I've hit my wall. I've been driving too long, I'm exhausted, and any little thing that goes wrong more than likely reduces me to tears (though Chris doesn't know how many times that's happened). I've called my dad in tears several times and he had to help find a place for us to sleep one night because I was close to catatonic sitting in Zion National Park.
We did make it through two nights of camping, which was quite a feat. The Grand Canyon was amazing, I will say. I thoroughly enjoyed the stay there! The next night was camping on the grounds of the Zion Ponderosa Ranch and Resort. We had a campsite, but access to a pool, bathrooms, showers, and WiFi. We went swimming that afternoon, which felt amazing. Then, it was on to Vegas...
We started off the afternoon by realizing we were staying in one of the towers and NOT the pyramid itself at the Luxor. I was less than thrilled, but the booking website finally made sense (Claire's Freak-Out #I-don't-know complete with a phone call to Dad). I also felt like there was almost nothing for us to do, really, since Chris is underage for almost everything. We did decide to go see Criss Angel's BeLIEve show, which was pretty cool. I had expected more of the Cirque du Soleil-style show, but it was just Criss Angel with Cirque influence in the staging and props. Still interesting, just not what I had anticipated. After that, we wanted to walk down to the Bellagio to catch the fountain. The Luxor and the Bellagio are on COMPLETE opposite ends of the strip...and I wore flip-flops. Big mistake. Chris walks fast and I was completely exhausted by the time we got back to the hotel.
We also did not get to Sequoia National Forest as planned. The GPS is dumb, let's just say that. So I spent nine hours straight driving. We also went through an area where there were more Spanish-speaking radio stations than English-speaking. I hated the drive yesterday. Hated. It.
I also want to break Chris' phones...yes, plural. Apparently, people require constant communication with him so one of the phones is ALWAYS buzzing. I'm about ready to break them or throw them out the moving car. It also caused him to not speak for almost the entire drive yesterday...eight hours of silence is not enjoyable if you're driving. Just watch the video posted on the joint blog...it's entertaining to say the least!
BUT, we are out of the desert (thankfully!!). The drives should be more scenic now and the countdown to Grandma's has begun! We will be there on Wednesday evening, so we're getting so close! I'm really really excited to go to Monterey Bay Aquarium today, which is one part of my childhood that I'm extremely happy to relive. We also are staying in San Francisco tonight, so a very short drive.
Oh..and Happy Father's Day!! Thank you, Dad, for letting me vent and just being encouraging not only on this trip but in general. You rock! I love you!!
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Well, that was interesting
The past few days have been interesting, to say the least. I honestly didn't think I'd be able to post until tomorrow evening. But that's just the latest in the unexpected parts of this trip. The drive to Four Corners then to Phoenix was honestly quite uneventful and really boring. I would have gladly taken just boring, but then life decided to throw me a curveball.
When we left last Saturday, we made it to Illinois before I realized I had left my National Parks Pass that was purchased just for this trip sitting on my desk at home. Dad had to overnight it to the place we were staying at in Phoenix. We get to Phoenix, but no pass. Dad calls me to let me know they tried to deliver it but since we didn't have the apartment number, they took it back to the distribution center. Oh joy. Now, it's 7:00 in the evening, I need to use the pass the next day, and no idea how to get it. Let's call it Claire's Freak-Out #1.We finally get ahold of customer service and they hold the pass for in-person pickup, but Kim had to be the one to get it since it was addressed to her. This may not have been possible, but it worked out. So, off we went to the Grand Canyon, pass in hand, thinking that everything else should go smoothly.
Sure. We got to the Grand Canyon and got a campsite without any problems. That's when we start to set up the tent...I burn my shoulders in a matter of minutes (yay). We get everything set up and put in the tent and decide to make dinner. We brought a little camp stove with butane gas tanks...but quickly realized we brought nothing practical to light it with. Chris had his knife and flint, but let's talk about how fun THAT was. In the meantime, as we were both sitting in the car trying to figure out what to do, DinoCrow (seriously, it was massive) swoops down from the sky, busts open a package of Ramen that was sitting on the picnic table, and proceeds to take off with the Ramen in its mouth. Wonderful. A bird just stole my dinner. Stupid bird.
The next morning, everything seemed to go smoothly getting packed up and out. I thought we had left enough time to get to Zion National Park in time to get a campsite. There were three times as many there as there were at the Grand Canyon, so surely we would be fine. Wrong assumption. We get to ZNP, and the ranger at the gate said there were still a few places left. But, it's a 12 mile drive from the entrance to the campsite. By the time we got there, everything was full... a.k.a. Claire's Freak-Out #2. I think I cried at least twice, maybe three times, and did what I always do when I freak out - call my dad. Between Dad and Chris (who also maintained a level of chill I wasn't able to achieve at this point), we managed to get a campsite about 10 minutes from ZNP but it also includes access to a pool, bathrooms, showers, and WiFi.
But in the midst of all this, I can be thankful for several things. I got to stay with and catch up with my friend Kim, who I haven't seen for 12-13 years. Chris and I got to see the Grand Canyon at sunset (and take an exorbitant amount of pictures!). I thought that was amazing until we saw the stars - an amount of stars I've never seen in the sky before. Chris and I just sat outside for a while and watched the stars. Chris even got to see a shooting star...which he was over the moon about!
I have seen so much of this amazing country and we're nowhere near done with this trip. I have seen God's handiwork in so many things and I stand in awe of His Creation. I'm so thankful for the safety we've had, the ease of the driving (though, at times, boring), and the amazing things we've gotten to see. I'm so glad we set out on this trip and I honestly can't wait to see what else we come across!
When we left last Saturday, we made it to Illinois before I realized I had left my National Parks Pass that was purchased just for this trip sitting on my desk at home. Dad had to overnight it to the place we were staying at in Phoenix. We get to Phoenix, but no pass. Dad calls me to let me know they tried to deliver it but since we didn't have the apartment number, they took it back to the distribution center. Oh joy. Now, it's 7:00 in the evening, I need to use the pass the next day, and no idea how to get it. Let's call it Claire's Freak-Out #1.We finally get ahold of customer service and they hold the pass for in-person pickup, but Kim had to be the one to get it since it was addressed to her. This may not have been possible, but it worked out. So, off we went to the Grand Canyon, pass in hand, thinking that everything else should go smoothly.
Sure. We got to the Grand Canyon and got a campsite without any problems. That's when we start to set up the tent...I burn my shoulders in a matter of minutes (yay). We get everything set up and put in the tent and decide to make dinner. We brought a little camp stove with butane gas tanks...but quickly realized we brought nothing practical to light it with. Chris had his knife and flint, but let's talk about how fun THAT was. In the meantime, as we were both sitting in the car trying to figure out what to do, DinoCrow (seriously, it was massive) swoops down from the sky, busts open a package of Ramen that was sitting on the picnic table, and proceeds to take off with the Ramen in its mouth. Wonderful. A bird just stole my dinner. Stupid bird.
The next morning, everything seemed to go smoothly getting packed up and out. I thought we had left enough time to get to Zion National Park in time to get a campsite. There were three times as many there as there were at the Grand Canyon, so surely we would be fine. Wrong assumption. We get to ZNP, and the ranger at the gate said there were still a few places left. But, it's a 12 mile drive from the entrance to the campsite. By the time we got there, everything was full... a.k.a. Claire's Freak-Out #2. I think I cried at least twice, maybe three times, and did what I always do when I freak out - call my dad. Between Dad and Chris (who also maintained a level of chill I wasn't able to achieve at this point), we managed to get a campsite about 10 minutes from ZNP but it also includes access to a pool, bathrooms, showers, and WiFi.
But in the midst of all this, I can be thankful for several things. I got to stay with and catch up with my friend Kim, who I haven't seen for 12-13 years. Chris and I got to see the Grand Canyon at sunset (and take an exorbitant amount of pictures!). I thought that was amazing until we saw the stars - an amount of stars I've never seen in the sky before. Chris and I just sat outside for a while and watched the stars. Chris even got to see a shooting star...which he was over the moon about!
I have seen so much of this amazing country and we're nowhere near done with this trip. I have seen God's handiwork in so many things and I stand in awe of His Creation. I'm so thankful for the safety we've had, the ease of the driving (though, at times, boring), and the amazing things we've gotten to see. I'm so glad we set out on this trip and I honestly can't wait to see what else we come across!
Monday, June 11, 2012
I Get It Now
For all of you who have moved to Colorado or want to, I get it now. I just spent the day driving from Denver to Cortez through the Rockies. There's now a small part of me that wants to move here myself and Chris is also now more determined than ever to get here. I also get why, once people move here, they never leave! I had to get through Kansas, though, to get to today...which I'm still shocked we survived with only one instance of drawn blood!
Yesterday was honestly not that great with an exception here or there. I spent the majority of my day driving through the entire state of Kansas (all 600 or so miles of it). Brutal...simply brutal. Chris drew first blood of the trip when he scraped my shoulder with the Twizzlers plastic container. I made it well known that it hurt (perhaps I was being a bit overdramatic?? ;-) ) and he sarcastically asked me if I needed a band-aid. The sibling bonding really ramped up when Chris pulled out the Would You Rather? book and started asking me questions. Mercifully, he censored some of them and flat out didn't ask certain ones. I had forgotten that it was me that bought it for him...that was kind of a dumb move on my part! It did kill 45 minutes or so, which I was definitely grateful for. Driving through Kansas can be summarized as this: one dead straight line set in the middle of a sometimes green, often brown piece of paper. Oh, and don't forget the wind. I spent 6 hours fighting the car when it wanted to go careening off the road from the crosswinds. Semi trucks made that experience even that much better!! I saw three tumbleweeds cross the road and started wishing for more civilization to show up, but to no avail. When we finally got to Colorado, there was dancing and celebrating. Trees became a joyful sight to behold and the hills that began to appear was amazing. To be honest, we will never stop talking about how disheartening it was to drive the length of that state in one day.
The night was spent with an old friend of mine from high school. I had a great time catching up and reminiscing about the crazy stuff she did and how oblivious I was to just about everything! I'm sure Chris learned a lot about me and what I was like when we were "his age" (Somehow the phrase ..."at our age" or "when you get to be this age" kept being said...apparently 26 is REALLY old, but I beg to differ!).
I did have to pull rank with Chris once yesterday, which I genuinely felt bad for. I hold myself partially responsible for having to do so in the first place, which means I won't let it happen again on my end. Decades later and I'm still working on this whole "Big Sister" deal. Sibling bonding took a small hit for that one, I'm sure, but today seemed to be just fine.
The Rocky Mountains are absolutely unreal. It's been the best drive of the trip so far, and it made up for the drive through Kansas. There was definitely one moment where I was moved to tears from the sheer beauty of what I was seeing. We deviated from the GPS based on my friend's suggestion and we definitely didn't regret it! We stopped at two pull-offs in order to take pictures, which probably put us back by an hour but we didn't care at all.
I will say that there is one advantage to driving the entire time: I get to see everything we drive by. Chris will read books or play on his iPhone (which I don't necessarily blame him for...I'd probably do the same thing), but there are times that I feel he's missing the breathtaking scenery and general splendor. No matter, though, because we took so many pictures that it's hard to not remember this trip! I've honestly had such a fantastic time being able to spend this time with Chris and I'm just so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to do something like this...just me and him. I can't wait to see what happens next!
Yesterday was honestly not that great with an exception here or there. I spent the majority of my day driving through the entire state of Kansas (all 600 or so miles of it). Brutal...simply brutal. Chris drew first blood of the trip when he scraped my shoulder with the Twizzlers plastic container. I made it well known that it hurt (perhaps I was being a bit overdramatic?? ;-) ) and he sarcastically asked me if I needed a band-aid. The sibling bonding really ramped up when Chris pulled out the Would You Rather? book and started asking me questions. Mercifully, he censored some of them and flat out didn't ask certain ones. I had forgotten that it was me that bought it for him...that was kind of a dumb move on my part! It did kill 45 minutes or so, which I was definitely grateful for. Driving through Kansas can be summarized as this: one dead straight line set in the middle of a sometimes green, often brown piece of paper. Oh, and don't forget the wind. I spent 6 hours fighting the car when it wanted to go careening off the road from the crosswinds. Semi trucks made that experience even that much better!! I saw three tumbleweeds cross the road and started wishing for more civilization to show up, but to no avail. When we finally got to Colorado, there was dancing and celebrating. Trees became a joyful sight to behold and the hills that began to appear was amazing. To be honest, we will never stop talking about how disheartening it was to drive the length of that state in one day.
The night was spent with an old friend of mine from high school. I had a great time catching up and reminiscing about the crazy stuff she did and how oblivious I was to just about everything! I'm sure Chris learned a lot about me and what I was like when we were "his age" (Somehow the phrase ..."at our age" or "when you get to be this age" kept being said...apparently 26 is REALLY old, but I beg to differ!).
I did have to pull rank with Chris once yesterday, which I genuinely felt bad for. I hold myself partially responsible for having to do so in the first place, which means I won't let it happen again on my end. Decades later and I'm still working on this whole "Big Sister" deal. Sibling bonding took a small hit for that one, I'm sure, but today seemed to be just fine.
The Rocky Mountains are absolutely unreal. It's been the best drive of the trip so far, and it made up for the drive through Kansas. There was definitely one moment where I was moved to tears from the sheer beauty of what I was seeing. We deviated from the GPS based on my friend's suggestion and we definitely didn't regret it! We stopped at two pull-offs in order to take pictures, which probably put us back by an hour but we didn't care at all.
I will say that there is one advantage to driving the entire time: I get to see everything we drive by. Chris will read books or play on his iPhone (which I don't necessarily blame him for...I'd probably do the same thing), but there are times that I feel he's missing the breathtaking scenery and general splendor. No matter, though, because we took so many pictures that it's hard to not remember this trip! I've honestly had such a fantastic time being able to spend this time with Chris and I'm just so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to do something like this...just me and him. I can't wait to see what happens next!
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| Chris took this picture of me up in the mountains. There's another one I like even more, but you don't see how high up we are or the scenery that was just breathtaking. |
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| I took this picture of Chris in the same place. It really was a great place to spend half an hour! |
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Day 1: We Survived...
Day 1 is in the history books! It was an eight hour drive from Indy to Kansas City, MO with very few issues. I can honestly say that I wish I could bear hug the person who invented cruise control! We started off leaving an hour later than I wanted to, but it was pretty much my own fault. Regardless, the car was packed to the brim and we set off.
The first thing I did? Hit myself in the forehead with the sun visor before we left the driveway. I'm awesome.
The driving really wasn't that bad until the last two hours of the day. At that point, Chris was playing with his phone and playing more chill music than I really needed. I was SO bored...I'll have to work on that tomorrow! I kept trying to say, "Hey, look at that sign!" or something, but I got a "mm hmm" response most of the time. It doesn't help that Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri all have the same landscape: flat and green. We almost made it all the way to KC on one tank of gas, which made me a very happy person!
If the rest of the trip consists of the kind of stuff we got to do this evening, this is going to be the most amazing road trip I could have possibly asked for! Until tomorrow from Colorado...
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| We display our Towels for the trip...all we need, but the car is packed tight...just in case |
The first thing I did? Hit myself in the forehead with the sun visor before we left the driveway. I'm awesome.
The driving really wasn't that bad until the last two hours of the day. At that point, Chris was playing with his phone and playing more chill music than I really needed. I was SO bored...I'll have to work on that tomorrow! I kept trying to say, "Hey, look at that sign!" or something, but I got a "mm hmm" response most of the time. It doesn't help that Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri all have the same landscape: flat and green. We almost made it all the way to KC on one tank of gas, which made me a very happy person!
The evening was filled with catching up with a fantastic family friend (well, she's pretty much just family) and eating some amazing food. We ended the night at this place called Jazz, which is decorated to the nines with New Orleans paraphernalia and had live jazz music every night. We ate beignets for dessert and listened to some awesome music. It was so relaxing and I was in absolute heaven! It made me miss playing jazz...might have to pick that back up here at some point!
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