The Last Leg...

After we got to the hotel, at about 8pm, the kiddos were wired! I mean, my kids can get pretty hyped, but this was a level I had not yet seen, and possibly only reached once in my life! It lasted till about 10pm, when after tackling, tickling, chasing, throwing the ball, and running in circles with each other, Madeline sat down and literally conked out.
This made it difficult for Bray and I to get enough rest, and so we decided to try and make it to Santa Barbara by the end of the next day...which would mean about another 10-11 hours in the car. We started out feeling refreshed and ready to take on the challenge, and the kids did great again until about 2pm, when they really started to lose it. As we got closer to California, the temperature was rising, and so we all needed a break. When we were just about out of gas, we pulled into a small California town, and saw a great park with a river, and a playset, and we decided to take a break! It was perfect, and lasted us the rest of the trip!
The kids were so happy, that when they got back in the car, they played this game with a nerf ball where they threw it back and forth, hitting each other in the head, for nearly an hour! It was pretty hilarious!


We had not gotten lost or detoured the entire trip, but when we thought we were about 3 hours away, we accidentally took a wrong turn. We had an atlas with us, and so decided we could take another route, and possibly cut off some time, and still make it there. This worked fine until we realized we were driving on one of the windiest, most dangerous roads I have ever been on! It was gorgeous, and I kept thinking that, even though there was no standing room on the side of the road, Bill Church would have stopped and gotten some amazing photos! It was like something out of a Cary Grant or James Bond movie, with old tunnels and the sun streaming over the mountain tops.
However-it took us 2 and a half hours to go 20 miles. Yes, gorgeous, but not necessarily worth the time on a 20 hour drive...but, we made it there safe and sound, and are very thankful to be in such a gorgeous place and situation! We miss and love you all!