Salt Lake City, Utah!

Today we made it all the way to Salt Lake City. But first, I have to start with yesterday. I couldn't blog yesterday because...well, the Sheraton internet is weak! Yesterday we drove from Kansas City to Denver, 620 miles!. When we got to Denver we had dinner at about 10:30, but we took it back to the hotel and ate it there. We got free breakfast in the morning and then today we started our drive to Salt Lake City. We drove up through Wyoming, which is very pretty but barren. The winds were over 50 mph but we saw tons of wildlife. We saw a Bald Eagle and 4 wild horses. We also saw about 5 huge herds of Pronghorn Antelope. My dad spotted 2 dead wolves and we all saw a badger. Closer to the end, I found a bunch deer. About halfway through our drive we stopped on the side of the road because we had to blow up some fireworks we bought in New Mexico before we got back to California. They weren't that loud, but it was really cool because it wasn't even 4th of July! It got dark really fast and it was getting late so we stopped at Pizza Hut and kept going another 40 miles to Salt Lake. When we got there we found our hotel but we kept going because we wanted to look at the Mormon Temple that was about a block away from us. It was really pretty and we saw the capitol too! We checked into our hotel and came up to the room. I think we're going to go swimming later. But tomorrow... we're coming home!

Kansas City, Missouri

Today, we left Louisville and drove to St. Louis. We visited the Gateway Arch which was amazing! First, Reede, Beck, and I visited the musuem and became Junior Rangers again. Then we bought tickets to go up into the arch. We got in this little tram that had 5 seats in it, but Reede called it "an egg." It was a 4 minute ride to the top, but it felt like a ferris wheel that kept tipping. When we finally got to the top, there were windows we got to look out and since my dad is so scared of heights, he couldn't even look all the way down. There were two frozen ponds, the stadium that the Rams play in, and the Budweiser factory. We took some pictures and then took the tram back down. Then we had to continue our drive to Kansas City. We stopped at a Subway but I had fallen asleep. When I woke up we stopped at another Subway because we were still hungry and then we found a town called Emma. I took a picture of it because she is one of my best friends. We finished our drive and found our hotel called the Aladin Holiday Inn. It's a really cool hotel in downtown Kansas City. We gained one hour today and so we're all up late! We need to drive a long ways tomorrow to Denver, Colorado!

Icy, Icy Louisville

Today we had to stay another day becuase it was too dangerous to drive 450 miles! There was snow everywhere, more ice, and there were a bunch of accidents between here and St. Louis. We had breakfast in the hotel because we didn't want to drive around and then we went to go explore the town. We took a trolley down to 4th Street again to go see if the bowling alley was open. It was closed and then we learned that everything else in the town was closed. We took the pedwalks back to the hotel and on the way we stopped to buy tickets from a man who was selling Cardinal basketball tickets that we found on Craigslist. Then we watched TV in the hotel for about an 1 1/2 and then we drove around looking for dinner. We ended up eating at another restaurant on 4th Street at a Hard Rock Cafe and had a great meal! We drove to the stadium and found our seats in the top section in Row Z. We had a great time, but the game was pretty lopsided. I believe the score was 80 to 54, Louisville won!. Beck was so excited to be there and he even tracked down the mascot and gave him a high-five, which he is usually too scared to do! He even got a shirt from one of the cheerleaders as we were leaving and he's now wearing it to bed! We drove home but we have to go to bed early because we need to drive a long way in the morning! It isn't supposed to snow tonight so we are going to aiming for Kansas City tomorrow!

Louisville, Kentucky

Today was one of the hardest days of traveling ever! Last night, as you know, we were stuck in an ice storm, and we woke up to about 2 inches of snow and a lot of ice. The roads were clear so we kept driving. We had to drive really slow and saw about 6 people who had spun out and at least 3 who had rolled off the road. By the time we got to our hotel, in Louisville, we had about 3 inches of solid ice on the front of our car. It was crazy! My dad actually thought the car might overheat because the cool air couldn't get to the engine. We checked into our hotel which my mom booked for us online. It was a 4 star hotel for cheaper than the Days Hotel we stayed at last night! (It has 25 floors, my favorite part!) Then we walked a few blocks in pedwalks to a trendy street called 4th Street Live and we had a great dinner. We tried to take the trolley home but it didn't stop for us so we walked back to our hotel. We settled in for the night to watch Disney channel! Hopefully it won't be as cold, snowy, or icy tomorrow. Maybe we'll make it to St. Louis?

Sutton

Today, my mom went to the airport at about 5 in the morning, so we didn't get to see at all today. Everyone went down to the exercising room to have a little workout. We showered and then we packed up. We didn't end up leaving the hotel until about noon because the hotel washed our laundry and lost a whole bag of it and they didn't find it until about 11:30. We had breakfast and then started our first drive back home. We were headed for Charleston, West Virginia, but along the way it started to get really cold and icy. It started to get darker, and there were deer everywhere, so we had to stop in a small town called Sutton. We got a hotel called Days Inn and then we had dinner at a grocery store. After that we went swimming in the indoor pool! We had a great time, and then we went back to the hotel room and watched TV. It's supposed to snow tonight so we're hoping that we'll be able to drive tomorrow!

Mount Vernon

Today we spent the entire day at Mount Vernon! When we first got there, we bought tickets to go on a tour about where the first National Treasure film was made. (We got to see where they had the President's birthday party and the basement when the President gets kidnapped.) Our tourguide took us to Washington's old tomb and his new one, where George and Martha are both layed to rest. Next we went on a tour inside his mansion, which was really interesting. A lot of the things in the house were original and we even got to see the bed where he died. We walked down to the musuem area to have lunch (at 3:00) and it turns out that Mount Vernon was celebrating George and Martha Washington's 250th wedding anniversary. "Martha Washington" was giving a presentation so we decided to go and see it. Reede and I ended up sitting in a theatre for 1 hour and 10 minutes listening to this lady talk about her life. My mom fell asleep and left halfway through while Dad and Beck wandered through the museum. Almost everyone behind us, mostly old people though, were all asleep. My mom was amazed at how long it took! We looked around the gift shops for about 5 minutes and then we walked back to the car and drove to our hotel. Reede and I were so excited because the hotel had an indoor swimming pool and a fitness room where kids are allowed! Most of the hotels we go to, the pools are frozen! I really hope it's warmer tomorrow because we were not prepared for 29 degree weather today. On a sad note, Mom is leaving tomorrow at 5:30 in the morning. We had a lot of fun with her and we're all sad she's leaving. I hope we drive south tomorrow because it's so cold and it's snowing, but I think we're heading for Kentucky!

Colonial Williamsburg!

Today we went to Williamsburg,which is 2 1/2 hours away from D.C. We go there at about 1 p.m. and we went on as many tours as we could. We took a tour through the first capitol of Virginia and Dad and Reede took one through a tavern. My favorite tour was the one through the governor's palace. We got to see what the bed chambers and the ball room looked like. There were weapons everywhere on the wall, which was very different and old-fashioned. We went inside a bakery and got some very yummy things, and an old time jewelry shop. We went into a millery and the ladies there told us everything you could possibly know about fashion in the old times. They made everything in their shop, and I never knew making clothes could be so complicated. We had dinner and then took the bus back to the visitor center. We're on our way home now, it's 9:45 and we're all in the car, and we'll be back to the hotel in about 30 miles! Tomorrow, I'm sleeping in!

The U.S. Capitol

Today we went to the capitol! WE took an amazing tour and got to goinside the actual building. We went inside the big dome part and got to stand in the exact middle of the capitol where George Wasington's tomb was, but it's empty. We got to go ina statue display room, and each state gets to make two statues to give to them. They are scattered all over the capitol too. In that same room, there were 8 golden tiles int he floor, and that's where the desks of Senate members who later became the president were located. I was totally excited because I got stand where Abraham Lincoln's desk was! I also got to see one of the California statues. Next, we went to another room and there were 13 more statues representing states, but theyy were of the original 13 colonies. If you watched the inauguration when everyone was walking through the capitol and then came out on the steps... well we got to walk where they walked! After that we ahd lunch and then we drove to Georgetown! I had a blast! Mom, Reede, and I went shopping down Main Street! (Beck was asleep in the car with Dad) We went to GAP and then Dad and Beck caught up with us. WE went to a few boutiques, and American Eagle. We went to some really expensive stores that my mom was into. We had a quick dinner at Chipotle and then headed back to the hotel. I want to go do more shopping tomorrow in Williamsburg! (But don't tell Dad) Sorry no pictures because it wasn't working today, but I'll put them on tomorrow!

Lincoln Memorial

Today we went back to the Lincoln Memorial because the last time we tried it was all fenced off for inauguration things. We took pictures in front of the big statue and my mom went into the gift shop and bought a book! We took pictures where Marin Luther King Jr. made his "I Have A Dream" speech. Then we went to the Natural History Musuem again because we didn't have very much time yesterday, and we got to see the Hope diamond. There was also a butterfly exhibit where you go in this room, which is really hot, and there are tons of butterflies. Some of them land on you, and one even landed on Beck's face! Then we went to the Spy Musuem. It was really interesting and we got to learn about old time spies and what equipment spies use. There was a vent that you could crawl in and spy on the people below you, and Reede and Beck were in there about the whole time! We had made reservations at a very popular restaurant, and had a very nice meal. We went back to the hotel and it was the first time we had had dinner before 9:00 in a very long time! We don't know where we're going tomorrow, but I hope we're going south, because it's freezing here! (Although it was 43 degrees here today which is the highest it's ever been)

The Smithsonians!

Today, we moved out of our friends house. Then we drove into D.C. and went to two Smithsonians! We went to the American History one first. We some things about electricity and then some about transportation. We got to stand on a piece of pavement from Route 66, but we've already driven on most of it! It was really neat! We went up to the third floor and then saw some exhibits about the Civil War and World War II. There was a special section dedicated to presidents and we saw the hat Lincoln wore at Ford's Theatre and the suit he wore in office. Then we had lunch with our friends Rebecca and Manuela who came to see the Inauguration too. We found another Smithsonian next door. It was Natural History, and we saw a lot of stuffed, dead animals. We went in the ocean section and saw a huge whale hanging from the ceiling, and a giant squid that was about 25 feet! It was amazing, and I had never seen anything like it. We watched a movie and then we rampaged through an awesome gift store! We walked to our car and then tried to find a hotel because we didn't have one yet. We found a Hilton and then had dinner down at the hotel bar with sides of broccoli, asparagus, and grilled cheese. It's still freezing here and I hope it gets warmer soon! I hope we get to go to South Carolina tomorrow!

Inauguration Day

Today was the day! It was amazing but I have to tell you about yesterday first! I was so tired yesterday I couldn't blog. The family of my soccer friend, Emma, let us invade their house for two nights so we moved in yesterday. Then we took the Metro into D.C. and we walked around the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, and Vietnam Memorial. We got hungry so we went looking for food, but we couldn't find any. We had to settle with Quiznos and mom isn't a fan of it so she didn't even eat. We came home and went straight to bed because we had a big day today. When we heard we had to get up at 4:45 we were not happy. We went to bed but Beck kept waking us up so we didn't really get to sleep until after 11:00. In the morning everyone was in a daze. We were stuck in total gridlock and we had to wait in a long line to get on the Metro. Did I mention it was 19 degrees? We had to wait, well...actually my dad waited in line for us while we sat in the car, for 1 hour. We got on a train and arrived in D.C. at 9:00. We had to walk about 1 1/2 miles to the Mall in a mob. The streets were filled with people (no cars) and everybody was heading the same direction. Most of the people had something on them that said "Obama" on it. We got there an we had about 2 and 1/2 hours to soak it up before it started. So we walked around and looked for a good place to sit. We wanted to sit in front of a Jumbotron because we couldn't even see the whole capitol. We found a warm place near the Reflective Pool. We sat there watching everyone come in. Everyone cheered really loud for everyone except when George Bush and Dick Cheney most people went silent and a few people "booed." Diane Feinstein opened the ceremony and introduced everyone. They had a prayer and then they swore in Biden and Obama. Then Obama made a speech, everyone was cheering, crying, and smiling. Everyone was happy and friendly no matter where we went! When he was done we walked down the street to look for a warm place to duck into. We found a place and someone told us that the parade was going to come down this street! We were so excited because we thought we wouldn't get to see it. We waited two hours and finally it started. We saw all the Army groups, Marines, Airforce, ext. We saw some news cars come up in front of us and suddenly no one could see, and they wouldn't move, so everyone started chanting "Move the trucks!" They finally moved but Obama had already driven by and all the other participants were marching the other way. We gave up and got back on the Metro feeling a bit defeated. We went to dinner on the way home, and then came back to friends house. We took baths and decided we were going to bed early tonight! Tomorrow, I hope I get to sleep in! And I hope it's mostly indoors!

Washington D.C!

We are finally here! Washington is so much better than what I expected. When we got here, we checked into the hotel and then watched the news. We saw the Inaugural Concert on TV and we were aiming to go, but we were too late. So we raced down to the Metro Station and took it to D.C. (We're staying in Alexandria) We went straight to the Lincoln Memorial. We couldn't even get close to it though because there was gates and things all around, and we think it was from the concert. We walked around the Reflective Pool which was totally frozen! At the end of the Reflective Pool was the Washington Monument. We walked a little further to the Vietnam War Memorial and walked along that for awhile. Then we got hungry so we went in search of food. We kept walking and we eventually found the White House. Again... we couldn't get close because of all the gates and other equipment for the parade. We looped around and got a better view of it. We were all starving by this point so we looked as a hard as we could for food. We found two restaurants that were closed and then we tried to get a spot in a restaurant that someone recommend to us, but it was too long of a wait. We had to settle for Quiznos, which my mom disliked a lot. She didn't eat anything because she lost her appetite! We walked to the closest Metro station and took the train back to Alexandria. We're just hanging out now and watching football highlights! I am really hoping we won't have to do as much walking tomorrow but it's good training for Inauguration Day!

Mom is Here!

Today, my dad did a race in Columbia, South Carolina! He got up early while we slept in and he went out and got 3rd place in his age-group for a 10k. That is all Beck talked about this morning was how his Dad got won! We went to Starbucks and then we were on our way to Raleigh to pick up our Mom and see her for the first time in about a week! We drove for about 3 and 1/2 hours all the way to Raleigh and then we drove for about another 20 minutes to Chapel Hill. We checked into our hotel and then drove back to Raleigh to pick up my Mom and when we finally saw her, everyone went crazy with happiness. We drove to dinner on Franklin Street and waited in a restaurant for an 1 1/2 hours! Then we sat down and had a fabulous dinner! We tried to get tickets to go see a UNC basketball game but the worst tickets were about $150 each! So instead we came back to hotel and we're just hanging out. We watched part of Big Fat Liar,and then we watched the UNC game. GO HEELS! Hopefully we'll go to bed soon! Tomorrow, we're heading for D.C!

South Carolina!

Today, we went to the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham, AL. It was really interesting and I learned things that I never really knew happened! It really made me mad, but it made me more aware. We went across the street to a church that was bombed a long time ago by the Ku Klux Klan. We looked around inside and saw a plaque in memory of the 4 girls that were killed. Then we looked at some memorials in a park across the street. Just before we got to Georgia, we stopped at Talladega Speedway. We took a couple pictures and went into the giftshop and then we were on our way. We stopped at a Fireworks store by a gas station and Dad bought a big pack of firecrackers and the kids got poppers. We cracked a few outside because we were allowed, but Dad didn't have any matches for the firecrackers. He promised we would only blow them up in a state where it's legal. We drove to Columbia, South Carolina but we lost another hour because we crossed the Time Zone. We went to dinner at a restaurant so close to us that we walked. It was called Liberty and everyone had a great meal. We came back and had no dessert because we had dessert before we ate dinner! When we got to the hotel my dad had to go down to the car because he had to get all the waterbottles because they would freeze. It is so cold here, it's about 20 degrees outside but in Birmingham it went down to the 'teens at night! We've see halfway frozen creeks and rivers and we even found a very large pond that was frozen solid over the top. My Dad had to kick it about 5 times to get it to break! Anyway, we're in the hotel now, and we're all warm. Tomorrow, we pick up our Mom in Raleigh. We can't wait to see her!

Graceland

Today, we stopped in Graceland! We saw Elvis's home, his car, and also his plane. We wrote our names on the wall that went around his house too, where millions of others have done the same. It was freezing cold today! In Little Rock, it was down to about 20 degrees. We went south to Birmingham, Alabama, instead of to Nashville, Tenessee because in Nashville the high was 22. We had our first sit-down meal tonight at a Mexican restaurant. Beck is showered and we're done for the night. Tomorrow we're going to the Civil Rights Institute and Dad says that Rosa Parks' bus is there. Hopefully, it will get a lot warmer!

Oklahoma National Memorial

Today, we made it to Little Rock, Arkansas. This morning we snuck a swim and had a great breakfast before we hit the road. While we were still in Oklahoma, we stopped at the Oklahoma National Memorial! We went in the museum and checked out the monument. It was a sad event but it was awesome how people came together. I was surprised that we could walk around the chairs in the memorial. Then we drove to a body piercing/tatoo shop to see the brother of one of our friend's. (Rebecca!) Beck was afraid of the building but my dad said a trip like this gives us a chance to see the country and a tatoo parlor is a part of what makes us America. Then we kept driving for about 3 more hours and came into Little Rock. We arrived at our hotel to being shot at by 8 year olds with Nerf guns! Beck wanted to play with them at first, but Dad said no. Reede wanted to play with them too, but now Beck's a little scared to leave the room. We got dinner at Whole Foods and we brought salad and pizza to the hotel room. That concludes our day! I think we're headed for Nashville, Tenessee tomorrow!

Cadillac Ranch

Today we finished driving through New Mexico and went into Texas. On our drive, we stopped at a place called Cadillac Ranch. We've been there twice now because we stopped there on our way home from Louisiana. All the kids found a paint can that still had a little bit of paint in it and we graffitied our names all over the place! (That's what you're supposed to do there!) A way down the road we stopped at a famous steak house that has a big cow in front. Inside they have a contest where you have to eat a 72 oz. steak and all the sides in less than hour. A lady that worked there said that 9 out of 10 contestants fail and most of them puke. We saw one person make it. Not much for us to eat on the menu so we bought some postcards and Beck bought a toy cow. We drove about 200 more miles to a town in Oklahoma called Clinton where we finally got a room. The kids went swimming for about 5 minutes before the pool closed and then Dad got us some dessert. We settled in and watched a mix of Disney Channel and ESPN. I really hope tomorrow we won't have have to drive 475 .

Petrified Forest!

Today we drove for what seemed to be years! We drove all the way from Kingman, AZ to Albuquerque, NM. On the way we stopped in Flagstaff, AZ to meet my uncle and it turns out that he is a big game hunter that leads hunts in 42 countries around the world. In his office there was a stuffed giraffe, lots of deer-like animals, water buffalo, and more. We took a picture with him and then continued our journey to a national park called The Petrified Forest. There was tons and tons of petrified wood everywhere you looked and it was amazing! We did a short hike and Reede and I became Junior Rangers! Beck and Dad just walked aimlessly and enjoyed their time to stretch! We drove about another 40 minutes through the rest of the park to see the Painted Desert! We saw 2 Golden Eagles and and 4 deer! After we finished the drive, we had about 3 1/2 more hours to go until we got to Albuquerque. When we finally got our hotel, Dad went and got Pizza Hut and we settled in for the night. At least we thought we did... untilBeck spilled pizza all over the white, down comforter and had to had his pizza cut up so Dad set out to find a fork and a knife. When he came back, we turned on ESPN. Beck and Reede are bored but me and Dad are so happy! Hopefully, we'll go to bed soon! We hope our travels tomorrow will be filled with some healthy food and fewer miles!

Ridgecrest, CA to Kingman, AZ

"Today..." says Reede "we went to Chloride and saw our Grandpa's old house! We went to an antique store and I bought a real scorpion inside a piece of glass! And last but not least, we went to a cemetary where our great grandparents were buried. See ya!"

"Today I went to a school park in Chloride. I saw a scary dog at the antique store. He tried to steal my pretzel! Bye Bye!" says Beck.

"Today we drove about 6 hours from Ridgecrest to Kingman. On the way, we took a detour and stopped in my grandpa's old hometown! We visited an antique store and met my grandpa's cousins! Later we played in the town cemetary, looking for our great grandparent's graves. It was cool to see our ancestors past!" says Tate

"We had a great day and not a single tear was shed. Give my kids a Drumstick and I have the world's greatest travelers! We're heading for New Mexico tomorrow on Route 66!" says Dad

Day #1

HI FRIENDS AND FAMILY!

Our bags are packed and our whole family is shaking with excitement! We're on our way to Washington D.C. and our first stop is in Ridgecrest, CA. We'll be driving about 5-6 hours every day and should arive in D.C. on the 19th!