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.

Day 8 . . . Kennesaw, GA to Marion, Ill
It is now time to for the inaugural blog song.
Tomorrow, tomorrow I’ll be home tomorrow
Kansas is just a day away.
We are officially back in the Central Time Zone. We left Kennesaw @ 10am Central time, our earliest departure to date. I had to take a short break & rest during the early afternoon. There’s no way I can sleep when Rachel’s driving. We took a brief (2 hours) tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum in Nashville. I’m sure Rachel felt like it lasted an eternity, but I could have stayed there a lot longer.
We’ve have had 2 casualties during this trip. Both of the digital cameras have died. Rachel’s died on Thursday. It just refused to turn on. I thought maybe the battery was completely dead, but when I put the other battery in it still would not turn on. Today (Saturday) my camera went on the fritz. I got one picture of the Country Music Hall exterior & then the camera froze. The only way I could turn it off was to take out the battery. This trip is just costing me more & more.

End of Day 8

Day 7 . . . St. Augustine, FL to Kennesaw, GA

I can‘t figure for the life of me why Willie Nelson can’t wait to get on the road again. I’m guessing it’s because he’s in the back of his fancy touring bus sippin’ sodas & strummin’ his guitar. Meanwhile some poor schmuck at the front of the bus is driving the wheels off the stupid thing. Speaking as the schmuck doing the driving I can tell you I’m sick of the road.
Apparently sharing the driving to Florida is a lot like getting a puppy. It sounds like fun at first, but after a while Mom ends up doing all the poop scooping. Yesterday, Rachel drove a total of 45 min. Today she drove for 35 minutes & announced she was tired. After a 2 and a half hour nap she awoke & declared she was ready to drive. We had all of 50 miles left to drive for the day. Thanks Rachel.

I must admit that earlier in the day we did go to the beach and wore ourselves out. The beach @ St. Augustine was amazing. You can drive on the beach, but they charge you $8.00 to do it. Needless to say we did not drive on the beach. We both waded in the water & Rachel actually went swimming. It was too cold & windy for me. The sand at St. Augustine’s beach is much coarser than the sand at West Palm Beach or Daytona. I liked the St. Augustine beach the best.

Before we went to the beach we shopped & did a little sightseeing.

Okay, we are now @ our hotel in Kennesaw, Ga. It’s a suburb of Atlanta. I have just survived 1 hour & 20 minutes of my child driving in the dark. Probably 30 minutes of that time was spent going thru Atlanta on a 5 lane freeway. I told Rachel I wasn’t sure if my body would ever unclench again.

Let me tell you what my life is like when Rachel is driving. I try desperately not to yell because I know it will not help. This causes an inner turmoil that you cannot imagine. Every part of me wants to yell, “Just pull over before you kill both of us.” But I don’t do that. I choose to use hand signals.





Now imagine this hand moving left & right. This indicates that you are way to close to the right side of the road & need to pull yourself over before we're in the ditch.





This gesture with the fingers waving back & forth tells the young driver she is too close to the vehicle ahead of her & she needs to back off NOW.

When Rachel begins to drift towards a semi in the next lane hand gestures are tossed out the window & verbal cues become the instruction of choice. Phrases such as "Look out!" "Stay in your own lane!" and "Pay attention!" come spewing out of my mouth. Oh, the fun We've been having.



End of Day 7

Day 6 . . . West Palm Beach to St. Augustine . . . Leavin’ the rain behind
Curse the rain of southern Florida. All the poor little princess wants to do is spend time @ the beach. We decided to leave WPB & head up the coast to find the sun. As usual, we got off to a slow start. Once we did get on the road the fun began.
Our first big stop was the Kennedy Space Center. We had to drive 10 miles off the hwy to get there. Unfortunately it closes @ 6:00 & we got there @ 4:15. When I asked the lady @ the ticket booth if we would make it thru the center in an hour& a half she looked @ me blankly & suggested a two day pass. Plan B was taking pictures outside the Center & pretend we went in. Rachel did see some gators in the canals near the space center. She was totally thrilled. So the side trip wasn’t a total loss.
Our next stop was to buy some tasty Florida oranges. Of course we, being true tourists, had to take many, many pictures of the fruit stand & surrounding palm trees. We’re so obnoxious.
After the fruit stand we went to Daytona Beach. We drove on the actual beach – very cool. Rachel started throwing cereal out the car window as we were driving down the beach. The seagulls went nuts. They were chasing us & dive bombing our car. As we were driving by people the seagulls would swoop down near them & they would be flailing their arms around & yelling. They looked just like Tippi Hedrin in The Birds. Good Times!
Farther up the coast we decided to check out the beach @ St. Augustine. It’s different looking than the beaches @ WPB and Daytona. Because it was getting dark we didn’t get a good look @ it; so we decided to spend the night here & check it out in the morning.
End of Day 6

Day 5 . . . Rain
There’s been a drought in Florida. I’m sad to report that the rain has come during our vacation. There was no beach visit today. Linda, our social director, did a fine job of keeping us entertained. We drove down to Fort Lauderdale & went to the Museum of Discovery & Science. There we watched an IMAX movie & cruised through the hands on museum. It was a great way to spend a rainy day.
After the museum we picked up Rachel’s car & got the OK to put another 1200 miles on it. The nice part was the bill wasn’t bad at all.
We went to Bob & Norma’s house for dinner. When Linda moved to Florida after vet school her parents, Bob & Norma, moved here a few years later. Spaghetti with all the fixins was served. A good dinner & lively conversation was enjoyed by all.
End of Day 5

Day 4 . . . West Palm Beach & surrounding area
Check Engine Soon - the three most terrifying words the wife of a mechanic can read. This can only mean one thing – Larry’s worst nightmare has come true. His wife & daughter are five states away with a problem car. Even more horrifying . . . someone else will have to look at the car.
We stopped at Linda’s clinic to check it out & have some lunch. The plan was for Rachel & I to bask in the sun & play in the surf while Linda spent the day healing sick animals. But alas, this was not our reality. The bitter pain of car ownership was our destiny. As I leave the clinic parking lot I notice those 3 horrid words glowing at me from the dash. Why, why Lord I think to myself. I decide to turn around & find out the name of Linda’s mechanic. As I do this I call Larry to share my tragic news. Surprisingly he takes it very well & is even rather encouraging. Go figure.
I call the mechanic to get directions. It’s at this time I realize that in order for me to get the car to the shop & go to the beach I’ll need a second driver. Enter Rachel Collinge. . . SUPER DRIVER!!! Everyone assures me it’s only 10 or so miles to the shop. I give Rachel a pep talk assuring her that I have the utmost confidence in her driving abilities. Then off we go. I understood that we would be driving on the highway, but what I failed to pick up on was that it was a 4-5 lane freeway that was currently under construction. If I had asked more questions & gotten more details about Hwy 95 I probably wouldn’t have let Rachel drive by herself. Please refer back to Day 3 for more info on my lack of getting the details. Long story short Rachel did a great job dodging cones & cars.
I instructed the repair guy to call Larry’s cell when he had any information. He got the numbers mixed up and called me first. . . . silly man. According to the mechanic there were several codes that came up when he hooked the car to the scanner. I don’t know much about cars, but I know that this does not sound good. I waited almost an hour before I called Larry to find out how bad it was for the little car. Good News! Larry reports none of the codes seem to be a problem that would affect us driving home. YEAH!!!
If truth be told I guess I wasn’t too worried, because Rachel & I still managed to find time to go to the beach. It’s awfully hard to get too stressed about anything @ the beach. The great thing about this beach is walking to it. The parking lot is on one side of a little hill & as you walk over the hill you suddenly see the ocean spread out forever before you. It’s just such a great surprise for a little Kansas gal to see.
Rachel loves the beach. More info about the beach later.
End of Day 4

Day 3 . . . Mobile (pronounced Mo-BEEL) to West Palm Beach
The theme of the morning was RAIN. It was raining when we got up & rained til 1:15. A little water didn’t dampen our enthusiasm though.
After a brief encounter with a rude Texaco employee - the fool wouldn’t even take my buy one get one free Diet Mtn. Dew cap - we were off to McDonalds where friendly people were found. Sharon, the counter lady, was very helpful with directions. Soon, Rachel & I found the Mobile Bay.
Now this is the part where my lack of noticing details hurts me. First, I’m not even sure it really is called the Mobile Bay. Second, we stopped @ some sort of point of interest overlooking the bay, but I never took the time to find what it was named. All these lack of details make for some captivating reading. Anyway, we took pictures of the water & big ships of some kind.
While we were there we noticed 2 seagulls. I told Rachel to grab some peanuts out of the car to feed the birds. It took all of about 30 seconds for more seagulls to show up. Before long Rachel was surrounded by hungry, screaming seagulls. I was snapping pictures like crazy and even tried to get some video. Hopefully I can figure out how to put them on this blog site.
We left Mobile way too late (11:00 am). I drove because it was raining so hard & Rachel has very little experience driving in the rain. Later in the day she got some experience driving in the rain, but it was not a hard rain like in the morning.
We have gone through 3 state capitols in 3 days. Saturday & Sunday was Little Rock. Later Sunday was Jackson, Mississippi and today it was Tallahassee, Florida. I feel like the European traveler that hits 6 countries in 8 days. Who knew it would take so long to get to Florida. It’s only like 10 inches away from Kansas on the map. Oh well.
Made it Linda’s to house at 11:00 central time . . . midnight her time. I’m beginning not to like this blog thing. When reflecting back on the imposition I am on my friends it makes me think maybe I need to improve myself. That doesn’t sound like any fun.
End of Day 3

Day 2 . . . Little Rock to Mobile
We enjoyed a good night’s rest @ the Lorsbachs. The accommodations were wonderful, but I must admit the furry 4 legged visitor in the middle of the night was a bit surprising. I’m sure the cat was also a little put out when neither of us were the usual occupant of the bed.
Early Sunday morning found all of us serving water and Gatorade to the marathoners running through the Lorsbach neighborhood. There were hundreds of runners. Actually it was quite fun and definitely an unusual vacation activity.
We bid farewell to the Lorsbachs. And once we checked the oil, coolant & transmission fluids we were on our way. (side note – you need to make sure your car is running & the engine is warm before you check the transmission fluid – sorry Larry I forgot).
It took us 10 extra minutes to get out of Little Rock. Again – stupid exits! However I must say Rachel is becoming quite the little turnaround expert. She can also maneuver through & cross lanes like a pro. I believe she’ll be ready for the Sept. race @ the Kansas Speedway.
We decided to take the southern route to Florida. We cut through Arkansas, briefly into Louisiana, & entered the south end of Mississippi. Everything is green & beautiful down here. Stayed the night @ Crawford, Alabama.

End of Day 2

Day 1 . . . Tongie to Little Rock
We did not get started when we wanted due various factors best left unmentioned. We finally got on the road about 2:30. Our first major accomplishment was getting gas. It was Rachel’s first time pulling up to a pump. She did great!
As usual I got messed up @ the Grandview exit. Stupid exits always sneak up on me. Rachel took over after we got out of the KC area. I copiloted her all the way to Joplin before I missed another stupid exit. She did an exceptional job of driving & listening to my wrong directions.
We’ve both been perfecting our skills on this trip. Rachel is getting her driving hours in, thus making the roads safer for all and I’m working on my texting skills. A big shout out to my sister for helping me improve. Thanks Julie!
There was only one time that we got back on the highway & I felt for sure we were going the wrong way. Of course we weren’t , but I had to fight the urge to turn around until I found a sign that confirmed my map. It is very difficult to travel when you are directionally challenged.
We made it to Little Rock by 10:45 or so. Bob & Theresa graciously waited up for us. They made it seem like it was no big deal . . . and even visited with us for awhile. Those Lorsbachs are sure nice people.
End of Day 1.

And so it begins . . .

Greetings to anyone out there. I have generated this blog to possibly chronicle our trip to Florida. Rachel & I will hopefully be leaving tomorrow afternoon. A note of generals, I realize, but you never know what will happen in 30 hours.