Gallup'ing Home

Another day of travel and we’re almost home!  We left Tulsa this morning with Gallup as our destination.  I think we’re going to make it.  Well, wait a minute, it’s 6:15, we just gassed up and left Albuquerque, Gallup is 118 miles away and we came to a near-screeching halt on I-40 West.  I hope it’s nothing serious.  But it’s red lights as far as we can see.  So, I’ve pulled out the laptop, and decided to get a headstart on my 2^nd to last blog entry.  Haha…the driver of the car in front of us just stepped out of his car, opened the back door, and seconds later we saw the “water” running down hill.  Ahh, to pee like a man.  

Back to the beginning of the day:  We got a later start today.  Decided to sleep in until 7 am, grab some breakfast and then hit the road.  The skies were overcast leaving Tulsa and a few miles out of Oklahoma, we started to drive into winter fog!  The trees and grass got whiter and whiter as we drove into Texas.  Before Amarillo we called Tony and he checked the aviation weather forcasts…not good for the Texas panhandle.  A quarter mile visibility and freezing fog!

If you’ve spent any time in colder climates you’ve probably experienced dew fog.  If you haven't, just look closely at the picture.    The frost is really beautiful…if you’re tucked inside a cozy home (not the one in the picture) …not when you’re driving through it.  We didn’t see any of the Texas roadside.  But I don’t think we missed anything.  Thanks to Tony's calls and text messages we found out the conditions would improve around the TX/NM state line…and it did!  So we were able to pick up our speed and put some miles behind us…until now.  It’s 6:38pm now.  We've been sitting in traffic for over 15 minutes and T can see the flashing lights about a mile up the road.  Looks like we’ll be sitting here a while.

7:03 – Just made it past the crash site.  Looks like two semi’s side-swiped and veered off the road. Looks like it happened quite a while ago but is still affecting traffic.  Time to stop typing and keep the driver attentive on the road…we’ve got 2 hours drive ahead of us.

9:00 pm - We're checked into the Hampton in in Gallup.  Grabbed a bite to eat and now it's time to relax and get some sleep.  Tomorrow night we'll be sleeping in our own bed and eating something out of our freezer.  Oh, never mind on the freezer bit.  Got news today that it was plugged into the electrical circuit that failed as we were walking out the house on Dec 2.  What a nice welcoming smell for Anna and Jen.  Thanks Shannyn for cleaning it out.

Oklahoma! OK

Yes, we're in Tulsa, Oklahoma.   All I can say is WOW!  We left Sheboygan around 5:45 this morning.  Our early departure was required to get Anna to O'Hare.  We made it to the airport in 2 hours.  But it took us 35 minutes to get from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3.  We actually let T out of the car at Terminal 2 'cause he had to P.  And he was waiting for us at Terminal 3!  Gotta love Chicago driving!!!  In both directions, that's been the worst traffic of our trip.  

The rest of the drive was uneventful.  We were southwest of St. Louis by 1 p.m.  Hit some rain around Rolla, MO.  Weather stayed 37+ degrees all day so we didn't have to worry about ice.  I love driving through southern Missouri.  It really is a beautiful state.  Tony didn't realize that Branson was so close to Springfield.  Next time we're in the neighborhood we'll swing over that way.  I visited Branson with my mother and sister 5+ years ago and had a good time seeing the shows... probably more for us old timers than youngsters.  I would love to drive through the Ozarks too.  It is really beautiful country (refraining from toothless jokes).

So now it's 10 pm.  Anna's been home for hours.  Jen should be flying in as I type  and we still have 2 days of road travel!  There's something to be said about flying from point A to point B, unless the journey is part of the experience.  Our plan is to be home by Friday evening ... no, we are not crazy.  We made 830 miles today.  It's 1,460 from Tulsa to Chula Vista.  So if we drive to Gallup tomorrow, that's only 785 miles, 45 miles less than our trip today.  Then on Friday we only have 675 more to go.  Hey, piece of cake!

The Prius is doing great.   Here are some stats:  At last fillup in Springfield, MO, we've driven 4,003 miles and spent $280 on gas since we left CA.  Our highest price gas was $3.17 in Chula Vista before leaving home, least expensive was in Fishers, IN at $2.69.  It should cost us another $60 to get home.  Not bad.

Merry Christmas to all.  See some of ya soon.

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Greetings from the Weather Cafe on the shores of the Sheboygan River.  Tony & I are taking a coffee break and using the free internet access.  It amazes me how common WIFI is these days.  Yesterday we ate lunch at Applebees.  Tony asked if they had web access, and they did!  The only place we haven't had access is on Lonesome Pine Road.  But that's OK.

So what have we done since our last blog?  Well, we left Fishers and headed for Wisconsin last Thursday, December 13.  On the way we stopped to meet Elsa and her mom.  Took them out to lunch at a lovely italian deli.  Oh, but the wind was icy cold.  

Then on to Milwaukee.   Of course Gail outdid herself cooking.  But it was yummie.  And the wine was excellent and abundant.  Oh, did I mention the company?  That was pretty good too.  Jen and Steph stopped by and joined us for dinner.  They look great.  Cara stopped in after work too.  Oh wait, she still lives there.

Friday morning found us at the Capital Cafe for a good Wisconsin breakfast and then on to the Rapids.  We got into town before Sue & Randy got off of work, so we rested up a bit.  Then out to the Achor Bay Bar & Grill.  Great grits.  Wally & Linda joined us for dinner.  Nice seeing them again.

The following morning included another hearty Wisconsin breakfast and then we headed down to Sheboygan, reaching our final destination around 1:30, just ahead of the lake snow which required snow blowing and shoveling the next morning.

We've just been relaxing (eating), running errands (eating), and doing minor chores (eating).  I'm glad I left the skinny pants in CA.  Getting ready for the rest of the clan to arrive and have some good Old Fashions.  

Day Eight, Nine & Ten - O'Fallon to Fishers

Good Morning from Fishers. Let's see, were did I leave off? Ahh, Sunday....we were still in O'Fallon. Weather was not so good, so we only ventured out to get some lunch. The girls caught up on some sleep. And the adults caught up with some visiting. We really enjoyed being with Juan and wished Darah was with us too. Tony & I gave Juan and Darah their Christmas gift. Darah joined us via iChat. Gotta love modern technology. Later that evening Juan built a fire. And we gave the girls their gifts. Again Darah was with us via iChat. Being a school night, the girls headed to bed a bit earlier and Juan studied for a quiz he had to take before the next day. All in all, a very quiet and relaxing day...well, as quit as it can be with an 5 & 7 year old! We all headed to bed early, not sure we were going to be able to leave the next morning. We woke to school closing in the St. Louis area on Monday morning. St. Louis is approximately 20 miles to the west of O'Fallon. Temps were hovering around 32 degrees. Cars were icy, but the roads were ok to drive in O'Fallon and non of the schools were closed. So we took off with caution. We did hit one slippery overpass on I-70...Tony's first experience with fishtailing in a car. YIKES! His eyes got real big, and I don't think he quite knew what was happening. And if you can believe it, the Prius started to ding to warn us! Well, he just let off the gas and waited for terra firma on the other side of the bridge. The wheels gripped and we were ok. It was a gentle first reminder of how dangerous driving in winter weather can be. I know, you midwesterners are going bahhh. But if one's not experienced in winter driving, it can be a bit frightening. There are no icy parking lots in San Diego to practice skidding. We rolled into the Combs parking lot around 1:30...just in time to say hello to the kids before they headed off for naps. We caught up with Sandy and Travis who later took us out for dinner at Maggiano's for plentiful italian food. We were encouraged to order the family meal for four. Wow! Way too much food. But delicious. The pasta coma set in around 9:30. Thanks again Travis and Sandy. So here we are, It's 8:30 and we're sipping coffed from Travis' new Bunn coffee maker. Anna, that's why he called you on Sunday. He wanted to know if T & I liked our coffe maker. It's great. Ahhh, the simple things in life. A cup of coffee and people we love.

Sunday Morning

Good morning from O'Fallon.  We're sitting on the sofa watching the freezing rain.  Looks like it's going to be a dismal, midwest winter day.  Travel advisories have been issued.  We're hoping the winter storm doesn't affect our scheduled departure for tomorrow morning.  But if it does, oh well.

Had a great, relaxing Saturday with Tony and the girls.  I got a manicure with beautiful blue and pink nail polish.  Then I got to give manicures to Ali and Syd.  We had a great time.

For lunch we went to the Old Spaghetti Factory in St. Louis.  Yummie.  The restaurant is in the basement of an old building a block from the Mississippi.  We headed home with our tummies filled.  Then Nana snuck away to do a little shopping.

Friday Evening

Greetings from O'Fallon, IL.  We made it to the Torres home around 12:30.  Juan was on alert last evening and ended up flying to Florida last night.  He was able to catch a few hours of sleep.  But needless to say, he's exhausted.

The ride over was uneventful.  Weather was overcast, but dry.  After yesterday's slush, we're not complaining.  We got into town early enough to go to the base with Tony and the girls and witness Santa arrive by Lear jet.  Santa would have used the reindeer, but they need to rest up for the 24th.  We took a picture with Santa.  Can you see Juan?

This evening was quiet.  Juan & girls had a birthday party to attend.  It was across the street, so we went along.  Didn't stay too long.  The adults were pretty tired.  Juan went to bed.  Lito and Nana stayed up to watch the Grinch with the girls.

Ali and Syd have grown since our visit in May.  When we first arrived, neither girls wanted too much to do with either of us.  But by the evening both were crawling over both of us.  Sydney told Lito she didn't like the hair on his face.  And Ali has promised Nana a manicure tomorrow using the manicure set from Lear Jet Santa.  We're looking forward to spending the weekend with them.

Have a great weekend everyone.  And good luck to the Amazing Racers in San Diego.

PS....Deb, you should be able to comment without a Google email now.

Day Five - Destination O'Fallon

We're getting ready to check out of the hotel.  It's 8 a.m. and weather is still cooperating.  Looks like we may run into some rain.  But the temp should be warm enough to eliminate freezing.

Looking forward to getting to O'Fallon.  Plan is to meet Julie (Nanny) with the girls and go to the base.  Tony and another pilot are landing (actually just taxiing the plane) and then coming off the plane as Santas.  Should be fun.  We'll be with Tony and the girls through the weekend and then on to Indianapolis.

We're off to Illinois!