We're back!
Here are the highlights from our trip:
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| Hannah with cousin Alyssa, and a parakeet. |
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| Steven and parakeets at Lindy's house. |
Thursday: Woke up at 5am, finished loading the car with last minute things and were on the road at 6. Stopped at my sister April's home in Green River, WY for a rest stop around noon. Arrived in West Jordan, UT at my sister Lindy's home around 4 in the afternoon. My parents were there, too, and we enjoyed chatting. That evening, my parents, Lindy and her husband Thom, and Steven and I went out to dinner at Golden Coral, leaving the kids to eat macaroni and cheese. Bedded down in Lindy's basement that night.
Friday: Woke up in time to read scriptures with Lindy's family and eat breakfast before her kids started heading off to school. Gathered up our stuff and left around 10:30. Drove to Temple Square in Salt Lake City, and toured the Church Office Building, the Lion House, the Tabernacle, a Vistors Center, and the Conference Center. Ate lunch at the food court across the street, and enjoyed watching people's costumes from the Comic Con nearby. Headed west around 3pm, ate dinner at a Burger King and stopped for the night at a hotel in Elko, NV.
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| Peter and John looking at the view from the 26th floor of the Church Office Building |
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| The Salt Lake Temple |
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| Inside the Tabernacle |
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| Peter looking at a cutout model of the Salt Lake Temple in the Visitor's Center. |
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| Outside the Conference Center |
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| Josh and John resting in our hotel room in Elko, NV |
Saturday: Ate oatmeal for breakfast in our hotel room, loaded up the car and drove west again. Found a park with a playground in Reno for lunch. After lunch, Hannah drove from Reno to a town outside Sacramento, CA, where we stopped at Steven's cousin, Brian's home. We spent a couple hours relaxing there before heading to Dixon, where we finally arrived at the Cattlemen's restaurant.
At Cattlemen's we met Steven's Gram (aka Lois Miner), who was celebrating her 90th birthday. Also there were:
Steven's dad and his wife, Yumiko, Steven's aunt Deven and her husband, and Steven's aunt Karlyn and her husband. Steven's brother Andy with his family, Steven's cousin Brian and his family, Steven's cousin Geoff and his family, and possibly a couple other cousins... We were seated together in a back room and over the next three hours, we ate and talked and enjoyed each other's company.
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| From left to right: Me, Hannah, Peter, Gram, John, Joshua, Steven |
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| From left to right: Megan, Andy, Bill (Steven's dad), Steven, Me |
After the party, we returned to Sacramento, filled the car with gas, and stayed at the same hotel where Andy and his family were staying.
Sunday: Enjoyed the complimentary breakfast provided by the hotel, as well as Andy and Megan's company. We had neglected to find out where a church was, so after breakfast, we loaded up the car and began our return journey eastward. We stopped only to use the restroom, and made it to Wells, NV before we were out of gas, and ready to stop for the night. We stayed in a hotel there, eating ramen for dinner.
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| Cousins: Hannah, Josh, Angela, Danny, Peter, John |
Monday: Ate a breakfast of muffins and hot chocolate provided by the hotel. Packed up and drove to Salt Lake City. Ate lunch at the Lion House Pantry. Visited the Family History Library. Climbed back in the car. Drove to the "This is the Place" Monument. Took a few pictures, then returned to the car and drove to Green River, WY, stopping at April's home again. Spent the evening playing games before going to bed.
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| At the "This is the Place" Monument. We could relate to the pioneers who had traveled so far. |
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| April, Hannah and me playing Taboo. |
Tuesday: Ate breakfast, loaded up the car again. Hit the highway once again. Stopped once for gas and a restroom, but otherwise continued on until we arrived at home around 2:30pm. Unpacked the car, washed laundry. Went to the Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet for dinner. (We were exhausted and tired of driving, but it seemed easier to go to dinner somewhere else than to try to figure out something to eat here at home.)
So now we're home. As I was trudging through an inch of snow on our way to school this morning, I was grateful for the beautiful weather that we enjoyed during our trip. It might have been overcast and a touch chilly at times, and the last day driving through Wyoming was really windy, but compared to what it might have been taking a trip like this in January, I feel very blessed.
I'm also grateful for the opportunity to see so many family members. I got to see my parents one last time before they leave on their mission to Argentina in a few weeks. I got to see two of my sisters and their families. I also got to see Steven's dad, who I don't think I'd seen in ten years, and meet his wife for the first time. I got to renew acquaintance with Steven's Gram, as well as meet cousins and aunts and uncles who I might have met once before, but who I really only know via Facebook. And it's always fun to spend time with Steven's brother Andy and his family.
Another thing I've been marveling at is how nice it is to be able to take road trips like this one, where we spend so much time in the car, with so little contention. The kids were great at keeping themselves entertained and getting along! It does help that we have a DVD player in the car, but even the times when there wasn't a movie playing the kids were wonderful.
Most of all, it's just good to be home.
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