Adventuring out West!!!

Tomorrow we will set off on an adventure, yet again!

Pops will arrive at the airport around lunchtime, we'll pick him up with a freshly packed case of clothing and we'll be on our way! Pops has two conferences to work in Southern California. So, the kids and I are tagging along on the very long drive to soak in the experience!

We will be in Anaheim for the first half of the week and will finish the week in San Diego. I suspect that on the day that he has "off" in the middle of the week we will make an attempt at seeing "The Mouse." Bump loves the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cartoon, so it might be a hit for even him! Tinkerbell is fresh on both girls' minds and Bud will love roller coastering and rolling his eyes at princesses. If we go, my question is: "NOW, can we never return??" I know - what a stick in the mud I am! I am just really not a fan of the craziness of Disney.

I am, however, looking forward to returning to the San Diego Zoo! I really thought that it was all that it was hyped up to be. I liked their layout, the bus system in the zoo, the overhead sky tram, the panda exhibit... yes, the list could go on and on! I am also looking forward to the beach. Oh, how I have missed the ocean. The sounds, the smells, the feel of the spray on your face, the sand between your toes pulling away in the tide... Yep - I'm ready!!

So - if this is where we are going... any suggestions??

• Legoland - what is it, what did you think of it?
• Museums - which ones are great for kids AND adults?
• Beaches - ones to hit/ones to stay clear of?
• Disney - what here must we do/see/try??
• other places????

Holy Long Hiatus, Batman!

Don't even know where to begin... Yes, you were very quiet like my last post requested for the birds... but they are long gone, and so are we!! Sometime around July 1st, we moved from the little acreage after selling the calves, finding homes for the ducks and chickens and (sadly) finding a new home for the little dog. We didn't find another rental or a house to purchase, so we moved ourselves back into our 5th Wheel Travel Trailer and all our earthly non-essential possessions into a storage facility about 1/2 mile from our RV park. I sort of thought it would last a month or so...

It was a very hot summer. We wished for a quick drive up into the mountains or out to the Pacific Coast!! Instead, we made some good friends, visited the Science Museum of OKC often, did some visiting with family in Nebraska, Illinois and Ohio, read lots of books and spent lots of time at the library, kids went to VBS and Totus Tuus at church, they took swimming lessons, the girls went to a week-long choral camp, we went to a couple of rodeos and otherwise just had a fun time together!

We have been continuing the fun this fall and have learned a lot (including a bit on stringed instruments), played much, visited The Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City, a ski resort off-season in Avon, CO, Zion National Park in Utah, a variety of things in Las Vegas including attending the PBR Finals and a day trip to Death Valley National Park, a quick stop visiting some of our friends we met in Oregon that have moved to Arizona and finally the long haul home to "home sweet home, RV" through New Mexico - a new state for most of us - and the panhandle of Texas, where we made a quick stop in Groom, TX to see the ginormus cross on the interstate. We thought we would be done traveling for a while after that long jaunt!!

But, what d'ya know... we did a fair amount of traveling back and forth to Nebraska - soon to be home to our family again! Pops took a new position with the company he has been working with since 2007!! This new position will have a fair amount of traveling and he will need to be near an airport!! We are hunting for a great place to live and are ready to sell our RV, again!! It has been good, but it seems everyone is ready for a little space again. Hopefully, we can settle into a new home before the first of the year... it's good to have goals, right!?!

So, that is where we are... in transition, yet again!!!

There are many pictures to share (I suppose that happens after a 5 month hiatus...) so, I have some in a slide show here... you'd be scrolling forever to see these 54 I have chosen to share for now!!  Enjoy!

A Family Treehouse June 2012 -Oct 2012 - free slideshow maker with music