Our Journey, So Far

On Friday, we left Kingwood and made our way up to Oklahoma City, where we met up with family for a wonderful meal at a nice restaurant. From there, we moved on to Stillwater for the night. We spent the day on Saturday just hanging out. Then, on Saturday night, we had the privilege of watching our sister-in-law/aunt officially become a doctor of veterinarian medicine. We are so proud of her accomplishment!!

On Sunday, we slowly crawled out of bed after a short night--made shorter by nightmares, accidents and illness. But, we finally pulled ourselves together enough to hit the road again. My mother's day celebration consisted of long hours behind the wheel and convenience store food. But, I was with my little darlings, and they behaved wonderfully in the car (and they gave me chocolate covered strawberries, new pajamas and a promise for a really good meal another time). We saw the Gateway Arch on our way to our ultimate destination for the night, which was Lafayette, IN, where we had a much-too-short visit with some dear, dear friends.

On Monday morning, we slept in, and woke refreshed and hungry. But, since we missed the hotel's breakfast, we sampled the wares at the nearby Cracker Barrel, and were quite satisfied, as always. Then, we were gone again, finally stopping in Madison, PA for the night. We stayed at a beautiful and fun KOA, and enjoyed their jumping pillow and playground, and a gourmet picnic in the freezing cold.

This morning we hopped up bright and early to prepare for another day on the road. I have always claimed that my brain doesn't function until I've had my morning shower, and I proved that once again this morning by forgetting to take my towel with me to the shower room and not realizing it until halfway through my shower, when my brain finally turned on. I finished my shower, threw back on my pajamas, made a mad, soaking dash through the chilly PA air back to the cabin for a towel and then a return trip to properly dry off and put on my regular clothes. That is NOT a great way to start the day, folks, and I don't recommend it.

So, a few more hours in the van put us in Hershey, PA, where we stopped for a tour of Chocolate World. We had a blast learning about Milton Hershey and the chocolates he invented and how they are made. And we also enjoyed all our free samples and the world's greatest chocolate milkshakes!

When we left Hershey, we intended to meander through Amish country, but with the rain and the faulty directions and the desire to just get out of the van, we ended up adjusting our plan and making a Mother's Day dinner stop in Baltimore, MD at a place known to us for it's crab cakes. We have never actually eaten there before, but have had the crab cakes elsewhere. The place can only be described as a Vegas casino that is past its prime. However, what it lacked in atmosphere, it made up for in taste. Possibly the best crab cakes I have ever eaten.

A short 45-minute drive later, we found ourselves at our ultimate destination: Washington, D.C.  This is where we have been trying to get all along, and here we will stay for the next four days. My parents are in town, too, so it should be a fun time we won't soon forget.