Saturday, November 29, 2008

On to Virginia...

We left Missouri at about 4 in the morning, so I got to see my first prairie sunrise as we where entering Illinois. Ya know what, the mountains really are in the way. :o)

We were in Illinois for long enough to see the big arch and to cross the Mississippi & Missouri rivers. Then we drove across the bottom of Indiana.

Shane loved Indiana. Wooded, rolling hills scattered with beautiful (very well taken care of) farm houses. How could my farm boy not love it there? Kentucky was a lot like Indiana, lots of hill, lots of trees. Just a bit rockier and full for signs advertising distillery tours :o)

West Virginia is mountain country. Not the towering Rockies, but smoother, rounder mountains. The West Virginia cities we saw were crammed into smaller valleys than Utah cities are. The houses are built on the mountain benches and father up the mountain. It was surprising to see how much city they could fit into such small spaces. By then it was getting dark. I can't wait to drive thru again, in the day time to see West Virginia better.

We've had a great time while in Virginia...but I think I'll save that for another post.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

The Girl From Utah...or Geographically Challenged

*So I grew up in Utah. I have always lived in the Rockies. I have listened patiently while N-B (my college roommate) described prairie sunrises and complained about the mountains getting in the way of the view. And I listened with amusement as she talked about claustrophobia and the fear that the mountains would someday come crashing down on us. I have read Willa Cather’s description of a charmed childhood on the Plains. But I could never believe that anywhere could be as beautiful as my mountain home.
*My education began on Friday, when Shane, the boys and I loaded down the old Saturn and headed across this great wide US of A.
*I have always felt like driving into Wyoming is like coming to the top of the world. You drive up up up until you come out on top of the mountains. It feels like your above everything. As you continue across WY the feeling fades, especially as you climb “The Sisters” in between Evanston and the Bridgerland. Keep going east on I 80 and pretty soon all you see is sage brush and the big beautiful sky.
*Most people think that that part of WY is ugly. Since my view of the sky has always been obstructed by the mountains I find WY to be stunning! The stillness and the size of the sky are unimaginable.
*Nebraska is big and flat, and kind of boring to drive across. I did find it interesting that the cities and towns aren’t right off the freeway. In Utah our cities are hemmed in, between the mountains and the lake in Provo and SLC. Or they’re crammed into a valley, like in Logan. We have serious space limitations. On the Plains, with unlimited space, nothing is against the freeway, because nothing has to be.
*We did all this driving in one day. From Logan, thru WY and NE, into Missouri, for a visit with Tara and Kent and their girls. We were on the road for 19 hours!!! (I can’t describe MO because it was dark for all of our driving there)
*We had a great time at Tara and Kent’s. We finally got to see their VERY cute new house. We also got to see Kent’s school. I always love when my kids get a chance to play with Ali, Bri and Madi. They always have fun and I always hope they are build friendships that will be with them into adulthood (like I have with some of my cousins)
*I love to spend time in the kitchen with Tara. I think it is because we are the same kind mom. We both strive to find balance between our home and the world. We are both interesting in learning new ways to be self-sufficient. And we (Tara much more than I) are trying to break out of our “raised on a farm” “white bread” “meat and potato” eating habits. Tara is a great example to me in this. She always has good ideas on healthy eating habits.
*I have much more to write about our drive across this GIANT glorious country. But this post is already too long. I’ll post again soon.
*Happy Thanksgiving. I hope your all well and happy.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Our (crazy) new life...

Most of you know by now that the boys started public school this year so that I could go back to work. Our new life is crazy busy...

Perrin and Connor are really doing well in school. We just had our first conference. Perrin received the highest grade for math and Connor received the highest grade for reading and spelling. (I guess they don't use A, B, & C anymore, now it's 1 thru 4.)

My new job (yeah Wendy's) is crazy hard and a ton of work!!! Man! Am I wishing now that I had gotten a degree in my 20's.( Dad, it would be okay if you say "I told you so.") All-in-all, it's a pretty good place to work and sometimes it's even fun :o)

Shane is still doing what he does best: working hard and taking care of all of us. He really is the light of my life.

Our fam is preparing for our big Thanksgiving trip to Virgina. We got a new car stereo (cuz Auntie Joyce's old Saturn didn't have a CD player.) And we now have an on board DVD, so the boys can watch movies and play Play Station on the road. I'm so so so excited for this trip!

I hope your all well and happy. Write to me and tell me about your Thanksgiving plans.