A new adventure begins.

Finally taking a moment to write the new blog. Trying to find the energy to do it seems to be a struggle. I figure the best thing to do is just start. So we are on day three, or is it day two. We can't seem to agree here. We are not to far from home yet, but having a great time. the first night we found a rest stop to sleep at. pulled into our campground Monday afternoon. We will stay here until Thursday morning.

 Monday we visited Mono Lake. Another lake very salty.The kids had a great time floating and wading in the water. There are no fish, but tons of tiny brine shrimp. The lake also has very large tufa. A calcium alkalian deposit from the ancient lake.

Today we visited the ghost town of Bodie. We thought of you often Lyndsay. The kids enjoyed touring this once apon a time town. We had to drive over unpaved roads for a bit. All got a jostle, especially the ones in the back. Mark and two of the boys decided to take the kayak to the lake again. Overall, a nice relaxing start to this adventure.

one of the best times for the kids has been meeting some of the kids here at the campground. I have never seen a bigger concentration of foreign visitors anywhere. They have made great friends from Isreal. They have been learning Hebrew from them. We are on our way to inside Yosemite tomorrow. Not planning on going to far inside, just enough to make Noah miserable.

Some pictures, out of order of course....

Lovely ladies enjoying Mono Lake

The ghost town of Bodie. Caught us some spooky ones.

"They took my hair and my twinkie!!"

Let the adventure begin!!!

A new Adventure

trip home part 2

after the fire.

hanging out in lake havasue

look at those muscles

hi ho hi ho

London bridges falling down.......

bird snorkeling

haven't showered in two days. we can only stand each other---true love.

posers

beauty

mommy showing Jae the latest dance moves.

creeping shadow

ahh we have come to the last blog of our trip. when we left off, we were almost into Arizona on Sunday. sure we will be home by that evening. while driving, mark noticed a truck slowing down near him. mark figured we might have a flat so pulls over.next thing i know, he is yelling that we are on fire.laughing and sure that he is joking, i am admiring the dedication he is putting into this joke. even going so far as to take off his hat and start hitting the tire. when he runs over yelling for the fire extinguisher, i now realize that hmmmm we may actually be on fire. i run out barefoot(not that me having shoes on really has anything to do with the story, but i wanted to show that i was trying to help regardless of any discomfort--gosh i'm a giver). well back to the story. as mark and i are frantically looking for the fire extinguisher in the trailer(well mark was, i couldn't get up cause the stairs were not down.) well, Anthony grabs two soda cups in the van, and puts out the fire. our hero. realized Elijah had seen a truck driver pointing down. he thought they were waving, and he waved back, thinking how nice and friendly he was.. so the fire is out, it is getting late, and than it starts to rain. mark is so tired, he has a hard time making since of the tow truck driver. we finally get into lake havisu, and the tow truck driver lets us stay in the lot so we can get looked at first thing in the morning. next morning, while the mechanic looks at the trailer, we look around and enjoy the beauty of the lake and London bridges. we were lucky the mechanic was able to get us back on the road early in the afternoon. our wheel bearings went out. after a few more stops along the way, we got home at 7 pm. we were all tired and stinky, but glad to be home. we have had an amazing time on this trip. i hope the memories stay with the kids for a lifetime. visiting with family and our awesome friends really made the trip very special. i hope all who read this can find an adventure of their own with family or friends.

"nora" "you look like my aunt","honkey donkey", Asher skipping, Billy bars, Noah"i believe you." Asher"i hate you", daddy falling off Anthony,

trip home part 1

road kill

Asher just pushed Jae in the fountain.

Oklahoma bombing memorial

picnic in the grass.

abandoned gas station

resting after eating at the big Texan ranch steak house

cheap child labor

snow in Arizona

playing in the snow with flip flops. so California.

duck mom!!!

aiming up for a perfect shot.

since the last few days of our trip were so busy and eventful, i am splitting it in two.started Saturday by getting into Oklahoma. found the memorial site and spent a pleasant afternoon there. we have been to many memorial and this was one of the nicest. it was well done and there were many people there to answer any questions. after a quick picnic, on the road again. while driving, came up on an abandoned gas station. had to look there for a bit. driving into Texas, was able to stop at a steak house for dinner. thanks tom for the suggestion, but we did not eat the 72 ounce steak. although Noah and mark was sure they were up to the challenge. mark drove pretty much through the night and got into and through most of Arizona by the next day(Sunday). who would have thought that it was Arizona that we saw the most snow. mark is sure we will be home by Sunday late night, i am thinking more by Monday. nothing could possibly happen so close to home. hahahahaha.

natural bridge in Virginia

natural bridge cavern

two new diners at the last supper. can i get a to go bag.

MLK

real Memphis BBQ

just a quick post to fill in a few of the missing days.. spent Thurs. at the natural bridge in Virginia. when we got there, found out it was home school day and got in half price. yay!!! on Friday we went to the MLK museum   and motel where he was shot. very interesting and educational. drove many miles in between. need to get some pictures and finish the rest. unpacking now and getting kids in the shower, so will finish up tomorrow

goodbye Kamp Short

camp food is rough

i'd like a fry with that.

look at me!!!!

"PSST Asher, wanna pee in the fire?"

king of the fire.

started our day a bit later than we thought. mark did a great job of getting out of Kamp Short with minimal damage to their property. a great big thanks to tom and Dottie short for their awesome hospitality. expected to drive many many hours today. sort of made several stops instead. stopped at a civil war battleground for our daily education, mark pulled in a campground to just turn around.......and immediately got stuck. oh tom we needed you than. man walks up to mark and asks," why do people do stuff like that?" we may never know the answer. driving out of town, saw a few confederate flags flying proudly, and wondered the same thing.... later on stopped at a rest area and saw some cows. the large hill beckoned all but Noah and i. i thought mark trying to cross his eyes was sad, then i saw him trying to roll down the hill. many laughs. stopped early for the night and the kids and mark made a nice fire. staying here in natural bridge Virginia for a bit tomorrow than many many hours of driving.