Home stretch

We are currently in Kentucky with Ashley and Seann. This is more of a resting point, to visit with friends and have a break before the rest of the ride home. We are in the homestretch, getting ready to leave our last stop. Two days early but the dog will be very happy for that. We'll give the last update after we reach our final destination.

Nashville

Our hotel that was such a good deal on priceline did not stack up to the reviews. I had to take a benadryl after showing because of the moldy bathroom. Yuck. The room itself was fine but the bathroom was TERRIBLE. We reluctantly woke up, we have been so tired, and got ready to explore Nashville. Thanks to Lis and Joel we had tickets to see a few attractions. We went to the Belle Mead Plantation which is a very cool old horse breading plantation. This was a cool tour, Billy really enjoyed it since we were able to explore inside the house. What a building geek. ; )  After the Belle Mead we went to the Parthenon, it was cool to see the lifesize recreation of the real Parthenon. For lunch we found a restuarant we had seen on Man vs. Food, Roosters. I said we had to have BBQ while we are in Nashville, but when we got to the restaurant we realized we were eating Texas BBQ, pretty funny but we stayed anyway and enjoyed some of the best BBQ ever. After lunch we went to see the Grand Ole Opry, which isn't much to see if you aren't going to a show or paying for a tour, the building is closed to nonpaying visitors. We did venture to the Opryland Hotel, tip: park in the old mall parking and walk the lots charge $18.00+tax! This hotel was worth the hot long walk. Inside it is a lush botanical environment, and it kept going and going. Once site seeing was over we went to Andrea and Chris's who later in the evening took us to a wonderful taco shop and frozen yogurt shop. I hear Chris has a desire to open the frozen yogurt shop in Carlisle, we can only hope he follows through.

New Orleans

The drive from Texas to New Orleans consisted of some rain and thats about all of the entertainment. We left late so we missed the plantations that we were going to see so we headed straight to the hostel. Billy was a little leary when he saw the hostel that I had picked. It was a very excentric place, called the India House. It was an old Victorian style house with bright paint and travelers all around. There was a house cat too. They had an area for lounging, an area for tv, a kitchen, and a large back yard type courtyard with a pool, bar and grill, and sitting areas. It was by far not a fancy place, not dirty, but definately young traveler'esk. We had a private room which wasn't much larger then fitting a full size bed and about 4 feet x 6 feet of space. There was an airconditioner. It had the feel of a bungalow/clubhouse. After we checked in we took the trolly, just across the street, down to the French Quarter. We first stopped for some appitizers, alligator bites and jumbo. We happened upon a little expenisve of a place because we didn't know where we were going! After the gator bites we took a mule carriage ride of the French Quarter. It takes you through the more residential section and past some historical sites. The guide was very fun and knowledgable and we really liked the tour. After the tour we did more walking around the French Quarter and found our way to Bourbon St. It is pretty crazy and the later it gets the more wild it gets. There were police everywhere on horses and walking the street. Billy scored some beads from a lady on a balcony, it was funny. We finally found some dinner at a place called Mr. Chubby's. They were a small establishment with over 100 menu items. We got PoBoy's, Billy was able to get his crawfish so that was checked off the list too. I was not as impressed with PoBoy's as I thought I would be. After several times of walking up and down Bourbon St. people watching we had enough and went back to the trolly. We met an interesting homeless man, who was very sweet. He was sleeping on that particular trolly bench for 3 weeks now. He was reading his Bible when I sat down then he started talking with us. He told us about all of the violence that has been happening the past several days and that was why the police presence was so high. We had just missed a theft at the CVS across the street by about 30 minutes. I'm kind of glad by this point that we were headed back to the hostel. Before heading out of New Orleans I did make Billy get us some Binget's from Cafe De Monte, the olded coffee shop. It was pooring rain so I dropped him close and kept circling the block until he was finished in line. It was so crowded and crazy but the Bingiets were worth it!
We were rained out of Biloxi and the beach so we have headed back home via Nashville and Berea. We are in a hotel tonight and are going to take on Nashville tomorrow with a loose plan. Then to Andrea and Chris's for the night.
So after a long ride to the outskirts of Nashville we are ready for bed.

What Day Is It?

We are in Montgomery with the Herman family. Very nice to be with them. Today we went swimming with Ashlyn and Justin and are watching Night at the Museum II. Very fun. Tonight will be chicken fajitas with the family and Scott's brother Chad and mom Janet. So an update on the past couple of days...

Monday we drove from Phoenix to Van Horn, TX. We were very worried about the KOA Campground that I had a reservation at because the ones that we have passed along the trip were kind of dumpy. Upon arrival we were relieved because it was a very nice campground. Inground, clean, pool that we swam in. They had wireless internet and even a room with a television and cable. We had a backup plan that if it began to rain, as it had threatened, we would move the airmattress up to the loft area with the television. Although it never rained the wind blew all night long, blowing the tent down on us. Billy was up at 3am tying the tent to the picnic table he drug across the camp area. Needless to say we did not have a very restful sleep.
The drive to Van Horn was interesting. GPS seems to take us on the shortest route milage wise but not time wise. We definately took the scenic route through the mountains, and small town, and one lane highways. We did get to go through a Homeland Security checkpoint. It was pretty intimidating although we knew we were fine to go through. Oh, and Billy was pulled over somewhere in the middle of nowhere Texas. Our front turn signal is not working properly which led to us being pulled over because the cop thought we failed to use our turn signal. But when we pulled over for the cop he noticed we did use it. He was very friendly and gave us a warning and we need to fix the signal.
San Antonio was very pretty, crazy interstate on/off ramps. It was almost as bad as driving in L.A. The Alamo was cool to see then we walked along the Riverwalk area. Definately a place to go when it is not 105 degrees and for dinner. It was very pretty but walking in the middle of the day almost caused heat stroke!
We headed to Montgomery after San Antonio and the good old GPS took us on the state highways, through small towns, and large country. Wow, Texas really is big!
Tomorrow off to New Orleans.

Relaxation

I have not written much over the past couple of days because we have just been lounging by the pool in Fountain Hills, AZ. The biggest task we have done is some minor car work and grocery shopping to prepare for hitting the road tomorrow. Our biggest incident was that I came a wink from passing out while cutting mushroom for stuffed mushrooms, turns out I had gotten dehydrated. Dad whipped a glass of gaterade in front of me along with an icepack and I was back to normal in a snap. Since Dad had to take over the mushrooms he missed the ricotta cheese so they weren't quite what we were going for but they still tasted great!  It has been a wonderful visit and it has given us a much needed respit to hit the road hard starting again tomorrow. We till have a lot to see and do before we make it back to Ohio. Tomorrow will be the wonderful KOA campground in Van Horn, hopefully something fun will come into play tomorrow or else it will just be a long hot day, and night, in Western Texas. After that San Antonio will entertain us. Stay posted on all the adventure, hopefully I will have some fun stories to tell you next time.
PS: We have plenty of gaterade and water for tomorrow!

PS

Thanks Lis for all your commenting!

Phoenix, Halfway Through

We headed back East beginning with Phoenix. We are TIRED and are going to use Phoenix as a recouping stop so we can have the energy we need for the tail end of our trip. I never realized how tired we would be. We do not go to bed extremely late but traveling sure takes it out of you. We met Dad at his office when we got to town and went to lunch with some people he works with. After lunch I had my interview with the Univeristy of Phoenix, pretty nervewracking and draining. Then back to Dad's to get in the pool. That is where we stayed for the rest of the afternoon/evening. It is very hot here too. We were in bed by 930! I'm telling you, tired little pups here. We are going to be refreshed by Monday though. See you when we get home!!!!

Day 2 in LA

We were tourists/beachbums for day 2 in L.A. In the morning we went to the Le Brea Tar Pits. It was pretty interesting. There is a lot to see outside of the museum. We saw the main tar pit lake and a few smaller sights, as well as an area they had open for a dig. It had bones still in the ground and you could see them from the viewing area. With just a few minutes left on our meter we tried to cut through an area where the museums were that had been opened earlier when we passed. This time it looked like they were setting up for a party and had a gate closing off this large open area. Our car was literally right across the street so I walked up to some people and asked if we could just walk through to the car, the gate was open, no party started, and car was in sight. She was a little high and mighty museum employee who told me straight away that it would be tresspassing if we walked through the area. Give me a break. I of course gave my best sarcastic answer back of Thanks a lot for all your help. The people in L.A have not been very nice. So we walked as quickly as we could around these buildings of museums and tried to get back to the car before a ticket, and of course ended up right on the other side of the fence when we crossed the street to the car.
After that we were irritated and hot but we had to see the Hollywood Sign before we went to the beach. It was pretty fun, we drove a little ways up into the Hollywood Hills, the streets are so narrow and houses are on top of each other.
To the Beach! We spent the rest of the afternoon at the Santa Monica Beach and played in the ocean. The only problem here was the sunscreen fell out of the beachbag so fried skin for us after a few hours at the beach. The waves were really fun to play in and we tried to body surf them. I love the ocean.
We had dinner at Le Cordon Bleu Techniques Restaurant. Besides the traffic getting from Santa Monica to Pasedena at rush hour, about 20 miles took almost 1.5 hours, it was a great idea. I would recommend the school restaurant to anyone in the area. $15 for a 5 course meal, that is great! We were stuffed by the time we left. Now I know why they serve small portions at fancy restaurants were you get several courses, because you couldn't eat it all! This was also when we met up with Pamela, Emily, and Camile, and their friend Sue. It was wonderful to see the family and spend time with them.
After we were finished indulging Billy and I had to go back to Hollywood and see the stars and handprints by the theaters. It was an adventure getting to a parking spot but we found one on a side street so close to where we needed to be. We walked up and down the side walks looking at the names on the stars and found the handprints by the Chinese Theater. We did not get the honor to see any stars during our stay in LA.

Los Angeles

We are in LA, yay! We played in the Pacific today for a while. It was VERY cold. We are suprised at how cool it is here compared to the desert. I had to put on a sweatshirt tonight. We stopped a 3 different beaches, Manhattan Beach, Venice Beach, and Santa Monica. We also drove around Beverly Hills and looked at homes as well as rode down Rodeo Drive. Quedoba in the hotel for dinner. We are tired little things.

PS: an update from the Hoover Dam, We saw a truck get repo'd at the parking lot for the new bridge overlook. The truck was parked right next to the Mustang and as we were coming down to the lot to leave we noticed that this tow truck was a little close for comfort and it didn't seem that he was slowing down. I asked if he wanted me to move because I didn't want to get hit. He managed to get the truck out and Billy found out that they were repossessing the truck! Hence the speed of the hiest. It was pretty crazy.

Las Vegas Baby

Well we are doing fabulous here in sunny Las Vegas (after the freak thunderstorm last night, we just cannot get away from the rain). We are up a wopping $7 thanks to my majical hands working the slot machine. ; )  We are at the Tuscany Hotel and Casino, off the strip behind Ballys a block. It is about a 15 minute walk to the strip but when you get there you are right in the middle. The hotel is very nice, not as wonderful of a bed as in Henderson but the room is Huge! The hotel is set up like a Tuscan villa with courtyards, several building with guestrooms, the decor is very nice. And the food is great! I don't think that we have any funny stories from day 1 in Vegas but I will keep you updated about what happens today. I think we'll be at the pool catching some rays then explore more of the hotels and casinos. We walked around the Paris, Bellagio, and Ceasars last night. They are beautiful and very charming. It is very crowded here though. I think today we are going to try and go to the MGM and New York New York and whatever is in between. Next time better walking shoes! We still have quite a ways to go on our trip so we will continue to keep you posted on our adventures. We are just going to relax while here though, this is the vacation part! Love all!

HOT

Just made it to Vegas. Our plans to see the Hoover Dam and camp changed when we felt how HOT it is in Vegas. The Canyon was cool enough at night to sleep but here it is not. We booked a room on Hotwire at a McDonalds we had not idea wheres we would end up. The hotel is on the outskirts of the city but very nice! And a good neighborhood too dad ; )
Here is an update for the past few days...

Boulder Day 2

This morning we woke up early, the time change is helping us get up early so we can be productive. Today we had a better plan of what we would be doing. We set out to see gemstones at the Colorado Mine and Geology College Museum, in Golden. The museum was free, yay! We were there a good hour, there are so many gemstones and minerals to see. They have an area with meteorites that have landed. I learned about some very beautiful stones that I don’t see used in jewelry, many prettier then diamonds. But it’s the diamonds that are a girls best friend. At the museum there are also displays of the tools of the trade miners used in the past.

After the museum we took a quick look in the park we were parked at, the river was raging. We saw a kayaker down a little way getting stuck in a rapid, he seemed to be doing this on purpose to practice getting out. Interesting. From the museum we headed to a place called Dinosaur Ridge. We took a tour bus because the walking tour was about 2 hours verses 45min. The tour guide was worth the few bucks it cost, he was very entertaining and knowledgeable about the dinosaurs. It was basically an outdoor museum located in an old excavation site where many dinosaur bones were found. There are some that are left because either they can’t be dug out without damaging the bones or they are located in an undiscovered area. They also have an area with dinosaur tracks and you can put your hand or feet in a track and see how bit they are. I highly recommend the Dinosaur Ridge if you are in Boulder/Denver and are looking for activities.

After the dinosaur park we went to the Red Rock Amphitheater and drove around to see the Red Rocks. It is very beautiful.

We tried to visit Denver but without any plans, and dinner plans with Steve, we didn’t really know where to go. After driving around about 15 minutes we decided to leave and head back to Boulder via Hammonds Candy Factory. We were trying for a tour, and samples, but the tours were over by the time we got there so we just purchased a few things and left.

Billy went to Estes Park to visit his friend. They we to see the Stanley Hotel, which the Shining is based off.

Arches

We got up early and headed on our way to the next adventure. We had an idea of a few camping options when we got to Moab so we just decided to see what they looked like when we got there. I picked a nice sounding campground to check out first. Kane Springs, some of the sites were along the Colorado River. After driving out of Moab and towards the back canyon land we found the campsite. Half of the location was flooded from the Colorado River and the other half had spots lined up next to each other too close for comfort. At $22/night the location wasn’t even pretty, or comfortable. The road turned to a dirt road and we kept driving. It ended up we drove onto the National Park land which had many areas for camping, $8/night. Sweet! These sites were backcountry sites, no water or electric. It was fine with us. Kind of like camping in the Gorge but in the middle of the desert, down in the canyon, it was beautiful. We found a spot, after figuring out how to pay and claim your area, and began setting up shop. We were meant to camp where we did because upon unloading we ran into another couple our age, who were just as confused about paying and getting a spot as we were, whom we struck up a conversation. They ended up being our camping neighbors, along with their gigantic lab Blue, and we became fast friends. It was nice to have some company in the evenings, they cooked us dinner and breakfast , and I cooked them dinner night two.  We did have a little tent trouble, the wind began blowing through the canyon and blew our tent down! After some grumbling Billy finally figured out how to rig the tent up  and I am happy to say we had a standing tent the whole time.  While in Arches we found an area with Indian marking, and we drove through Arches National Park. Everywhere you turned the scenery became more beautiful. I am amazed about how many different characteristics God created in this land of ours. It is constantly changing and shaping and there is such a variety He gave us.  Its been too hot for hiking but the drive is just as beautiful. 

Thank goodness for family

Boulder is already amazing, we get to sleep on a pull out bed instead of two car seats. Uncle Steve and Susan have opened their home to us as we explore Colorado. After a long drive we were able to get to sleep and wake up fresh enough to explore Boulder. It all started at the Putt-Putt Golf course, which we thought was a visitors center. Billy went inside and did end up coming out with some useful information, maps of trails and activities, now we just had to decide what to do. We went to the Pearl St. Mall, which is the historical area of Boulder, and walked around using the self-guided tour map of historical sites. Between the Urban Outfitters and Ben and Jerry's we learned about the old theater, historical homes, and the first bank. This area is now the cool part of town with boutiques and cafes. Billy just had to have a burger for lunch so we stopped in the first spot we saw burgers (Toms Tavern), after checking a few other menus that were more then we were looking to pay. This place did not have a menu posted, boy did they have some gourmet food, the salt was from Bali, Balinees salt which they provided for you to put on the bread since the butter wasn't salted. It was some dang good bread. And one of the most expensive burgers I have ever eaten. Tomorrow, sandwiches from the house! After the Balinees salt and sunburn we decided to drive up Boulder-Canyon Rd. This drive was beautiful. The snowmelt is coming from the mountains and the river that flows down the canyon is rushing. We stopped at several pulloffs to enjoy beautiful blue skies, huge boulders, and rushing water. We did a very short walk to Boulder Falls to view a large falls coming off the side of the mountain. I think we were just in aw of the beautiful scenery. We saw some rock climbers, real rock climbers, on the side of a mountain! Crazy, but that is Billy's next goal.
With our idea of activities exhausted and the urge to use the bathroom terrible (the Circle K had lost their bathroom key!) We headed back to the house to enjoy BBQ Salmon and Rice a'la Steve. Yum.
Billy had the opportunity to drive Steve's 600 Honda, motorcylce, which makes the Rebel feel like a moped but we almost had to send a search party because he was enjoying it too much and we were a little nervous. We are calling an early night since we have a great bed to sleep in so we'll post more after tomorrow.

Day 2- Kansas

Besides chips-a-hoy soft cookies, pretzel bagles, and coffee Kansas was pretty much a bore. If you have time be sure to check out the OZ museum and Dorothy House on your way through. We did not have time. : (    BOO

PS: I did learn that the East side of Kansas is actually quite pretty, its the Western side that is SSOOO Boring.

Day 1- St. Louis, MO

430 am sure comes early but it comes much easier when you live with the best sister and brother in law and you walk into the kitchen to sausage and eggs cooking! Lis and Joel got up and made us a great breakfast to send us off. We hit the road about 30 minutes late due to the breakfast but it did not matter, this is a long trip we need a good breakfast. We did head out in the rain which we were a little concerned about since our activities would be outside for the day. I begain driving and made it as far as Indianapolis and I could no longer hold my eyes open so Billy took over and I slept till MO. The Arch is pretty amazing, I was more entriguied then I had expected to be. It is so large. Had I known before hand that you went to the top in these 4ft tall pods that were 4ft wide and held 5 people, and were completely enclosed for 4 minutes to the top, I may have changed my mind. I am glad I couldn't because the ticket was already purchased because the top was pretty amazing. You could feel the sway of the structure while you were looking down at the city below. For the $10 ticket you also had a museum of Westward Expansion to explore and there were many interesting fact about the journey West.
After the Arch we headed to the Anheuser Busch Brewery. It was a cool place. The tour was very extensive and family friendly (you wouldn't think so for a brewery but it was true). We were able to see the Clydesdale horses, that are bread on a farm specifically for Anheuser Busch. The stables these horses live in is problably cleaner then many of your houses (j/k)! The floors are spotless! You cannot even smell a horse when you walk in. The buildings of the brewery are spread across many blocks and it is a very neighborhood feel. The architecture was intriguing to Billy.
For the night we were debating as wether to stay in the campground (Graham Cave State Park) or head further into Kansas to have a shorter drive the following day. The decision came after Billy insisted we drive through the campground and check it out. It satisfied him, even though the cave was no larger then a two car garage, so we set up shop. This however proved to be a mistake. After checking the weather status with Lis over the phone it was established that the thunder we were hearing would pass quickly and we would be dry for the rest of the evening. It began to rain while we were trying to cook dinner over the fire, this lead to cooking on the Coleman stove using cut cans as foil (since we forgot foil and a pot). After dinner was cooked the rain stopped, we popped in a movie and went to sleep. We woke up about 1:30am to what I thought was a tornado ripping our tent apart! The most violent storm ever was tearing through MO. We ran to the car, I know when Billy is scared it is bad because he is never concerned, and drove to the bathhouse since it was made of cement blocks to protect from the terror. Poor Lis (who had to work the next day) and Joel were on the phone with us throughout checking out the radar and helping us figure out our next move... run away and hit the Days Inn up the road or tough it out, we mistakenly picked the latter. After a night of sleeping in the car we woke to find an inch and a half of water in the tent, had to take the tent down in the rain, and spend the next 13 hours, IN THE CAR.
Wow what a first day.

Amazing coincidence

I answered a post from a friend on facebook inquiring about where we are headed on our trip. I gave him the short answer and said, "Across the middle of the country to L.A. and back through the South". Amazingly my beautiful cousin responded that she is going to be in L.A too. Through a series of emails we found out that we would be in L.A at the same time, along with my lovely Aunt and my younger beautiful cousin. This is amazing because I haven't see them in so long. It is perfect timing. They are leaving the same day we are leaving. So dinner is set up, at Le Courdon Bleu (a place we would not have visited on our own that I bet will be amazing!) Needless to say we are thrilled to see our family... it has been too long with too much heartbreak in between.

Itinerary

Here is our itinerary for the 3 week trek. Please feel free to shout out suggestions of what to see, where to eat, and what to do. If we have an opportunity we'll try them out.

St. Louis
Graham Cave State Park, MO
Boulder/Denver
Arches National Park, Utah
Vegas Baby
LA
Phoenix
Van Horn, TX KOA
San Antonio
Montgomery, TX
New Orleans
Biloxi
Nashville, TN
Berea, KY
HOME (with all appendages in tact and still married!)

Prep-work

Simple it is not to try and figure out what to pack for a road trip that will be spanning the city, mountains, and everything in between and still leave space for Husbands things! Space is not plentiful in the Mustang. The backseat is a glorified extension of the trunk. Camping gear and high heels... I may need to rethink what to pack. Luckily there will be opportunities to do laundry along the way. Back to the drawing board on how to pack our bags so everything will fit into the car and we can still have some breathing room. At least we have a few more days.