Sunday, May 22, 2011 almost ready to go

Well, yesterday (Sunday) was more of the same. Packing, packing and more packing J We moved some stuff around to maximize space and distribute weight, which included strapping the BBQ to the top of the RV. Lindsey went to Brett’s to pack the rest of his things, and Rich and I went shopping for more bungee cords, and some cables for the TV. By late afternoon, we brought two more carloads of packed boxes to the RV. Some of the stuff will travel in the car while it’s in tow, and some things will go in Brett’s trunk. The kids went to dinner with two of their very good friends, one of whom was Brett’s roommate for 3 years!

There were way too many mosquitoes out to do much after sundown, so we called it a night and planned to finish it all in the morning. This was our first night all together in the RV, we are going to have a blast!

Saturday, May 21, 2011 packing up

We got up bright and early this morning to plan the next leg of our trip. Brett met us at the campground and we had some breakfast and pulled out all the maps and campground books. We are going through Ohio so he can see his family before heading west. After getting at least that much settled, we went to his place to get all the boxes of stuff that are traveling with us, hahaha.

Rich and I spent the rest of the day packing all of the kids things into the RV (like putting together a puzzle) while Linds and Brett went around Jackson taking pictures of all the “Ol’ hangouts”. Lindsey is spending the night with one of her close girlfriends from school, last chance to catch up and say goodbye L Tomorrow is more packing and RV maintenance.

Friday, May 20, 2011 arrived In Jackson!

Leaving Caddo Mills we traveled several miles on farm roads. Beautiful country!! I decided that I would love to live in Poetry, TX. There is rolled hay dotting the landscape, cattle and horses under the shade of beautiful trees, and green grassy pasture as far as you can see. The houses are built of brick, and post card worthy. After about an hour and a half we came back to the highway. We had lunch at Cracker Barrel in Shreveport Louisiana. Then it was on into Mississippi. As we crossed the bridge over the Mississippi River, we could see all the flooding that had been going on in the area. It has been in the news for weeks about how the river is dangerously high and farm land is being intentionally flooded to protect the levees around several cities. We caught a glimpse of some of the docks at Vicksburg and the water was all the way to the street, at least 40 feet above where the boat ramps are! We could see some roofs peeking above the water. As soon as we crossed the bridge, we couldn’t see anything more of the flooding. All the roads along the river were closed, and once we crossed, the river was behind us. We heard on the news that so far 5000 people were displaced in Mississippi alone. This was very sad to see. I wonder how our friends in the Atchafalaya Basin are doing?

We arrived in Jackson in time to pick up Lindsey’s car, settle the RV into the campground, and pick Brett up from work. We had dinner at Mint, a really nice restaurant that is a favorite of theirs. In the morning we are going to plan our return journey, hopefully a little less “pedal to the metal” J

Thursday, May 19, 2011 drive, drive, drive,

Not much to write about today, Thurs. May, 19. We just drove and drove. Had lunch in the RV and stopped into Walmart for some food, a book for Lindsey and some ear phones for Rich. As we were passing through Decatur, TX we came across another Roadside Americana spot, The Petrified Wood Gas Station! There are cottages and a diner attached to the station and all of the buildings are covered with petrified wood. It is said that Bonnie and Clyde stayed in one of the cottages just a few weeks before they were killed. After taking lots of pictures here for the “book” we had dinner at Chili’s and then headed to our KOA in Caddo Mills, just outside of Dallas.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011 the road to Amarillo, TX

We awoke not so bright and early Wednesday, May 18th for the drive to Amarillo. It is SO windy here, and COLD!! Yesterday we had some trouble with our levelers so we had to disconnect them. Sleeping with all that wind blowing against the RV made us feel as though we were on a cruise ship! After a good breakfast, and getting our sea legs back, we set off to Texas.

After leaving about an hour late, and forgetting the time change, our lunch in Santa Rosa was more like an early dinner. But that worked out great because I felt no guilt in ordering the one beef taco, tamale, cheese enchilada, rice and beans!!!! So good J As we came into Amarillo, Lindsey spotted the Cadillac Ranch, another attraction from our coffee table book! It was really fun! We had to walk way out into the cow pasture to get to the cars that are upended and buried 1/3 into the ground. There is a whole row of them, all brightly spray painted with graffiti. There are cans of paint all over the ground, so Lindsey and I grabbed some cans and added our own artistic flair! Then it was just a short drive to our KOA. We have now gone close to 1500 miles, almost there!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011 the road to Gallup, NM

On Tuesday morning, May 17th we set out for Holbrook AZ., making a stop in Kingman to get some food on board. Over lunch, Lindsey and I were looking at the map and decided that our third stop in Lubbock, TX didn’t look so good. Besides, we really wanted to have lunch in Santa Rosa, NM one day and this route just wouldn’t work. SO……..we changed it all up and decided to stay on Highway 40 and go all the way to Gallup NM for the night.

We made a stop in Flagstaff for dinner. Didn’t know where to go so we pulled up some choices on the GPS and picked one close to where we were. What a surprise! It was the Black Bart’s Restaurant and Saloon. All of the wait staff took turns at the microphone and sang hits from all of the favorite Broadway shows and movies – they were pretty good too! They also had a honky tonk piano player that was quite entertaining. After dinner and a nice break from driving, we hit the road again for another 2 ½ hours. The drive has been great and the weather is holding out, gloomy and very windy, but no rain yet. We pulled into the Gallup KOA about 10pm after putting 1,040 miles on the RV in two days.

Monday, May 16, 2011, pics from the road to Azusa and Barstow

We are off on our next journey across the States! This time we are headed to Mississippi to pick up what is left of Lindsey’s things, her car and Brett! Yep, Brett is coming to California. He is plugged in to some job opportunities with Apple in the Bay Area, so we are all keeping our fingers crossed for him.

The plan was to leave Sunday night, May 15^th and get as far as Harris Ranch. We are bringing Bryan’s desk and some clothes and hangers to him on the way, so we figured this would get us into Azusa the next day by late morning. Well, we weren’t quite ready to leave as planned (What? That never happens). So we ended up leaving the next morning and drove all the way to his apartment. We ended up having an early dinner together instead of lunch. He has a really nice place just a few blocks from the University and two really great roommates! He is interviewing for a job with the APU IT dept. He sailed through the first round of interviews, so we are all very hopeful he will get an offer.

After lots of hugs and “Go get ‘em Bryan” we set off for Yermo KOA.