We've embarked on a new season in our lives, one of separation from our dad/husband, and one of getting as close to nomads as I can manage. And so it was that on Tuesday, August 21, we packed up our van, said tearful goodbyes to Shad, and hit the road, destined for Leavenworth, Kansas, a suburb of Kansas City.
For the sake of this blog, I'm numbering instead of naming my kids.
I love that they posed like this on their own!
{Five, Two, Four, One, Three}
It was a beautiful, gray, misty day! While I have no desire to revisit certain parts of my life in Kansas, this did my soul good.
We stopped at our favorite gas stop in Kansas, The Oasis in Colby, where the kids got to play at the playground for a bit after we gassed up and used the bathroom. We also bought saltwater taffy, which turned out to be great because not only did we all enjoy it throughout the trip, but it also served as a desirable alternative for Five if there were treats offered to us that he couldn't have.
We stayed the night with Rachel Johnson's sister, who lives around the corner from her. Rachel Johnson was in my ward when I was growing up and I used to babysit her kids. I remember specifically that I babysat while she and Andrew went to see Bourne Identity. I also remember feeling like they overpaid me and even though I fought it with Andrew, he refused to see my way and I his. So I'd leave some bills in the car. True confessions, Rach! Anyway, when I was needing a place to stay to bridge us over to Louisville, I reached out and they were happy to accommodate me. Then Rachel's sister took us in because Rachel was going to borrow mattresses from her. It was fun to visit and catch up on each others lives for a night. In the morning, we departed for Louisville, with a midway stop in St. Louis.
Growing up, any time my family went on road trips, my sisters and I would request to stop at the border sign to take a picture, or to get dropped off by the "leaving..." sign and picked up at the "welcome to..." sign so that we could claim we had walked to Utah or Wyoming or whatever state. I realized on this trip that that isn't always possible when you're driving in the east and most borders are defined by rivers and the signs are on bridges without shoulders.
I love driving through rock walls!
While I did most of the trip planning, the kids did pitch in requests like, "If we're ever in St. Louis again, can we ride up the Arch? And climb Cahokia Mounds again?" And so we did.
This is the tram ride up the Gateway Arch.
{Four, Three, me, Five, Two, One}
{Two, Three, Five, One, Four}
{Five and One}
{One, Five, Four, Two}
Aerial view of the Mississippi.
{Four, One, Three, me, Five, Two}
The domed building is a museum; the circle on the ground is the new entrance to the Arch.
Three wanted a picture just with me. She made several photo requests during the trip.
All loaded up in the tram pod.
You know, because I didn't grab a picture of the kids in front of it.
Welcome to Illinois!
Just 15 miles east of St. Louis lies an ancient Native American site called Cahokia. This civilization was a booming metropolis with a population of 20,000 in 1250 AD, exceeding London's population at the same time period. The Cahokians built many earthen mounds, the most prominent of which is called Monk's Mound. It has a base larger than that Pyramid of Giza and those people built it one woven backpack of dirt at a time. At present day, it is a 152-stair climb to the top.
You can see the Gateway Arch in the distance.
Zoomed in
{Two, One, me, Three, Four, Five}
Everyone climbed all the stairs up and down on their own. There was no carrying this year.
Illinois was beautiful to drive through, with a gorgeous hazy sunset.
Welcome to Kentucky!
Our destination was to stay with my cousin Eric and family, which was really nice because they live with his wife Maria's parents, so it was a doubly nice hosting situation.
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