Day 2

Please forgive the fact that you're getting these several days after the fact. We haven't found wifi since Day 1 (we're getting gas now and I jumped on the gas station's wifi!!!), so I'm a little behind. Also, my computer's battery appears to by dying, maybe permanently...but I am writing posts and you should see them eventually, don't give up! =)

Day 2 started out a little on the slow side—partially because we were in Mississippi (I’m not sure what that has to do with anything…but it does) and partially because I’d only had one cup of coffee. Hotel coffee. Aka: Theoretically-it-had-Caffeine-but-I’m-Not-Convinced Coffee.

I spent the next seven hours or so looking for coffee.

Eventually we found a Starbucks. Don’t worry.

Back to the beginning of the day. Not much happened. We passed a creek called Dancing Rabbit Creek, which I thought was a fun name. I’m filing that away to use in a story sometime…

Speaking of stories, I’m getting all kinds of writing/brainstorming done on this trip. Something about just driving through the country, looking out the window, is really good for creativity.

The boys seem to be having a decent time so far. We’re having some issues getting them to nap, which is resulting in very tired kiddos, but I think they’ll get it. At one point yesterday we saw a crop dusting plane really close to the road. Josh thought that was pretty awesome. When it disappeared from our view, we saw a train on the other side of the road. So pretty much that was a four year old boy’s dream vacation, right there. Planes and trains.

The southern part of Arkansas (which we finally got into after a brief trip through Louisiana—pretty bayous there!), is mostly rice patties and nothingness, but by the time we got to Little Rock, it was starting to feel like home. We lived in Conway for five years, and while that isn’t long in the grand scheme of things, we agreed that Arkansas still feels familiar and homey. That was nice to discover.

After lunch we passed from central Arkansas into Northern Arkansas. Ah, mountains! The Ozarks are beautiful, the way they gently roll and climb higher. The views from several points were amazing, and it looks almost like you could just walk across the tree tops. Those views were probably my favorite part.

We stayed at Devil’s Den State Park and got to visit with a friend of ours too! Overall a pretty good day.

Crazy Alaska Road Trip Take 2 Day 1!

Ah, Day 1. You were everything Day 1 should’ve been.

We started in Georgia (obviously) at 9:35 this morning. That’s not entirely true. We actually started at about 5:45 this morning, but somehow it really took that long to get everything loaded (which is funny, because I really thought we were loaded last night…?) and the house ready to leave (which is also funny, because I thought it was ready last night…?). But what can you do?

At 9:54 we made our first stop for gas.

At 10:05 we had the first singing of “On the Road Again.”

At 10:21 someone started singing “Rubber Ducky,” an old Sesame Street song from the nineties that has come to embody the “I’m going crazy on a roadtrip” feeling that everyone gets eventually…Although it usually comes later in the day than this.

Haha, it should’ve been a warning. ;)

At 11:41 we hit road construction. Really? REALLY??? (I might have had a small Memphis in 2011 flashback…)

In all seriousness, it was actually a fairly good first day. The landscape didn’t change much, since we’re still in the deep south, but I tried to see everything with new eyes and take it all in, just to make today more interesting. But I couldn’t really escape the fact that today is just not the most scenic day of our trip. The tall Georgia pines gave way to Alabama pines, to Mississippi pines. Not much caught our eye, except a few pretty rivers and from the top of a couple of hills there was a nice view. There are subtle differences in the landscapes between the states… I can detect just the slightest difference in the trees especially. Mississippi in particular has…fluffier trees. I’m not sure how else to say that.

Random things from today…We saw a fish and tackle shop called “The Funky Skunk.” That was pretty funny. In a little town in Alabama, we had to take a detour through a random small neighborhood because something was going on on the bridge on the main road. At first we thought maybe the bridge was out, which I thought was weird. There were police cars and I thought I saw tanks, maybe…? And then there was a crowd of people on the bridge. Random, right? I’m totally googling that to find out what was up…

In other news, I’ve discovered that I probably can’t move to Mississippi or Alabama. At 2:23 I began the search for Starbucks. It told me we’d find a Starbucks that was on our route in a couple hundred miles I think. Over a hundred anyway. Just. Too. Far.

We stopped for the night later than we'd meant to, in some little town near Vicksburg, MS, and got a hotel since it was already so late. 

All in all, I don’t think any of us wish we’d flown yet, and in 2011, that was something even I wished (I hate flying, in case you are uninformed on that), so I think so far it’s going better. Which is a relief since we have twice as many kids in about half the space of the last trip!

Looking forward to CARTT2 Day 2! On to Arkansas, and beyond!

Leaving TODAY!!!

AHHHHHHH!!!!!

AHHHHHHH!!!!!

AHHHHHHH!!!!!

I keep trying to think of something to say, to update you, let you know we are supposed to be leaving in 2 HOURS.

But all that comes out is AHHHHHHH!!!!

Excitement? Totally wondering what we are thinking? More excitement.

Yes.

Here We Go!

Testing 1-2-3.

Facebook world,  blogosphere, anyone else...Here's your big chance to make sure you don't miss my Alaska Trip 2014 photos and updates, also known henceforth as Crazy Alaska Road Trip Take 2 or CARTT2. =)

Seriously, though? When we packed four adults and a 12 month old into an RV in 2011, I think we thought we were a little crazy to be driving 8,000 miles round trip. I think everyone else thought that too.

But why not take it a step further, right? This year the plan is to pack four adults, a four year old, and a twenty-one month old into a crew cab F-150, pulling a camper and packing a tent.

Go ahead and let that soak in for a minute.

We are ridiculously excited, crazy busy packing, and desperately wondering how to get a house clean to prepare for being gone for a month with two little people here to "help."

But I wanted to take a quick break to let you know my blog address again, to tell you that I'm planning to update daily (with pictures this year, really!!) and that I think should follow us. And comment. Because I love comments and I blog more when I get comments.

(In the words of one of my college professors "somebody please affirm me!!!")

Thanks for reading and hopefully keeping up with us during our trip!