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| A lot of time on the road was spent doing this |
For the purpose of condensing a lot of monotony into a
quick and easy read, I’m combining the last 2 days of the blog. Ahhh, don’t mention it, I’m happy to help
make your life easier. You’re welcome,
my friend.
We woke up Saturday morning, said farewell to Vegas, filled
up the RV with gas and our bellies with coffee, and started the 20 hour drive
home. Chad drove, with me as his
co-pilot (all that really means is that I sat shotgun), everyone else
slept. It was a beautiful drive through
the desert and we found ourselves in Reno in time for a late lunch.
We ate at Café Milano in the Peppermill. What a beautiful casino! I was really impressed with the décor, the
food, the whole experience.
We drove through California, up into Oregon and stopped to
sleep in a town called Chiloquin just north of Klamath Falls. We were up by 5:45, and got coffee. It was drizzling, and foggy, and the smell... oh, the smell of the pine trees surrounding the parking lot! It was almost fake, it was so delicious. We live in such an incredible country! We were on the road before the kids ever woke up. I wanted to wake them and have them come outside to smell the trees, but I know better than to wake a sleeping Niemeyer child (Ashley not included, she would've done it gladly.)
We reached Olympia at 1:00 PM, and we were all excited to be
home. My sister Heather was at our house
weeding the yard, which, due to the fact that I hate yard work, had gotten out
of control and I had to ask for help.
We unloaded, said our goodbyes, and started the process of
settling in. Now, it’s nearly 5 PM. We are showered, in our jammies and just
ordered a pizza for dinner. It’s family
movie night for us, and I think the 5 of us, despite being on the road for 11
days, are more rested than we’ve been in quite some time.
Some fun facts:
·
We drove almost 3,300 miles in 11 days, visiting
9 states.
·
I learned that those loud things on the sides of
the freeway are called Rumble Strips, and we spent approximately 18 miles of
our trip driving on them.
·
It is possible to pee while driving 75 mph down
the freeway. And not make a mess.
·
When driving along ridiculously steep canyon
roads in an RV, one’s butt cheeks involuntarily clench together with anxiety.
·
The most used comment on this vacation, and
quite possibly in the history of mankind, was, “Whew! It’s HOT out here.” (Spoken by every one of us, every time we
stepped outside of every building we were in.)
·
You will never see a person sitting in front of
a slot machine with a big smile on their face (jackpot winners exluded).
It was a fabulous 11 days.
No one got sick, we all got along, there were no
accidents, and we were able to explore a nice little chunk of our country. However, being in Las Vegas with children is
a lot different than being in Vegas without them. That place is much less kid friendly than I
remember. The popular phrase, “What
happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” should’ve clued me in. Anyway, I read a quote today from an
excellent book called, “Notes From the Tilt-a-Whirl” by N.D. Wilson. In it he says, “The world is rated R, and no one is checking IDs. Do not try to make
it G by imagining the shadows away. Do not try to hide your children from the
world forever, but do not try to pretend there is no danger. Train them. Give
them sharp eyes and bellies full of laughter. Make them dangerous. Make them
yeast, and when they’ve grown, they will pollute the shadows.”
So, here's to future adventures, here's to allowing our kids to see the shadows in the world, and
hoping they’re brave enough to one day pollute them.
“Happy trails to you,
Until we meet again.
Happy trails to you,
Keep smilin' until then”
- Dale Evans Rogers
- The Niemeyers
Love that quote. Thanks for sharing your vacation with us :)
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