3 States in one day

Wednesday, June 11th

Great Road Trip Stuff:

*The kids learned how to hold their breath under a tunnel

*Gas station goodies like coffee, beef jerky, cornuts, etc...

*We just paid $3.89 for gas

*Travel journals

*We had "American Pie" by Don McLean turned up with everyone singing and clapping down the highway

*Singing "On the Road Again"

*The scenery & seeing new places

*Learning how to really conserve our water & the kids get it

*Making friends with the truckers

*Cookin' on the road

*Unfolding the map, folding the map, unfolding the map, folding the map, etc...

*Not being on a schedule & escaping the daily grind

*Crawling into a sleeping bag

*Campfires & smores

*Flashlights

*Brushing teeth with bottled water

*Seeing wildlife in their natural habitats

*Taking deep breaths & hearing silence in the middle of God's beauty

*http://www.momsminivan.com/

*The idea that your kids will appreciate the magic of roadtrips... someday

Destination #5: Cheyenne, Wyoming

WE MADE IT! We were in 3 states yesterday. So far we have driven 1500 miles. Started off with another great hike in Arches National Park in Moab, Utah. The kids are doing so great with the hikes. i feel inspired to sell our televisions and go on a hike each morning. Wouldn't that be the life? i loved so many of the pictures taken that i couldn't pick just one. The camel rock was a favorite and of course Balanced Rock put us all in awe. We contemplated leaving Josh there so he could keep it all standing. Nature continues to form and shape the rocks. What was there even 10 years ago has changed. Maybe some day when my kids bring their kids to these National Parks they'll be able to witness earth's transformations.

We left Utah about 3:00pm and set out for Colorado. Pretty mellow trip. The best part was driving along the Colorado River at sunset. i really tried to capture the serenity, but moving at 60 mph and entertaining Kiera didn't make for the best pictures. We then drove up through Vail and Breckenridge and the moon shown beautifully on the snow. Crazy to be in the desert and then 10,000 feet up in the snow all in one day.

I finally got some co-captain time with kyle once all the kids were asleep. i was missing that part of traveling as i am used to sitting next to him and singing and having all those random talks. The best part is getting giddy because fatigue begins to set in. Things become funny that really aren't even close to funny like "cow town" and "campstool." There was no one one the road with us heading into Wyoming at 1:00am. We finally rolled into our KOA Kampground at 1:45am. This morning i look out and see peaceful flat lands. Pretty impressive to me how far these grasslands reach. Today we hope to pick up some authentic cowboy and cowgirl gear, load up on fireworks, fish, and i'm hoping make it to the Wild West Museum.