As promised in our Christmas letter, I'm going to try and update out blog throughout the year. Christmas at our house was a load of fun and surprises. Levi received a RipStik (like a skateboard), Brandon received an indoor single person trampoline, Seth received an electric guitar, and Bailey received a doll house. Grandma and Grandpa gave them a Wii and Granny and PaPa gave them them some cool legos, a rocket car, a tea set, and a flag football set. I'm really trying to teach the kids not to be materialistic, but it is a struggle at Christmas. Our neighbors decided to take the money they would have spent on Christmas and give it to a charity (except for one small gift per person). That may be a good lesson for our kids in the coming years.....
I must admit, I was surprised at how much fun the Wii has become for adults. We recently had our Bible Study group over for a potluck dinner and the adults had more fun using the Wii than the kids.
If you haven't had a chance to review our trip, you can still check the links at the bottom of the blog or the pictures. You can still read about my struggle changing the toilet on the RV (if you are really interested) or our amazing trips to some of the beautiful places throughout Canada and the US.
We sure hope everyone had a blessed Christmas and we all took time away from the distractions of Christmas to ponder the greatest gift to all mankind: Christ the Savior.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Home for Good!!
Sunday, October 28
After 15,850 miles and 112 days on the road, we have finally arrived home. It feels good to be home, but that means returning to work is just around the corner. Oh well, you can’t be on vacation forever…….or maybe that is called retirement. We averaged 142 miles per day and spent approximately 288 hours in the car (12 of the 112 day trip). In hindsight, that is probably more than we should have. We did feel a little pushed for some of the trip. On the other hand we sure covered a lot of ground. The next sabbatical will have to be on a beach in Fiji for 4 months straight! We probably won’t be posting to this for some time. We may turn it into the family blog….Thanks for everyone who followed our trip, we hope you got to vicariously enjoy it with us!
After 15,850 miles and 112 days on the road, we have finally arrived home. It feels good to be home, but that means returning to work is just around the corner. Oh well, you can’t be on vacation forever…….or maybe that is called retirement. We averaged 142 miles per day and spent approximately 288 hours in the car (12 of the 112 day trip). In hindsight, that is probably more than we should have. We did feel a little pushed for some of the trip. On the other hand we sure covered a lot of ground. The next sabbatical will have to be on a beach in Fiji for 4 months straight! We probably won’t be posting to this for some time. We may turn it into the family blog….Thanks for everyone who followed our trip, we hope you got to vicariously enjoy it with us!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Shuttle Launch
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Blast off!!! Today we got to see the space shuttle launch at 11:38 am as planned. We arrived 4 hours early just to get a spot and it’s a good thing we got one since the lady nearby was frustrated that the folks in the front weren’t sitting down at the time of the launch. The shuttle packs a powerful punch, and from where we were (about 11 miles away), the sound was pretty incredible. It was delayed about 50 seconds because of the distance, but still pretty neat. Levi took a pretty neat picture that I have placed to the right. In fact, he actually snapped a picture when the booster rockets came off, which was totally unplanned. We met with a family from our church in Winchester so it was nice to share the experience with someone we knew. After the launch we just chilled out at the campground and spent some time in the pool.
Blast off!!! Today we got to see the space shuttle launch at 11:38 am as planned. We arrived 4 hours early just to get a spot and it’s a good thing we got one since the lady nearby was frustrated that the folks in the front weren’t sitting down at the time of the launch. The shuttle packs a powerful punch, and from where we were (about 11 miles away), the sound was pretty incredible. It was delayed about 50 seconds because of the distance, but still pretty neat. Levi took a pretty neat picture that I have placed to the right. In fact, he actually snapped a picture when the booster rockets came off, which was totally unplanned. We met with a family from our church in Winchester so it was nice to share the experience with someone we knew. After the launch we just chilled out at the campground and spent some time in the pool.
Monday, October 22, 2007
On the road again!
Sunday, October 21
After 14,022 miles and 106 days on the road we spend the last 6 days at our house in Berryville. We caught up on weeding our flowerbeds, doing laundry, cleaning the RV, and having fun. However, today brought a new direction. We headed out once again on our adventure, so I’ll call today day 107. Today was a long driving day as we covered about 450 miles and made it to southern South Carolina. For our 106 day trip, I can’t think of one significant item we forgot. However, for this 7 day trip, we have managed to forget some important items. First and foremost is baby wipes. Nobody should go on any roadtrip without babywipes regardless of whether or not you have someone in diapers. Just think of the hassle years ago when people had to carry water and papertowels and make their own wipes on an as needed basis. The second item we forgot was towels. We discovered this as the kids were going to the pool tonight at the campground. It might make showering interesting tomorrow…… I told Bailey that she may not want to go to the pool because she wouldn’t have a towel. Her comment was, "I’ll just dry off in the sun". That was only made funny by the fact that it was 8 pm at night and the sun had gone down over an hour earlier. The third item we forgot is Bailey’s baby doll. You see, we carried that baby doll with us all across the US and it provided needed comfort each night. However, Bailey was sad tonight to learn that her favorite baby doll is sleeping at our yellow house (Bailey’s term for our fixed home-the one on the concrete pad). Tomorrow we’ll travel to Titusville, Florida, which is our home base for the Space Shuttle launch. By the way, at least one family took us up on joining us down for the shuttle launch and possibly a second family that resides in Florida that we meant in Maine. Oh, I almost forgot. One noteworthy event for the day was listening to a Bill Cosby cd that we picked up from Sheri’s Dad’s collection. I almost had to pull over I was laughing so much. The whole family was laughing like crazy at his comedy sketches.
After 14,022 miles and 106 days on the road we spend the last 6 days at our house in Berryville. We caught up on weeding our flowerbeds, doing laundry, cleaning the RV, and having fun. However, today brought a new direction. We headed out once again on our adventure, so I’ll call today day 107. Today was a long driving day as we covered about 450 miles and made it to southern South Carolina. For our 106 day trip, I can’t think of one significant item we forgot. However, for this 7 day trip, we have managed to forget some important items. First and foremost is baby wipes. Nobody should go on any roadtrip without babywipes regardless of whether or not you have someone in diapers. Just think of the hassle years ago when people had to carry water and papertowels and make their own wipes on an as needed basis. The second item we forgot was towels. We discovered this as the kids were going to the pool tonight at the campground. It might make showering interesting tomorrow…… I told Bailey that she may not want to go to the pool because she wouldn’t have a towel. Her comment was, "I’ll just dry off in the sun". That was only made funny by the fact that it was 8 pm at night and the sun had gone down over an hour earlier. The third item we forgot is Bailey’s baby doll. You see, we carried that baby doll with us all across the US and it provided needed comfort each night. However, Bailey was sad tonight to learn that her favorite baby doll is sleeping at our yellow house (Bailey’s term for our fixed home-the one on the concrete pad). Tomorrow we’ll travel to Titusville, Florida, which is our home base for the Space Shuttle launch. By the way, at least one family took us up on joining us down for the shuttle launch and possibly a second family that resides in Florida that we meant in Maine. Oh, I almost forgot. One noteworthy event for the day was listening to a Bill Cosby cd that we picked up from Sheri’s Dad’s collection. I almost had to pull over I was laughing so much. The whole family was laughing like crazy at his comedy sketches.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
HOME! ........for a week
Sunday, October 14
After over 14,000 miles we docked at the home base today. We decided to make a stop near Christiansburg to see the McClennahans, who used to live in Berryville. After a 3 hour visit with them we headed home and arrived at 10 pm. To the kids, it was like Christmas morning. They were so excited to see their rooms and toys they had forgotten they had. Bailey was the cutest as her room was like a new place to her. The kids were so hyped up, we couldn’t get them to bed until 11:30. Brandon and Seth were the two kids that couldn’t wait to get their own bed. However, when they realized how far away from Mom and Dad they would be they both asked if they could sleep together. Bailey also had trouble. For 4 months she went to bed seeing Mom and Dad and having a brother by her side. To sleep by herself was scary. However, everyone did just fine. This week we are taking it easy and getting some chores done around the house. Next Sunday we leave for Cape Canaveral to see the shuttle launch!
After over 14,000 miles we docked at the home base today. We decided to make a stop near Christiansburg to see the McClennahans, who used to live in Berryville. After a 3 hour visit with them we headed home and arrived at 10 pm. To the kids, it was like Christmas morning. They were so excited to see their rooms and toys they had forgotten they had. Bailey was the cutest as her room was like a new place to her. The kids were so hyped up, we couldn’t get them to bed until 11:30. Brandon and Seth were the two kids that couldn’t wait to get their own bed. However, when they realized how far away from Mom and Dad they would be they both asked if they could sleep together. Bailey also had trouble. For 4 months she went to bed seeing Mom and Dad and having a brother by her side. To sleep by herself was scary. However, everyone did just fine. This week we are taking it easy and getting some chores done around the house. Next Sunday we leave for Cape Canaveral to see the shuttle launch!
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Visting Family and Friends as We Return
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Today was a day for visiting my Aunt and Uncle. My Uncle Dan (my Dad’s brother) played football in college so we took the opportunity to play football with kids. Seth and my Uncle played against me and Levi. Brandon was on whichever team had the ball. Unfortunately Levi and I lost. But we did have a ton of fun playing. All three kids made plays, but Brandon surprised me as he caught and threw the ball several times. We also made a visit to my Aunt’s father (no direct relation to me) who lives four houses away. He tells a great story of escaping Hungary during the 1950s when the Russians were invading the country. The day before they were going to cross the bridge into Austria, it was blown up. In order to cross the river he gathered some wood and made a makeshift raft, which allowed he, his wife, and his 2-year old daughter to pass into Austria. Eventually, they made it to the US, where my aunt was born. As any surrogate grandparent would do, he gave the kids plenty of candy. Seth also enjoyed a chess match with "PaPa". Tonight is our last night in the RV as we will be back home tomorrow…….until we take off for Florida to see the space shuttle launch in one week!
Friday, October 12, 2007
Day 104. Today was the longest driving day so far on our trip at 7 hours. We drove from Prattville to Charlotte. We are so close to home that we decided to push a little more to get there by Sunday. However, we reserved Saturday for meeting with my Aunt and Uncle and tonight we met up with Sheri’s best friend from Elementary school, both of whom live in the Charlotte area.
Thursday, October 11
We made our way from the beaches of Florida to Prattville, Alabama today. My first two years of employment after college were for International Paper in Selma, Alabama. We lived in Prattville and I commuted each day. Levi spent the first two years of his life down here and Seth was born in a hospital in Montgomery, which is only 15 minutes from Prattville. We drove by our old house and church and then spent the evening with some friends that we have stayed in touch with. They have two boys that are the same age as our kids, so much fun was had.
Wednesday, October 10
Today was nice because it was a shark-free day. We spent about 2 hours at the beach this morning and despite yesterday’s scare, Levi wasn’t afraid to go in the water. I, on the other hand, did nothing but scan the water the entire time. It really takes the fun out of the ocean.
After playing at the beach we spent the afternoon/evening with a family that had lived in Winchester, Virginia in 2000-2002. They moved down to Fort Walton Beach because the husband re-joined the Air Force. Unfortunately, he went to Iraq and died in a plane crash. We had a great visit with fhe family (wife, 2 boys and a girl). The kids played well together. I think it was best summed up by their 10 year old son who stated, "I’m having fun playing with friends I didn’t even know I had".
Today was a day for visiting my Aunt and Uncle. My Uncle Dan (my Dad’s brother) played football in college so we took the opportunity to play football with kids. Seth and my Uncle played against me and Levi. Brandon was on whichever team had the ball. Unfortunately Levi and I lost. But we did have a ton of fun playing. All three kids made plays, but Brandon surprised me as he caught and threw the ball several times. We also made a visit to my Aunt’s father (no direct relation to me) who lives four houses away. He tells a great story of escaping Hungary during the 1950s when the Russians were invading the country. The day before they were going to cross the bridge into Austria, it was blown up. In order to cross the river he gathered some wood and made a makeshift raft, which allowed he, his wife, and his 2-year old daughter to pass into Austria. Eventually, they made it to the US, where my aunt was born. As any surrogate grandparent would do, he gave the kids plenty of candy. Seth also enjoyed a chess match with "PaPa". Tonight is our last night in the RV as we will be back home tomorrow…….until we take off for Florida to see the space shuttle launch in one week!
Friday, October 12, 2007
Day 104. Today was the longest driving day so far on our trip at 7 hours. We drove from Prattville to Charlotte. We are so close to home that we decided to push a little more to get there by Sunday. However, we reserved Saturday for meeting with my Aunt and Uncle and tonight we met up with Sheri’s best friend from Elementary school, both of whom live in the Charlotte area.
Thursday, October 11
We made our way from the beaches of Florida to Prattville, Alabama today. My first two years of employment after college were for International Paper in Selma, Alabama. We lived in Prattville and I commuted each day. Levi spent the first two years of his life down here and Seth was born in a hospital in Montgomery, which is only 15 minutes from Prattville. We drove by our old house and church and then spent the evening with some friends that we have stayed in touch with. They have two boys that are the same age as our kids, so much fun was had.
Wednesday, October 10
Today was nice because it was a shark-free day. We spent about 2 hours at the beach this morning and despite yesterday’s scare, Levi wasn’t afraid to go in the water. I, on the other hand, did nothing but scan the water the entire time. It really takes the fun out of the ocean.
After playing at the beach we spent the afternoon/evening with a family that had lived in Winchester, Virginia in 2000-2002. They moved down to Fort Walton Beach because the husband re-joined the Air Force. Unfortunately, he went to Iraq and died in a plane crash. We had a great visit with fhe family (wife, 2 boys and a girl). The kids played well together. I think it was best summed up by their 10 year old son who stated, "I’m having fun playing with friends I didn’t even know I had".
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Shark Bait in Destin Florida
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
2:30 am I awaken. An unusual event. The entire trip I typically wake up around 5 am but fall asleep again quickly and wake up with the rest of the family around 7 am or so. Not today. I tossed and turned for an hour before finally deciding that enough is enough. If I was up, I might as well do something. So I unhooked the RV and got on the road at 4 am (leaving New Orleans). I had only done this once before and I think it was more like 6 am. Waking up early turned out to be really beneficial because we were able to arrive at Destin, Florida by 10 am. Casting aside some problems finding an RV place (really the first time that has happened), we were at the beach by 12:30 pm. Destin beach is beautiful and the water is clear and of an aqua blue color. I’d almost say it is the perfect beach….except for the sharks. As we arrived onto the beach today folks promptly told us to be very cautious as 9 sharks had been sighted. After talking to some locals I discovered that bull sharks have been pretty aggressive in the last several years in the fall months. I watched the water like a hawk as the kids played around me for 3 hours. We didn’t enter the water more than 15 feet from the shore and I could see the bottom the entire time. After 2-3 hours of fun, I decided to leave and take Seth, Brandon, and Bailey to the pool and Sheri and Levi decided to stay back and play in the ocean some more. I had told Levi before leaving that I kind of wanted to see a shark from a distance. Sheri and Levi were out in about knee depth water and a shark (about 6 feet long) swam within 10 feet of them in water about waist deep. Thankfully, he wasn’t hunting them, or they probably would have been struck. Within minutes (after all the folks around had exited the beach) another one came in the same location. I never would have thought sharks would have swam in such shallow water, but a local gentleman had told me they are frequently spotted in 3 feet of water. For that reason, today goes down in the Mayo family history as one of the most frightening day of Sheri’s and Levi’s lives. I’m not sure we will enter the water tomorrow, but sand castle building is in order…….Oh, I’ve got to update some mileage. We entered Louisiana at 12,425 on Sunday. Today we entered Mississippi at 12,700, Alabama at 12,775, and Florida at 12,839.
2:30 am I awaken. An unusual event. The entire trip I typically wake up around 5 am but fall asleep again quickly and wake up with the rest of the family around 7 am or so. Not today. I tossed and turned for an hour before finally deciding that enough is enough. If I was up, I might as well do something. So I unhooked the RV and got on the road at 4 am (leaving New Orleans). I had only done this once before and I think it was more like 6 am. Waking up early turned out to be really beneficial because we were able to arrive at Destin, Florida by 10 am. Casting aside some problems finding an RV place (really the first time that has happened), we were at the beach by 12:30 pm. Destin beach is beautiful and the water is clear and of an aqua blue color. I’d almost say it is the perfect beach….except for the sharks. As we arrived onto the beach today folks promptly told us to be very cautious as 9 sharks had been sighted. After talking to some locals I discovered that bull sharks have been pretty aggressive in the last several years in the fall months. I watched the water like a hawk as the kids played around me for 3 hours. We didn’t enter the water more than 15 feet from the shore and I could see the bottom the entire time. After 2-3 hours of fun, I decided to leave and take Seth, Brandon, and Bailey to the pool and Sheri and Levi decided to stay back and play in the ocean some more. I had told Levi before leaving that I kind of wanted to see a shark from a distance. Sheri and Levi were out in about knee depth water and a shark (about 6 feet long) swam within 10 feet of them in water about waist deep. Thankfully, he wasn’t hunting them, or they probably would have been struck. Within minutes (after all the folks around had exited the beach) another one came in the same location. I never would have thought sharks would have swam in such shallow water, but a local gentleman had told me they are frequently spotted in 3 feet of water. For that reason, today goes down in the Mayo family history as one of the most frightening day of Sheri’s and Levi’s lives. I’m not sure we will enter the water tomorrow, but sand castle building is in order…….Oh, I’ve got to update some mileage. We entered Louisiana at 12,425 on Sunday. Today we entered Mississippi at 12,700, Alabama at 12,775, and Florida at 12,839.
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