June 14-15: On Saturday morning we stopped to see Grandma Rose one more time, then we met Nathanael and Lauren for lunch. After some yummy Mexican food, it was load up time for the first leg of our return trip - about 8 hours. Our hopes were to get 1/3 to 1/2 way through Nebraska before stopping for the night. Near Nebraska City we drove through a partially flooded highway that looked like it had just re-opened. We saw several large fields that resembled lakes along the Iowa border. We made it to Hastings, NE late Saturday night and had a very restful night's sleep. After a quick breakfast, Phil was treated to the best Father's Day ever......8 more hours in the car! I offered repeatedly to drive but Phil kept his back side firmly planted in the driver's seat. Now before you applaud him, remember that there were 5 children in the backseat that I was responsible for...the dropped pacifiers, plugging in the DVD player, mixing bottles, getting snacks, facilitating arguments.....Yes, I think Phil knows he got the most relaxing seat :). At one point, somewhere in Nebraska, Timothy had reached a melt down point and was very frustrated with being in the car. I realized we were just south of Scottsbluff and earlier in the day my friend Brenda had called and said they were in Scottsbluff for a baseball tournament. As we pulled into a rest area I told him I was going to leave him there and have Brenda come pick him up. He just sort of looked at me, but when we loaded him in his car seat he started crying and saying, "Brennnda, Brennnda". It was funny at first, but after about 15 minutes, we were sick of his whining. I did capture a short video of his outburst.
We stopped for a few hours in Cheyenne and had a late lunch with Phil's mom, Jeannine and Larry. Thanks for the pizza and thanks for the great dishes to further compliment my set. Then we were back on the road again for the final push home! It felt so good to walk into our clean house (which only stayed clean for about 10 minutes) and sleep in our own beds Sunday night!! I stayed up late trying to get unpacked and laundry started before our busy week.
Thank you to everyone we stayed with along the way. Your hospitality blessed us all. We thank God for our traveling mercies and protection as we drove. It was a special time being together as a family. This is a trip that will always hold special memories in our hearts and minds.
Trip Recap:
Total miles driven --- 3,719
Total gallons of gas --- 208.51
Approximate mileage --- 18 mpg
Average cost of gas --- $3.93
Total driving hours --- 52
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