Snow Day - Part 2

Snow day . . . never in all the land have there been 2 words that bring more joy to a teacher on a Monday morning.


The only thing better, is to hear those same words applied to the following Tuesday. Thank you Lord for the gift of free time. I'll try to be productive with it.

Happy Birthday King!

I've decided to try this blog thing again. Since I'm not a big fan of pressure and I firmly believe in being good to me, I have further decided to start off slllloooooooowwww.

I collect refrigerator magnets. They're odd things to collect, but their small, inexpensive and it's almost a guarantee that ppl will bring me back a gift when they go on a trip. Yeah!

Opening the fridge door is always a walk down memory lane. Look I got this one when the Smiths went to Washington D.C. Caitlin sure had a blast when she went to NYC, I hope I get to go some day. etc.

I'd like to share my collection, yet not have anyone come to my house. The answer of course is through the power of blogging. I will share a magnet a week.


My first magnet is of the king, Elvis Presley. I do this in honor of today being his birthday. I vividly remember listening to his alums up in my parents' bedroom. His voice is just amazing. My all time favorite is song is "I can't help falling in love with you". I melt every time I hear it.

My mom and I were coming back from an out of town funeral for a distant relative when they announced that Elvis Presley was dead. A sad day indeed. btw I have no idea which family member died.

My home office is Elvis themed. It's my small way to honoring a great man. What says love more than Blue Hawaii curtains?

This magnet was a gift from my friend Linda.

Days 4 & 5 . . . Muskegon, MI to Iowa City, IA

Getting directions and saying goodbye.








As always, the lovely Denise welcoming us to a new state.








Mississippi River



We left Michigan to get Deanna home for an emergency trip to Arkansas. Our travels were fast and uneventful until the evening. Once we crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa we decided to stop for the night. Some sort of race was going on at Davenport which meant there were not hotels available. We traveled through a nasty thunderstorm to Iowa City. There we found that there was a baseball tournament, again full hotels. Finally got a tip on a hotel a couple of mils off the highway. We finally got in our rooms about 10:30 and got a good night's sleep.

We were up and on the road by 11:20 a.m., and made it home about 6:00.

Our trip was cut short but overall I would say that all of us had a good time. Lookin' forward to going up north again soon.

Day 3 . . . Michigan tourists

I love traveling with this group. There is no hurry up and let’s go with them. We sleep ‘til we wake up and leisurely eat breakfast and get ready for the day. It’s very relaxing.

Denene got a very nice room to stay in at the Ramada. The door says VIP whirlpool. It has one especially interesting feature. See if you can figure it out from the picture below.



The whirlpool/shower is open on 2 sides. Now that may be great for a couple on a romantic weekend get away, but for 3 middle aged women, a teenage girl and her 10 year old brother it’s just not right. We’ve managed to survive by also using the public bathroom down the hall. There is such a thing as too much information, so I will move on.

We went to the White River Light Station Great Lakes Maritime Museum. It’s an old lighthouse that is now a museum.



I love the stone work on this building.





The spiral stairway was narrow and steep.




There’s also not a lot of room at the top either.

Since we were so close to the beach we decided to hang out there for awhile.


No need for shoes and socks at the beach.




The Robinson’s aren’t too sure about the cold lake water.




Everybody finally gets their feet wet.




Such a good sport . . . Sarah puts up with my picture taking the best.




They sure do love to fish here in Michigan. We saw a bunch of decked out fishing boats.

After hanging out at the beach it was time to eat.




Even the seagulls like this place. Can you see them sitting on top of the sign?
At the Dogs and Suds there was an old Superman style phonebooth. Naturally we had to try and cram everyone in it.

Got everybody in but . . .




it doesn’t count ‘til the door closes. Never could close the door, so no record broke today.


Next we stopped at the giant weathervane that hovers over a grocery store. I have no information about this thing, except I think it looks cool.




After a short trip to the grocery store we went to the hotel to let the kids swim in the pool. I have no pictures of children frolicking in the water because . . . well doggone it I was in the room taking a nap. Taking pictures and chronicling a trip makes a girl tired. The children had plenty of adult supervision. They were monitored by the Williams sisters, Esther and the lesser known sister, Splash. Actually it was the Robinson sisters, Denise and Denene, watching over the kids. Let me tell you, you have never met two more nonswimmers in your life. Thankfully no one sunk.

Once again we headed to Denene’s for a tasty supper. Mike grilled hamburgers and the kids roasted hot dogs on the fire. It was delicious.

I was tired to taking pictures so I gave Sarah my camera and put her in charge of getting shots of the event. Once I checked my day’s pictures I noticed that there are no pictures of the dinner activities. Now Sarah insists she took pictures, and I believe her, but there’re still no pictures on my camera. The best I can figure out is that she did not push the button all the way down. Needless to say we will be having some remedial button pushing classes for Sarah.

On a very sad note, during the evening Deanna found out that her young nephew passed away. He has been ill for quite some time. We will be leaving Michigan tomorrow (Friday) so that she can be in Arkansas for the funeral on Monday. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family.

Day 2 . . . Moline, IL to Twin Lakes, MI

Day 2 . . . Moline, ILL to Twin Lakes, MI

Got a pretty good night’s sleep once I put the pillow over my head to drown out Denise’s snoring. Wow, can she snore!

Apparently all the action was across the hall. First, Sarah slipped in the shower and smacked her head. Ow! Later, middle of the night later, John threw up. Gotta say not sad I wasn’t in that room.

Denise provided the hotel excitement for us. She dropped her tooth down the bathroom drain this morning. She calls it a spider partial. Call it whatever you want but it was still down the drain. I could see it when I shined the flashlight down that dark, dark hole. It was balancing on the little piece that moves the sink plug up and down. These little buggers are expensive & I knew we weren’t leaving ‘’til we had it. After a quick call to the front desk & a visit from a very kind and handy guy Denise had her spider partial back. YEAH! I can assure you that guy got a NICE tip.

The offending spider partial.


I brought a jump rope. It’s a great way to get the blood circulating after you’ve been sitting for what seems an eternity. See for yourself how coordinated we are.

Mother and daughter try.

Mother and daughter fail!

Brother and sister try.

Brother and sister succeed!

Criss Cross!?! Show Off!!

What was that popping sound Denise?

By herself, Deanna is a pro.

Way to go John!

The playground at the Michigan rest stop was a source of lots of fun for all the ages.

See, Sarah, it's not so hard.

Aaaahhhhhhhhh!!!

Schooch, Sarah Schooch.

I’m seriously considering renaming John. Ben, as in Big Ben, will be his new name. He is constantly trying to figure out what time we’ll get Aunt Denene’s house.

Yeah, we made it!!

Our "official" Michigan greeter. Thanks Vanna!

Following a rather lengthy. and what seemed to me a confusing phone call between Denise and Denene we pulled into their driveway. It’s always nice to be greeted by your hostess at the end of the driveway with her arms waving like a lunatic . . . makes you feel extra welcomed . . . and a little frightened.

We had dinner there and visited for awhile. Before long it was time to head to the hotel and go to bed.

It’s always nice to arrive at your destination.

The Blog is Back

Day 1 . . . Tonganoxie, KS to Moline, ILL

I'm on another road trip. This time we're headed to Michigan.

My traveling companions are Denise Bixby, her sister-in-law Deanna, niece Sarah, and nephew John. The goal is to go see Denise's sister.

The rental van was officially christened. We didn't even get out of the driveway before a drink was spilt. Hope tea doesn't leave a stain.

Pulled over on I-80 to get this shot. Semis whizzing by at 75 mph. Safety first is our motto.

Day 9 . . . Marion, IL to Tonganoxie, KS . . . The Final Blog

Home at last, home at last
Thank goodness I’m home at last!

We had to make a mad dash to Kansas to get to my mom’s birthday dinner. We were up & on the road by 7:30. Driving home was uneventful.

Our trip in a nutshell.

Top Ten things Rachel has learned on this trip.
10. How to drive on the highway
9. Georgia people are rude
8. Seagulls can detect food from a very long distance
7. Florida weather is so much better than Kansas weather
6. You don’t have to push the little button on the shifter to go from drive to neutral.
5. You shouldn’t push the shifter up when your mother is driving 70 miles an hour on the highway.
4. You don’t have to be parked too close to a hotel to “borrow” their wireless internet.
3. Staying in my own lane is very important to my mother.
2. Long road trips with a lot of food are not conducive to track conditioning
1. The best place on earth is the beach


Top Ten things Stacy has learned on this trip.
10. Airplane tickets are worth every penny.
9. I can travel up to 3 hours with every muscle in my body tightened – thanks to Rachel for that info.
8. My husband is a wise man by staying at home.
7. Next time bring germ-x & band-aids.
6. When traveling with a student driver it’s crucial to take your blood pressure medicine on schedule.
5. Cars have fluids in them – and someone needs to check them regularly.
4. I have the memory of a stage 3 Alzheimer’s patient.*
3. I really do like the beach . . . if it’s the right beach.
2. 10 states in 9 days is insane.
1. I’d do it all again if the princess wanted to

*I already knew this, but it became even more obvious to me during this trip. I collect refrigerator magnets & all I wanted to do was get a magnet from each state I visited. I repeatedly remembered this as I drove out of the state. So frustrating!!!

This was the longest road trip I have ever gone on in my life. I’m glad I went, but next time I would take a comfier car or maybe a van or RV.

It was a nice chance for Rachel & I to hang out & enjoy each other’s company. For that reason alone I know I will never regret the adventure.

Thanks for sharing in our journey. My next blog will be in July when I road trip to Michigan with my friend Denise.