Driving Days 2-6

Day 2

We started our day a little late today.  It took a lot longer to pack the car than we expected, but it gave Ellie a chance to get some wiggles out before it was time to leave.  All I can say is that Wyoming is boring!  The highlight of that part of the drive was stopping at Little American to have 50-cent ice cream cones.

We stopped in Cheyenne to get some dinner and that town is a maze.  It really has no rhyme or reason.  It took a long time to find somewhere to eat and then it took us about 35 minutes to find a grocery store.  I swear we found every other store imaginable before we found the grocery store.

About an hour into Nebraska we were assaulted with one of the worst smells I have ever been unfortunate enough to encounter.  It was so bad that is woke Ellie up from a deep sleep and started coughing.  We never did find out what it was because it was dark outside. 

We stopped at a dinky little motel that had a garage for each room…strange.

Gator shaped cloud

never ending

Day 3

We continued driving today to get through the rest of Nebraska and Iowa.  I have to say I was little surprised about how big Des Moines is. 

We decided to take a detour and go and see Nauvoo.  I was surprised again to see what a small town it is.  Its population is only 1100; I just expected it to be a lot bigger for some reason.  The temple is so beautiful, on the top of the hill and it overlooks the Mississippi River.  It was especially nice to visit because Andy’s dad made the master pattern for the stars on the temple. 

We had dinner at a restaurant that was one of the original homes to the area.  It was decorated to the time on the inside and there was a lot to look at.  Ellie got to go through the buffet for free, because she is 2 and under, and it was so funny to see her using this fancy looking plate while she ate.  Thankfully she was really careful while eating.

While we were eating dinner, there was a tree with apples next to our table and Ellie was eating and she looked up and pointed to it and said “apples”.  I love it when she says a new word without being prompted.  It shows how much she really does understand even if she can’t say it yet. 

We were able to see the house that Joseph and Emma Smith lived in.  I have always looked up to Emma.  She lived a life of sorrow and but always kept going.  She lost almost all of her children while they were young, and then lost her husband while she was pregnant with their last child.  Now that I’ve lost a child I look up to her even more.  She shows me that life goes on.  You may have a broken heart, but that doesn’t mean you stop living.  

Ellie getting her diaper changed, with the Temple in the background

The Great Mississippi

She was sticking cereal to her face, while watching Curious George

Fancy dinner for a baby

Day 4

Today we were able spend some time in St. Louis.  I was really excited about this, because growing up my sisters and I always watched a Judy Garland movie called “Meet Me In St. Louis”.  We LOVED it, and I probably know every word to that entire movie. 

First we went to the Zoo, because it is free.  Not only is it free, but also it is the nicest zoo I have ever been to.  The exhibits were so nice, and there was a lot to see.

To fulfill a childhood a dream we went to the Worlds Fair Pavilion, (the movie was about the worlds fair), and I may have sung the songs from the movie while we were there. 

We made our way over to the Arch afterwards.  It is so impressive!  It is the tallest monument in the US and the tallest arch in the world.  I had no idea it was so big.  Ellie loved playing in the grass in front of the arch and threw a massive fit when we had to put her back in the stroller.  Strangely I ran into someone I knew from going to school at BYU-Idaho.  They live in the area now.  It really is small world!

Kentucky has so far been the worst state for road construction.  I swear every time we would finally get out of it, it would start again just a few miles later, stand still traffic.  SO ANNOYING!  The semi-truck driver we were stuck next to rolled down his window and shouted, “Looks like you’ve got a fuller load than I do”.  Our car really is loaded to the brim. 

We arrived in Nashville and we stopped at this park has the words only full-scale replica of The Parthenon in Greece.  It was really a cool thing to see.  Something I really like about the south is the fireflies.  They were flying around while we were at the park. 

Then we went to see the Gaylord Hotel and Convention center.  Andy was excited about this because he stayed at this hotel in High School for HOSA convention.  It was HUGE!  Its hard to explain this place, so I’ll just put up pictures.

St. Louis Zoo

we were getting attacked by the snake!

crazy!

Meet Me In St. Louis!

Worlds Fair Pavilion

The Arch

We took pictures proving we touched it

The Parthenon

Andy thinking great thoughts with Ellie

insane vending machine

Day 5

The rest of Nashville was kind of a bust.  We went to the Grand Ole Opry and it is a Grand Ole rip off!  They wanted to charge you $20 just to walk inside, so we said forget that and drove out to see Andrew Jacksons house.  That was another rip off.  It would have cost $40 for us to go.  You can’t even see the outside without paying.  Those experiences soured me on Nashville. 

We kept driving and made a stop in Chattanooga.  I loved this town!  It was gorgeous with all the tree around it and the river running beside it.  I can’t really say why I liked it so much but I did.  We ate lunch there and went on a little walk to stretch our legs some before getting back in the car.

Our last stop for the day was in Augusta Georgia.  One of my greatest friends, Paige, lives there and we stayed with them for the night.  It was so nice to stay at a house and not a cheap motel.

The most that we did at the Grand Ole Opry

Inside the Gaylord Hotel, crazy

Tennessee

I swear this guy wanted his picture taken

weird statue in Chattanooga

Day 6

Our last day driving, hallelujah!  We didn’t make any stops besides gas, and food because we were ready to be done driving.  We were welcomed into Florida, the sunshine state, with a massive rainstorm.  Thank you hurricane season. 

When we got to Gainesville we were taken aback by all the foliage and the huge college campus. 

We got our apartment and the rental office was closed and so we were stumped as to how to get into our apartment.  We thankfully were able to get a hold of the maintenance man and he put us in contact with someone who could give us the code to get the key out of the lockbox.  While Andy was trying to get the lockbox open, it wasn’t cooperating, it started pouring, so he got soaked.  But we finally got in and Ellie was so ecstatic to be out of the car!  She investigated every inch of the apartment and was jumping, screaming, laughing, and rolling around on the floor.  She could not have been happier than she was at that moment.

It’s a small apartment but it’s all we need for the next 8 months.  

George was hungry after all the driving

laying in her baby's pack and play