3rd Week of June- Our Cross Country Drive to Virginia

10 States in 6 days

We left St. George, Utah and headed back to where our family started...
Colorado!

It felt so good to be on I-70 again.  I really do love that drive.

Our first stop was Glenwood Springs, CO

I've always wanted to stop there and really wish we had more time to stay and play.

Our plan was to rent bikes for the morning and ride up the canyon and have a picnic. However, spring run off had the banks of the Colorado River overflowing.  The bike trails were closed, so we had to come up with another plan.

We started to do some research and found out that Glenwood Springs has an amusement park at the top of the canyon and some caves to explore as well.  We thought this sounded like fun and we were even within walking distance from our hotel to the park entrance.  To get up to the park you ride a tram and take in the amazing views.  While we were up there we walked through the two caves and rode the alpine coaster.  It was a lot of fun.  

The winds picked up and they had to close the tram, it was a big disappointment and it started us on a path to being late getting us into Denver.  We waited and rode the dusty bus down the mountain and had a quick late lunch and hit the road.  As we were headed down the road we saw warning signs telling us about road closures for blasting starting at 4:30 pm.  Well we got there, 5th in line, at 4:20. We were stuck.  When they let us go again we hit terrible traffic in Denver and we met our friends late but at least we got there!

It felt so great to see our old friends!!  We had missed them so much!

Thanks to all those that were able to come and see us! It really meant so much to us!!!

After we said our goodbyes we hit the road.

Next stop was...

Nebraska

We got to the border really late at night and landed at our hotel in North Platte at 3am.  

We slept in, missed the breakfast, and had to scramble to get on the road again.

Nebraska is so Beautiful!

Omaha, NE for dinner at Culver's.

At this point Kevin and I were rethinking this driving two cars thing!

Also, in Omaha we finally got to feel what hot humidity is all about...Ugh!

My hair has been curly almost every day after we left Nebraska.

Iowa

I didn't get any pictures of Iowa other than this.  I really wish I had, it was amazing!

Rolling hills, farms with the cutest little farms houses, and white gravel roads set beside green fields.

I could totally live there.  Maybe I should see if Kevin wants to farm for his third career:)

We drove again into the late night to get to Iowa City, Iowa then turn south to get to a little town in Missouri.  Keokuk, MO is where we spent the night so we could explore Carthage Jail and Nauvoo in the morning.

Carthage Jail

Nauvoo

Loved seeing these water towers all over the Midwest:)

After having fun in the Blacksmith's shop we went into Brigham Young's Nauvoo home.  Little did we know while we were having our tour a huge storm had started.  We stayed there for a little while until there was a small break in the rain and wind.  We made a mad dash for the cars and that ended our Nauvoo site seeing.

Waiting out the storm.  The storm was intense.  

Tree branches were coming down along with tons of rain.

Wet and ready to drive to St. Louis, MO 

As we left Nauvoo, Illinois the storm was getting even stronger.  At one point the rain made it hard for us to see.  The rain lightened up a little bit enough for me to catch the sign.

Missouri

With all the rain and wind in the area, I couldn't help but worry about seeing a tornado.  Well it wasn't too long before we did see one.

CRAZY!

I saw this drop from the sky.  I called Kevin on the phone and told him to look at the strange cloud in the sky.  It looked like nothing I'd ever seen.  He agreed and no later did we hang up it turned into a tornado!!  We were trying to stay calm for the kids and we actually thought it was pretty exciting.  As long as it stayed far away. I kept thinking...What do we do?  The cars around us kept going so we thought...so should we.  It disappeared almost as fast as it appeared.  Made for one crazy drive through Missouri!

St. Louis, MO

Looking at the Mississippi River and Illinois

It was a great experience and was a big hit with the kids!

If you don't like to be in a small area with complete strangers I wouldn't recommend this:)

Looking down at the city St. Louis

After the Arch we walked through the Western Expansion Museum

Illinois and Indiana

Travels with Ethan!

This rest stop was our only stop in Indiana.  Another beautiful state and I have to say our kids have got to be the best long distant travelers!  

They were enjoying seeing every new state as much as I was.

Kentucky

Crossing the Ohio River near Louisville!  These big rivers are intense! The kids kept thinking they were lakes! 

Our last night in a hotel was in Lexington Kentucky.  With all the hotel stays we had up to this point, this was the first chance we had to order in dinner and let the kids swim.  It was the smallest pool I've ever seen in a hotel, but the kids still has fun!

A drive by picture of Kentucky horse country!

I could totally plant myself here....Beautiful!

Home Stretch...The last day of driving.

West Virginia

Pictures from the road showing how green West Virginia is.

I have never seen such green in my life!  This thick green forest was crazy beautiful.  

The pictures do not do it justice!

The Coal River near Charleston, WV

I'm smiling, but on the inside I'm screaming....

GET ME OUT OF THIS VAN!!!

Virginia

YAHOO!  We made it to our new home state!

We got to our new house about 10 pm that night and crashed!

We did the drive!

It was hard, but I would did it all over again. Even in two cars, believe it or not?

America is beautiful!

We feel so lucky to have seen at least a little bit of it!

2nd Week of June...Southern Utah

Isabel, Ashton, and I arrived in Utah late Saturday night.  It felt good to be in a home with furniture!!!

 Knowing that after I landed on the east coast, I most likely wont be coming home at least for a year my dad and I jump on the horses for a ride.  It was a perfect morning, cool and relaxing!  It was great to spend the time away with my father doing what we both love and the views...

never disappoint!

Okay...so...the horses don't know how to look at the red blinking light;)  Oh well, still a fun picture!

Morning of fun, leading up to the evening we had to say goodbye to our sweet kitty, Max.

It was a weight that I had been dealing with for months!  How do you say goodbye to quite undoubtedly the sweetest cat that we may ever own...heck that ever will be!   He had been suffering from Kidney failure and slowly losing weight.  He would never had made it through the stress of a cross country move. We knew that the kindest thing we could do for him is put him down.  He name was Max, but we would often joke that it should have been Romeo, he was so loving and social. Max and our dog Bayja were our first babies, they have a special place in our hearts and are missed everyday.

Lake Powell 2014

A week at my most favorite place on earth is good for the soul!

Leaving our home in Arizona...

The last week of May was a big one for us!

The movers came to pack up our stuff and leave me with an empty house.

After the movers left we welcomed family to help celebrate Kevin's graduation!

We had a lot of family from both sides that were able to come and show their support for our family's accomplishment...it was great and we felt loved!

We did it!!!

Kevin was able to be hooded by my father.

First week of June

After all the excitement of graduation we had a week still to stay in Arizona. The reason?... Kevin and Cole left for a week at scout camp and Ethan had scout day camp. 

So the rest of us camped out in our house that week.

It was a long week, but we kept busy making toys out of almost nothing. I was really amazed at what the kids came up with using their imaginations and the few things we still had around the house.

This soda box became a truck. The pieces that came off of it were made into a car and a pair of ski's:)  This girl came make fun out of just about anything!    

We took a day to go to the Phoenix Children's museum.

 We cooled off at the Foothills Rec Center.

The day we left Arizona I had to snap a picture of this sign...

Every time we passed it these past 4 years, I would chuckle.  

The burrows and a great many other things I will miss about living in Arizona! Great friends that we made while living there, the citrus trees, and the beautiful cactus blooms! 

I love the beauty of the Sonoran Desert!

2014 Family Pictures - Spring

Spring time is such a great time of year! New beginnings and fresh starts.  

 We had these taken by my sister Holly in the church orchard near Santa Clara.  We couldn't be happier with how they turned out....Holly is so talented!

We are about to finish another chapter of our lives and move on to the next. Kevin is going to graduate in a few weeks and complete the dream that has been in the works for close to 8 years.  

I feel like we all need to go up on stage and receive our own diplomas!! 

The kids and I have definitely earned something!

I can't believe how we have grown these past 4 years here in Arizona.  

We have all grown both as a family and individually.

We are so excited to be moving to the Washington DC area.  We will be there for just one year and that is what prompted me to end this year long blog drought.  I decided a long time ago I'm not much of a blogger. However, we will be separated from our family this coming year with a whole country between us...Yikes! 

My  goal is to make one weekly blog report over this next year.

I am wanting to do this for two reasons: 

1) To let family and friends see what we do and see on the east coast. 

2) To record some of what we do so we don't forget this awesome experience!

How we looked 4 years ago...

Stuffington Bear Field Trip

Stuffington Bear Factory

 

Izzy got to go on her last kindergarten field trip this week and I got to go with her!

They saved the best for last.  All the kids got to learn how stuffed animals were made and got to bring home their own bear.  Izzy thought this was the best Field trip of the year!

 

 

 

All the kids waiting to go inside.

Every time I get to go on one of Challenge Charter School's field trips I'm so amazed at how well behaved and polite the kids are!  Even in kindergarten, kids all raise their hands before speaking, listen and follow directions!

It makes it really fun to go help out:)

 

Izzy waiting to stuff her bear.

Bluey getting a brush.

Air baths are a must.

 

 Izzy and Bluey

There were a lot of names like: Fluffy, Beary, Browny...

this age is so fun!

 

Izzy with her school friends and their new bears.

 

It was so fun to spend the morning with my sweet little girl!