2,071 miles to Alabama

We're here! We survived the drive! Here's Cameron being a champ--and he really was a champ! He got so used to the car that by the 3rd and 4th day he wouldn't complain when we got in the car and no longer had trouble falling asleep in his seat. We joked that he now thought the car was our house and his seat was his room. We'd say "Time to go back to your room!" when we'd put him back in his seat.

Day 1: Cameron thought it was a party since he was sleeping with mom and dad in an empty house the night before day 1, so he decided to wake up at about 3am. He never did go back to sleep so we got up at 4:30 and left at 6. It ended up being a blessing since he slept 5 hours of the 10 we had to drive on day one. I also spent the day in and out of passing out while Tyler championed the wheel. Way to go, Tyler! We drove out of Utah and through Wyoming. Sorry you people from Wyoming but we have officially deemed it the worst state in the nation. We couldn't have been happier to see Colorado. Colorado is a beautiful state and reminded me a lot of Eastern Oregon. I saw my first oil pumps (?) dotting fields and they continued all through Kansas. We drove through quite a wind storm and ended the day in a small town, Burlington, where we spent a night in the first hotel room we have paid for ourselves.After allowing Cameron to run around a bit (here he is trying to keep up his pants), we all promptly went to bed at 9 and slept til 8 the next morning. A hotel bed and full night's sleep never felt so good!

Day 2: Day 2 was a more enjoyable day as we slept in til 8 and proceeded into and crossed all of Kansas. Kansas is a cute state, most of it dotted with very small towns and absolutely covered with farms. And most of these tiny farm towns had huge and beautiful churches (cathedrals even!) in the middle of them that you could see from the road. I thought it was so interesting! I thought it would be so interesting for a photographer to travel through Kansas and get pictures of all of these. It was a short 5 hours to Jeremy and Jeanette's house where we arrived in the afternoon. Cameron was so happy to see his cousins and run and play with them. And Tyler and I were excited to be able to see them and their cute city and home. I don't think we would have ever seen them otherwise! We were able to go to dinner all together and then go tour Jeremy's school. We were able to spend the night there as well. A big thanks to them for hosting us! It was most enjoyable.

Day 3: After a leisurely morning and a delicious breakfast of crepes made by Jeremy, we started out for the 8 hour leg of our drive. We soon entered Illinois and quickly crossed into Missouri. What we saw of these states were beautiful and COVERED with trees! And rivers! We saw lots of rivers, and some big ones at that like the Missouri and Ohio rivers. It was awesome for me to see! It's no wonder the west looked like such a wilderness to everyone! I was also very impressed with the big cities we passed through that day: Kansas City/Independence and St. Louis. They were beautiful from what I saw. At the end of the day we crossed into Kentucky and spent the night in a small town Motel 6. This picture is of us at a mall in Independence, Missouri, where we had lunch and let Cameron run around. He scored this balloon from a Kay Jewelers employee whose heart he won over. He sure is a social chap.

Day 4: Hallelujah! The drive is 7 hours til completion. We spent the day driving out of Kentucky and through Tennessee and at last into Alabama. Nashville was a beautiful looking city as well. As we went the trees got more dense and we could never tell what was just beyond the road. It is beautiful and green here.
We had lunch at a town right on the border and had a really good laugh at our first welcome into the deep south. Let's just say the stereotypes of the south held true in this small town. (Our town isn't so much that way, but that's another story). I don't know if you can see these pictures very well but they were right across the street from each other. (Check out the spelling--suvenirs and restaurat.) We had a good laugh and couldn't help taking a picture.
We arrived at our destination early and had dinner with Tyler's supervisor and his family. Afterward we moved into our new place. We're glad to be here and I will post another post soon about our home and the university. We are definitely enjoying ourselves.

I took away a few good things from this drive. First, I am glad I could make a 2000 mile drive in days instead of months like pioneers used to have to do! Second, I am amazed at how diverse and beautiful the United States is! I really have an appreciation for every state we passed through (except Wyoming) which is encouraging because I really don't know where Tyler will get a job after he graduates. Because with things as they are we really will just have to take what we are given (we are just hoping we get something!). So I have hope that I will be able to appreciate something about wherever we may end up! See? Good things even can come from being in the car for 4 days!