Kick The Dust Up

We started our day at Starved Rock State Park in Illinois. We crossed a bridge and the corn fields disappeared. They were replaced with a beautiful forest of bluffs and a mighty river. We learned about this park in our Kids National Geographic Guide to America book. (It's our first go to book for planning.) It recommended we hike to Cool Canyons. The picture looked beautiful. Upon arriving at the visitors center to get a map to find cool canyons we were met with blank stares.  No cool canyons here. It was at that moment I realized the book used cool as an adjective. As in you will see very cool looking canyons. Oh. Our bad! We hiked to some cool canyons and along the Illinois River. It's been dry so the waterfalls weren't really flowing, so the cool factor wasn't as cool. 

Iowa has an abundance of corn and a surprising amount of things to do. So much so that we had to mark some things off the list due to time restraints. First, and maybe the best, is the world's largest truck stop. Go ahead and be jealous that we have been and you have not! At first glance it doesn't appear very large. When you enter, however, you understand! Anything your heart desires is here. You can even trick your truck with some bling! And of course, there is the trucking museum. A great little stop!

Herbert Hoover and John Wayne were both born in Iowa. We left Herbert's home and drove as fast as we possibly could to get to John's. We made it with 15 minutes to spare but they wouldn't let us go in. :( It takes at least 45 to do the tour. 

You may recall the book and movie "The Bridges of Madison County". Madison County is Winterset, Iowa. A darling little place! We traveled down a number of gravel roads. Kicked up a lot of dust. Got lost a few times. But we found all six bridges! Thanks Leslie for the tip that they were in Iowa!

We started our journey in Nebraska at  Nebraska's largest winery. 10:00 am is a perfect time for a wine tasting! Thank you Beau for a fun morning at James Arthur Winery! 

Maybe we bought a couple bottles 😁

Nebraska is a beautiful state. We took Highway 2, the Sandhills Scenic Byway across. We drove through tiny town after tiny town. Hazard, Nebraska has a population of 66. We stopped at the visitors center and left the first pin from KY for the year. We have seen our food growing and our steaks grazing. 

Mindi and I LOVE a random roadside attraction. Carhenge is definitely on the top of the best list!!

We end our day camping at the base of Chimney Rock. Those venturing along the Oregon Trail passed through here. I'm trying hard to contain my excitement. It's like living in a Little House on the Prairie book!

Patty looks right at home. She could star in the next Jeep print ad. 

The Blog is Back!

Road Trip America 2.0 is underway! The first time we traveled the perimeter. This time we are hitting the middle. The fly over states. We didn't plan to, but we left on the same day both times. June 11. Timehop tells me that June 11 was also the day we left for Ireland, spent time in Alaska, and went to the beach. Can't wait to see what June 11, 2017 brings!

We are driving a Jeep Patriot. Her name is Patty. 

Our first stop on this adventure landed is in Indianapolis. Our friend Kristen, who lives in Louisville, joined us for the weekend. With Indy being so close I'm not sure why this was our first visit. What a treat! We were very excited to begin our visit at the City Market. The website promised local food and vendors with art, jewelry, etc. What a disappointment. There was food, most of which was closed (at lunch time on a Saturday) and one artist booth that was also closed. We will not be recommending this to anyone. 

From there we headed to the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in the middle of the city. This brought a free Civil War Museum (yes, please!) and 33 flights of stairs that were closed due to heat (darn) forcing us to take the elevator to the top for the views. 

Serious faces because the Civil War was nothing to smile about. :)

We still had to climb three flights of very narrow, very skinny stairs!

We walked to White River State Park next. This is where we discovered a canal complete with paddle boats smack in the middle of the city!! Sign us up!! For an hour we paddled through the sights and dreamed of living in one of the townhouses where we could walk out and do a run, bike, free yoga on the lawn, or kayak the canal. We learned rent is at least $2000 a month so we had to rethink that dream. 

We had plans to go to the Indianapolis Indians baseball game. But then we sat down for dinner (on Mass Ave which was lots of fun!) and realized we were all day in the hot sun tired and just couldn't do it. We had s'mores instead...a great plan b! I chatted with a fellow camper walking his dog. After learning I was from KY, he told me that his wife had gotten wind of some Moonbow info so they had just come from Corbin. What a small world!!

We are not racing fans. No NASCAR, no Indy, no Formula One. Nothing. However we are great tourists and a trip to Indy wouldn't be complete without a stop at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The  Brickyard has different tours each day and we were offered the "Kiss the Bricks" tour. We had no idea what this meant, but sure, we want the full experience! After putting on our "kiss the bricks" button, we boarded a bus and set off for a lap around the track, at a safe 10 miles per hour pace. This was exciting enough but then we got to get off the bus and walk on the track!!! We were at the start/finish where the line of bricks were. We kissed and learned where this tradition came from. We also learned why Indy winners are given milk in the winners circle. We are happy to tell you about these traditions! We are also full of car racing knowledge thanks to museum workers and a fellow museum goer who realized we had no clue what we were looking at. Needless to say, attend a race at The Brickyard had made its way to our list. 

We ended our time in Indy at the Children's Museum of Indianapolis!! It. Is. Amazing. It's the largest in the world and has incredible things to explore. While in the dinosaur exhibit, we noticed this room behind the staff only doors that appeared to be where they housed all the items not on exhibit. It was also where they were working on cleaning off dinosaur fossils. I made the comment that I wished they had a behind the scenes tour. A bit later we stopped to chat with a lady who was working on a fossil and was there to show you some things through a window and let you touch a bone. And guess what??!!  She asked us to come behind the scenes!!!! She opened the staff only door and in we walked!!!!! She let us touch the triceratops skull and feel the difference between the real bone and the plastic cast. And then she gave us a tour of the room we had spotted. It was amazing! How lucky were we?! She also told us that the museum does dinosaur digs in South Dakota. Tickets go on sale the day after Thanksgiving. I'm ready to purchase one! We had so much fun and would tell anyone, young or old, that the children's museum is a definite must. 

The museum encouraged dress up. No need to ask us twice!

We've settled in Illinois for the night. For 3.5 hours we saw nothing but corn. It was very boring. 

The Last Post

7.5 weeks.  12,274.5 miles. 31 states driven through.  21 states explored. Too many adventures and memories to count. This has been a summer for the books. One we will always remember and talk about. 

For those of you wondering why this space does not hold a picture of the odometer showing 12,274.5 miles it's because it resets to zero at 6,000. This was the most devastating discovery.

This is the last post in Snapshot of America. This adventure has come to an end. Thanks to all our followers. All the likes, comments, phone calls, and texts along the way. Thanks for the prayers for safe travels. We hope you enjoyed traveling with us!! And if you're ever in the market for a Chevy Impala, talk to us. We can give you an extensive review. 

We thought this last blog could be a reflection of sorts. Here are our final thoughts. 

From Mindy with a y:

I've tried to think of words to describe this trip. I'm having a hard time. We have seen so much. We have done so much. We have laughed, cried, made new friends, and tested ourselves. I can tell you that God's fingerprints are all over this country. There are some majestic sights in America. I encourage you to take a different vacation the next time you decide to get away. Go somewhere new. Explore this glorious country you live in. 

Everyone has called this the trip of a lifetime. That sounds so final to me. Like there can only be one great trip in a lifetime. Alaska was a trip of a lifetime. The trips to Europe were trips of a lifetime. Australia? Trip of a lifetime. You see, there are lots of trips. Lots of life to live. This trip...I don't want it to be 'the' trip of a lifetime. I want it to fuel even more trips during my lifetime. 

Mindi, your 'mid-life crisis in your thirties' brought an incredible adventure. I can't wait to see what your mid-life crisis in your mid-life brings! Count me in whatever it is!!

As I've traveled around I've found many jobs I would like to have when I grow up. In no particular order they are; park ranger, own a bed and breakfast, operate the Storyland ride at Disneyland, own a campground, rent kayaks at a lake. Until then, I will work at Simmons Elementary. 

From Mindi with an i:

I joke that I have had a mid-life crisis and this was the reason for the road trip. Obviously, Mindy thinks so :). I guess it's true to some extent. To be honest, I'm pretty happy with my life. I have Jesus, a supportive family, and fabulous friends. Not many people can say that their family said "go for it" when I said I'm quitting my job and going to travel. Plus, who has a friend like Mindy Logan who agrees to take her whole summer to travel the road with me! Especially when she is going to be the new librarian! Who needs more than this? 

The trip came to be because I came to a point in my life where I was not happy with my job/career. Think about it. A person spends most of their waking hours working at their job. And if you're not happy, it becomes pretty miserable. So I decided to change that and said "WHY NOT!" So here I am pretty much two months later giving my reflection.

So you wonder if I have figured out my life or had an epiphany. Well, I have a few ideas! Rootbeer, biscuits, boutique, and even speech-language therapy come to mind. It's ever changing! But I feel everyone's evolving, trying to figure themselves out on different levels. Not because of being unhappy, but for the yearning of passion for something. Whatever that may be. This makes me think of a young man I saw at the zoo. I'm assuming he has autism, just by observing some unique characteristics. He continuously walked back and forth on a pathway picking up leaves and throwing them up in the air. He just smiled and laughed. He was happy. It was simple. 

This trip made my life simple. This trip made me even happier! So thank you for joining us on one of life's adventures.

We will leave you with this last thought. :)

Until the next adventure...