We did the whole cross country drive, 7-9 hours a day, small hotel rooms, crammed car, U-haul trailer, 2 kids thing. And can I just say....boy am I glad it's over???
I don't want to make it out like it was all bad, but I thought if I got out all the crappy parts first I could write the experience of our trip with a more open and honest mind. I guess we'll see.
We started our trip last Sunday the 1st of July, and I would say our last week in Spokane couldn't have been more stressful due to a variety of reasons. But we were able to see most all of our family and say goodbye to which we are very grateful. Adam's sister Tori decided to come along and help with the kids in the car, she will be staying until the 18th of July so she got an week of driving and hopefully we will be able to give her a fun week and a half of moving in and site-seeing?. But I'm jumping a head of myself, let me break it down for you.
7 day Ellerd Exodus:
Day 1: 9 hours to Billings Montana, not a bad day. Some beautiful country...I can see why most people who are born in Montana never seem to leave. Pass through the Rockies and really say goodbye pretty quickly to the scenery and weather we are used to.
Day 2: Keep driving through Montana (can I say that while I enjoyed the first day of Montana skies, by the second day I was really just ready for Montana to end already....eastern Montana you've got nothing on the Western half of the state! My opinion on this matter may have been made worse by the fact that we started running into some wildfire damage and were forced to turn around and take a 2 hour detour which resulted in 6 hour drive becoming an almost 8 hour drive. Positives of that day? I saw from the road the Battle of Little Bighorn monument and that was really cool, we also drove through Crow country and I also found that interesting. We dropped down from Montana into Wyoming briefly and then headed into South Dakota and stayed the night in Rapid City (which Adam and I were both impressed with, I decided our ignorance was showing since neither one of us apparently believed there could be any nice cities in SD).
Day 3 & 4:We got up and with much excitement (at least on my end) headed out to see Mt. Rushmore before we left for the day. We got to ride a tram up a little mountain and see Mt Rushmore from the distance. It was blazing hot and we decided next time we are passing through that way there are actually quite a few things we would like to see in that area, including a closer look at Mt Rushmore. But instead we decided to press on. So we drove through the state of SD dropping down into Iowa along the Missouri river and stayed in Council Bluffs. I have to say the Missouri river was impressive and Adam even touched it (he says that's a big deal, touching something versus just seeing it). It was here that we noticed some trouble with our car so instead of pressing on to Nauvoo Illinois like we originally planned for the 4th we stayed to get our Jeep looked at. I will say the disappointment I felt at not being in Nauvoo for the 4th was pretty potent. But Adam has promised we will go back, I have been fortunate enough to see the City Beauitful both before and after the temple was rebuilt; but it was something I was greatly looking forward to experiencing with Adam. With that being said, have a full day to do nothing but swim in the pool and relax was much needed and I believe a key to keeping the kids mostly sane! So a blessing in disguise most definitely!
Day 5: We got our Jeep fixed and were headed back on the road with a warning to keep an eye out on another leaking valve that we didn't have the time to fix (it would have meant another day in Council Bluffs and we weren't up for that). We headed through Iowa and into Illinois crossing both states and landing in Chicago. An AMAZING city that I wish I could have spent a week in. Another place Adam has promised we will go back to. We went into the city that night and ate at Gino's Pizza (recommended for authentic Chicago style pizza). The atmosphere and food were both amazing!
Day 6: We headed out of Illinois and across Indiana stopping in a little town to see my Grandfathers race care in the NATMUS museum in Auburn. A neat little piece of family history, my Grandfather and Uncle built and raced this truck and won the World Record for fastest truck 5 times. Adam step father also worked on painting the truck so we both had a little history there. We then pressed on to Ohio and stopped in Columbus for the night. I will say that starting in Ohio and going East is in my opinion some of the most beautiful country, and I could see myself settling in any one of the states we passed through from this point on.
Day 7: Our final and most beautiful day of driving. We originally planned to stop in Hershey PA and go to the amusement park there, but a heatwave leaving most places we were driving through in the 100's had me a little worried taking both kids out for the entire day. Especially Makenna, but it is only 2 hours from the base so we will be sure and go back when the weather is a little more tolerable for our little kidlets. So we decided to press on to Delaware and drove through the rest of Ohio, into part of Pennsylvania, into West Virgina (beautiful, I picked out a few places to build our dream home one day) into Maryland and then finally into Delaware! It was the longest and most tiring day of the whole trip but you could see everyone's spirits lift when we got to the base and got into our temporary housing.
So that is it. That was our exodus. We loved it and hated it. But I will say that I honestly feel like it brought us all closer together and I love and appreciate my husband and my children in a different way then before. Our first move away from family and we get the complete opposite side of the country. I love it here already and I am so excited to see our family learn and grow together here in Delaware. Thank you to everyone who helped us get ready for this trip, to everyone who shared their lives with us at Fairchild, and to everyone who prayed for our safe journey! We already miss you all but we are also so ready for this new adventure. Bring it on Delaware!!!
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