Well, we finally arrived home last night, somewhere close to midnight. It was a long day. Let me catch you up with our final night and day on the trip.
As you know, we were about to go out to eat in Memphis. We did, at Hard Rock Cafe on Beal Street. Will picked the place out. It was bike week on Beal Street, and Harley's were parked on both sides of Beal street for everyone to see. Music was coming from every pub, bar and restaurant on the strip. It was a lot of fun. We went back to the Hotel, and everyone had desert.
Yesterday morning, we got up, and Julie, Hannah and I went to Graceland. The others stayed at the hotel and kept the dog....slept....you know.
Graceland isn't as big as I imagined. I kept looking for Jail houses, Hound Dogs and so forth, but never saw any. But it was fun. I can tick that one off my "to do" list. I guess I am just not the Elvis fan that some are. However, next week is "Elvis Week", and the crowds will be huge. Julie asked the penetrating question of the day when she asked one of the main hosts of Graceland, "What is Elvis week?"
You would have thought that she had asked one of the Cardinals if the Pope was really Catholic. She looked at Julie....and said, "why, it is when we celebrate the life of Elvis. Next week is the 30th anniversary of his death!" (Like everyone was supposed to know this, and how dare she ask that question....) The jungle room was my favorite....don't know why, it just was.
We left Memphis around noon, and drove all the way back. As it had done for a few days, it rained on us off and on.
Everyone was tired of each other by the time we arrived home...maybe 1 too many days cooped up in a car together with 6 people.
And what should we find when we got home???? Well, a house on our street burned down while we were gone (Terrible!), and the upstairs air conditioning unit at our house wasn't working. Oh, and all of our bedrooms are on the top floor! So, today the heat was about 87 degrees upstairs, and the guy who works on our unit can't come and look at it until tomorrow morning. "Hunka, hunka burning".....was what it was, but not "hunka, hunka burning love!"
I went to work for a while today, Julie bought groceries since we had nothing to eat in the house, and the girls began to get ready for school. Marissa moves into her dorm on Friday, we move Hannah into her apartment on Sunday evening/Monday morning, and the world is back to normal. The road is great...the places we saw were grand...and I am more than glad we did it. But still......there is no place like home.
Thanks for sharing the "cyber road" with us.
---WJLsr
Friday, August 3, 2007
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
We've got the Blues....
Those Memphis Blues. Yes, we are in Memphis tonight. Just got here, and checked into the downtown Marriott. It is raining to beat the band. What a long day today was...but tomorrow will be even longer.
We went to the Oklahoma Memorial this morning before leaving Oklahoma City. I cannot tell you how depressing that was. The memorials to the little babies and children who died in the Federal Building that was bombed just made us weep. The memorial was very interesting. They had the axle from the Ryder Truck that Tim McVay used, as well as other items the FBI used to build it's case. But the most impressive thing was the stories of the survivors and the heros. It was worth doing, but is very emotional.
From there, we drove and drove. We stopped at a McDonalds for lunch, bought it, and ate it on the road. The kids watched Narnia, High School Musical and Elf on DVD. Ansley says this is what is getting her through this trip!
We are about to go fight the rain and see Beal Street. Tomorrow morning we are going to Graceland and say hello to Elvis. Following our "paying of respects to the King", we are heading home. We are going to drive all the way back tomorrow, realizing that we won't be home until tomorrow night. Oh, how I long to sleep in my own bed.
Well, tomorrow's post will be the last....
Hope you are enjoying our recaps as much as we are the trip.
No comments today? Is anyone out there?
till next time...
---WJLsr
We went to the Oklahoma Memorial this morning before leaving Oklahoma City. I cannot tell you how depressing that was. The memorials to the little babies and children who died in the Federal Building that was bombed just made us weep. The memorial was very interesting. They had the axle from the Ryder Truck that Tim McVay used, as well as other items the FBI used to build it's case. But the most impressive thing was the stories of the survivors and the heros. It was worth doing, but is very emotional.
From there, we drove and drove. We stopped at a McDonalds for lunch, bought it, and ate it on the road. The kids watched Narnia, High School Musical and Elf on DVD. Ansley says this is what is getting her through this trip!
We are about to go fight the rain and see Beal Street. Tomorrow morning we are going to Graceland and say hello to Elvis. Following our "paying of respects to the King", we are heading home. We are going to drive all the way back tomorrow, realizing that we won't be home until tomorrow night. Oh, how I long to sleep in my own bed.
Well, tomorrow's post will be the last....
Hope you are enjoying our recaps as much as we are the trip.
No comments today? Is anyone out there?
till next time...
---WJLsr
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A.....
is where we are....not the musical. Today was a loooong haul. We left Albuquerqui early this morning and drove virtually non-stop to Amarillo, where we found the Cadillac Ranch as we closed in on the city. This is 1974 art, with about 8 Cadillacs with the front end buried into the ground, and the back end sticking up at an angle. It is on private property on a frontage road, right beside I-40, and people were going up to it non-stop. Of course, we stopped also, walked the 100 yards or so into a field where they were, and took pictures. People were spray painting grafitti on the cars when we came, and when we left. We should have taken a can of Krylon with us......it was the thing to do.
After that, we found a Fazolli's and had lunch. Following lunch, we continued our ride. One thing about Texas.....it smells like manure. Lots of stockyards beside the interstate. Hannah's words about the stockyard were "this is just wrong!"
It began to rain as we got closer to Oklahoma, and rained on us most of the way to Oklahoma City.
About 2 hours after lunch, somewhere in Oklahoma, we decided to stop for an M/M Blizzard at Dairy Queen. Wrong decision! It took 35 minutes in the drive through. We pulled up to the "order sign", and I kept saying...'hello.....hello....hello...." No response. Finally, I heard a "Hello", and I proceeded to order. Unfortunately, it wasn't the DQ person, it was Marissa behind me. Everyone laughed at my expense, and began talking about me not being able to hear.
We are staying at a Residence Inn right beside "Toby Keith's Restaurant and Bar" in downtown Oklahoma City. That is where dinner will be. I, however, am staying in tonight to rest. Driving way over 500 miles today, much of it in the rain, has me tired.
Tomorrow morning we will visit the Oklahoma City Memorial, then drive a looong way again. Tomorrow night's destination is Memphis.
After that, we found a Fazolli's and had lunch. Following lunch, we continued our ride. One thing about Texas.....it smells like manure. Lots of stockyards beside the interstate. Hannah's words about the stockyard were "this is just wrong!"
It began to rain as we got closer to Oklahoma, and rained on us most of the way to Oklahoma City.
About 2 hours after lunch, somewhere in Oklahoma, we decided to stop for an M/M Blizzard at Dairy Queen. Wrong decision! It took 35 minutes in the drive through. We pulled up to the "order sign", and I kept saying...'hello.....hello....hello...." No response. Finally, I heard a "Hello", and I proceeded to order. Unfortunately, it wasn't the DQ person, it was Marissa behind me. Everyone laughed at my expense, and began talking about me not being able to hear.
We are staying at a Residence Inn right beside "Toby Keith's Restaurant and Bar" in downtown Oklahoma City. That is where dinner will be. I, however, am staying in tonight to rest. Driving way over 500 miles today, much of it in the rain, has me tired.
Tomorrow morning we will visit the Oklahoma City Memorial, then drive a looong way again. Tomorrow night's destination is Memphis.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Take it Easy.....Painted and Petrified
O.K., Eagles fans....our first stop today was in Winslow, Arizona. For those of you who don't know what I am talking about, there is a song by the Eagles called "Take it Easy". One of the verses says, "Standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona.....such a fine site to see....it's a girl, my Lord, in a flat bed Ford slowing down to take a look at me."
So what did we do first today? We stopped in Winslow, Arizona, and had our picture taken while standing on the corner. while we were there, there was a constant flow of people doing the same thing. Music was playing the Eagles songs, and there was a mural of a girl in a flat bed Ford in the background. Cool was what it was.
Then we went to Holbrook, where you get off I-40 to go to the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert. We ate at a Mexican restaurant there, and it was not American....it was Mexican through and through. Red or Green chilis on everything. When we said we didn't want the chilis, or the beans, the lady taking our order yelled to the back, "these people don't want chilis or beans!" Did we stand out? Oh, yes. definately.
Then it was off to Petrified Forest. It is worth the visit....though I had forgotten that there is petrified wood in every state. The Painted Desert was really pretty at the end of the road. And that is where the excitement began. The kids are jumping at every site, having their picture taken while in the air. Well, at Painted desert, they jumped, and landed on each other. Hannah has a bad scrape on her foot, Marissa has a bruised kneed, and Ansley blew out a flip-flop (sounds like a Jimmy Buffet song!). Hannah got dizzy....almost threw up....lost all color in her face, and almost fainted. She is doing fine, now.....except a really sore scrape on the foot.
From there, Hannah rode in the front, and Julie in the back. We rode 200 more miles looking at no trees, lots of open land, and 75 MPH speed limits. Finally, we arrived in Albuquerqui, and we are about to go out to eat. Ansley has been DYING to get here, because this town is the scene of "High School Musical". She thinks we are going to see people dancing in the streets, I guess. In fact, High School Musical II is being advertised on TV right now.
Well, gotta go. We just had a toilet that went out of service, and you know who the "Plunger Pro" is (for the 4th time this trip!) Too many beans out west, I think!
For you pollsters, we are washing clothes tonight.
---WJLsr
So what did we do first today? We stopped in Winslow, Arizona, and had our picture taken while standing on the corner. while we were there, there was a constant flow of people doing the same thing. Music was playing the Eagles songs, and there was a mural of a girl in a flat bed Ford in the background. Cool was what it was.
Then we went to Holbrook, where you get off I-40 to go to the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert. We ate at a Mexican restaurant there, and it was not American....it was Mexican through and through. Red or Green chilis on everything. When we said we didn't want the chilis, or the beans, the lady taking our order yelled to the back, "these people don't want chilis or beans!" Did we stand out? Oh, yes. definately.
Then it was off to Petrified Forest. It is worth the visit....though I had forgotten that there is petrified wood in every state. The Painted Desert was really pretty at the end of the road. And that is where the excitement began. The kids are jumping at every site, having their picture taken while in the air. Well, at Painted desert, they jumped, and landed on each other. Hannah has a bad scrape on her foot, Marissa has a bruised kneed, and Ansley blew out a flip-flop (sounds like a Jimmy Buffet song!). Hannah got dizzy....almost threw up....lost all color in her face, and almost fainted. She is doing fine, now.....except a really sore scrape on the foot.
From there, Hannah rode in the front, and Julie in the back. We rode 200 more miles looking at no trees, lots of open land, and 75 MPH speed limits. Finally, we arrived in Albuquerqui, and we are about to go out to eat. Ansley has been DYING to get here, because this town is the scene of "High School Musical". She thinks we are going to see people dancing in the streets, I guess. In fact, High School Musical II is being advertised on TV right now.
Well, gotta go. We just had a toilet that went out of service, and you know who the "Plunger Pro" is (for the 4th time this trip!) Too many beans out west, I think!
For you pollsters, we are washing clothes tonight.
---WJLsr
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Grand Canyon
As you can see from the picture, we went to the Grand Canyon today. The day started off slower than we expected, because when we went to enjoy our "high carb diet" continental breakfast that the Fairfield Inn always has, there were approximately 140 middle-schoolers from England already grazing. Yes, 140. Several bus loads. The girls heard one of their chaperones last night as he vomited all over the hall outside their room. Thank goodness it was all cleaned up this morning.
After our donut / muffin / toast breakfast, we drove to the Grand Canyon. Marissa felt the need to get hydrated, so she drank a liter of water on the way to the canyon. Of course, as we closed in on the entrance gate, she was about to burst. Ansley also needed to go to the bathroom. After entering the Park, we drove to the visitor's center. There was no parking place to be had. Marissa said, "You have to stop....Now!" I did, and she and Ansley ran off into the woods.....and the rest, as they say, was history....or should I say, "whiztory". Oh, and Will decided to find a snake hole as well. And guess what was around the next curve!!! Right!!! A bathroom. I parked right in front of it, and Julie, Hannah and I casually used the facility.
The Grand Canyon is bigger than you think. I can't describe it. Pictures do not accurately portray it. Ansley said, "this is overwhelming!" It was. We thoroughly enjoyed it, took some really good pictures, and we are totally glad we did this.
After the visit to the Canyon, we drove out of the park to a little town close by for lunch. It was o.k. The cool thing was a "Hopi Indian Art and Dance Exhibit". We went there and looked at their wares. There was this Hopi Indian beating a drum, and a "Ms. Hopi Indian" or something dancing. They called for volunteers to come out and dance with them, and all of our children....Hannah, Marissa, Ansley and Will.....all joined in. We have pictures of them. It was really funny and great.
We drove back to Williams, Az. where we are staying, and this evening visited the historic downtown area. This is where the Grand Canyon Railway leaves from, and the depot and railway hotel are really cute. It is also on historic "Route 66", and so we walked through the downtown area tonight and entered several of the stores on "Route 66". Guess we were getting our kicks.....on Route 66....O.k., corny, but true.
We leave for Albuquerquie tomorrow, and on the way will visit the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert. Finally, beginning tomorrow, the sun will be setting behind us as we begin the long journey home. We solicit your prayers and comments. The trip isn't easy....sometimes long and not so much fun....but so far, the trip is well worth it.
Mom and Dad, you are right. I am sure that we are building memories that we will treasure for years. Can't wait to see you and tell you about it. That goes for all of our loved ones.....kin and friends alike.
---WJLsr
After our donut / muffin / toast breakfast, we drove to the Grand Canyon. Marissa felt the need to get hydrated, so she drank a liter of water on the way to the canyon. Of course, as we closed in on the entrance gate, she was about to burst. Ansley also needed to go to the bathroom. After entering the Park, we drove to the visitor's center. There was no parking place to be had. Marissa said, "You have to stop....Now!" I did, and she and Ansley ran off into the woods.....and the rest, as they say, was history....or should I say, "whiztory". Oh, and Will decided to find a snake hole as well. And guess what was around the next curve!!! Right!!! A bathroom. I parked right in front of it, and Julie, Hannah and I casually used the facility.
The Grand Canyon is bigger than you think. I can't describe it. Pictures do not accurately portray it. Ansley said, "this is overwhelming!" It was. We thoroughly enjoyed it, took some really good pictures, and we are totally glad we did this.
After the visit to the Canyon, we drove out of the park to a little town close by for lunch. It was o.k. The cool thing was a "Hopi Indian Art and Dance Exhibit". We went there and looked at their wares. There was this Hopi Indian beating a drum, and a "Ms. Hopi Indian" or something dancing. They called for volunteers to come out and dance with them, and all of our children....Hannah, Marissa, Ansley and Will.....all joined in. We have pictures of them. It was really funny and great.
We drove back to Williams, Az. where we are staying, and this evening visited the historic downtown area. This is where the Grand Canyon Railway leaves from, and the depot and railway hotel are really cute. It is also on historic "Route 66", and so we walked through the downtown area tonight and entered several of the stores on "Route 66". Guess we were getting our kicks.....on Route 66....O.k., corny, but true.
We leave for Albuquerquie tomorrow, and on the way will visit the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert. Finally, beginning tomorrow, the sun will be setting behind us as we begin the long journey home. We solicit your prayers and comments. The trip isn't easy....sometimes long and not so much fun....but so far, the trip is well worth it.
Mom and Dad, you are right. I am sure that we are building memories that we will treasure for years. Can't wait to see you and tell you about it. That goes for all of our loved ones.....kin and friends alike.
---WJLsr
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Long rides, Mesas and more
Well, needless to say, there wasn't a post last night. That is because the place we were staying, The Far View Lodge in Mesa Verde National Park, had no television, no cell phone service and no internet service. One of the children who will remain nameless, said "what are we gonna do???"
Backing up....leaving Colorado Springs was difficult. There were so many things we wanted to see and do that we didn't have time for. So off we went for Cortez, Colorado and Mesa Verde. We were "somewhere" in the middle of "nowhere" when we had to stop to go to the bathroom. While there, a guy told Julie that we just had to see the Great Sand Dunes. After all, it was only two and a half hours from Mesa Verde.
We could see the dunes from 10 miles out, and when we got to the guard gate for the park and saw that we had to pay $3 per person to go in, we turned around.
Will summed it up best when he said, "Why do we need to pay to see sand we can already see?"
And was it two and a half hours to Mesa Verde? Nooooo...more like four hours. We had lunch at a Sonic somewhere, which is Julie's least favorite place to eat.
But going to Mesa Verde was worth it. We saw wild horses running around, deer, an eagle and a coyote. Our lodge was on the top of one of the Mesas, and we could see "forever".
We had dinner in the lodge, and it was great...I had buffalo, Julie had trout, others had Salmon.
This morning, at 5:00 a.m., the sun was a brilliant red as it rose over the Mesas. We could see it out of our picture window. We got up and drove to the "The Palace" archeological site. It was bigger and more overwhelming than I ever imagined it could be. Julie and I both said we would go back to this again sometime.
Traveling from Mesa Verde, we went to the four corners monument (where Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado come together). The kids had fun with pictures, playing "twister" over the four states.
Then, it was miles and miles and miles with no place to eat. We drove way too long without food until we came through Flagstaff to Williams, Az. Tonight, we had dinner in Williams, on historic Route 66. There was a rodeo today, and people in their "cowboy attire" were everywhere. Tonight we had a major lightning and rain storm, and even had small hail. Hope tomorrow is better.
Tomorrow morning we go to the Grand Canyon. Hannah is convinced the whole state of Arizona is one big canyon, and that the grand canyon is just deeper than the rest. I can't really argue with her.
Well....everyone but me is in bed now. It is 9:40 p.m. here.....12:40 a.m. back home. So, let me sign off and wish every one well.
We hope everything goes well at church tomorrow.
---WJLsr
Backing up....leaving Colorado Springs was difficult. There were so many things we wanted to see and do that we didn't have time for. So off we went for Cortez, Colorado and Mesa Verde. We were "somewhere" in the middle of "nowhere" when we had to stop to go to the bathroom. While there, a guy told Julie that we just had to see the Great Sand Dunes. After all, it was only two and a half hours from Mesa Verde.
We could see the dunes from 10 miles out, and when we got to the guard gate for the park and saw that we had to pay $3 per person to go in, we turned around.
Will summed it up best when he said, "Why do we need to pay to see sand we can already see?"
And was it two and a half hours to Mesa Verde? Nooooo...more like four hours. We had lunch at a Sonic somewhere, which is Julie's least favorite place to eat.
But going to Mesa Verde was worth it. We saw wild horses running around, deer, an eagle and a coyote. Our lodge was on the top of one of the Mesas, and we could see "forever".
We had dinner in the lodge, and it was great...I had buffalo, Julie had trout, others had Salmon.
This morning, at 5:00 a.m., the sun was a brilliant red as it rose over the Mesas. We could see it out of our picture window. We got up and drove to the "The Palace" archeological site. It was bigger and more overwhelming than I ever imagined it could be. Julie and I both said we would go back to this again sometime.
Traveling from Mesa Verde, we went to the four corners monument (where Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado come together). The kids had fun with pictures, playing "twister" over the four states.
Then, it was miles and miles and miles with no place to eat. We drove way too long without food until we came through Flagstaff to Williams, Az. Tonight, we had dinner in Williams, on historic Route 66. There was a rodeo today, and people in their "cowboy attire" were everywhere. Tonight we had a major lightning and rain storm, and even had small hail. Hope tomorrow is better.
Tomorrow morning we go to the Grand Canyon. Hannah is convinced the whole state of Arizona is one big canyon, and that the grand canyon is just deeper than the rest. I can't really argue with her.
Well....everyone but me is in bed now. It is 9:40 p.m. here.....12:40 a.m. back home. So, let me sign off and wish every one well.
We hope everything goes well at church tomorrow.
---WJLsr
More Thoughts from Hannah
So, I thought I'd might give my little spill on what I feel like is a pretty good sum of the states and places we have been so far.
Nashville, Tennessee: We didn't stay there that long, but we have been there before and it is a pretty cool city. I don't really like country music, but do like Nashville. Tennessee isn't too bad to look at out a window either.
Illinois: Even though we just drove through it it, I don't like it. Illinois stinks. No literally it smells bad. I don't know if it's all the Purina buildings or the corn, but Illinois is not pretty to look at and it smells bad. God farted when we made Illinois.
St. Louis, Missouri: I was pleasantly surprised by St. Louis. Not only does one of my favorite rappers, Nelly, come from here, but it is quite a beautiful city. The Arch is wonderful and we didn't get shot while we were there. Overall I loved Missouri.
Hays, Kansas: Hated it. There is nothing in Kansas. It's cool for about the first five minutes when you're like "wow, you can see for miles," but then it gets really old really fast. Ansley put it right when she said: "you know when I think of Kansas, I really don't think about anyone living here." Why would they? There is nothing in Kansas. Kansas could disappear, and I'm pretty sure only about 50 people might care.
Colorado Springs, Colorado: I love Colorado. I want to move here. It is beautiful. There are no words to describe it's beauty. We will DEFINITELY be coming back, and I will be rock climbing.
Mesa Verde, Colorado: Still loving it despite not having cell phone service or a tv. Cliff dwellers were insane though.
Flagstaff, Arizona: I think all of Arizona sunk at some point in time and the Grand Canyon just went really far down. It was a very pleasant ride and it is very beautiful. Grand Canyon is tomorrow, so maybe more to come.
Peace out.
-H
Nashville, Tennessee: We didn't stay there that long, but we have been there before and it is a pretty cool city. I don't really like country music, but do like Nashville. Tennessee isn't too bad to look at out a window either.
Illinois: Even though we just drove through it it, I don't like it. Illinois stinks. No literally it smells bad. I don't know if it's all the Purina buildings or the corn, but Illinois is not pretty to look at and it smells bad. God farted when we made Illinois.
St. Louis, Missouri: I was pleasantly surprised by St. Louis. Not only does one of my favorite rappers, Nelly, come from here, but it is quite a beautiful city. The Arch is wonderful and we didn't get shot while we were there. Overall I loved Missouri.
Hays, Kansas: Hated it. There is nothing in Kansas. It's cool for about the first five minutes when you're like "wow, you can see for miles," but then it gets really old really fast. Ansley put it right when she said: "you know when I think of Kansas, I really don't think about anyone living here." Why would they? There is nothing in Kansas. Kansas could disappear, and I'm pretty sure only about 50 people might care.
Colorado Springs, Colorado: I love Colorado. I want to move here. It is beautiful. There are no words to describe it's beauty. We will DEFINITELY be coming back, and I will be rock climbing.
Mesa Verde, Colorado: Still loving it despite not having cell phone service or a tv. Cliff dwellers were insane though.
Flagstaff, Arizona: I think all of Arizona sunk at some point in time and the Grand Canyon just went really far down. It was a very pleasant ride and it is very beautiful. Grand Canyon is tomorrow, so maybe more to come.
Peace out.
-H
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
