August 5, 2014
Home sweet home.....there's no place like home......home is where the heart is.....whatever "home" adage comes to mind, it is always good to come back home! We're grateful to safely return to our home after an almost three week camping trip, covering 11 states.
Our exploration of the heartland of America exceeded every expectation we had. Not once, did we encounter a negative person. Everywhere we traveled, from the tiniest of towns, to large cities, the Americans were helpful, friendly, and made us proud! The scenery was amazing, and the vastness of our country is staggering. An added bonus was visiting our Minnesota and Illinois families! Rob asked Mom and I today to rate our trip on a scale from one to five, we both agreed that it was a 10!
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Monday, August 4, 2014
Mt. Rushmore and more......it's the first day of school and I'm on the road!
August 4, 2014
Another sunny, glorious day, as we said farewell to Whittington Woods at Benton. I quickly walked back to the entrance to take a picture of the gorgeous wood carving that one of the owners created:
Another sunny, glorious day, as we said farewell to Whittington Woods at Benton. I quickly walked back to the entrance to take a picture of the gorgeous wood carving that one of the owners created:
Actually, he carved an additional matching eagle, and I'm sad that the intricate detail isn't obvious in my picture. This is just one more example of the beautiful people living in the heartland of America!
Last evening, while drifting off to sleep, I remembered that I had not included something in my blog that I even told Rob I would HAVE to include. Yesterday, as we were traveling around the small town of Zeigler, IL, my Uncle Bill slowed down, and then stopped for a train crossing. Now this may not seem so remarkable, but the train was REALLY long - over 100 cars! Plus, there wasn't a crossing bar lowered like I've typically seen. We waited, and waited, and waited. I have never seen a train that long. My uncle said that it is not on a fixed schedule, and it usually seems to cross when one is in a hurry!
Today, we traveled to the southern part of Nashville, TN. I don't know why, but it seems that the traffic in Nashville is always awful, probably because I-24 is constantly under construction. As we arrived at our campground, the entrance was blocked by an ambulance and two police cars which didn't exactly give us a warm, fuzzy feeling. Apparently, a little boy had a terrible sunburn, but his folks didn't seem too concerned, so the campground owners called the police. Luckily, the issue was resolved quickly, and we settled into our campsite.
It's the first day of school today, so I "almost" felt like I was playing hooky, until I read a sweet Facebook post from Teri, wishing me good luck on the new chapter of my life. Immediately, I experienced the same "first day" thrill, only this time, it is the first day of retirement.
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Mt. Rushmore and more....visiting in Southern, IL
August 3, 2014
Back on paved roads today, we traveled by the St. Louis Arch:
After a delicious cookout at Megan's and Preston's, Uncle Bill took us for a tour of all of Mom's previous stomping grounds in southern IL. Finally, we arrived at Maria and Kevin Nix's home where we enjoyed another delicious meal!
Back on paved roads today, we traveled by the St. Louis Arch:
By noon, we had reached our destination - Whittington Woods at Benton - a lovely campground in southern Illinois. Soon, Mom's brother, AKA Uncle Bill, was here to take us to Megan's for a cookout celebration for Ava's third birthday. It was the perfect day for an outdoor event, and we really enjoyed watching all of the kids play on the inflatable slide!
Another reason to smile - Mom was able to spend time with her brother, Bill, and his charming wife, Joyce, which means that Mom saw all of her siblings this summer!
After a delicious cookout at Megan's and Preston's, Uncle Bill took us for a tour of all of Mom's previous stomping grounds in southern IL. Finally, we arrived at Maria and Kevin Nix's home where we enjoyed another delicious meal!
We all enjoyed visiting and catching up since we hadn't all been together since 1990! Later, Uncle Bill took us to by the family cemetery, as well as all of the old stomping grounds. It truly was the perfect ending to our mid-west tour of America! We were sent home with canned goods, fresh corn/green beans, and awesome memories.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
Mt. Rushmore and more.......driving to Missouri
August 2, 2014
Happy Birthday, Barbara Tricomi!!!!! Sorry, Rob woke you up to sing his rendition of Happy Birthday :(
We cruised around Kansas City with almost no problems, until Rob saw a Starbucks and QT sign, so he thought he could get a coffee and diesel at the same stop. Wrong! They were in opposite directions. Then, to add insult to injury, he dented our camper a bit on the QT bumper. Oh well, suppose we'll keep the Dent Doctor in business!
Then, the REAL adventure began as we exited off I-70 towards our campground. I should have suspected that we'd be in for some TRUE primitive camping when the directions stated that we'd travel on a gravel road for 1-1/2 miles. When we came to the fork in the road, with no clear directions on which way to turn, suddenly lout of nowhere a pickup truck pulls up, and the driver says, "What in the world are Cobb County folks doing in the middle of nowhere Missouri?" His next question was priceless, "Are you folks looking for the campground?"
No buddy, we always pull a 34 foot camper on gravel roads just for fun!!!! He then told us that he was also from Cobb County and directed us to the campground. Well,,,,,,,,,,,we arrived in the middle of Duck Dynasty! Luckily, once inside our camper, we really don't care what our surroundings are, well, at least not for one night! I'm in the office, where Internet is available, so I can't complain too much! Tomorrow we travel to southern Illinois to visit some of Mom's side of the family! Wish us luck navigating around St. Louis!!
Happy Birthday, Barbara Tricomi!!!!! Sorry, Rob woke you up to sing his rendition of Happy Birthday :(
We cruised around Kansas City with almost no problems, until Rob saw a Starbucks and QT sign, so he thought he could get a coffee and diesel at the same stop. Wrong! They were in opposite directions. Then, to add insult to injury, he dented our camper a bit on the QT bumper. Oh well, suppose we'll keep the Dent Doctor in business!
Then, the REAL adventure began as we exited off I-70 towards our campground. I should have suspected that we'd be in for some TRUE primitive camping when the directions stated that we'd travel on a gravel road for 1-1/2 miles. When we came to the fork in the road, with no clear directions on which way to turn, suddenly lout of nowhere a pickup truck pulls up, and the driver says, "What in the world are Cobb County folks doing in the middle of nowhere Missouri?" His next question was priceless, "Are you folks looking for the campground?"
No buddy, we always pull a 34 foot camper on gravel roads just for fun!!!! He then told us that he was also from Cobb County and directed us to the campground. Well,,,,,,,,,,,we arrived in the middle of Duck Dynasty! Luckily, once inside our camper, we really don't care what our surroundings are, well, at least not for one night! I'm in the office, where Internet is available, so I can't complain too much! Tomorrow we travel to southern Illinois to visit some of Mom's side of the family! Wish us luck navigating around St. Louis!!
Friday, August 1, 2014
Mt. Rushmore and more....bits and pieces
August 1, 2014
While I was doing laundry at the Mt. Rushmore KOA, I visited with a sweet gal from Iowa. She remarked that she lived a few miles west of "Sewer City" and when she saw the perplexed look on my face, she laughed and said that is what all of the natives call Sioux City, because it is a stinky, dirty city. Well, as we traveled through Sioux City, I have to admit that we all agreed with her! We even had to put the air on recirculate in the truck to keep from being sick. So, that was our laugh for the day. We also traveled by the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder, located in De Smet, SD. Viewing the vastness of the Great Plains certainly brought her books to life.
One correction to a previous post, the little town near our KOA Campground was Hill City! (sorry, I haven't learned how to edit previous posts)
Earlier, I mentioned "Sturgis", but am also learning more and more about this event daily. Apparently, it is like a Harley Davidson annual pilgrimage from destinations all over the world. It begins today, August 1st and will continue until August 10th. Everywhere we've travel, we hear and see Harleys!
Here are some pictures of our "home away from home" in South Dakota:
While I was doing laundry at the Mt. Rushmore KOA, I visited with a sweet gal from Iowa. She remarked that she lived a few miles west of "Sewer City" and when she saw the perplexed look on my face, she laughed and said that is what all of the natives call Sioux City, because it is a stinky, dirty city. Well, as we traveled through Sioux City, I have to admit that we all agreed with her! We even had to put the air on recirculate in the truck to keep from being sick. So, that was our laugh for the day. We also traveled by the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder, located in De Smet, SD. Viewing the vastness of the Great Plains certainly brought her books to life.
One correction to a previous post, the little town near our KOA Campground was Hill City! (sorry, I haven't learned how to edit previous posts)
Earlier, I mentioned "Sturgis", but am also learning more and more about this event daily. Apparently, it is like a Harley Davidson annual pilgrimage from destinations all over the world. It begins today, August 1st and will continue until August 10th. Everywhere we've travel, we hear and see Harleys!
Here are some pictures of our "home away from home" in South Dakota:
Rob has become quite an expert at setting up and unhooking our fifth wheeler! Tonight we are staying at Victorian Acres Campground in Nebraska City, Nebraska. Tomorrow we'll continue through Kansas and Missouri.
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