So, even though I know I told everyone that I was definitely going to keep updating this blog, it is plain to see I simply haven't. One reason for that is that I don't really think anyone is reading it anymore. So why am I writing this post? Honestly, I don't know. I guess I just wanted to make sure that on the off chance that someone was actually reading this anymore, they would have something to read. Maybe I just felt like blogging.
Anyway, for the possible people who are reading this, I want you to know that I don't think I will be using this blog anymore. I may possibly start a different blog, and if I do I will let you know somehow. So... sadly this is farewell. I hope everyone enjoyed this blog for the short time it was active.
Love from the bottom of my heart,
Aftyn
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Post-Trip Bloggery
Hey!
For those of you who still read this, I wanted to give you a little update. From now on I'm just going to think of snazzy titles to give my posts, since the "Day ___" thing is kinda done now. As for this one, I felt that since I started this blog out with a "Pre-Trip Bloggery" I should bring the trip portion to a close with a "Post-Trip Bloggery". Makes sense, right?
Anyway, a lot of people have asked me how I'm feeling now that the trip is over. Am I sad that we are done with it? Do I feel like I missed out on anything? Or am I happy that it's over? Well... the answer is.... all of the above, and much more! Tim and I had so much fun this past month, and we made so many amazing memories that we will never forget! We saw some pretty awesome sights, met lots of cool people, visited with family, and had the adventure of a lifetime! Now that we are back, we both feel a little sad that that journey had to come to an end. There is still so much in the country that we didn't get a chance to see, either because of time or money constraints. Sure we saw a good chunk of it, but our country is a big place! A fact we are much more aware of after the long, long, and did I mention long drive across it... twice. Which brings me to the question of us being happy now that we finally reached an end to our travels. Being on the road has a lot of neat perks. Such as, we don't have to worry about keeping a house clean, we don't have any "house rules" to follow, we get plenty of time alone... and of course we get a top-rate, first-hand look at the often breathtaking views countryside has to offer. The mountains, the valleys, the lakes, and even the deserts. But after a while, driving gets to be a little... painful. And the desert is beautiful at first, but once you see it, non-stop, for about 400+ miles... it gets kinda old. And while mountains are awe inspiring from a distance, up close they tend to be hilly and full of sharp turns... in other words, not a relaxing drive. And if you aren't really sure how many miles it is from one side of the US to the other, let me tell you. We put over 8,100 miles on our car during this trip, not to mention the other 2,000 miles we flew. I'll pause to give you a moment to visualize that. . . . .
Now, does any of this make me regret our decision to drive, or the trip in general? HECK NO! These experiences gave me a much greater respect for the features that make our country so great, as well as the overall size of our country! I used to take it for granted how easy it is for me to get peaches from Georgia, steak from Texas, and grapes (ok, wine) from California. Now that I've seen the distances all that has to come to get to me, I am fully aware that I would not be partaking in any of that if not for people willing to make that drive on a regular basis. Well, or for the invention of airplanes. But we saw an awful lot of truckers making long hauls in the middle of the night, surely just so that you could have fresh fruit at your local Giant/Safeway/Walmart the next morning. So forget the troops, next time you see one, thank a trucker! Well, maybe you should thank the troops too.
Anyway, Tim and I had tons of fun on our trip and are so grateful to everyone who helped us out before we left, and along the way! Daddy, Momma, Karen & Mommom, Grandma Boots, Uncle Bob & Aunt Jenn, Grandma Judy & Grandpa Tom, Aunt Patti & Uncle Bill, Uncle Kirk & Aunt Linda, Uncle Bruce, Heather & Kim, and a HUGE thank you to Uncle John! Without you all this would have never been possible! It was an amazing experience, and one I know Tim and I will never forget!
The other question I'm getting a lot is "what now"? Well, that's a great question! The hunt for a job is on, full swing! So, if anyone catches wind of something that smells like a job, point me in that direction and let me loose! Seriously though, if anyone has any suggestions or leads I'd love to hear about them! You can message me here (I fixed the comment issue, I think), or you can e-mail me at AGarvin@gmail.com with anything you find. Tim is also looking for a job, but he still has a bit more school to finish up. So he's looking for part-time things like Help Desk, and Sales Associate. Still, let me know if you hear about anything like that opening up. We are planning on staying in PA for a while, but you know how plans are... Pretty Lies And Nasty Surprises. Before you ask Mom, yeah, I came up with that one on my own. Anyhoo, we really appreciate you all keeping an eye out for jobs for us! You're the best!
Remember to keep on checking in!
For those of you who still read this, I wanted to give you a little update. From now on I'm just going to think of snazzy titles to give my posts, since the "Day ___" thing is kinda done now. As for this one, I felt that since I started this blog out with a "Pre-Trip Bloggery" I should bring the trip portion to a close with a "Post-Trip Bloggery". Makes sense, right?
Anyway, a lot of people have asked me how I'm feeling now that the trip is over. Am I sad that we are done with it? Do I feel like I missed out on anything? Or am I happy that it's over? Well... the answer is.... all of the above, and much more! Tim and I had so much fun this past month, and we made so many amazing memories that we will never forget! We saw some pretty awesome sights, met lots of cool people, visited with family, and had the adventure of a lifetime! Now that we are back, we both feel a little sad that that journey had to come to an end. There is still so much in the country that we didn't get a chance to see, either because of time or money constraints. Sure we saw a good chunk of it, but our country is a big place! A fact we are much more aware of after the long, long, and did I mention long drive across it... twice. Which brings me to the question of us being happy now that we finally reached an end to our travels. Being on the road has a lot of neat perks. Such as, we don't have to worry about keeping a house clean, we don't have any "house rules" to follow, we get plenty of time alone... and of course we get a top-rate, first-hand look at the often breathtaking views countryside has to offer. The mountains, the valleys, the lakes, and even the deserts. But after a while, driving gets to be a little... painful. And the desert is beautiful at first, but once you see it, non-stop, for about 400+ miles... it gets kinda old. And while mountains are awe inspiring from a distance, up close they tend to be hilly and full of sharp turns... in other words, not a relaxing drive. And if you aren't really sure how many miles it is from one side of the US to the other, let me tell you. We put over 8,100 miles on our car during this trip, not to mention the other 2,000 miles we flew. I'll pause to give you a moment to visualize that. . . . .
Now, does any of this make me regret our decision to drive, or the trip in general? HECK NO! These experiences gave me a much greater respect for the features that make our country so great, as well as the overall size of our country! I used to take it for granted how easy it is for me to get peaches from Georgia, steak from Texas, and grapes (ok, wine) from California. Now that I've seen the distances all that has to come to get to me, I am fully aware that I would not be partaking in any of that if not for people willing to make that drive on a regular basis. Well, or for the invention of airplanes. But we saw an awful lot of truckers making long hauls in the middle of the night, surely just so that you could have fresh fruit at your local Giant/Safeway/Walmart the next morning. So forget the troops, next time you see one, thank a trucker! Well, maybe you should thank the troops too.Anyway, Tim and I had tons of fun on our trip and are so grateful to everyone who helped us out before we left, and along the way! Daddy, Momma, Karen & Mommom, Grandma Boots, Uncle Bob & Aunt Jenn, Grandma Judy & Grandpa Tom, Aunt Patti & Uncle Bill, Uncle Kirk & Aunt Linda, Uncle Bruce, Heather & Kim, and a HUGE thank you to Uncle John! Without you all this would have never been possible! It was an amazing experience, and one I know Tim and I will never forget!
The other question I'm getting a lot is "what now"? Well, that's a great question! The hunt for a job is on, full swing! So, if anyone catches wind of something that smells like a job, point me in that direction and let me loose! Seriously though, if anyone has any suggestions or leads I'd love to hear about them! You can message me here (I fixed the comment issue, I think), or you can e-mail me at AGarvin@gmail.com with anything you find. Tim is also looking for a job, but he still has a bit more school to finish up. So he's looking for part-time things like Help Desk, and Sales Associate. Still, let me know if you hear about anything like that opening up. We are planning on staying in PA for a while, but you know how plans are... Pretty Lies And Nasty Surprises. Before you ask Mom, yeah, I came up with that one on my own. Anyhoo, we really appreciate you all keeping an eye out for jobs for us! You're the best!
Remember to keep on checking in!
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Day Thirty-Three: Home again, home again.
Well, sort of. Tim and I made it to Grandma and Grandpa's house in PA this morning around 5 am. It feels like it was yesterday though, because we went straight to sleep and didn't wake up until around noon. It was so sweet though, because our cousins Katarina and Samantha came down to wake us up... and it was apparently very difficult for them to wait until 12 pm to do so considering they were at the house by 8 am. It was a wonderful wake up call for me, but I am glad they waited.
Of course they had Tim and I in action as soon as our feet hit the floor. I hardly had time to use the restroom and brush my teeth before Kati had me at the dinning room table making crafts. In the meantime, Tim was occupied by Sami in an intense game of Hide-and-Seek. When it got time for me to eat breakfast (or at this point it was more like lunch) Kati informed me that she had already had breakfast and lunch. We managed to stay pretty active until Grandma got home from work at 3, at which point we decided to go to Uncle Bob and Aunt Jenn's to swim! Grandpa had to go golfing, but the girls, Grandma, Tim and I all went. Luckily I was able to get in a cup of coffee before we left!
I've been wanting to go swimming for a while now, so I was happy to finally get to indulge in that... even if there wasn't much swimming in it for me. Mostly I just acted as a portable hanging pole for Kati and Sami, but it was lots of fun anyway! Shortly after Bob and Jenn got home we all had a delicious pizza dinner on the patio. Tim and I created mini copies of ourselves on the Nintendo Wii before I put the girls to bed. They both must have been really tired, because I had no problem getting them to sleep. I must have been really tired too, because I had no problem falling asleep right next to Kati when I put her to bed. When Uncle Bob came to wake me up it took me a minute to realize where I was... and why. I joined them downstairs on the patio where we chatted for a bit before heading back to Grandma and Grandpa's house. And that is where we are now, clean and ready for bed.
So, before you all start getting sad at the thought that this is the end of my blog (because I know that would be so devastating for so many of you, lol) I want you to know that I plan to continue updating. I will probably give it a new title after a while, and my posts will likely be less often, but I'll still be here. What will I blog about you ask? I'm not really sure yet, but all I know is that this was and is a blog about my journey with Tim. And honestly, that journey isn't over yet. We are sure to have plenty of other adventures in our lifetime, and I hope to continue sharing them with you all. As for now, most of what I talk about is probably going to be job-hunting info and details about the plans for our upcoming wedding. But you will just have to wait and see, as no one knows what the future may hold...
Love from North Versailles, PA!
Of course they had Tim and I in action as soon as our feet hit the floor. I hardly had time to use the restroom and brush my teeth before Kati had me at the dinning room table making crafts. In the meantime, Tim was occupied by Sami in an intense game of Hide-and-Seek. When it got time for me to eat breakfast (or at this point it was more like lunch) Kati informed me that she had already had breakfast and lunch. We managed to stay pretty active until Grandma got home from work at 3, at which point we decided to go to Uncle Bob and Aunt Jenn's to swim! Grandpa had to go golfing, but the girls, Grandma, Tim and I all went. Luckily I was able to get in a cup of coffee before we left!
I've been wanting to go swimming for a while now, so I was happy to finally get to indulge in that... even if there wasn't much swimming in it for me. Mostly I just acted as a portable hanging pole for Kati and Sami, but it was lots of fun anyway! Shortly after Bob and Jenn got home we all had a delicious pizza dinner on the patio. Tim and I created mini copies of ourselves on the Nintendo Wii before I put the girls to bed. They both must have been really tired, because I had no problem getting them to sleep. I must have been really tired too, because I had no problem falling asleep right next to Kati when I put her to bed. When Uncle Bob came to wake me up it took me a minute to realize where I was... and why. I joined them downstairs on the patio where we chatted for a bit before heading back to Grandma and Grandpa's house. And that is where we are now, clean and ready for bed.
So, before you all start getting sad at the thought that this is the end of my blog (because I know that would be so devastating for so many of you, lol) I want you to know that I plan to continue updating. I will probably give it a new title after a while, and my posts will likely be less often, but I'll still be here. What will I blog about you ask? I'm not really sure yet, but all I know is that this was and is a blog about my journey with Tim. And honestly, that journey isn't over yet. We are sure to have plenty of other adventures in our lifetime, and I hope to continue sharing them with you all. As for now, most of what I talk about is probably going to be job-hunting info and details about the plans for our upcoming wedding. But you will just have to wait and see, as no one knows what the future may hold...
Love from North Versailles, PA!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Day Thirty-One: The Mall of America
Hey! Guess what? We have been traveling for a whole month now! Unless you consider 30 days a month, but we don't, so there.
I have a lot to update you all on! First off, yesterday Tim and I drove from Sturgis to Mt. Rushmore. It was amazing! We walked through the exhibit and learned how it was carved and we learned all about the sculptor and workers who carved it. We didn't stay long because it was looking like it would storm, which it did. On our way to Minneapolis, we stopped by a big strip mall in Wall, SD called Wall Drug Store. They had many different little shops with Western clothes and food. They also had a big animatronic T-Rex! Once we left there, we passed through the storm and saw 2 complete rainbows! Tim decided it would be easier to drive all the way through to Minneapolis. He ended up driving until 4 am and we slept in the car on the side of the road. So needless to say we are quite tired right now. Therefore, if this post seems poorly written, I blame it on my extreme lack of restful sleep. It did save us from having to drive 3 to 4 hours this morning to the Mall of America, and of course it saved us money, so that's all good.
We got to the Mall around 8 am and basically sat around until almost 9:30... well, Tim slept, I just sat around. The parking garage had each level named after a state. We took pictures. Then it was time to go in... finally. Nothing really opened until after 10, but we got our tickets to the amusement park and the aquarium. Yeah, by the way, did you know there is a whole amusement park and aquarium inside this Mall? I did... that's why I wanted to go! It was really fun! The park had some really awesome rides, considering it was themed after Nickalodian, and had things like "Dora the Explorer", "Blue's Clues", and "The Fairly Odd Parents" plastered all over the place. Despite this childish theme, there were plenty of rides meant for the older crowds, like Tim and me. The aquarium was also really fun, if not a bit small. They had a really cool sea-horse exhibit, but the jellyfish were quite the show stoppers. They were displayed in large cylinders that ran from the floor to the ceiling, and the whole room was lit only by neon colored lights in the tanks. These lights were on a cycle to change every few seconds, so you could see each tank lit by all the colors at various times. Anyway, it was neat. My favorite part was probably the area where you got to touch the creatures... as those who know me might have guessed, I'm very curious and I really enjoy things that are hands-on like that. I basically got to pet several sea stars, some sea anemones, sea urchins, and chased a horse-shoe crab around with my hand. He wasn't very interested in me petting him.
After doing all of this, plus walking around and exploring the 3 huge levels of the Mall itself, we were beat. We decided we would stop at the next town that presented a good opportunity for rest. Then, we saw Afton. No, I'm not talking about another person named Afton... I'm talking about the town in Minnesota. We were amused, but didn't really plan on making anything of the town. Then we saw a sign for lodging advertising a place called Afton House Inn. What would you have done, really? We stopped, got the price (which was a bit steep, but not unreasonable) and decided that we wanted to stay in Afton at the Afton House Inn. It was just too funny to pass up. Unfortunately, the only standard room they had was not cleaned as the lady behind the counter was expecting. Actually, it wasn't that unfortunate, because she then decided to give us another room with a jacuzzi tub... a considerable upgrade... for the same price. I am inclined to think that my link to this town and inn through our common name played a hand in our good fortune. Wouldn't you agree?
Well, we may be at Grandma and Grandpa's by tomorrow if we feel like driving a lot... which at the moment we don't. We missed the fireworks, so I'm going to go enjoy our basically free jacuzzi tub. Night!
Love from Afton, MN!
I have a lot to update you all on! First off, yesterday Tim and I drove from Sturgis to Mt. Rushmore. It was amazing! We walked through the exhibit and learned how it was carved and we learned all about the sculptor and workers who carved it. We didn't stay long because it was looking like it would storm, which it did. On our way to Minneapolis, we stopped by a big strip mall in Wall, SD called Wall Drug Store. They had many different little shops with Western clothes and food. They also had a big animatronic T-Rex! Once we left there, we passed through the storm and saw 2 complete rainbows! Tim decided it would be easier to drive all the way through to Minneapolis. He ended up driving until 4 am and we slept in the car on the side of the road. So needless to say we are quite tired right now. Therefore, if this post seems poorly written, I blame it on my extreme lack of restful sleep. It did save us from having to drive 3 to 4 hours this morning to the Mall of America, and of course it saved us money, so that's all good.
We got to the Mall around 8 am and basically sat around until almost 9:30... well, Tim slept, I just sat around. The parking garage had each level named after a state. We took pictures. Then it was time to go in... finally. Nothing really opened until after 10, but we got our tickets to the amusement park and the aquarium. Yeah, by the way, did you know there is a whole amusement park and aquarium inside this Mall? I did... that's why I wanted to go! It was really fun! The park had some really awesome rides, considering it was themed after Nickalodian, and had things like "Dora the Explorer", "Blue's Clues", and "The Fairly Odd Parents" plastered all over the place. Despite this childish theme, there were plenty of rides meant for the older crowds, like Tim and me. The aquarium was also really fun, if not a bit small. They had a really cool sea-horse exhibit, but the jellyfish were quite the show stoppers. They were displayed in large cylinders that ran from the floor to the ceiling, and the whole room was lit only by neon colored lights in the tanks. These lights were on a cycle to change every few seconds, so you could see each tank lit by all the colors at various times. Anyway, it was neat. My favorite part was probably the area where you got to touch the creatures... as those who know me might have guessed, I'm very curious and I really enjoy things that are hands-on like that. I basically got to pet several sea stars, some sea anemones, sea urchins, and chased a horse-shoe crab around with my hand. He wasn't very interested in me petting him.
After doing all of this, plus walking around and exploring the 3 huge levels of the Mall itself, we were beat. We decided we would stop at the next town that presented a good opportunity for rest. Then, we saw Afton. No, I'm not talking about another person named Afton... I'm talking about the town in Minnesota. We were amused, but didn't really plan on making anything of the town. Then we saw a sign for lodging advertising a place called Afton House Inn. What would you have done, really? We stopped, got the price (which was a bit steep, but not unreasonable) and decided that we wanted to stay in Afton at the Afton House Inn. It was just too funny to pass up. Unfortunately, the only standard room they had was not cleaned as the lady behind the counter was expecting. Actually, it wasn't that unfortunate, because she then decided to give us another room with a jacuzzi tub... a considerable upgrade... for the same price. I am inclined to think that my link to this town and inn through our common name played a hand in our good fortune. Wouldn't you agree?
Well, we may be at Grandma and Grandpa's by tomorrow if we feel like driving a lot... which at the moment we don't. We missed the fireworks, so I'm going to go enjoy our basically free jacuzzi tub. Night!
Love from Afton, MN!
Friday, July 2, 2010
Day Twenty-Nine: Driving
Tim here,
Today we woke up and drove.
We made it to South Dakota, about an hour away from Mount Rushmore. We have laundry to do, so we decided to make it another early night. Tomorrow we will wake up early and see Mount Rushmore. 
Sorry this post isn't longer, but all we did today was drive...
Love from Sturgis, SD!
Today we woke up and drove.
We made it to South Dakota, about an hour away from Mount Rushmore. We have laundry to do, so we decided to make it another early night. Tomorrow we will wake up early and see Mount Rushmore. 
Sorry this post isn't longer, but all we did today was drive...
Love from Sturgis, SD!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Day Twenty-Eight: Yellowstone
Hi there!
Sorry I didn’t post last night. Tim and I decided to camp last night to save money on lodging. It was still $27 to rent a space, but it was a lot cheaper than a motel at least. While camping really isn’t conducive to typing away on a computer, that’s not the only reason I didn’t update. To be honest, we went to see Eclipse last night at 10 pm, so by the time we got back to the camp site and put up our tent and stuff it was around 1 am. The last thing I wanted to do after that was to get on the computer. But don’t worry, you didn’t really miss anything. Seeing Eclipse was actually the most exciting thing we did yesterday, as the rest of the time was spent driving. We made it all the way from Seattle to Butte, Montana
(which Tim and I pronounced “Butt” just for the fun of it). We saw a lot of pretty scenery (Montana is very hilly and is covered in multiple shades of green), but for the most part it was just miles and miles of road. As for Eclipse, it was alright. Being a fan of the books tends to make me pretty critical of the movie versions. But I guess they did the best they could, and the main gist of the story was covered. But this isn’t a blog about the Twilight series, so moving right along…
Today was much more interesting! It got off to a bit of a rocky start, since both Tim and I slept poorly and were thus in very bad moods.
Note for future reference: going to sleep in a tent, on an air mattress that is too small, at 1 am- mixed with freezing temperatures- all makes for a restless night. After quick showers and a slow pack-up we were on the road… well after 10 am. Luckily it was only a 2 and a half hour drive to Yellowstone from Butte. I know what you’re thinking… “ONLY 2 and a half hours?!” Well, let me tell you, after all the driving we did the day before, this was nothing! Plus, it was worth the trip!
Yellowstone is a wonderful place!
Besides the glaciers and hot springs (which are awesome- we even got to see Old Faithful erupt!) there are lakes, rivers, waterfalls and, perhaps most exciting, wildlife! 
We had so many cool experiences with the animals at Yellowstone that we would never have had elsewhere. There were little groups of what I think were Pronghorns, but Tim insisted they were Elk. I still think he’s wrong, especially since we actually saw a male Elk later and he didn’t look anything like the female animals we had seen earlier. 
Tim got a great picture of that Elk sticking his tongue out! I have to say though that the coolest thing was the Bison! The first time we saw them there were HUGE herds of them along both sides of the road. There must have been at least 60 of them, including little baby Bison! The closest one was literally three feet away from us as we drove past. So awesome! 
The second time we saw some Bison there was one standing in the grass right next to a pull-off station. He was just looking at the road, watching the cars pass like it was his job. We didn’t get a picture of this guy, but he reminded me of those guards that stand in front of the Castle in England who aren’t supposed to move. Our last experience with a Bison was probably the best of them all. 
This guy was just walking, as Bison so often do. The only thing that made this particular walk noteworthy was that he was walking in the middle of the road! Let me elaborate: he was going the wrong way in the right lane, heading dead-on into oncoming traffic. On top of that, he looked as if he did this all the time! 
I say that because he seemed to be staying in the center of the lane, 
keeping an equal distance from the yellow line all the way along the significantly winding road… looking for all the world like he was quite familiar with this road and he was wondering what all of us were doing on his road. Seriously, when he saw us he didn’t stop or hesitate, or even move. He just kept on walking… or as Tim put it “hoofing it”… expecting we would realize our mistake and get out of his way. As we passed him on the left I put my window down, and I swear I could have reached out and touched him if I had been so inclined. I wasn’t.
So that was our day. We are now about to settle down here in Greybull for the night. I will be driving the 6 hours to Mt. Rushmore tomorrow after a good night’s sleep and great deal of coffee in the morning. Fun…
Don't forget to check our Web Album to see ALL of our pics!
Love from Greybull, WY!
Sorry I didn’t post last night. Tim and I decided to camp last night to save money on lodging. It was still $27 to rent a space, but it was a lot cheaper than a motel at least. While camping really isn’t conducive to typing away on a computer, that’s not the only reason I didn’t update. To be honest, we went to see Eclipse last night at 10 pm, so by the time we got back to the camp site and put up our tent and stuff it was around 1 am. The last thing I wanted to do after that was to get on the computer. But don’t worry, you didn’t really miss anything. Seeing Eclipse was actually the most exciting thing we did yesterday, as the rest of the time was spent driving. We made it all the way from Seattle to Butte, Montana
(which Tim and I pronounced “Butt” just for the fun of it). We saw a lot of pretty scenery (Montana is very hilly and is covered in multiple shades of green), but for the most part it was just miles and miles of road. As for Eclipse, it was alright. Being a fan of the books tends to make me pretty critical of the movie versions. But I guess they did the best they could, and the main gist of the story was covered. But this isn’t a blog about the Twilight series, so moving right along…Today was much more interesting! It got off to a bit of a rocky start, since both Tim and I slept poorly and were thus in very bad moods.
Note for future reference: going to sleep in a tent, on an air mattress that is too small, at 1 am- mixed with freezing temperatures- all makes for a restless night. After quick showers and a slow pack-up we were on the road… well after 10 am. Luckily it was only a 2 and a half hour drive to Yellowstone from Butte. I know what you’re thinking… “ONLY 2 and a half hours?!” Well, let me tell you, after all the driving we did the day before, this was nothing! Plus, it was worth the trip!Yellowstone is a wonderful place!
Besides the glaciers and hot springs (which are awesome- we even got to see Old Faithful erupt!) there are lakes, rivers, waterfalls and, perhaps most exciting, wildlife! 
We had so many cool experiences with the animals at Yellowstone that we would never have had elsewhere. There were little groups of what I think were Pronghorns, but Tim insisted they were Elk. I still think he’s wrong, especially since we actually saw a male Elk later and he didn’t look anything like the female animals we had seen earlier. 
Tim got a great picture of that Elk sticking his tongue out! I have to say though that the coolest thing was the Bison! The first time we saw them there were HUGE herds of them along both sides of the road. There must have been at least 60 of them, including little baby Bison! The closest one was literally three feet away from us as we drove past. So awesome! 
The second time we saw some Bison there was one standing in the grass right next to a pull-off station. He was just looking at the road, watching the cars pass like it was his job. We didn’t get a picture of this guy, but he reminded me of those guards that stand in front of the Castle in England who aren’t supposed to move. Our last experience with a Bison was probably the best of them all. 
This guy was just walking, as Bison so often do. The only thing that made this particular walk noteworthy was that he was walking in the middle of the road! Let me elaborate: he was going the wrong way in the right lane, heading dead-on into oncoming traffic. On top of that, he looked as if he did this all the time! 
I say that because he seemed to be staying in the center of the lane, 
keeping an equal distance from the yellow line all the way along the significantly winding road… looking for all the world like he was quite familiar with this road and he was wondering what all of us were doing on his road. Seriously, when he saw us he didn’t stop or hesitate, or even move. He just kept on walking… or as Tim put it “hoofing it”… expecting we would realize our mistake and get out of his way. As we passed him on the left I put my window down, and I swear I could have reached out and touched him if I had been so inclined. I wasn’t.So that was our day. We are now about to settle down here in Greybull for the night. I will be driving the 6 hours to Mt. Rushmore tomorrow after a good night’s sleep and great deal of coffee in the morning. Fun…
Don't forget to check our Web Album to see ALL of our pics!
Love from Greybull, WY!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Day Twenty-Six: Seattle
Hello!
Even though the room last night was pretty terrible, Tim and I were able to get some rest... as well as an early start on our day. By the way, did I mention that the sink was made of metal? Honestly, how long has it been since people stopped making those things out of metal and started using porcelain or any other material? A long time I'm sure. Anyway, so we hit the road around 8 am to head down to La Push.
In case you were wondering, this is really an Indian reservation, and the tribe is really called the Quileute... just like in the Twilight series. Just so you all know, I am a fan of Twilight, but the only reason I went to see Forks and La Push is because we were already so close. If I never came anywhere near Washington I would never have gone out of my way to visit this place. And now that I have, let me tell you, I won't be going back. It's not terrible, but it's definitely not worth the time and money it costs to get and stay out there.
The beach at La Push was worth the short drive off of 101, and it was amusing to see how the community was playing up the whole Twilight thing.
When entering the reservation we saw a sign that said "No Vampires Beyond this Point" and below that it read "TREATY LINE". If you have read the books, or I guess even seen the movies, you will know what that means. While on the res. we stopped at a small coffee stand (which are all over the place in Washington... similar to how common snowball stands are around Maryland) and just guess what it was called? 
Jacob's Java! There was even a huge cut out of the guy who plays Jacob in the movies on the front of the hut! We needed coffee anyway, so we stopped to get some... only I was a little afraid to get out of the car. Why, you ask? Only because a large black dog appeared outside my car door, pretty much out of the blue, and he just stood there staring at me. Eventually he looked away, so I got out and offered him my hand to sniff. He stuck his head under it to tell me he wanted to be petted, so I knew he was friendly. We got our coffee, and it was actually really good! 
Then we walked to the beach 
with our new doggie-friend, who's name turned out to be smokey. Once we got to looking around we noticed that there were as many dogs walking around the reservation as there were people. I joked that maybe they were people, only they were shape-shifters like the Quileute's in Twilight.
After La Push, we made our way through 60 miles of wilderness to Port Angeles. It was a pretty big town and we could see Canada! Tim and I stopped and walked around for awhile. We walked through a mall (if you could even call it a mall), and decided to get some lunch.
--Quick P.S. to Brittany: I so wish I could have been there with you tonight at the Eclipse showing! Once I see it I will let you know so we can talk about it in more detail. SO JEALOUS! :-P
After we had our fill of the "Twilight Zone" we started towards Seattle, with a quick stop in Tacoma planned. The reason for the detour was so that we could visit with a friend of the family, John Atkinson. After trolling the mall while we waited for him to get off work, we visited with him for a few hours... catching up and chatting until about 6 pm when Tim and I began to get hungry. 
After many hugs (Mom, I got one for you too) we set off to check out the grand Space Needle of Seattle. Unfortunately, it costs a lot of money to go to the top so we didn't do it... but it was pretty cool to see it in real life none-the-less. On our way out of the city we decided we wanted to settle in early, so we stopped at the first Motel 6 we saw, and that is where we are now... filled with IHOP pancakes, clean, and happy to be on the home-stretch. Love and Miss you all!!!
Don't forget to bookmark our Picasa Web Album to see ALL of our pictures!
Love from somewhere outside of Seattle, WA!
Even though the room last night was pretty terrible, Tim and I were able to get some rest... as well as an early start on our day. By the way, did I mention that the sink was made of metal? Honestly, how long has it been since people stopped making those things out of metal and started using porcelain or any other material? A long time I'm sure. Anyway, so we hit the road around 8 am to head down to La Push.
In case you were wondering, this is really an Indian reservation, and the tribe is really called the Quileute... just like in the Twilight series. Just so you all know, I am a fan of Twilight, but the only reason I went to see Forks and La Push is because we were already so close. If I never came anywhere near Washington I would never have gone out of my way to visit this place. And now that I have, let me tell you, I won't be going back. It's not terrible, but it's definitely not worth the time and money it costs to get and stay out there.The beach at La Push was worth the short drive off of 101, and it was amusing to see how the community was playing up the whole Twilight thing.
When entering the reservation we saw a sign that said "No Vampires Beyond this Point" and below that it read "TREATY LINE". If you have read the books, or I guess even seen the movies, you will know what that means. While on the res. we stopped at a small coffee stand (which are all over the place in Washington... similar to how common snowball stands are around Maryland) and just guess what it was called? 
Jacob's Java! There was even a huge cut out of the guy who plays Jacob in the movies on the front of the hut! We needed coffee anyway, so we stopped to get some... only I was a little afraid to get out of the car. Why, you ask? Only because a large black dog appeared outside my car door, pretty much out of the blue, and he just stood there staring at me. Eventually he looked away, so I got out and offered him my hand to sniff. He stuck his head under it to tell me he wanted to be petted, so I knew he was friendly. We got our coffee, and it was actually really good! 
Then we walked to the beach 
with our new doggie-friend, who's name turned out to be smokey. Once we got to looking around we noticed that there were as many dogs walking around the reservation as there were people. I joked that maybe they were people, only they were shape-shifters like the Quileute's in Twilight.
After La Push, we made our way through 60 miles of wilderness to Port Angeles. It was a pretty big town and we could see Canada! Tim and I stopped and walked around for awhile. We walked through a mall (if you could even call it a mall), and decided to get some lunch.--Quick P.S. to Brittany: I so wish I could have been there with you tonight at the Eclipse showing! Once I see it I will let you know so we can talk about it in more detail. SO JEALOUS! :-P
After we had our fill of the "Twilight Zone" we started towards Seattle, with a quick stop in Tacoma planned. The reason for the detour was so that we could visit with a friend of the family, John Atkinson. After trolling the mall while we waited for him to get off work, we visited with him for a few hours... catching up and chatting until about 6 pm when Tim and I began to get hungry. 
After many hugs (Mom, I got one for you too) we set off to check out the grand Space Needle of Seattle. Unfortunately, it costs a lot of money to go to the top so we didn't do it... but it was pretty cool to see it in real life none-the-less. On our way out of the city we decided we wanted to settle in early, so we stopped at the first Motel 6 we saw, and that is where we are now... filled with IHOP pancakes, clean, and happy to be on the home-stretch. Love and Miss you all!!!Don't forget to bookmark our Picasa Web Album to see ALL of our pictures!
Love from somewhere outside of Seattle, WA!
Monday, June 28, 2010
Day Twenty-Five: Forks
Hey.
Okay, let me just update you real quick so I can get to the real part of this post. We left Uncle Kirk and Aunt Linda's this afternoon, stopping to get some groceries and such before hitting the road. The first thing we did was head West to Cannon Beach which Uncle Kirk said we absolutely HAD to see. I have to admit, it was well worth the drive! We walked down to the beach and put our feet in the water! So we can officially say we have been in the Pacific Ocean! There were a lot of cool things about this beach, like the fine and compact
sand and the little smooth rock that littered the water line in place of shells. However, the coolest thing about Cannon Beach was Haystack Rock! 
It was enormous! I wanted to swim out to it, but the water was freezing and I don't really thing we were allowed to be on it. It was really awesome looking from a distance though, so I was happy about just getting to see it. Before heading North we stopped to eat at Mo's, again at Uncle Kirk's recommendation. The food here was good, though their "famous" clam chowder was not what we were expecting. Unfortunately, our server was not very attentive and was very slow in getting around to us. But overall it was a great visit, and I am very glad we went.
We took 101 up the Oregon coast and went over this really neat bridge into Washington. We were going to check out this fort that Louis and Clark stayed at called Fort Clatsop, but it cost money just to get in and see it, so we drove past it. Driving along the coast of Washington was quite an experience! We saw these really strange trees that had huge bulbs on them... they looked like tumors! We went down to the beach here too and climbed on the rocks and deadwood there. 
We took pictures of the sun setting over the water... it was so pretty! 
Even after the "sun-set" though, it didn't get dark until after 10 pm! That surely never happens in Maryland!
But now for the most important part of this post. OH MY GOODNESS! We stopped in Forks (I know it's lame, but I just had to see it) and th
ey had practically NO vacancies in any of the motels. All that was left was this tiny room at a place called the Town Motel. 
It's... just... EW! The carpet is this orange-like shaggy stuff that is damp and smells like mold. All the furniture looks like it's at least 50 years old... and it might be! The bathroom... ugh, don't get me started on the bathroom. I'll just have Tim take a picture and show you... I don't have words to describe how small and... just... wrong it is. The water in the shower was reversed, so that when I turned it to hot it was FREEZING. 
It took Tim and I about five minutes of running the water to try turning it to the cold side... which finally made the water hot... for some reason? At least the bed is sort of comfortable, and the sheets appear to be clean enough. Here's the kicker: how much do you suppose we paid for this crap-hole? Go on, guess? Give up...? We paid a whopping $66 including tax! I've stayed in a much nicer Motel 6 for under $40! Oh well. It's a place to sleep. So, that is what I am going to do now. Good night faithful readers!
Love from Forks, WA!
Okay, let me just update you real quick so I can get to the real part of this post. We left Uncle Kirk and Aunt Linda's this afternoon, stopping to get some groceries and such before hitting the road. The first thing we did was head West to Cannon Beach which Uncle Kirk said we absolutely HAD to see. I have to admit, it was well worth the drive! We walked down to the beach and put our feet in the water! So we can officially say we have been in the Pacific Ocean! There were a lot of cool things about this beach, like the fine and compact
sand and the little smooth rock that littered the water line in place of shells. However, the coolest thing about Cannon Beach was Haystack Rock! 
It was enormous! I wanted to swim out to it, but the water was freezing and I don't really thing we were allowed to be on it. It was really awesome looking from a distance though, so I was happy about just getting to see it. Before heading North we stopped to eat at Mo's, again at Uncle Kirk's recommendation. The food here was good, though their "famous" clam chowder was not what we were expecting. Unfortunately, our server was not very attentive and was very slow in getting around to us. But overall it was a great visit, and I am very glad we went.
We took 101 up the Oregon coast and went over this really neat bridge into Washington. We were going to check out this fort that Louis and Clark stayed at called Fort Clatsop, but it cost money just to get in and see it, so we drove past it. Driving along the coast of Washington was quite an experience! We saw these really strange trees that had huge bulbs on them... they looked like tumors! We went down to the beach here too and climbed on the rocks and deadwood there. 
We took pictures of the sun setting over the water... it was so pretty! 
Even after the "sun-set" though, it didn't get dark until after 10 pm! That surely never happens in Maryland!But now for the most important part of this post. OH MY GOODNESS! We stopped in Forks (I know it's lame, but I just had to see it) and th
ey had practically NO vacancies in any of the motels. All that was left was this tiny room at a place called the Town Motel. 
It's... just... EW! The carpet is this orange-like shaggy stuff that is damp and smells like mold. All the furniture looks like it's at least 50 years old... and it might be! The bathroom... ugh, don't get me started on the bathroom. I'll just have Tim take a picture and show you... I don't have words to describe how small and... just... wrong it is. The water in the shower was reversed, so that when I turned it to hot it was FREEZING. 
It took Tim and I about five minutes of running the water to try turning it to the cold side... which finally made the water hot... for some reason? At least the bed is sort of comfortable, and the sheets appear to be clean enough. Here's the kicker: how much do you suppose we paid for this crap-hole? Go on, guess? Give up...? We paid a whopping $66 including tax! I've stayed in a much nicer Motel 6 for under $40! Oh well. It's a place to sleep. So, that is what I am going to do now. Good night faithful readers!Love from Forks, WA!
Friday, June 25, 2010
Day Twenty-Three: Back to Oregon
Heya!
Sorry I didn't post last night or the night before. As Tim told you I was really exhausted from exploring Disneyland, and last night we didn't get into Kirk and Linda's until almost 9 pm! We had a great time this past couple days! But let me tell you a little about Disneyland!
It turns out the Disneyland park is about the same size as the Magic Kingdom in Disney World... but the Castle is quite a bit smaller. We think it is supposed to be Snow White's Castle
, while the one in Disney World is Cinderella's. The whole park is made up of seven areas: Main Street, Tomorrowland, Adventureland, Fronterland, Fansasyland, Micky's Toontown, and New Orleans Square.
Tim and I started our adventure in Tommorowland, where we went on Space Tours and looked around inside a house of the Future.
We then went on the "It's a Small World" ride. 
It was much bigger than the one in Disneyworld! One really neat thing that I don't remember seeing in Disney World was the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. We got on a fully functional submarine and took a spin around a large lake, completely underwater. For the most part it was very realistic, and they showed clips of Finding Nemo on underwater screens, slightly altered to create an extension of the original story. After that, we hopped onto the train that circles around the entire park which took us across the park to New Orleans super quick!
On the ride there was a model of "The Grand Canyon" which wasn't quite as good after seeing the real thing... 
but the section that took us "back in time" to see the dinosaurs was pretty cool. The rest of the day was spent enjoying the many rides and attractions that Disneyland had to offer... most of which we recognized from Disney World. Classics such as the Haunted Mansion, The Tower of Terror, and "It's a Small World: The happiest cruise that ever sailed". 
It was easy for us to forget that these were around well before we ever experienced them across the country in Florida. There were four major mountains in the park: Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, 
and the Matterhorn Mountain. Disney World sports the first three, but the last one was unique to Disneyland as far as we could remember. Like the other Mountains, this one included a ride, which was in this case a roller-coaster-like bobsled. 
Tim sat behind me with his legs stretched out around me, while I sat with my back pressed against him as we twisted our way through the hills and turns of the Matterhorn. There were even some parts where we were sledding though complete darkness! We didn't get to ride Space Mountain, or Splash Mountain because the wait times were really long, and we wanted to make sure we got to do the attractions that we couldn't do in Disney World. 
There weren't many of them, so of course we ended up flying over London with Peter pan, and joining Snow White on her scary adventure. 
All of the rides were excellent, and met the requirements for a Disney themed adventure but, as usual, we found that what Disneyland really excels in are it's shows!
Tonight's features: A fireworks display aptly named "Magical", and an amazing spectacle known as Fantasmic where we got to enter into Micky's imagination for a while!
After the fireworks (which were set to music, and were outstanding) Micky appeared on Tom Sawyer's Island in his sorcerers outfit, and worked his magic on the surrounding water. Snow White, Cinderella and Belle came out on floating platforms, dancing gracefully with their respective prince-partners. Peter Pan 
heroically defeated Captain Hook on his pirate ship, leaving the Captain to be chased by the ticking crocodile as he flailed on a rope behind the ship. Then, just when you thought everyone was going to live happily ever after in Micky's imagination... 
A huge dragon appeared, breathing flames out over the water! Luckily, Micky imagined he had a magical sword, 
which he used to blast the dragon into retreat! With the Dragon defeated, Micky sailed everyone out on his steamboat, where they danced and celebrated the victory! Everyone was invited, including Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, Jasmine, and all of the princes. Even Woody and his pals, and Winnie the Pooh and his friends were there! It was absolutely wonderful!
Sadly, that was our last night in this magical place, but we enjoyed every minute! We are now safely relaxing here at Uncle Kirk and Aunt Linda's after a quick plane ride from LAX. We are still undecided on what we are going to do today, but whatever it is I'm sure it will be tons of fun!
Love from Wood Village, OR!
Sorry I didn't post last night or the night before. As Tim told you I was really exhausted from exploring Disneyland, and last night we didn't get into Kirk and Linda's until almost 9 pm! We had a great time this past couple days! But let me tell you a little about Disneyland!
It turns out the Disneyland park is about the same size as the Magic Kingdom in Disney World... but the Castle is quite a bit smaller. We think it is supposed to be Snow White's Castle
, while the one in Disney World is Cinderella's. The whole park is made up of seven areas: Main Street, Tomorrowland, Adventureland, Fronterland, Fansasyland, Micky's Toontown, and New Orleans Square.Tim and I started our adventure in Tommorowland, where we went on Space Tours and looked around inside a house of the Future.
We then went on the "It's a Small World" ride. 
It was much bigger than the one in Disneyworld! One really neat thing that I don't remember seeing in Disney World was the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. We got on a fully functional submarine and took a spin around a large lake, completely underwater. For the most part it was very realistic, and they showed clips of Finding Nemo on underwater screens, slightly altered to create an extension of the original story. After that, we hopped onto the train that circles around the entire park which took us across the park to New Orleans super quick!
On the ride there was a model of "The Grand Canyon" which wasn't quite as good after seeing the real thing... 
but the section that took us "back in time" to see the dinosaurs was pretty cool. The rest of the day was spent enjoying the many rides and attractions that Disneyland had to offer... most of which we recognized from Disney World. Classics such as the Haunted Mansion, The Tower of Terror, and "It's a Small World: The happiest cruise that ever sailed". 
It was easy for us to forget that these were around well before we ever experienced them across the country in Florida. There were four major mountains in the park: Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, 
and the Matterhorn Mountain. Disney World sports the first three, but the last one was unique to Disneyland as far as we could remember. Like the other Mountains, this one included a ride, which was in this case a roller-coaster-like bobsled. 
Tim sat behind me with his legs stretched out around me, while I sat with my back pressed against him as we twisted our way through the hills and turns of the Matterhorn. There were even some parts where we were sledding though complete darkness! We didn't get to ride Space Mountain, or Splash Mountain because the wait times were really long, and we wanted to make sure we got to do the attractions that we couldn't do in Disney World. 
There weren't many of them, so of course we ended up flying over London with Peter pan, and joining Snow White on her scary adventure. 
All of the rides were excellent, and met the requirements for a Disney themed adventure but, as usual, we found that what Disneyland really excels in are it's shows!
Tonight's features: A fireworks display aptly named "Magical", and an amazing spectacle known as Fantasmic where we got to enter into Micky's imagination for a while!
After the fireworks (which were set to music, and were outstanding) Micky appeared on Tom Sawyer's Island in his sorcerers outfit, and worked his magic on the surrounding water. Snow White, Cinderella and Belle came out on floating platforms, dancing gracefully with their respective prince-partners. Peter Pan 
heroically defeated Captain Hook on his pirate ship, leaving the Captain to be chased by the ticking crocodile as he flailed on a rope behind the ship. Then, just when you thought everyone was going to live happily ever after in Micky's imagination... 
A huge dragon appeared, breathing flames out over the water! Luckily, Micky imagined he had a magical sword, 
which he used to blast the dragon into retreat! With the Dragon defeated, Micky sailed everyone out on his steamboat, where they danced and celebrated the victory! Everyone was invited, including Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, Jasmine, and all of the princes. Even Woody and his pals, and Winnie the Pooh and his friends were there! It was absolutely wonderful!
Sadly, that was our last night in this magical place, but we enjoyed every minute! We are now safely relaxing here at Uncle Kirk and Aunt Linda's after a quick plane ride from LAX. We are still undecided on what we are going to do today, but whatever it is I'm sure it will be tons of fun!
Love from Wood Village, OR!
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