Coast to Coast in 5 Days

Earlier this month Nate and his two brothers flew out to New York to drive his parents and their moving truck from Mastic Beach, NY to Seattle, WA. They took their time and made their way from coast to coast in 5 days!! Nate fulfilled my request and took a ton of awesome photos with his phone on their cross country drive!! (A few of these photos are also from Tom - thanks Tom!!)


The Route


(map courtesy of Google Maps)

New York

Besides Nate's parents getting stopped by the NYPD to have the moving truck searched and getting separated from Nate, Joe & Tom for a bit, the drive through (literally) the city went pretty well!






New Jersey

No photos from this State, but as a result of the separation that happened in NY, they got to spend some quality time in the ghettos of Paterson, NJ! After determining that they wanted somewhere safe to sleep, they drove on for a while and found a hotel in a safer place!

Pennsylvania

Nothing really exciting happened through PA, but here are a few beautiful photos!




Ohio

The drive through Ohio was much like the drive through PA!




However; if you're forced to stop in Rossford, OH for the night, Nate suggests that you avoid this hotel (unless you enjoy finding bloodstains on your sheets and nasty black smudges on your pillow):


(photo courtesy of www.knightsinn.com)

But, if you are away from your wife on Mother's Day and want her to know that you're thinking of her - they do have a really nice flower shop:


The other positive thing about Rossford, is that Denny's makes a really nice breakfast to take your mind off the disease carrying hotel you just slept in!

Indiana

The exciting things about Indiana were seeing a 60 ft Jolly Green Giant and the top of Notre Dame through the trees - both of which were un-captured due to the fact that Nate was driving and not able to get photos!

Illinois

Apparently, Mother's Day is not the ideal time to drive through Chicago! The crazy traffic allowed for some good window shots as it took 1 1/2 hours to get through the city!




Wisconsin

Besides lots of billboards about cheese, Wisconsin was uneventful - which is why all the hotels must have the awesome water slides you'll see below. However; although uneventful, it is a gorgeous State!






Minnesota

Nate enjoyed crossing the Mississippi River as they drove from Wisconsin to Minnesota! Other than that, just more photos and a beautiful sunset as they were driving in the evening!






South Dakota

According to Nate, South Dakota is pretty flat, has poisonous snakes, sculpture gardens and really cool rock formations! They did stop for lunch close to Little Bighorn Battlefield (where General Custer died) and got to see tepee memorials for the Sioux Indians at all the rest stops.






Wyoming

True to form, Wyoming greeted Nate with lightening and thunder! They stopped for the evening and when they work up the next morning, they were able to drive through this:




Montana

It took Nate & his family several hours to travel through 500 miles of Montana! At this point on their trip, they were ready to push through and just keep going - so much so that Nate had to take advantage of the outdoor facilities and ended sinking up to his knees in snow while trying to do so!






Idaho

The drive through Idaho was quick - just 60 or 70 miles, but Nate came home raving about Couer d'Alene and thinks that we need to take a vacation there because it is beautiful! Here are the few photos that Tom took while Nate was driving:




Washington: Destination Reached

Nate said that the sign for Seattle popped up pretty early as they entered Washington State! The knowledge that they were close made the drive seem to last forever! After hours of driving 40 mph uphill and in the pouring rain, they finally made it to Seattle! Once they reached Seattle, what should have been a 10 minute drive to the hotel took almost an hour due to rush hour traffic! Here are some photos of the drive in:






After they got settled in at the hotel, they headed to a restaurant on the bay for some fish and chips! After dinner, they did a little shopping and a little sight seeing!






Coming Home

Nate flew home the next morning to a wife who was very happy to see him!! He shot these photos from the airplane (shhh, don't tell the stewardess that he had his phone on when he wasn't supposed to)!!







After over 2900 miles, they arrived to Seattle with one burned out CD Player, days of eating at truck stops, sore bums and a bad case of restless legs syndrome - but they arrived safe and sound! Nate had a great time and we're happy that his parents are a little closer to home!!

April Showers

So, this last month has been super busy! In between recovering from getting my wisdom teeth out (FYI, my bottom lip and chin are STILL numb), Nate getting some kind of virus that turned into an ear infection and pink eye, Nate's mom visiting, a funeral, and life, we feel like April has kind of slipped away from us!

Tu-Tu's


While Nate was attempting to feel better, I decided to get crafty and made these super cute tu-tu's for a couple of our nieces! (Check out my photo blog to see more pics, they are super adorable)! They were way easy to make and I think that they may become a new addiction for me!

Easter Egg Hunt


We celebrated an early Easter with Nate's family complete with egg coloring and an Easter Egg hunt!

Nancy's Funeral

Nate's sweet Aunt Nancy was diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer about this time last year. Although she fought a courageous battle she was called back to Heaven a few weeks ago. Her funeral was a wonderful tribute to the amazing woman that she was and she will truly be missed.






And ...


I got to walk home from work in the rain! Luckily I had an umbrella and a camera to make my walk more enjoyable!!

We are definitely looking forward to a May that includes hopefully no illness and lots of good times!!

... bowling ...

we went bowling with nate's family tonight! i didn't start off so well, but somehow i lucked out and bowled three strikes in a row - putting me in second behind the one and only nate!

we had a great time hanging out and watching the kiddos play around! as always, they were adorable and they made us giggle quite a bit!







there's something about a bowling alley that makes the good times roll!!

Spring Wreath

Apparently I am really digging the wreath's lately!! Nate is sick today (poor guy) so I spent a few minutes putting this baby together!






The example that I made this one off of had several more flowers on it, but after putting together the one I ended up using, I think that simple is better for this wreath! I was sad to take down my Valentine's Day wreath, but it's nice to have something Springy greet me when I open the door!!

... LIFE ...

I've been thinking a lot about life lately.

Several weeks ago I arrived at work on a Monday morning and the first phone call that I received was a client and an office friend wanting to confirm what they had heard through the grapevine - that the brother of one of our attorney's had passed away over the weekend. I was the only one in the office at the time and I had no way to confirm or deny what she was asking because I hadn't heard. Throughout the day it was confirmed and even though most of us had never met the brother, we knew enough about the family and their relationships to know that the loss was sudden and tragic.

The day before I received this call at the office, we had spent time with Nate's aunt who is fighting a terminal illness. We very much enjoyed our short visit with her and her husband, but we left their home saddened by her weakness and her condition.

Yesterday I found out that my mother's cousin had a heart attack. In her father's family, that makes 4 since September. I only ever met this cousin once. When my cousin passed away last fall, my mom's cousin was passing through and happened to stop by my parents home when we were there visiting with my aunts and uncles. Although I didn't know him well, I remember hearing him speak about his family and his daughters with such love. I feel the loss through that memory and through my mom and am I am also reminded of the passing of my cousin.

So many sad and tragic things happening to so many wonderful people. The tsunami in Japan, the war with Libya, the battles that are being fought overseas, in the states, and the personal battles being fought by every person in the world on a daily basis.

I am the kind of person that believes that everything happens for a reason. I have always believed that and it is something that gets my through some of my darkest days. Sometimes, however, even that belief makes it difficult to handle so much sadness and heartache. Each of these incidences have impacted my life and have made me realize once again (because apparently I tend to forget) just how fragile life is. I don't know why these things are happening, I just know that God is in control and that He knows why - and while it's hard at times and we may not understand, it is up to us to make the most of the time that we are given.

With all these things going on in the world around me, my gratitude for my very many blessings has come to the forefront. Words cannot express the love I feel from above and the gratitude that I have the knowledge that there is a plan for each of us and that this life is not the end for us.

My goal with this reminded realization is to let the ones that I love know that I love them more often, and to take advantage of the life that I have by living it to the fullest and making memories and relationships that will last for forever.

... wisdom ...

why?

why do they call them wisdom teeth?

they didn't make me feel any smarter and they sure don't feel good after getting extracted...


i am now in the still numb, not quite swollen but turning yellow phase in the recovery and i'm pretty sure i hate it. at first i was kind of excited at the prospect of eating things like pudding and jell-o for every meal, but now, i'm pretty sick of it! i did branch out yesterday to cottage cheese and soft peaches, and the drive through at KFC has definitely benefited from my bad teeth (hello mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese)...

really, all i want is to be able to kiss nate, brush my teeth with a vengeance and take a big old bite out of something that has to be chewed... oh, and to sleep. i didn't know that having teeth extracted would make me unable to sleep.

so, two questions for you out there in the blogging world who may happen to drop by:
1 - how long did it take you to recover, because i'm longing to feel normal again
and
2 - any tips on ways to relieve pressure, sinus headaches (because i can't blow my nose) and or numb/tingly lips?