Home Sweet Home

Our stuff finally arrived and we unpacked quickly. Most things made the trip just fine, but Lilly's bed and the crib were both broken in transit. This was disappointing as I only really wanted the kids to have their beds back. Lilly has a bunk bed. So we were able to set up the other bed from the set and she was in business. Nora on the other hand is spending her 33rd night in  a Pak n' Play. This makes me sad. 

On a bright note, Tom should be able to fix the break tomorrow (now that we have garage space and tools unpacked.) So, Nora should be in her own bed tomorrow night! Fingers crossed!!

We have definitely made the best of our time here. We toured a historic plantation, celebrated the Fourth with our old friends the Frenches, went to the beach, visited the French Quarter, and went on a swamp tour. Here are some shots from the festivities!! 

  (photo credit: Garrett Mahaney)

This plantation was known as Oak Alley... now you know why. They said those trees are 300 years old. (photo credit: Garrett Mahaney)

 I toyed with posting this and saying it was a picture of our house! Oh well, I was really taking a picture of the 2+ story tall crape myrtle tree for my mom! Aren't they beautiful?!?

I have to admit, I went into the Plantation tour a little hesitant. I was mostly concerned about the portrayal of the atrocities around slavery. There was an area specifically dedicated to depicting the slave quarters. There was also a memorial with the name of each slave who worked on the property written on the wall. The reality of seeing those 120 names on the wall was moving. The tour was family-oriented and I think they did a reasonable job of respectfully discussing the horrors of slavery while not glamorizing it. As you can tell, the grounds were spectacular. 

Our 4th was a little unconventional... but we had some great food and a great time setting off fireworks!

The beach is a little different here... the water is warm and we had a really nice day playing in the sand and looking for shells in the "surf."

We got a (very hot) quiet morning in the Quarter. It was nice to walk around and showed Judy the sites (Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral) before the afternoon crowds hit.

Last weekend we surprised Garrett with a swamp tour. The girls are too little to be safe on a trip like this and we were both very excited to spend an afternoon with our soon to 8th grader! 

Judy and Garrett both left last week. The house is very quiet and we are settling into a bit of a routine. I guess what I have been reminded of most over the last month is that home is where we make it. 

So, Low-eese-yana will be our "Home Sweet Home" for now!

Finish Line

We made it! Actually, we've been here several days. Unfortunately, our finish was less of a triumphant leap and more of a head-long, staggering dive for the ribbon with lots of writhing and complaining at the end.

So, we have been recovering... and adjusting... (mostly to the HEAT!)

When we left Iowa we stopped over for a night at the Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City. We got to catch up with our old neighbors (and dear friends) the Turcottes. The Lodge was a blast, but WOW! I think I even had some sensory overload!! (Check out Lilly's expression in almost every picture!)

After we left Kansas City we headed for Oklahoma. On the way we found out that our stuff wasn't going to be delivered to our new home on June 30 (as scheduled), but instead on July 10...

I'm just going to let that sink in. July 10.

TWELVE days with no furniture, no kitchen items, no sanity!!

Despite the setback, we made it to my mom's for a quick two nights. We did manage to catch up with my friend Tiffany and her girls and spend the afternoon with the world's greatest octogenarians!! We rode the tractor, ate bar-b-que, and made two trips to the snocone stand.

While we were in Shawnee, we also managed to relieve Nana & Papa of some "extra" pots, pans, pillows, blankets, kitchen items, and SANITY!

We arrived here on June 29 and the only picture I have taken since is of Tom's first day of "school." I even made him stand on the front porch AND he did it!! I told you we were short on sanity...

Part of this is pure, unabashed laziness... Part of it is that it is so hot outside that every time I take my camera out the lens fogs up!

I promise pictures are forthcoming... we have a few outings planned over the weekend and there is that whole national holiday thing coming up. At least it is socially acceptable to eat with plastic forks and knives on the Fourth of July!

Down Time... Finally!

I wouldn't say we have been spending our days eating Bon Bons and watching daytime TV, but we finally got some time to relax!

For me, trips to Iowa are always relaxing. Visiting your in-laws is a great time when there are no expectations of you. No one really cares about seeing me here. Tom, on the other hand, has lots of loved ones to see and favorite haunts to revisit. I'm just along for the ride. It's great!!

Judy had an open house on Saturday. I have no idea how many people came to their house, but it was FULL for nearly 6 hours! It was lovely to chat and catch-up with everyone, but I failed to take many pictures.

I only half-heartedly apologize. This is my down time, remember!

I did get a shot of Eleanor Mahaney and Eleanor Beacom. The elder Eleanor was so fun to visit with and she even brought the kids gifts and some delicious cookies for all of us. She is 96. What an amazing woman!!

Yesterday morning Tom channeled his PacNW roots and got his lumberjack on in his folks backyard. Happily we did NOT visit the St. Luke's ER afterward!

Tom's brother Doug has two kids with birthdays in June, so we celebrated Colton (18) and Lindsay (16) last night.

After the party we went to watch Grace Mahaney and the Saders win a makeup softball game. Lilly LOVED acting like a big girl in the pre-game warm-ups... I definitely had a few flashes of our future!! 

Ms. Nora has taken a likely to her Grandpa Tom. She is pretty sweet when she cuddles in!

You may be wondering where Garrett is... he and his cousins have been running hard around town. I'm sure some long hours have been logged on the X-Box at his Aunt Jenny's house too. We figure it is good for him to get some space from us. The adventure starts again tomorrow morning and he'll have all the family time he will desire! :)

Fuel Crisis 2014

We made it out of town and we made it to Coeur d'Alene! We had a wonderful evening on the Weeda Farm including firearms, chickens, lots of dogs, and rosters!! The kids had a ball!

Least you think we've figured out the driving cross country thing, I'd like to tell you a little story about what happened after we said our goodbyes to Brad, Char, & Maizie...

About 20 miles east of Missoula, Montana in an absolutely stunning part of the country which also happens to be completely devoid of filling stations, Lilly announces she needs a pit stop. Being road-hardy people, I turn on my blinker and begin to merge over to allow her to make a minor addition to the local watershed. When I glance down, I realize the fuel light is on...

HOW COULD THIS BE?!?! We just filled up in Coeur d'Alene! We're only 200 miles down the road.

I hadn't even looked, because we'd estimated much higher fuel consumption. I mean the trailer is larger and my Mario Andretti impression that morning probably hadn't helped, but 10 miles per gallon!?!?! I was ticked. How could this be?

And then my heart stood still. How would we get gas? We're 20 miles from any fuel pump and a turn around. CRAP!

We let Lilly out and formulated a plan. Tom would go ahead and find a station, then call me (at least we had cell service). If I ran out, he'd be that much closer to getting back to us.

We got back in the car and white knuckled our way down the highway. I may or may not have actually breathed...

13 miles down the road the lovely village of Drummond, Montana came into view AND they had a fabulously open gas station!! YEAH!!! We made it! Here's the picture to prove it.

And here is how much gas we took... That's right folks - 0.3 gallons remaining.

I stared at the gauge all day. As we'd feared the gas mileage with the new trailer and a full car is terrible. At some points I'm sure I could actually see the gauge falling toward the "E."

In the end we made it to Sioux City safe and sound although we hit a very bright colored bird that is still wedged in the radiator... it made it to Sioux City too, but not so much on the safe or sound.

It has rained A LOT in the 4 hours we've been here, but we didn't encounter any road closures coming into town. Garrett is already out running around town with cousins and Lilly is watching Frozen (again) with others!