Back in the saddle again...

Wendy here-- back on MY blog! Just kidding-- thanks to Michael and Abbie for keeping you posted on our adventures :-) Here's what we've been up to since you last heard from us...

We left Lake Dardanelle (Arkansas) bright and early Friday morning and as soon as we entered Oklahoma, we discovered that the federal government apparently ran out of interstate road paving money once they got to the middle of the country-- oh my word, they are the WORST roads I have ever driven on-- RV-shaking, teeth-ratting, body-jarring bumpy!! And the gale force winds interesting as well-- we found out later that it is usually always this windy in Oklahoma-- which is probably why we saw a bunch of these:

As Abbie told you, we used our trusty (well, mostly trusty) Sprint aircard and found a local hobby store in Oklahoma City where Michael could get the replacement parts for his plane. After a brief stop at there and for gas and slurpees at 7-11, we proceeded to get LOST trying to get back on I-40 (despite having an atlas and a gps!!). Fortunately it was a short delay and we were on our way again.

Our destination for the afternoon/evening was the Flying W Ranch near Sayre, Oklahoma. For any of you country music/CMT fans, this also happens to be the site where they filmed the reality TV series "Cowboy University". It is a working ranch (they raise cattle & buffalo) and they have an onsite campground, restaurant and museum. I had found them with the help of my friend, Google, during my trip planning as I was looking for somewhere that my horse-lover daughter could experience horses up-close. This place did not disappoint.

(enjoy this picture of me, Mom--it will probably be one of the few you get!)

We met the owner, Don, who brought out a 4 week old baby buffalo (named Bambi-- her sister was Thumper!)) for the girls to meet and the manager, Terry, showed us all around their museum full of antique furniture, cars, wagons and other western artifacts.

Then-- the big surprise of the day for Emma-- an arena ride on a horse. She was in heaven! Here she is on Rusty and Abbie on Speck:

We then had a yummy dinner at Sassy's Cafe on the property (brisket, chicken fried steak, burger and prime rib were enjoyed by the adults!). Then we headed back over to the camping area-- where we were the only occupants for the night. We were across from a grove of cottonwood trees- which were blooming and the wind blew bunches of little cotton-like tufts from the trees. They had a teepee in the camping area that you could actually sleep in-- we decided it would be way too hot in there, however! Michael took some time to fly his GeeBee (avoiding the nearby pond!) and we just enjoyed the cool evening breeze and saying goodnight to the horses.

Oklahoma is beautiful-- you can see just rolling hills and pastures as far as the eye can see. Wide open skies. We can definitely tell we are not in Georgia anymore! 3 days down, 17 to go!

A Public Service Announcement

I have enabled "Anonymous" posting so that those of you without Google accounts can post comments to the blog without signing in.

We enjoy reading the comments-- please keep them coming!

Also- I'm in the process of uploading yesterdays photos and writing a blog post with the rest of our Oklahoma adventures-- we were literally in the boonies last night without any kind of internet signal. Check back later for an update...

On the road....

Hi there this is Abbie.( Wendy's daughter) So far there's been nothing but highway, highway, highway. We are west of Oklahoma City and so far so good. We stopped at a hobby shop in Oklahoma City and Dad got parts for his Gee Bee. Never fly a Gee Bee in the water. We are about 1 hour until we arrive at the Flying W Ranch, which will be our next stop. I think Emma will be surprised when she sees the horses at the ranch.




Abbie

By George -- I think we got it!!!!

Ok I thought I would hi-jack Wendy's Blog and make a post of my own. It's only day two and we are really getting used to the RV life. We rolled into our campsite around 5:00 PM and Dad and I were able to make all the hook ups to the RV within minutes and Wendy and Mom had dinner ready within an hour after we arrived. It was a awesome being able to have Wendy's great BBQ outside on the picnic table by Lake Dardanell.

After dinner we took the girls down to the "swimming area" (which is a man made beach) and let them swim for a while.

Afterwards I asked Wendy if she could take some pictures of me dragging the rudder of my GeeBee in the water - well I got a little close and ended up taking an up-planned dip in the lake myself. The Gee Bee will need some minor repairs to it's electronics and I hope to pick up a part at a Hobby Store in Oklahoma City tomorrow. Hopefully I can get her flying tomorrow so I won't miss a state.

Barb - Mom and Dad are doing well, I think the fact that we stayed next to a lake tonight made Dad feel much better. Have fun at Disney, Epcot is my favorite park. Make sure to see the Candy Lady when your in Japan, she makes all kinds of candy animals.

MLT

Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas.. oh, my!

Some trip statistics:


Time we woke up this morning: 5:30 AM

Local time: 2 pm (central)

Number of states driven through today: 4

Number of "PANTS" and "Plane" pictures: 3 (we missed TN but will catch it on the way home)

Number of times Wendy has driven: 1 (so far)

Number of times Emma has asked for something else to do: more than I can count!

Day number two is going pretty good. Despite our early wake up, we've had a great day on the road. We had an early morning visit to Wal-Mart in search of alternative bedding. When we pulled out the sleeper sofa last night (mine & Michael's bed for the trip), we discovered the frame is completely bent out of shape. We had a few options: sleep in a "V" shape for the next 19 nights (nope!), wait all day for the delivery of a new RV from Georgia & be a day behind schedule (double nope!), or look for alternative bedding (ding, ding, ding-- we have a winner!) We found a super high twin size air mattress to put on the floor for Michael and I'll take the sofa (unfolded). Hopefully this will be a reasonably workable solution (I'll report tomorrow if we slept better than last night!)

Our campground in Tuscumbia was nothing special but they had electricity and water and an open space for us. We apparently missed some HUGE rainstorms because the parking lots had massive puddles everywhere and the local creeks and rivers that we drove over seemed to be in some level of flood stage. Alabama is not suffering from a drought! Thankfully, by the time we arrived, the rain had passed and we were able to unload the RV and repack/rearrange everything to my satisfaction (not that Michael & his dad didn't do a great job getting everything loaded-- but most of you know how I am about having everything 'just so'-- see, I know I am that way, too!!!)

After waking up the Wal-mart employees this morning, we visited Helen Keller's birthplace and childhood home, Ivy Green, here in Tuscumbia. We were the only visitors and stayed for about an hour. It was a tiny looking place on the outside but bigger than it appeared on the inside. The girls have read about Helen and seen "Miracle Worker" and so it was super neat for them to experience some of that history firsthand.

The weather today started out overcast and cool. We drove over the 'mighty Mississippi' around lunchtime and into Arkansas where it is sunny and HOT. The landscape is beginning to change...much flatter and still trees but they seem shorter and further apart.

Our destination tonight is Lake Dardanelle State Park in Russellville, Arkansas. I may post more later depending on our arrival time.. if not, see you tomorrow!

And we're off....

The "Timms' Family Great Adventure of 2008" has officially begun! After a two hour orientation at the RV place, we headed home and loaded (i.e., threw the stuff inside) the RV and hit the road! We still have a good bit of organizing and rearranging to do once we reach our campsite tonight but we wanted to make sure we were out of town before rush hour hit Atlanta.

It is especially fitting that today just also happens to be PawPaw's birthday. We made him a cake with a slogan that the girls have now adopted as our theme for the trip!

Also-- the PANTS arrived! Actually, they didn't come yesterday and we had stopped our mail starting today-- but we were able to track them down at the post office this morning. Michael was on the radio with Kevin & Taylor again this morning and told them that we had the PANTS and they said to be sure to email pictures of the pants in intersting locations along the way. So that will be one of our 'things' to accomplish on this trip. Another one is that I want to get a picture at each state Welcome center as a memento of all the states we travel through. This afternoon, we got our first one in Alabama:

Michael has a goal of flying one of his RC planes in each state-- here he is flying the 'Gee-bee' that he brought along for this trip. It's a small foam plane (all that we had room to bring!) but he says it flies great.

Also, in the interest of reporting all that has happened thus far, I am pleased to report that I have already had my first successful turn at driving the RV! It was only for a few miles and I had quite a firm grip on the steering wheel but I did it! I think as long as I don't have to navigate any major cities or mountainous regions, I will be okay. It's really not as bad as imagine--- I think that is really the key-- don't think TOO much about how long and wide you are (except when turning or changing lanes, of course).

We are just going through Birmingham and according to "TomTom", we have 2 hrs and 45 minute until we reach our final destination. Thanks to all of you who I know have been and continue to pray for us while we are traveling.

Until next time...

Memorial Day 2008

We were able to take a quick break from packing to attend a Memorial Day parade with some of our friends. We used to attend this parade regularly but haven't for several years. It is neat to see a community come out to support our country-- there was lots of standing applause for the veterans and servicemen in the parade. We also got to see several friends who were parade participants which was fun! This was by far my favorite float:

Don't let the innocent smile fool you... he was just as much into grabbing the candy as the kids!

Thank you to all our men in uniform-- past and present-- who have given so much to make our country great. Special thanks to my grandfather, Tata, who is an Army veteran of World War II and to both of Michael's grandfathers (now deceased) who also served in the military. We can never repay the debt we owe you... but I promise we will teach our children to never forget your sacrifice and service to America. Happy Memorial Day!

Next Sunday

We'll be here...

Not too bad of a spot for a Sunday morning 'sunrise service', eh??

I think he has a secret desire to be in show business...

Michael spends about an hour every morning commuting to his office, so he has lots of time to listen to the radio. Over the past few years, he has called in several times to the morning show on our local Christian radio station (http://www.thefishatlanta.com/) whenevever he's had an opinion to share about their daily topic. My favorite time was when he called in to give his thoughts about American Girl dolls! Usually, I'll get a call from him saying, "Quick-- turn on the FISH" and I know that he's called in and wants me to hear him on the radio. I used to get excited thinking that maybe he had won tickets to something fun (which he actually has once) as they do a lot of call-in giveaways. Now I know it's just about me sharing in his 5 minutes of fame! Which is fine, too... though some more free tickets would not be unwelcome!

I got the call this morning at 6:53 AM and was able to get the radio on in time to hear his discussion with Kevin and Taylor about our trip. Seems as though they were talking about great family vacations and Taylor mentioned how her family once took an RV to Colorado when she was a girl and what a special memory that was for her. Michael called in, told them about how we were going to RV across the country with kids and parents and then asked Taylor for tips how to keep family harmony along the way! She suggested spending as much time OUT of the RV as possible-- going on picnics, hikes, etc. Then they asked if we would be interested in taking their "Traveling Pants" with us and taking pictures with the pants in our various locations to post on their website! Apparently, they sent these pants out last summer on listener's vacations and they went to Egypt and I don't know where all else... So the pants are supposed to being sent to us and hopefully will arrive before we leave so that we can participate in their version of the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" (which, coicidentally has a movie sequal this summer if you are a fan: http://sisterhoodofthetravelingpants2.warnerbros.com/ ).

So be on the lookout for 'pants pictures' on the blog!

T-minus 7 days and counting...

As someone who has been privileged to watch many a Space Shuttle launch, I felt like this title was appropriate to our pending departure!

We have now completed all of our scheduled ballet & piano lessons, dress rehearsals, recitals, doctor's appointments... cakes have been made & delivered...family has visited and gone home... and Abbie will finish her testing tomorrow. So at this point, we are pretty much left with -- PACKING!!!

My dining room table has completely been taken over with trip "stuff" and I haven't even gotten the majority of the "stuff" out there yet! The RV rental guy has assured us that if we've planned well, we should be able to load all of our stuff into the RV within an hour and then be on the road... Umm... okay... sure... He obviously has never met someone who has perfected the art of over packing!!

(Of course, this was also the same guy who suggested that we use big black Hefty trash bags in lieu of suitcases-- so, naturally I'm a bit skeptical of his advice!! Are you kidding me?? I'm so NOT going to rummage around in a big trash bag for my clothes for three weeks-- even IF as a 'bonus' we can later use the bags for either actual trash or just for dirty clothes... Thanks but no thanks! Just for the record, I chose also to skip suitcases but have replaced them with big plastic bins which I think will be easier to maneuver in and out of the storage area.)

So the reality of leaving home for three weeks is starting to set in, and I think we are all just a bit nervous about the 'unknowns' ahead. Even with all of the careful and detailed planning (see: Blue Notebook), there is still quite a bit of this trip that feels like we are setting off into the "Great Unknown Land to the West"! I have a whole new admiration for the pioneers of the 1800's who set off on the trails west, unsure of what they would encounter and having to take supplies that would have to last them for YEARS. And they did this without the aid of the Internet, computers and GPS's! We've studied a bit about these brave souls this year during our overview of American history, and it really is amazing when you stop to consider how many people accepted the challenge and opportunity to settle new lands and to help our country grow. Those pioneer families have my utmost respect.

I guess I can handle packing for 3 weeks with the realization that we will probably pass a Wal-Mart roughly every 20 miles in case we forgot something... and I can appreciate even more that I won't have to WALK the entire route west (can you even IMAGINE??!)

I'm feeling better already...

The plans... they are a-changin'...

For the past two months or so, I've been having difficulty with planning the last few days of our trip-- the portion from Colorado home. This is the only part that I've kept waffling on-- I think I've changed the route through Colorado at least 3 times in the attempt to try to see the 'best' parts of the state. I've also pretty much come to the conclusion that the entire state is gorgeous and there is absolutely no way to see the best it has to offer in only two days!

This is also the only portion of the trip that I have yet to make campground reservations for-- which is kind of funny considering I've had some of our reservations since January ( which, FYI, is a necessity if you want to stay in Yosemite-- they book up 6 months in advance!! For my Disney friends--it's kind of like the Cinderella's Castle breakfast of the National Parks!). My only 'must do' for Colorado-- other than see the gorgeous mountain scenery-- is to visit the Focus on the Family headquarters in Colorado Springs. If the weather is nice, we'd also like to make a trip to the top of Pike's Peak via the cog railway.



Most of you know that in the past year, I've started grinding my own wheat to make bread (this will be related to the point of this post so just bear with me a bit!). This has been an enjoyable venture with many added health benefits and I've even made converts of my parents (and I think my sister might not be too far behind!). Anyhow, I started thinking about our trip and the fact that we would be driving home through Kansas-- which is, hello-- the nation's 'breadbasket' because of all the wheat they grow! Recently, I read a report on msn.com about how the price of wheat has started and will continue to rise as many farmers have found wheat a less profitable crop and so have stopped growing it in favor of corn and soybeans (because of their potential as alternative fuel sources). Supply and demand is causing a dramatic increase in price and my recent purchase of wheat has proved this to be true as it has gone up over $10 from what I paid only a year ago.



So putting two and two together (I'm gifted like that-- being a homeschooling mom and all!!)-- I decided to check into the possibility of picking up some wheat from some farmer somewhere in Kansas since we'd be going right through there on the way home. So my best friend, Google, and I did some researching and came up almost empty-handed... there are either not many independent wheat farmers in Kansas or else they just don't have websites-- I'm not sure which is the case. I did, however, manage to find one very nice farmer with a website who was geographically in the right area of the state who also homeschools who is going to have some grain for me (at less than 1/2 the price that I have to pay to get it here in Georgia!!). Woohoo!! What a great and useful souvenier of our trip! And as an educational bonus, the wheat fields will be in full bloom (?) so the girls- and mommy- will get to see a great visual of where our bread comes from.



Long story even longer....we need to be further into Kansas earlier than originally planned so instead of meandering through Colorado, we will now head straight Colorado Springs and spend two nights there. This will allow us to see Pike's Peak and Focus on the Family without feeling rushed. It will also mean that we arrive earlier in St. Louis on the 15th, giving us more time at the Gateway Arch.



I had really not been feeling peace about this last portion of the trip-- there was so much to see and I didn't know how to fit it all in/where to stay/etc. -- that is really the greatest challenge of planning this trip-- trying to balance seeing and doing with all the driving that needs to occur. I had been praying that God would show me how to best make it all happen. Well-- He certainly did-- and these final few days are now falling into place. I'm going to have to revise a few pages in the "Blue Notebook" but that is totally fine by as I'm so excited about getting to see wheat grow!



I am a geek.

Twenty-One Days

We leave for our trip in twenty-one days...

Before then, we have five ballet lessons, two piano lessons, one party, two meetings, two dress rehearsals, one ballet recital, two cakes to decorate, two doctor's appointments, standardized testing, family visiting from Florida, 15 days of homeschooling to complete... and oh, yes, getting packed so that we can be AWAY FROM HOME for nearly three weeks!!

I think I'm in a tiny bit of denial because I'm not really feeling that stressed...

Maybe that's also because this past weekend I was faced with the prospect of having to move our entire trip up by a week and virtually rearrange the itinerary which I have painstakingly. slaved. over. THAT will stress you out, my friends! But I was totally willing to do it because Job pretty much trumps Vacation. Thankfully, we found out today that we will be able stick to the original "Painstakingly Researched Itinerary in the Blue Notebook"... so all is on track.

Would you like a preview of this oh-so-perfect (ha!) itinerary?!?! You're getting one anyhow...

(Note: I thought I would be all clever here and insert a table from one of my itinerary documents from the "Blue Notebook"-- but apparently you can't cut and paste tables into blogger? Or if you can, I don't yet know how...)

Itinerary from the "Blue Notebook"

May 28 Tuscumbia, AL
May 29 Lake Dardanelle State Park, AR
May 30 Flying W Ranch-- Sayre, OK
May 31 Gallup, NM
June 1 Grand Canyon, AZ
June 2 Calico Ghost Town-- Barstow, CA
June 3 Carpinteria State Beach, CA
June 4 Sequoia National Park, CA
June 5 Sequoia
June 6 Yosemite National Park, CA
June 7 Yosemite
June 8 Yosemite
June 9 Las Vegas, NV
June 10 Zion National Park, UT
June 11 Mesa Verde National Park, CO
June 12 Gunnison, CO
June 13 Colorado Springs, CO
June 14 Abilene, KS
June 15 Benton, IL
June 16 Home!!

Just for the record, that's 17 states and nearly 6000 miles in 20 days.

Yeah, we're crazy...

Our Pianist

Abbie had her first piano recital this past Saturday. She has thoroughly enjoyed her lessons with "Mrs. Sylvia" this year and we are very proud of her progress. Unlike her parents when they were her age, she enjoys practicing piano and rarely has to be asked twice to do so! We only wish we lived closer to "Aunt Missy" so that she could give her lessons (at a family discount, of course!!).

Abbie played two solos and one duet with her piano teacher's teenage daughter. Due to some technical difficulties, we only have one song recorded in it's entirety-- here is a video (hopefully!) of one of her solo pieces called "First Cha-cha-cha".

There was a nice reception after the recital and then we spent some time in a lovely little rose garden outside of the church. The girls both agreed that, "Anna would love this place!!" So we had to take pictures there as well:

One recital down... one to go... and then we're off!!!