess she showed me!
Wake up when Bella comes back to bed. The kids were all playing musical beds last night. All 3 of them started in my bed watching Looney Tunes. Bella, the only one who didn’t want to watch the movie, was the only one awake at the end of the movie. Since Ryan was asleep in her spot, she went to sleep with Grandpa R. In the middle of the night, Ryan woke up and said, “Why am I sleeping in this bed?” and went to Grandpa’s room. Sometime in the early morning Bella started roaming and eventually came to my room and went back to sleep.
Breakfast and coffee then a trip to the post office to check the mail. Grandma was going to go without me but I made her wait. When I was a kid I always walked to the post office with Grandma.
Lana went to town to get a haircut and buy more bags of Kitchen Cooked chips for all of us to bring home. Yum!!! Unfortunately I forgot to get my entertainment out of the car so no cross-stitching or crocheting or reading (except the newspaper) until she gets back. There’s no internet so I can’t even waste time online. Oh well, maybe I’ll work on a few scrapbook pages. My next quarterly deadline for CM is September 30 so I need to get at least one book finished by then.
Uncle Ron came by with Tegan to play with the kids. She was shy at first but then didn’t want to leave. We promised to come up to their place to play after lunch.
Ham salad and chicken salad for lunch – yum! And Kitchen Cooked chips of course.
The kids had fun playing at Tegan’s. Felisa and Tegan got wet watering the flowers so Tegan reluctantly loaned Felisa a dress for the day. Once again Tegan didn’t want to see the kids leave. It was good for all of them to play together since Tegan’s an only (though not for long!) child and my kids haven’t had many other kids to play with this trip.
We drove to town so Emilio could see downtown Macomb. Then home in time for dinner. Grandma made goulash and mashed potatoes (she dug the potatoes from her garden just this morning!). After dinner it was time for our daily park trip.
The kids are watching Pink Panther and the grown-ups are watching Family Feud on GSN. Lady (Grandma’s cat) is looking at me… apparently I’m sitting in her chair. So she walks over to my black bag with the scrapbooks inside and sits down on top of it. I guess she showed me!
Friday, August 08, 2008
Day 20
August 8, 2008 – Friday – Day 20
0610 Wake up. Talk to Ron online.
0715 Breakfast
0803 Leave the hotel.
0840 Stop at McD’s for coffee and a potty break. I realized a few minutes ago that the girls hadn’t gone potty yet this morning. I figured it would be wise to stop at the next available bathroom before it turns into an emergency pee on the side of the road incident. As luck would have it, the next available stop was McD’s so I could get my iced coffee as well. Yea!
1110 Des Moines, IA - See a sign for Sonic and stop since this may be my last chance (well, at least until after we drop off Lana and head home). Plus, it’s been at least a week since I last ate at Sonic…
Here’s what we ordered:
Ryan: hot dog and strawberry slush
Bella: grilled cheese, tots, and water
Felisa: Chicken strips and strawberry slush
Grandpa R: #4 grilled chicken sandwich and a coke
Lana: #8 grilled chicken wrap and a diet dr. pepper
Sheila: #12 Super Sonic breakfast burrito with tots and cherry coke
I had to write it down so I could get the order right so I figured I might as well record it for posterity…
2:05 p.m. Mt. Pleasant, IA stop for gas. $3.65/gallon
2:45 p.m. Illinois! And the Mississippi River! Once we were across the river we could see the flood damage in Gulfport. There is still standing water a third of the way up houses and buildings and you can see the water line where it was higher before. The road is closed so we go the long way around the Good Hope.
3:15 p.m. See a sign for Roseville. Felisa is happy to have a place with her name.
3:33 p.m. Arrive at Grandma’s!
The kids played for a bit then we had beef and noodles for dinner. Super yum! After dinner we went to the park then home for popsicles and then finally bed time. The kids were not tired at all (something about riding in the car all day…) so I put in a movie for them. Of course that means they are all in my bed so there is no room for me until the movie is over. Guess I’ll go upstairs and watch TV with the grownups for a while. Felisa came up after about 20 minutes so I had to go back down and squeeze in on the edge.
0610 Wake up. Talk to Ron online.
0715 Breakfast
0803 Leave the hotel.
0840 Stop at McD’s for coffee and a potty break. I realized a few minutes ago that the girls hadn’t gone potty yet this morning. I figured it would be wise to stop at the next available bathroom before it turns into an emergency pee on the side of the road incident. As luck would have it, the next available stop was McD’s so I could get my iced coffee as well. Yea!
1110 Des Moines, IA - See a sign for Sonic and stop since this may be my last chance (well, at least until after we drop off Lana and head home). Plus, it’s been at least a week since I last ate at Sonic…
Here’s what we ordered:
Ryan: hot dog and strawberry slush
Bella: grilled cheese, tots, and water
Felisa: Chicken strips and strawberry slush
Grandpa R: #4 grilled chicken sandwich and a coke
Lana: #8 grilled chicken wrap and a diet dr. pepper
Sheila: #12 Super Sonic breakfast burrito with tots and cherry coke
I had to write it down so I could get the order right so I figured I might as well record it for posterity…
2:05 p.m. Mt. Pleasant, IA stop for gas. $3.65/gallon
2:45 p.m. Illinois! And the Mississippi River! Once we were across the river we could see the flood damage in Gulfport. There is still standing water a third of the way up houses and buildings and you can see the water line where it was higher before. The road is closed so we go the long way around the Good Hope.
3:15 p.m. See a sign for Roseville. Felisa is happy to have a place with her name.
3:33 p.m. Arrive at Grandma’s!
The kids played for a bit then we had beef and noodles for dinner. Super yum! After dinner we went to the park then home for popsicles and then finally bed time. The kids were not tired at all (something about riding in the car all day…) so I put in a movie for them. Of course that means they are all in my bed so there is no room for me until the movie is over. Guess I’ll go upstairs and watch TV with the grownups for a while. Felisa came up after about 20 minutes so I had to go back down and squeeze in on the edge.
Thursday, August 07, 2008
Day 19
August 7, 2008 – Thursday – Day 19
0614 Wake up
0650 Go downstairs for breakfast
0733 Loaded and leaving the hotel.
We decided to drive through Custer State Park again since it seemed like the most direct, least curvy road way to get up to the interstate in Rapid City. I’m really glad we did because along the way we saw lots of animals. Wild turkeys (even babies!) crossing the road, deer, a chipmunk (trying not to get run over), mule deer, and… buffalo! A huge herd of them! And since I downloaded my other buffalo pictures and realized that very few of them turned out, I was able to take bunch more. Yea! Hopefully these turned out better. If not then I guess it wasn’t meant to be.
0930 On the way to Wall Drug in Wall, SD. We passed a truck pulling a motorcycle trailer. On the back of the trailer was a sign that said “Just Married”. Not 30 seconds later we saw a billboard that said Free Coffee and Donuts for Honeymooners. How weird is that!!!
1048 Leaving Wall Drug. Big. And Crowded. But kind of fun, at least in the backyard where the covered wagon, giant roaring dinosaur, and 8-foot jackalope were.
1130 Stop for gas ($3.83/gallon) and lunch in Kadoka, SD. There is just a whole lot of nothing out here.
12:22 p.m. Leaving lunch. I miss McDonalds… We haven’t seen one since Denver.
12:43 p.m. Time change. It’s now 1:43 p.m. I really don’t like giving my hours back on the return trip!
2:59 p.m. McDonald’s!!! Iced Coffee!!! Yippee! Yahoo! Oh and we also just crossed the Missouri River. It was actually blue. I don’t think I’ve seen a blue river in a while.
4:05 p.m. Stop at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD. Interesting. A good distraction from the miles of prairie. And since crossing the river, we are back to miles of corn fields.
4:50 p.m. Leaving the Corn Palace. We bought cheddar popcorn as a snack for the kids. We still have about 2 hours to the hotel.
7:00 p.m. Iowa! Cross the Big Sioux River. We can even see Nebraska just across the river. If I wasn’t so tired of driving, I would cross the river just so I can add Nebraska to our list of states for this year!
7:10 p.m. Arrive at the hotel in Sioux City, IA It smells like cows here.
7:34 p.m. Dinner at HuHot Mongolian Grill. Delicious food but there was a large group of loud obnoxious teen girls at the table next to us. The handful of adults were just as bad as the kids.
8:40 p.m. Leaving dinner. It still smells like cows.
8:43 p.m. Stop at the gas station next door. Gas is only $3.49/gallon. Wow!
Back to the hotel for swimming in the cold pool then bedtime. I was hoping for a chat with Ron but it’s Friday there so I guess he’s sleeping in (Fridays and Sundays are the slow days).
0614 Wake up
0650 Go downstairs for breakfast
0733 Loaded and leaving the hotel.
We decided to drive through Custer State Park again since it seemed like the most direct, least curvy road way to get up to the interstate in Rapid City. I’m really glad we did because along the way we saw lots of animals. Wild turkeys (even babies!) crossing the road, deer, a chipmunk (trying not to get run over), mule deer, and… buffalo! A huge herd of them! And since I downloaded my other buffalo pictures and realized that very few of them turned out, I was able to take bunch more. Yea! Hopefully these turned out better. If not then I guess it wasn’t meant to be.
0930 On the way to Wall Drug in Wall, SD. We passed a truck pulling a motorcycle trailer. On the back of the trailer was a sign that said “Just Married”. Not 30 seconds later we saw a billboard that said Free Coffee and Donuts for Honeymooners. How weird is that!!!
1048 Leaving Wall Drug. Big. And Crowded. But kind of fun, at least in the backyard where the covered wagon, giant roaring dinosaur, and 8-foot jackalope were.
1130 Stop for gas ($3.83/gallon) and lunch in Kadoka, SD. There is just a whole lot of nothing out here.
12:22 p.m. Leaving lunch. I miss McDonalds… We haven’t seen one since Denver.
12:43 p.m. Time change. It’s now 1:43 p.m. I really don’t like giving my hours back on the return trip!
2:59 p.m. McDonald’s!!! Iced Coffee!!! Yippee! Yahoo! Oh and we also just crossed the Missouri River. It was actually blue. I don’t think I’ve seen a blue river in a while.
4:05 p.m. Stop at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD. Interesting. A good distraction from the miles of prairie. And since crossing the river, we are back to miles of corn fields.
4:50 p.m. Leaving the Corn Palace. We bought cheddar popcorn as a snack for the kids. We still have about 2 hours to the hotel.
7:00 p.m. Iowa! Cross the Big Sioux River. We can even see Nebraska just across the river. If I wasn’t so tired of driving, I would cross the river just so I can add Nebraska to our list of states for this year!
7:10 p.m. Arrive at the hotel in Sioux City, IA It smells like cows here.
7:34 p.m. Dinner at HuHot Mongolian Grill. Delicious food but there was a large group of loud obnoxious teen girls at the table next to us. The handful of adults were just as bad as the kids.
8:40 p.m. Leaving dinner. It still smells like cows.
8:43 p.m. Stop at the gas station next door. Gas is only $3.49/gallon. Wow!
Back to the hotel for swimming in the cold pool then bedtime. I was hoping for a chat with Ron but it’s Friday there so I guess he’s sleeping in (Fridays and Sundays are the slow days).
Oh! I forgot!
I realized today while driving that I forgot to tell the story about the motorcycle dude that flipped me off yesterday. For no good reason!!!
We had stopped at the bathroom then went on the short hike. While we were hiking, a motorcycle had gone into the ditch somewhere up in the curvy hilly road we had just driven down prior to stopping. The park rangers closed the road at the bottom of the hill so the cyclists could wait on the flat road while a tow truck was pulling the bike out. When we came back to the car, a ranger was there holding up traffic. He told me what happened and asked which way we were headed. I told him we were going the other way so he said to go ahead.
About 5 cars/bikes or so back in the line, a motorcycle dude flipped us off after he (I can only guess) arrived to see us pulling out of the parking lot and driving away. I suppose that he thought we were the cause of the holdup. I really have no idea what his problem was.
I bounced his bad energy off and turned it into good deeds and public service... I stopped at every car and group of bikes down the rest of the line and explained why everyone was stopped. And all of them were very nice and thanked me for telling them.
So there - mean, grumpy, rude biker dude. Take that!
We had stopped at the bathroom then went on the short hike. While we were hiking, a motorcycle had gone into the ditch somewhere up in the curvy hilly road we had just driven down prior to stopping. The park rangers closed the road at the bottom of the hill so the cyclists could wait on the flat road while a tow truck was pulling the bike out. When we came back to the car, a ranger was there holding up traffic. He told me what happened and asked which way we were headed. I told him we were going the other way so he said to go ahead.
About 5 cars/bikes or so back in the line, a motorcycle dude flipped us off after he (I can only guess) arrived to see us pulling out of the parking lot and driving away. I suppose that he thought we were the cause of the holdup. I really have no idea what his problem was.
I bounced his bad energy off and turned it into good deeds and public service... I stopped at every car and group of bikes down the rest of the line and explained why everyone was stopped. And all of them were very nice and thanked me for telling them.
So there - mean, grumpy, rude biker dude. Take that!
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Day 18
August 6, 2008 – Wednesday – Day 18
0645 Wake up
0700 Get out of bed
0740 Go down to breakfast – made it just in time to beat the rush
First stop of the morning is the Crazy Horse Monument. Looks like we beat the crowd here to which is great. We take our time looking through the museum and the gift shop then take the bus tour a little closer. By the time we’re ready to go, the crowds have descended. Our favorite parts:
Felisa: getting a rock
Bella: bus tour
Ryan: nature gate
Grandpa R: Korczak the sculptor
Lana: the history behind the monument
Sheila: the family aspect and getting a rock
10:58 p.m. Leave Crazy Horse
We spend the next two hours driving around the Wildlife Loop of Custer State Park. We saw more buffalo, mule deer, prairie dogs, and burros. We took a 3 minute hike in the prairie since there was a trailhead right next to the bathroom (We had to stop for Felisa). Lana, Bella, and I all got our feet wet when crossing the stream.
1:25 p.m. Back in Custer for lunch at Pizza Hut.
After lunch we had quiet time. The kids were in Grandpa’s room playing and watching TV while he was napping.
5:00 p.m. Time to hit the pool.
6:15 p.m. Time to shower and get ready for dinner.
We went to a different restaurant for dinner and were seated at the teepee table. That’s right – a table inside a teepee! The kids thought that it was great fun but I was a little too tall so my head kept brushing up against the side.
Then… back to the hotel and bedtime!
0645 Wake up
0700 Get out of bed
0740 Go down to breakfast – made it just in time to beat the rush
First stop of the morning is the Crazy Horse Monument. Looks like we beat the crowd here to which is great. We take our time looking through the museum and the gift shop then take the bus tour a little closer. By the time we’re ready to go, the crowds have descended. Our favorite parts:
Felisa: getting a rock
Bella: bus tour
Ryan: nature gate
Grandpa R: Korczak the sculptor
Lana: the history behind the monument
Sheila: the family aspect and getting a rock
10:58 p.m. Leave Crazy Horse
We spend the next two hours driving around the Wildlife Loop of Custer State Park. We saw more buffalo, mule deer, prairie dogs, and burros. We took a 3 minute hike in the prairie since there was a trailhead right next to the bathroom (We had to stop for Felisa). Lana, Bella, and I all got our feet wet when crossing the stream.
1:25 p.m. Back in Custer for lunch at Pizza Hut.
After lunch we had quiet time. The kids were in Grandpa’s room playing and watching TV while he was napping.
5:00 p.m. Time to hit the pool.
6:15 p.m. Time to shower and get ready for dinner.
We went to a different restaurant for dinner and were seated at the teepee table. That’s right – a table inside a teepee! The kids thought that it was great fun but I was a little too tall so my head kept brushing up against the side.
Then… back to the hotel and bedtime!
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Day 17
August 5, 2008 – Tuesday – Day 17
0154 Wake up. For no reason that I can discern other than to see what time it is.
A BIG thunderstorm rolled through at I don’t know what time then…
0400 Wake up to register Felisa for gymnastics class. Online registration starts at 0500 Eastern Time and this class always fills up before I can get in. So this time I’m biting the bullet and waking up in the middle of the night to sign up!
0540 Calendar feature of my cell phone rings to remind me to register for gymnastics. I was nothing if not thorough in my backup systems this time!
0600 Alarm – time to wake up
0720 Breakfast at the hotel. The serving area was way too crowded so we grabbed what we could and went back to our room to eat.
0754 Leaving the hotel, headed for South Dakota
0809 Ryan remembers that he left his CD bag in the hotel room. He was staying in Grandpa’s room and apparently neither one of them did a thorough check before they left. So we turn around and go back to get it.
0826 Leaving the hotel again.
0949 South Dakota!!!
0952 Motorcyclists heading in the opposite direction. Each one of them points out the roadkill to the next guy behind.
1030 Arrive at Custer State Park.
1115 Stop to see the buffalo along the side of the road.
1124 Stop to see the burros on the side of the road. Someone is feeding them and when he runs out of food, they come looking to us next. Two of them have their heads stuck in the driver’s side window. We barely escape…
12:00 p.m. Arrive at Mount Rushmore. Along with about a million motorcyclists (or so it seems) and a bunch of other tourists. By this point I am tired from driving on the very curvy road and I have a headache from the constant sound of motorcycles on the road. I’m also getting a bit hungry which is never good for my attitude. We took pictures then went to the gift shop. Then it was time to escape the insanity and head for our next stop.
12:48 p.m. Leaving Mount Rushmore
1:11 p.m. Stop at the Golden Spike restaurant outside Hill City. Hill City was closed to cars. Only motorcycles could drive into town. Everyone else had to go around on the truck route. Lunch turned out to be surprisingly good. The food came out very quickly and it was actually not busy so it was calm and quiet. A nice change after spending the morning on the road. And did I mention too many motorcycles?!?
1:58 p.m. Leaving lunch.
2:07 p.m. Stop at Prairie Berry Winery for a taste. Interesting wines. Most of them are made with different berries from South Dakota. As usual, I definitely liked the sweet wines best. Between Lana and I, we picked up 6 bottles then wondered which child we should evict from the car to make room for the wine. Ultimately there was room for all the kids and the wine. Phew.
2:50 p.m. Stopped at Cosmos Mystery Area. This place had been recommended by a friend of Lana’s as fun, especially for the kids. Lana ended up with a headache, I remained a skeptic, and the kids had a blast! Basically you tour a cabin built on a “hot spot” in the area which pulls things in strange directions such that you can practically stand on the walls without falling.
3:36 p.m. Done with our touring for the day. Time to head back to our hotel in Custer and relax a bit.
We went across the street to Dakota Cowboy Café for dinner. Another pleasant surprise in that it was quiet and not super busy. We even ordered smores for dessert… cooked the marshmallows over a small fire right at our table. Fun!
On our way home for dinner, we noticed the gas station across the street was almost empty so we went directly over. Every gas station we had passed today had been overflowing with motorcycles. So time to get our gas while the getting is good!
Back at the hotel it was swimming time then bed time. I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted!
(License plates: British Columbia, Connecticut - only 4 states left to find and we'll have all 50!)
0154 Wake up. For no reason that I can discern other than to see what time it is.
A BIG thunderstorm rolled through at I don’t know what time then…
0400 Wake up to register Felisa for gymnastics class. Online registration starts at 0500 Eastern Time and this class always fills up before I can get in. So this time I’m biting the bullet and waking up in the middle of the night to sign up!
0540 Calendar feature of my cell phone rings to remind me to register for gymnastics. I was nothing if not thorough in my backup systems this time!
0600 Alarm – time to wake up
0720 Breakfast at the hotel. The serving area was way too crowded so we grabbed what we could and went back to our room to eat.
0754 Leaving the hotel, headed for South Dakota
0809 Ryan remembers that he left his CD bag in the hotel room. He was staying in Grandpa’s room and apparently neither one of them did a thorough check before they left. So we turn around and go back to get it.
0826 Leaving the hotel again.
0949 South Dakota!!!
0952 Motorcyclists heading in the opposite direction. Each one of them points out the roadkill to the next guy behind.
1030 Arrive at Custer State Park.
1115 Stop to see the buffalo along the side of the road.
1124 Stop to see the burros on the side of the road. Someone is feeding them and when he runs out of food, they come looking to us next. Two of them have their heads stuck in the driver’s side window. We barely escape…
12:00 p.m. Arrive at Mount Rushmore. Along with about a million motorcyclists (or so it seems) and a bunch of other tourists. By this point I am tired from driving on the very curvy road and I have a headache from the constant sound of motorcycles on the road. I’m also getting a bit hungry which is never good for my attitude. We took pictures then went to the gift shop. Then it was time to escape the insanity and head for our next stop.
12:48 p.m. Leaving Mount Rushmore
1:11 p.m. Stop at the Golden Spike restaurant outside Hill City. Hill City was closed to cars. Only motorcycles could drive into town. Everyone else had to go around on the truck route. Lunch turned out to be surprisingly good. The food came out very quickly and it was actually not busy so it was calm and quiet. A nice change after spending the morning on the road. And did I mention too many motorcycles?!?
1:58 p.m. Leaving lunch.
2:07 p.m. Stop at Prairie Berry Winery for a taste. Interesting wines. Most of them are made with different berries from South Dakota. As usual, I definitely liked the sweet wines best. Between Lana and I, we picked up 6 bottles then wondered which child we should evict from the car to make room for the wine. Ultimately there was room for all the kids and the wine. Phew.
2:50 p.m. Stopped at Cosmos Mystery Area. This place had been recommended by a friend of Lana’s as fun, especially for the kids. Lana ended up with a headache, I remained a skeptic, and the kids had a blast! Basically you tour a cabin built on a “hot spot” in the area which pulls things in strange directions such that you can practically stand on the walls without falling.
3:36 p.m. Done with our touring for the day. Time to head back to our hotel in Custer and relax a bit.
We went across the street to Dakota Cowboy Café for dinner. Another pleasant surprise in that it was quiet and not super busy. We even ordered smores for dessert… cooked the marshmallows over a small fire right at our table. Fun!
On our way home for dinner, we noticed the gas station across the street was almost empty so we went directly over. Every gas station we had passed today had been overflowing with motorcycles. So time to get our gas while the getting is good!
Back at the hotel it was swimming time then bed time. I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted!
(License plates: British Columbia, Connecticut - only 4 states left to find and we'll have all 50!)
Holy Motorcycles, Batman!
So we made it to Custer today. So did a lot of people. All of them on motocycles!
We went to Mt. Rushmore, a winery, and Cosmos Mystery Area. Everywhere we looked, everywhere we went, there were the motorcycles. They were ahead of me, behind me, and coming at me in a steady stream from the opposite direction. All day long. If only the engines weren't so loud...
We also got to see a herd of buffalo and made smores at dinner.
So that's the highlight reel... a detailed post to come probably tomorrow.
We went to Mt. Rushmore, a winery, and Cosmos Mystery Area. Everywhere we looked, everywhere we went, there were the motorcycles. They were ahead of me, behind me, and coming at me in a steady stream from the opposite direction. All day long. If only the engines weren't so loud...
We also got to see a herd of buffalo and made smores at dinner.
So that's the highlight reel... a detailed post to come probably tomorrow.
Monday, August 04, 2008
Day 16
(I have backposted below the Rock Story for anyone who is interested in Days 13-15)
August 4, 2008 – Monday – Day 16
0545 Penny is barking which wakes me up.
0605 Get up and start getting ready.
0630 Wake up the kids and start loading the van.
0712 Leave
0715 Pass a house with a space shuttle mail box.
0716 Dad called – we forgot the sippy cups.
0718 Back to pick up our cups and Ryan’s Gatorade. And leaving again…
0835 Stop in Parker for gas and breakfast. $3.87/gallon.
0837 Pull across the street and stop again. Bella has a bloody nose and needs a new shirt.
0910 Arrive at Denver Airport to pick up Grandpa R.
1000 Stop at first available gas station for another clean-up. This time Bella threw up. She says she was reading too many princess stories so maybe she was just car sick. Guess we’ll be doing laundry at the hotel tonight.
1054 Wyoming!
12:03 p.m. Leaving the Old West Pioneer Days Museum in Cheyenne, Wyoming. There is not immediately obvious place to stop for lunch so I get back on the highway figuring I’ll stop and the next exit or two.
Turns out there is nothing at the next exit and before I know it, there’s a sign telling me No Services for 50 miles!
12:14 p.m. The prairie out here is very windy and empty.
We passed an accident. Looks like two pickups flipped. No one appears to be hurt and a few other people have already stopped to help.
12:45 p.m. Buffalo Grill in Chugwater, WY is the next available food. And the only services for another 30 miles according to the blue sign on the highway. So, Chugwater it is. Population 244. Not much going on except a few motorcycles who have also stopped to eat at the Buffalo Grill. Oh and a word of advice – when the sign says “dip” you should SLOW DOWN. A LOT! While we were eating, a few guys came in and got to talking about the accident. No one was hurt. One guy was driving a pickup and towing another one behind him. They think the tow bar broke and the gusty wind caused the accident. Eavesdropping pays off because now I know a little more!
1:37 p.m. Leaving lunch.
2:07 p.m. Stop in Wheatland, WY for gas and coffee. $3.99/gallon. No McD’s so I have to get iced coffee from Burger King. Not my favorite but it’ll do. Lana ordered an iced tea. She added her splenda then took a drink. That was NOT iced tea! I tasted it as well (by request) and agreed with her diagnosis. Coke. With Splenda. Which in case you were wondering is not actually very good at all. Yuck!
Continue our drive towards the hotel. There are several trains out today and we even saw a section where they were building NEW train tracks. I don’t think I’ve ever seen NEW train tracks before.
3:35 Arrive at the hotel in Lusk, WY. Pretty small town. Nice hotel with a HEATED pool and flowers hanging outside all the rooms.
4:45 p.m. Go to the pool for an hour to swim. Amazing how much more fun it is when the water isn’t ice cold. They also had two floating lounge chairs that we all enjoyed using.
7:15 p.m. Back from dinner at the Outpost Café. Good food. Good service. Sometimes small towns are the best place.
9:00 p.m. Get the kids settled for bed. Ryan will sleep with Grandpa in his room. I start the laundry.
Chat with Ron…
Work on updating blog when I realize I forgot the laundry! Go quickly to change it. Notice a minivan with the light on. The family just went inside so I’ll check again on my way back as it may be on a delay. When I pass by again, the light is still on. I knock on the door to tell them. She gave me a bit of a look but after our dead battery in LA I figure better safe than sorry!
And now it is 10:18 and I’m waiting another 15 minutes for my laundry to hopefully be dry so I can go to bed.
August 4, 2008 – Monday – Day 16
0545 Penny is barking which wakes me up.
0605 Get up and start getting ready.
0630 Wake up the kids and start loading the van.
0712 Leave
0715 Pass a house with a space shuttle mail box.
0716 Dad called – we forgot the sippy cups.
0718 Back to pick up our cups and Ryan’s Gatorade. And leaving again…
0835 Stop in Parker for gas and breakfast. $3.87/gallon.
0837 Pull across the street and stop again. Bella has a bloody nose and needs a new shirt.
0910 Arrive at Denver Airport to pick up Grandpa R.
1000 Stop at first available gas station for another clean-up. This time Bella threw up. She says she was reading too many princess stories so maybe she was just car sick. Guess we’ll be doing laundry at the hotel tonight.
1054 Wyoming!
12:03 p.m. Leaving the Old West Pioneer Days Museum in Cheyenne, Wyoming. There is not immediately obvious place to stop for lunch so I get back on the highway figuring I’ll stop and the next exit or two.
Turns out there is nothing at the next exit and before I know it, there’s a sign telling me No Services for 50 miles!
12:14 p.m. The prairie out here is very windy and empty.
We passed an accident. Looks like two pickups flipped. No one appears to be hurt and a few other people have already stopped to help.
12:45 p.m. Buffalo Grill in Chugwater, WY is the next available food. And the only services for another 30 miles according to the blue sign on the highway. So, Chugwater it is. Population 244. Not much going on except a few motorcycles who have also stopped to eat at the Buffalo Grill. Oh and a word of advice – when the sign says “dip” you should SLOW DOWN. A LOT! While we were eating, a few guys came in and got to talking about the accident. No one was hurt. One guy was driving a pickup and towing another one behind him. They think the tow bar broke and the gusty wind caused the accident. Eavesdropping pays off because now I know a little more!
1:37 p.m. Leaving lunch.
2:07 p.m. Stop in Wheatland, WY for gas and coffee. $3.99/gallon. No McD’s so I have to get iced coffee from Burger King. Not my favorite but it’ll do. Lana ordered an iced tea. She added her splenda then took a drink. That was NOT iced tea! I tasted it as well (by request) and agreed with her diagnosis. Coke. With Splenda. Which in case you were wondering is not actually very good at all. Yuck!
Continue our drive towards the hotel. There are several trains out today and we even saw a section where they were building NEW train tracks. I don’t think I’ve ever seen NEW train tracks before.
3:35 Arrive at the hotel in Lusk, WY. Pretty small town. Nice hotel with a HEATED pool and flowers hanging outside all the rooms.
4:45 p.m. Go to the pool for an hour to swim. Amazing how much more fun it is when the water isn’t ice cold. They also had two floating lounge chairs that we all enjoyed using.
7:15 p.m. Back from dinner at the Outpost Café. Good food. Good service. Sometimes small towns are the best place.
9:00 p.m. Get the kids settled for bed. Ryan will sleep with Grandpa in his room. I start the laundry.
Chat with Ron…
Work on updating blog when I realize I forgot the laundry! Go quickly to change it. Notice a minivan with the light on. The family just went inside so I’ll check again on my way back as it may be on a delay. When I pass by again, the light is still on. I knock on the door to tell them. She gave me a bit of a look but after our dead battery in LA I figure better safe than sorry!
And now it is 10:18 and I’m waiting another 15 minutes for my laundry to hopefully be dry so I can go to bed.
The Rock
We went out to dinner tonight at a new steak house that used to be a different chain steak house. While we were there, Ryan needed to use the restroom. When he came back to the table, he had a small rock. He put it down on the table top next to his plate.
Ryan: Look! I found a rock in the bathroom!
Me: Where in the bathroom?
Ryan: I found it in the bathroom.
Me: But WHERE in the bathroom?!?
Ryan: On the toilet.
Me: And you put it on the table?!?
Ryan: Well, I washed it off.
Okay then. What more can I say to that?
Ryan: Look! I found a rock in the bathroom!
Me: Where in the bathroom?
Ryan: I found it in the bathroom.
Me: But WHERE in the bathroom?!?
Ryan: On the toilet.
Me: And you put it on the table?!?
Ryan: Well, I washed it off.
Okay then. What more can I say to that?
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Day 15
August 3, 2008 – Sunday – Day 15
0640 Wake up
0846 Leave the house, headed for Cave of the Winds. We tried to go to Cave of the Winds last summer but the line was waaaaaaay too long so we’re trying for an early morning tour this time. As we’re headed out the door, we see a snake in the front garden.
0911 Arrive at Cave of the Winds.
1100 Leaving… good tour. Took less than 2 hours all together including a 45 minute tour and shopping time. Our favorite parts survey:
Felisa – going into the cave
Bella – the frozen waterfall
Ryan – cave bacon and the frozen waterfall
Grandpa F – “cool” cave and watching Lana hit her head (gee, aren’t brothers just so nice…)
Rosanne – cave bacon
Sheila – Tall Man’s Headache, Fat Man’s Misery (Tuck, suck, and duck. With any luck you won’t get stuck!)
Lana – No blood after hitting head and the frozen waterfalls
1118 Stop at Primos Pizza in Woodland Park for lunch. Mmmm… Chicago Deep Dish pizza…
12:37 p.m. Leaving lunch
1:04 p.m. Arrive at Florissant Fossil Beds. We shopped (of course!) and added more critters to our travelling zoo. Then we watched the movie about how the fossil beds were formed (volcanic ash trapped insects, leaves, and redwood trees). We went on a short hike but it was spitting rain so we didn’t do the whole trail.
2:38 p.m. Leaving the fossil beds.
3:00 p.m. See a very furry llama alongside the road. Makes me think of Mama Llama. But Mama Llama is much less furry and much cuter!
3:42 p.m. Back at the house.
On our way back down the mountain I checked my oil life. I’m at 20% now. Hmm. Guess I need an oil change soon. I went to Jiffy Lube and the girl there remembered me (and all my kids) from last year. After I get back from this errand we all went out to dinner at Texas Land and Cattle. After dinner there was a full rainbow and some pretty cool clouds above the mountains with the sun setting.
Once back at the house it was time to get the van back into travelling order and start the packing for our departure tomorrow.
0640 Wake up
0846 Leave the house, headed for Cave of the Winds. We tried to go to Cave of the Winds last summer but the line was waaaaaaay too long so we’re trying for an early morning tour this time. As we’re headed out the door, we see a snake in the front garden.
0911 Arrive at Cave of the Winds.
1100 Leaving… good tour. Took less than 2 hours all together including a 45 minute tour and shopping time. Our favorite parts survey:
Felisa – going into the cave
Bella – the frozen waterfall
Ryan – cave bacon and the frozen waterfall
Grandpa F – “cool” cave and watching Lana hit her head (gee, aren’t brothers just so nice…)
Rosanne – cave bacon
Sheila – Tall Man’s Headache, Fat Man’s Misery (Tuck, suck, and duck. With any luck you won’t get stuck!)
Lana – No blood after hitting head and the frozen waterfalls
1118 Stop at Primos Pizza in Woodland Park for lunch. Mmmm… Chicago Deep Dish pizza…
12:37 p.m. Leaving lunch
1:04 p.m. Arrive at Florissant Fossil Beds. We shopped (of course!) and added more critters to our travelling zoo. Then we watched the movie about how the fossil beds were formed (volcanic ash trapped insects, leaves, and redwood trees). We went on a short hike but it was spitting rain so we didn’t do the whole trail.
2:38 p.m. Leaving the fossil beds.
3:00 p.m. See a very furry llama alongside the road. Makes me think of Mama Llama. But Mama Llama is much less furry and much cuter!
3:42 p.m. Back at the house.
On our way back down the mountain I checked my oil life. I’m at 20% now. Hmm. Guess I need an oil change soon. I went to Jiffy Lube and the girl there remembered me (and all my kids) from last year. After I get back from this errand we all went out to dinner at Texas Land and Cattle. After dinner there was a full rainbow and some pretty cool clouds above the mountains with the sun setting.
Once back at the house it was time to get the van back into travelling order and start the packing for our departure tomorrow.
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Day 14
August 2, 2008 – Saturday – Day 14
A nice relaxing day. The kids played all morning while the grown-ups relaxed and visited. Then we loaded up and hit the stores. Target and Costco and lunch at Red Robin. Then I got to go out by myself for an hour or so and I hit the scrapbook store, the teacher supply store, Whole Foods, and Starbucks. Everyone was full from lunch so we had leftovers for dinner then enjoyed some more peaceful evening air on the back porch.
License plate update: Alaska! Two of them! Woo hoo! Now I have mainly New England states left to find.
A nice relaxing day. The kids played all morning while the grown-ups relaxed and visited. Then we loaded up and hit the stores. Target and Costco and lunch at Red Robin. Then I got to go out by myself for an hour or so and I hit the scrapbook store, the teacher supply store, Whole Foods, and Starbucks. Everyone was full from lunch so we had leftovers for dinner then enjoyed some more peaceful evening air on the back porch.
License plate update: Alaska! Two of them! Woo hoo! Now I have mainly New England states left to find.
Friday, August 01, 2008
Day 13
August 1, 2008 – Friday – Day 13
Once again the 13th day of our trip falls on a Friday. Friday the 13th in a way. Weird, eh?
0610 Wake up. Get to have a little online chat with Ron while Lana is getting dressed. Then it is time for the kids and I to get dressed.
0733 Leave the room with all our gear, ready to check out of the hotel. The Colorado morning air is cool, crisp, and refreshing. Ahhhh….
0834 Leaving McD’s after another fine golden arches meal. The kids got to play at the playplace and we even saw the Durango Scenic train pulling out of the station.
0925 Stop for gas in Pagosa Springs, CO. $3.95/gallon.
1020 Impromptu stop alongside the river that we are following as we cross the mountain pass. We walk over and admire the river then take a few pictures before heading back to the car to continue our journey.
1131 Stop at Wendy’s for lunch in Alamosa. After lunch Lana heads across the parking lot to Walmart to buy more film while I start getting the kids shoed and sunscreened (changing from our flip flops to more suitable hiking shoes with socks as well). There is a horse trailer parked next to us with 3 horses. While we are waiting, three young cowgirls come out and hop into the truck. I took a picture but I was trying to do it without them noticing so it’s not perfect. Hopefully Ron will like it though – I took it just for him! I also made sure Bella and Felisa noticed that they were cowGIRLS getting into the truck with the cool horses.
1:29 p.m. Leaving the visitor’s center at Great Sand Dunes. Time to find a trail for a hike.
We stopped at the bathroom in the campground near the trailhead. On the door was posted a sign about bears in the area. Lana said it made Bella nervous. Our hike was short – the kids wimped out. They were complaining of being too hot. While it was definitely hot and sunny, I didn’t think it was unbearable. I think the problem though was that we weren’t walking towards the dunes but rather were just skirting them on kind of an overlook trail. So we went back to the car and drove over to the dunes parking lot. There was a small stream of water at the edge that we had to cross and there were lots of people playing in the sand and the water – kind of like at the beach. We made it across without getting our shoes too wet then we started the long hot walk across and up the dune. Bella and Felisa were still whining but Ryan was determined to make it at least up to the top of the first small hill. I took pictures to prove we were there then we went back to the car. Amazingly Bella was suddenly full of energy and ran almost the entire way back to the water’s edge.
I decided that the water at the sand dunes falls into the category of “just weird water”. I felt the same way after visiting the Great Salt Lake oh so many years ago.
2:58 p.m. Leaving the sand dunes and headed for Colorado Springs. But first, time for our favorite parts survey:
Felisa: Going up the first hill
Bella: Walking through the water
Ryan: emptying his shoes of all that sand when we got back to the car
Lana: the view
Sheila: Being on the dunes and seeing (what I believe to be) Pikes Peak
On our way out, I stop at the trash cans so Lana can empty our trash bag. It takes few minutes because the park has installed bear-proof cans. And the how-to-use-bear-proof-trash-can labels have been torn off. I told her that you just have to be smarter than the bear!
3:30 p.m. Blanca, CO has a dead tree sculpture that is playing the fiddle! Now that’s a cool dead tree!
*side note here—for some reason I am fascinated with dead trees and taking pictures of dead trees. So now it’s become a joke about all the pictures of dead trees I’ll have in my scrapbook. But really, they are quite pretty in their own way.
4:27 p.m. We have made it back to the interstate. No more winding 2-lane mountain highways.
5:56 p.m. Arrive at Dad’s house.
The kids played and we all had BBQ for dinner. After dinner we sat out on the patio and enjoyed the view and some nice, cool, refreshing Colorado air while the kids ran around burning off their all-day-in-the-car wiggles until bedtime.
License plate game update: Hawaii! And Minnesota and Idaho!
Once again the 13th day of our trip falls on a Friday. Friday the 13th in a way. Weird, eh?
0610 Wake up. Get to have a little online chat with Ron while Lana is getting dressed. Then it is time for the kids and I to get dressed.
0733 Leave the room with all our gear, ready to check out of the hotel. The Colorado morning air is cool, crisp, and refreshing. Ahhhh….
0834 Leaving McD’s after another fine golden arches meal. The kids got to play at the playplace and we even saw the Durango Scenic train pulling out of the station.
0925 Stop for gas in Pagosa Springs, CO. $3.95/gallon.
1020 Impromptu stop alongside the river that we are following as we cross the mountain pass. We walk over and admire the river then take a few pictures before heading back to the car to continue our journey.
1131 Stop at Wendy’s for lunch in Alamosa. After lunch Lana heads across the parking lot to Walmart to buy more film while I start getting the kids shoed and sunscreened (changing from our flip flops to more suitable hiking shoes with socks as well). There is a horse trailer parked next to us with 3 horses. While we are waiting, three young cowgirls come out and hop into the truck. I took a picture but I was trying to do it without them noticing so it’s not perfect. Hopefully Ron will like it though – I took it just for him! I also made sure Bella and Felisa noticed that they were cowGIRLS getting into the truck with the cool horses.
1:29 p.m. Leaving the visitor’s center at Great Sand Dunes. Time to find a trail for a hike.
We stopped at the bathroom in the campground near the trailhead. On the door was posted a sign about bears in the area. Lana said it made Bella nervous. Our hike was short – the kids wimped out. They were complaining of being too hot. While it was definitely hot and sunny, I didn’t think it was unbearable. I think the problem though was that we weren’t walking towards the dunes but rather were just skirting them on kind of an overlook trail. So we went back to the car and drove over to the dunes parking lot. There was a small stream of water at the edge that we had to cross and there were lots of people playing in the sand and the water – kind of like at the beach. We made it across without getting our shoes too wet then we started the long hot walk across and up the dune. Bella and Felisa were still whining but Ryan was determined to make it at least up to the top of the first small hill. I took pictures to prove we were there then we went back to the car. Amazingly Bella was suddenly full of energy and ran almost the entire way back to the water’s edge.
I decided that the water at the sand dunes falls into the category of “just weird water”. I felt the same way after visiting the Great Salt Lake oh so many years ago.
2:58 p.m. Leaving the sand dunes and headed for Colorado Springs. But first, time for our favorite parts survey:
Felisa: Going up the first hill
Bella: Walking through the water
Ryan: emptying his shoes of all that sand when we got back to the car
Lana: the view
Sheila: Being on the dunes and seeing (what I believe to be) Pikes Peak
On our way out, I stop at the trash cans so Lana can empty our trash bag. It takes few minutes because the park has installed bear-proof cans. And the how-to-use-bear-proof-trash-can labels have been torn off. I told her that you just have to be smarter than the bear!
3:30 p.m. Blanca, CO has a dead tree sculpture that is playing the fiddle! Now that’s a cool dead tree!
*side note here—for some reason I am fascinated with dead trees and taking pictures of dead trees. So now it’s become a joke about all the pictures of dead trees I’ll have in my scrapbook. But really, they are quite pretty in their own way.
4:27 p.m. We have made it back to the interstate. No more winding 2-lane mountain highways.
5:56 p.m. Arrive at Dad’s house.
The kids played and we all had BBQ for dinner. After dinner we sat out on the patio and enjoyed the view and some nice, cool, refreshing Colorado air while the kids ran around burning off their all-day-in-the-car wiggles until bedtime.
License plate game update: Hawaii! And Minnesota and Idaho!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Day 12
July 31, 2008 – Thursday – Day 12
0600 Wake up. Get dressed, start loading the car.
0630 Wake the kids up so they can get dressed and I can finish loading the car.
0650 Ready to go. Grandpa has disappeared so I drink some coffee.
0700 Grandpa is home with breakfast burritos.
0735 Time to go.
0738 Gas. $3.74/gallon.
0747 Stop at the Starbucks Drive Thru. I wasn’t going to stop at Starbucks this morning but we were driving right by. And they have a drive thru… Really I had no choice but to stop.
0930 Crossing the Continental Divide. Elevation 7380 feet
1026 Passing by a bunch of Navajo cornfields. They look strange – so green out here in the middle of dry dry desert.
1055 Farmington, NM Gas $3.90 This area is a lot more industrial than I would’ve imagined. I guess it makes sense since it’s the only large town for miles and miles and miles. To the west there is a plant of some sort spewing smoke. Which would account for all the smoggy haze we’ve been seeing out here. It’s worse than Albuquerque. We pass a sign that says 4 Corners Power Plant so I’m thinking that must be what it is. As much sun as they have out here they should be using solar power.
12:20 p.m. Leaving McD’s in Shiprock. Service was excruciatingly slow.
12:49 p.m. Arizona!
12:59 p.m. New Mexico! We are arriving at 4 corners.
1:32 p.m. Leaving 4 Corners. We have now been to Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado in just 30 minutes!
1:34 p.m. Colorado!
2:16 p.m. Cortez, CO – I have decided that Colorado is much nicer, much more scenic, than New Mexico. I love them both but Colorado wins.
2:56 p.m. Arrive at Mesa Verde Visitor Center. We can see a smoke plume off in the distance. Looks like a forest fire.
3:41 p.m. Arrive at the Museum and trail to Spruce Tree House.
4:57 p.m. Back to the car. The altitude made it a tough hike but the kids enjoyed seeing the cliff dwelling. Ryan was disappointed that he didn’t get to climb down into the hole but there were some school groups there and the line was ridiculously long.
5:33 p.m. Made it out of the back and back to the main road.
6:35 p.m Arrive at Hotel. It is along the Animas River and we have a river view room.
6:50 p.m. There is an Applebees attached to the hotel and the sign at the front desk said that kids eat free. I have yet to have a good experience at Applebees but I’d rather not have to drive somewhere else to eat so we’ll give it a shot. Unfortunately it was another bad experience. We had to wait 20 minutes for a table (which is reasonable in my experience) and we were able to watch some of the X Games while we waited. Then we waited almost 45 minutes for food (which is NOT reasonable at all). The waitress was missing for most of the time so getting follow up service and getting our bill took forever as well. I had spilled my water at one point and had to clean it up myself. I don’t mind cleaning it, but no one had at least offered to help. I told Lana that my kids are too well-behaved in restaurants because if they were being holy terrors I bet the staff would work a little harder to get us out much quicker! The tip I left… pretty tiny.
After dinner we walked along the river near the hotel then went swimming. The water was ice cold so we didn’t stay long. Then back to the room to shower and go to sleep.
0600 Wake up. Get dressed, start loading the car.
0630 Wake the kids up so they can get dressed and I can finish loading the car.
0650 Ready to go. Grandpa has disappeared so I drink some coffee.
0700 Grandpa is home with breakfast burritos.
0735 Time to go.
0738 Gas. $3.74/gallon.
0747 Stop at the Starbucks Drive Thru. I wasn’t going to stop at Starbucks this morning but we were driving right by. And they have a drive thru… Really I had no choice but to stop.
0930 Crossing the Continental Divide. Elevation 7380 feet
1026 Passing by a bunch of Navajo cornfields. They look strange – so green out here in the middle of dry dry desert.
1055 Farmington, NM Gas $3.90 This area is a lot more industrial than I would’ve imagined. I guess it makes sense since it’s the only large town for miles and miles and miles. To the west there is a plant of some sort spewing smoke. Which would account for all the smoggy haze we’ve been seeing out here. It’s worse than Albuquerque. We pass a sign that says 4 Corners Power Plant so I’m thinking that must be what it is. As much sun as they have out here they should be using solar power.
12:20 p.m. Leaving McD’s in Shiprock. Service was excruciatingly slow.
12:49 p.m. Arizona!
12:59 p.m. New Mexico! We are arriving at 4 corners.
1:32 p.m. Leaving 4 Corners. We have now been to Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado in just 30 minutes!
1:34 p.m. Colorado!
2:16 p.m. Cortez, CO – I have decided that Colorado is much nicer, much more scenic, than New Mexico. I love them both but Colorado wins.
2:56 p.m. Arrive at Mesa Verde Visitor Center. We can see a smoke plume off in the distance. Looks like a forest fire.
3:41 p.m. Arrive at the Museum and trail to Spruce Tree House.
4:57 p.m. Back to the car. The altitude made it a tough hike but the kids enjoyed seeing the cliff dwelling. Ryan was disappointed that he didn’t get to climb down into the hole but there were some school groups there and the line was ridiculously long.
5:33 p.m. Made it out of the back and back to the main road.
6:35 p.m Arrive at Hotel. It is along the Animas River and we have a river view room.
6:50 p.m. There is an Applebees attached to the hotel and the sign at the front desk said that kids eat free. I have yet to have a good experience at Applebees but I’d rather not have to drive somewhere else to eat so we’ll give it a shot. Unfortunately it was another bad experience. We had to wait 20 minutes for a table (which is reasonable in my experience) and we were able to watch some of the X Games while we waited. Then we waited almost 45 minutes for food (which is NOT reasonable at all). The waitress was missing for most of the time so getting follow up service and getting our bill took forever as well. I had spilled my water at one point and had to clean it up myself. I don’t mind cleaning it, but no one had at least offered to help. I told Lana that my kids are too well-behaved in restaurants because if they were being holy terrors I bet the staff would work a little harder to get us out much quicker! The tip I left… pretty tiny.
After dinner we walked along the river near the hotel then went swimming. The water was ice cold so we didn’t stay long. Then back to the room to shower and go to sleep.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Day 11
July 30, 2008 – Wednesday – Day 11
0645 Wake up. Coffee and the newspaper.
0750 Shower and get dressed for the day.
0815 Catch up on my notebook – realize I need to update my license plate game. Here we go… Sonora Mexico, SD, OR, MO, UT, KS
0820 Write a letter to Ron and get his package taped up and ready to mail.
Lana and I went to Hastings to check out the used DVDs. I bought a Happy Feet game for Ryan’s new PS2 (a hand me down from my brother) and a few movies. Then we stopped by the post office to mail the package. The postal clerk was a bit grumpy over the customs form but now I know – always use the big one no matter what! We went home to eat leftover pizza for lunch but Grandpa had already given it all to the kids so we left again and went to Gardunos for lunch – yummy!!!
After lunch we took the kids to the pool then they played in the kiddie pool at the house. Grandma picked up dinner from Buca diPeppo since no one wanted to cook and no one wanted to take 12 people (6 kids!) to a restaurant for dinner out.
Over all a nice relaxing day. After dinner I cleaned out the car and got everything repacked and ready for our departure tomorrow. I missed my evening chat with Ron since I had to lie down with Felisa upstairs so she would go to sleep.
0645 Wake up. Coffee and the newspaper.
0750 Shower and get dressed for the day.
0815 Catch up on my notebook – realize I need to update my license plate game. Here we go… Sonora Mexico, SD, OR, MO, UT, KS
0820 Write a letter to Ron and get his package taped up and ready to mail.
Lana and I went to Hastings to check out the used DVDs. I bought a Happy Feet game for Ryan’s new PS2 (a hand me down from my brother) and a few movies. Then we stopped by the post office to mail the package. The postal clerk was a bit grumpy over the customs form but now I know – always use the big one no matter what! We went home to eat leftover pizza for lunch but Grandpa had already given it all to the kids so we left again and went to Gardunos for lunch – yummy!!!
After lunch we took the kids to the pool then they played in the kiddie pool at the house. Grandma picked up dinner from Buca diPeppo since no one wanted to cook and no one wanted to take 12 people (6 kids!) to a restaurant for dinner out.
Over all a nice relaxing day. After dinner I cleaned out the car and got everything repacked and ready for our departure tomorrow. I missed my evening chat with Ron since I had to lie down with Felisa upstairs so she would go to sleep.
Double Trouble Strikes Again
Just a quick interjection here...
Felisa and Philip (also known as Double Trouble) have been thick as thieves all day today. Just a few minutes ago I was surfing the net, checking my email when I heard two little voices in the bathroom across the hall. Before I came in to check my mail, Felisa had been loitering suspiciously in front of the closed bathroom door but denied everything.
Fast Forward about 5 minutes to the little voices in the bathroom.
I sent Philip's dad in to check out the situation. There had been a small accident. Jared took the offending undies outside to power wash with the hose and when he came back in he said they must've tried to wash them because when he got them wet, they were soapy!
Felisa and Philip (also known as Double Trouble) have been thick as thieves all day today. Just a few minutes ago I was surfing the net, checking my email when I heard two little voices in the bathroom across the hall. Before I came in to check my mail, Felisa had been loitering suspiciously in front of the closed bathroom door but denied everything.
Mom: What are you doing?Felisa: Nothing.Mom: Do you need to go to the bathroom?Felisa: No.Mom: Why are you standing there? Is someone
inside?-no answer so I shrug and move on-
Fast Forward about 5 minutes to the little voices in the bathroom.
Felisa: Maybe you should wash your underwear.Mom: What are you guys doing in there?Felisa: Nothing! (door slams shut just after I get a glance of a
half-naked boy)
I sent Philip's dad in to check out the situation. There had been a small accident. Jared took the offending undies outside to power wash with the hose and when he came back in he said they must've tried to wash them because when he got them wet, they were soapy!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Day 10
July 29, 2008 – Tuesday – Day 10
0705 Wake up. Enjoy some coffee and chat time with Emilio. Discuss possible plans for his trip to SD with us. Find out Lourna took Seth to work with her this morning. Poor little guy! Then time to pay bills.
0936 Leave the house to run more errands. Ron emailed me while I was asleep to add a few things to his list.
1032 Leave Office Max and Target with everything on the list.
1036 Stop at Sonic for a breakfast burrito then head for Los Alamos
In Los Alamos, we pick up a cranky Seth and take all the kids to McD’s for lunch. Then we drive over to Grandma and Grandpa’s L.A. house to leave all the kids with Grandpa while Lana and I go to the Science Museum. When we arrive at the house, Lana asked Felisa if this was the right place. She answered, “Don’t ask me. I’m not the driver!”
1:45 p.m. Arrive at the museum. I enjoyed reading the biographies and experiences of different people who had been at the lab during World War II. We also watched the movie about “The Town That Never Was”. We stopped at the gift shop next door to the museum. I picked up a book that I had been wanting for awhile but couldn’t find a souvenir book I was looking for. Lana found a few more postcards.
2:48 p.m. Headed back to the LA house. Elena called Grandpa. She and Philip have been sick but they are in Gallup and will be in Albuquerque tonight.
4:10 p.m. Stop for gas ($3.78/gallon) and pick up some consolation pistachios for Lana and beef jerky for Ron.
4:19 p.m. Stop at Sonic for cheese tots and coffee. They gave me the wrong coffee drink and the new flavor of cheese tots – not so good.
Head south, back to Albuquerque. When we exit the highway, we pull up right next to Grandma and Grandpa’s car. Elena’s car is just ahead of us. We couldn’t have planned it any better if we tried! Our car stops to pick up Papa Murphy’s Pizza for dinner then the Cousin Reunion Party kicks off once we arrive back at the house.
9:15 p.m. All the cousins are changed for bed and ready for their slumber party in the living room. We turn on Bugs Bunny cartoons for them to watch.
Hopefully they’ll go to sleep soon!
0705 Wake up. Enjoy some coffee and chat time with Emilio. Discuss possible plans for his trip to SD with us. Find out Lourna took Seth to work with her this morning. Poor little guy! Then time to pay bills.
0936 Leave the house to run more errands. Ron emailed me while I was asleep to add a few things to his list.
1032 Leave Office Max and Target with everything on the list.
1036 Stop at Sonic for a breakfast burrito then head for Los Alamos
In Los Alamos, we pick up a cranky Seth and take all the kids to McD’s for lunch. Then we drive over to Grandma and Grandpa’s L.A. house to leave all the kids with Grandpa while Lana and I go to the Science Museum. When we arrive at the house, Lana asked Felisa if this was the right place. She answered, “Don’t ask me. I’m not the driver!”
1:45 p.m. Arrive at the museum. I enjoyed reading the biographies and experiences of different people who had been at the lab during World War II. We also watched the movie about “The Town That Never Was”. We stopped at the gift shop next door to the museum. I picked up a book that I had been wanting for awhile but couldn’t find a souvenir book I was looking for. Lana found a few more postcards.
2:48 p.m. Headed back to the LA house. Elena called Grandpa. She and Philip have been sick but they are in Gallup and will be in Albuquerque tonight.
4:10 p.m. Stop for gas ($3.78/gallon) and pick up some consolation pistachios for Lana and beef jerky for Ron.
4:19 p.m. Stop at Sonic for cheese tots and coffee. They gave me the wrong coffee drink and the new flavor of cheese tots – not so good.
Head south, back to Albuquerque. When we exit the highway, we pull up right next to Grandma and Grandpa’s car. Elena’s car is just ahead of us. We couldn’t have planned it any better if we tried! Our car stops to pick up Papa Murphy’s Pizza for dinner then the Cousin Reunion Party kicks off once we arrive back at the house.
9:15 p.m. All the cousins are changed for bed and ready for their slumber party in the living room. We turn on Bugs Bunny cartoons for them to watch.
Hopefully they’ll go to sleep soon!
Monday, July 28, 2008
Day 9
July 28, 2008 – Monday – Day 9
0615 Wake up
0700 Call Shani to catch up on all the latest and greatest back home
0740 Ron texts me while I’m on the phone with Shani – guess it’s time for our webcam call! I get online and everyone (all the kids and Grandma and Grandpa R) come to see Ron and say hello. Ron gives me a list of things to send in his care package.
0805 Eat my breakfast burrito that Grandpa R got for me.
0825 Shoes on – time to go!
0833 Everyone is loaded up and we’re off to see the petroglyphs.
0838 Stop at Smith’s for gas ($3.82/gallon) and empty all the garbage bags in the car.
0841 ATM
0912 Arrive at the visitor center of Petroglyph National Monument. I have seen the signs every time we come to town and we are finally going to see what it’s all about.
0937 Leave the visitor center. Everyone bought something. Just doing our part to support the national parks!
0946 Arrive at the easy trail that we selected. They weren’t kidding when they said easy. That trail could hardly be called a trail. I think the loop was a whole 50 yards long. We went on the second easy trail on the other side of the picnic area and it is not much longer. At some point in my life, I have been somewhere with awesome amazing petroglyphs and pictrographs. It must’ve been somewhere in Utah. I don’t want to make too harsh of a judgement since we chose the absolute easiest, shortest trail, but I wasn’t awed and amazed by what I saw. Interested, yes. Amazed, no.
1017 Leave the trail area.
Drive to Old Town Albuquerque to visit the Dinosaur Museum and do some shopping. While at the museum we saw a show at the planetarium. Now that was awe-inspiring. It has been awhile since I have been to a planetarium show and therefore it has been awhile since I have been reminded exactly how vast Space is and how miniscule we are. They also did a short preview of a fractal show that is exclusive to this planetarium. The computer-generated pictures where amazing but psychedelic. I even had to close my eyes a couple times so that I didn’t get sick.
After the planetarium and the museum (and the museum gift shop of course!) we had lunch in Old Town. A bit more shopping. I found some awesome authentic Indian items (a tomahawk type thing and a rattle made from a turtle shell) but decided against buying them. Ryan bought an arrowhead. The girls found stuffed animals. And Lana found some southwestern souvenirs.
2:21 p.m. Leave Old Town and head home
2:37 p.m. Arrive back at the house.
We rested a bit then Lana and I went out to my favorite thrift shop and then to Target and Lowes to get the items Ron had requested. We also hit Sonic for happy hour (1/2 price drinks!) then home again. As soon as we got back the kids wanted to go swimming so we got in another short swim in the cold water before dinner. ALL of the kids went off the diving board. Felisa almost drowned me in the process but she thought is was great fun!
Dinner was noodles and fried rice – yum. Then Grandpa hooked his camera up to the big screen TV and we looked at pictures from the beach over 4th of July and of our trip to Petroglyphs and the museum today. I spent the evening uploaded pictures and then it was… bedtime!
0615 Wake up
0700 Call Shani to catch up on all the latest and greatest back home
0740 Ron texts me while I’m on the phone with Shani – guess it’s time for our webcam call! I get online and everyone (all the kids and Grandma and Grandpa R) come to see Ron and say hello. Ron gives me a list of things to send in his care package.
0805 Eat my breakfast burrito that Grandpa R got for me.
0825 Shoes on – time to go!
0833 Everyone is loaded up and we’re off to see the petroglyphs.
0838 Stop at Smith’s for gas ($3.82/gallon) and empty all the garbage bags in the car.
0841 ATM
0912 Arrive at the visitor center of Petroglyph National Monument. I have seen the signs every time we come to town and we are finally going to see what it’s all about.
0937 Leave the visitor center. Everyone bought something. Just doing our part to support the national parks!
0946 Arrive at the easy trail that we selected. They weren’t kidding when they said easy. That trail could hardly be called a trail. I think the loop was a whole 50 yards long. We went on the second easy trail on the other side of the picnic area and it is not much longer. At some point in my life, I have been somewhere with awesome amazing petroglyphs and pictrographs. It must’ve been somewhere in Utah. I don’t want to make too harsh of a judgement since we chose the absolute easiest, shortest trail, but I wasn’t awed and amazed by what I saw. Interested, yes. Amazed, no.
1017 Leave the trail area.
Drive to Old Town Albuquerque to visit the Dinosaur Museum and do some shopping. While at the museum we saw a show at the planetarium. Now that was awe-inspiring. It has been awhile since I have been to a planetarium show and therefore it has been awhile since I have been reminded exactly how vast Space is and how miniscule we are. They also did a short preview of a fractal show that is exclusive to this planetarium. The computer-generated pictures where amazing but psychedelic. I even had to close my eyes a couple times so that I didn’t get sick.
After the planetarium and the museum (and the museum gift shop of course!) we had lunch in Old Town. A bit more shopping. I found some awesome authentic Indian items (a tomahawk type thing and a rattle made from a turtle shell) but decided against buying them. Ryan bought an arrowhead. The girls found stuffed animals. And Lana found some southwestern souvenirs.
2:21 p.m. Leave Old Town and head home
2:37 p.m. Arrive back at the house.
We rested a bit then Lana and I went out to my favorite thrift shop and then to Target and Lowes to get the items Ron had requested. We also hit Sonic for happy hour (1/2 price drinks!) then home again. As soon as we got back the kids wanted to go swimming so we got in another short swim in the cold water before dinner. ALL of the kids went off the diving board. Felisa almost drowned me in the process but she thought is was great fun!
Dinner was noodles and fried rice – yum. Then Grandpa hooked his camera up to the big screen TV and we looked at pictures from the beach over 4th of July and of our trip to Petroglyphs and the museum today. I spent the evening uploaded pictures and then it was… bedtime!
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