Going and Coming

We are Home! I will post pictures of family and presents and Christmasy things later, but I wanted to post a few pictures from just the drive-time of our trip. All together - 54 hours of driving - and consider this - we had perfect weather and only one very brief traffic slow down - in other words, this is the best time we have ever made on our world tour. FIFTY FOUR hours!?!?! With a 2 year old and a 4 year old! Are we crazy! If not before, now we are!

One nice thing about all our road trip experience is the learning curve. I put Caleb on the back row which left a middle seat for me to use to give them food or read a story or start a movie.

Also we didn't stop for lunch. Instead I made sandwiches from my 2nd row seat and we ate in the car. This eliminated a stop because 45 minutes after eating, everyone needs to pee anyway!

Annalise was very good to take her regular naps in her carseat :) Caleb did not get sleepy enough to nap until yesterday. That first picture is from so early in the morning that he was really just finishing a good night's sleep.

To increase the excitement about the trip, we decorated the van. We strung the lights through the luggage rack and ran the cord in the door (didn't get smashed amazingly), then plugged it into our power adapter which plugs into the cigarette lighter. We were delighted to find another van similarly decorated in Virginia!

Also on the inside we made sparkly snowflake window clings - very easy to make and cheap too. The only thing is they don't like to stick to cold glass, which wasn't a problem in Miami! But part of one fell off and never stuck back to the glass once it was cold (i.e. the entire trip - it's even cold here tonight).

On the way to Ohio, we ALWAYS stay in Hillsville, VA at the Red Carpet Inn, which is a small, modest hotel run by extremely clean people. It is not fancy, but it is spotlessly clean and a great deal - the total (WITH TAX! and no discounts) was under $50.

Driving to Arkansas, we stayed in Jackson, TN - home of Casey Jones, the famed railroad engineer who sacrificed himself to save the rest of the train. We ate there at the same restaurant we did last time - the Old Country Store and Restaurant in the Casey Jones Village. Kids 2 and under eat free and 3-12 can have the buffet for $.50 x their age. We shall return!!!

That night we got onto priceline and bid for a hotel, but we didn't do it until we got to Jackson and were about ready to turn in. We ended up with a great deal on a Jameson Inn, which was very nice - fancier than we usually stay at on this trip.

The next day we went into Arkansas. Arkansas had over 80 inches of rain in 2009, which is a record and about 35 inches over normal, so the place is just soggy. This is the Saline River - or part of it, to me it looks like the woods are flooded, but it had so escaped it's banks that the river was a few miles wide.

On the way home I began to get a little desperate to keep the kids happy, so when we stopped at a gas station and Caleb asked for a slice of their pizza, I caved. I love how Annalise's kitty cat doubles as a pillow in this pic! I also loved how handy the M&Ms my Aunt Phyllis gave my kids changed attitudes when it seemed like we just couldn't handle another minute in the carseat!

As you can see, we were all getting a little silly by the end of our trip!

We did the last minute Priceline trick again last night and got a super deal on a Holiday Inn. Rob was curious and called the desk to ask how much they would have charged us and the lowest price was more than TWICE what we paid! He ended up getting us a room with a king sized bed too!

Annalise loved the shower cap :)

Of course coming home had a few surprises - one being that our aquarium had a leak...

Recognize the furniture Meredith?

And another being that Mako made it past our barricade on the stairs and slept alternately on Caleb's bed and our bed. Rob said it was just like Goldilocks! "Somebody's been sleeping in MY bed!" Yeah, somebody hairy who sleeps in a ball.

And we were surprised by some kid sized aprons from Publix Preschool Pals. As soon as he put his on, Caleb said he "felt like cooking" - not tonight kid! And unless I get to the grocery store tomorrow, we'll be seeing what we can pull together with peanut butter crackers, deer jerky, and canned black beans!