Leaving Home
May 25, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 84 °F
After much packing, which took the better part of 2 days, we finally made it on the road! Thank goodness for tablets, books on tape, and some pretty views on the drive!
Tennessee
May 25–27, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F
We made it to our first Airbnb in Tennessee- the kids enjoyed playing checkers and playing in the creek.
Sunliner Diner
May 26, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F
We had a special breakfast at the Sunliner Diner, getting to sit in one of the two car booths they have, and Gracie was excited I let her get a milkshake for breakfast (since it was her birthday!). WeRead more
Titanic Museum
May 26, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F
We got to spend time exploring the Tiranic Museum, which was pretty neat, though we still aren’t sure why it’s in Tennessee
Dolly Partons Stampede
May 26, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 79 °F
We had dinner with a show at Dolly Partons Stampede - the food was pretty good (though the portion sizes were huge) so and we definitely all enjoyed the apple turnover for dessert! The show includedRead more
Random stop in Arkansas
May 27, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 90 °F
Day 3 was one of our longest travel days, so we took a short break to have dinner at a small park in Arkansas, it was underwhelming, but we did get to eat!
Oklahoma
May 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F
We had a slow morning after the long travel day, and Gracie found a cat in the backyard.
Chicasaw Cultural Center
May 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F
We spent much of the day at the Chickasaw Cultural Center in Sulphur Oklahoma. We learned a lot about their culture, history, and beliefs. We watched them perform some stomp dances and even got toRead more
Staying on a Train
May 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 81 °F
The kids were excited to see that our next Airbnb was a very unique one - a train!
Bradbury Science Museum
May 30, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F
We spent some time at the Bradbury Science Museum learning about the creation of the nuclear bomb. It was a small museum, but free, and interesting.
A stop to take in the views
May 30, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F
We had to stop on the way back to take in some of the beautiful views!
Meow Wolf
May 30, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F
We spent the afternoon at an art installation called MeowWolf, which the kids loved, and was quite eccentric.
Colorado
May 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 79 °F
Another drive brought us to Colorado. This Airbnb was lovely and had some outdoor games to entertain the kids.
Mesa Verde
June 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F
We spent time exploring Mesa Verde, learning about the peoples from the past, and how they lived. We made the mistake of not knowing that we needed a special reservation to explore the cliffRead more
Hiking at Mesa Verde
June 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F
We also did a 2.5 mile hike at Mesa Verde, which felt much longer because it was hot, and required a lot of climbing as well as squeezing through tight spaces. We got tired, but powered through, andRead more
Four Corners
June 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F
Had to hit the four corners on our next long drive!
Melted Car 😫😕
June 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 91 °F
We were making great time, but unfortunately somewhere on the way to California the exhaust pipe fell off our muffler and proceeded to melt the back corner of our car, which we realized just about inRead more
Impromptu Hotel Stay
June 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F
Luckily we were able to find a nearby hotel to stay at that night (unfortunately eating the cost of the Airbnb we were supposed to stay at another hour away), but didn’t get in and settled untilRead more
Getting the car fixed
June 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F
Early the next morning, Jon talked to the dealership who said they’d have to fix everything if they started on it (which would take probably a week!) and directed us to a nearby muffler shop. TheRead more
WB Studio Tour
June 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F
We were able to still make it to our WB studio tour (we called and changed our time to later in the day), thankfully. We got to see sets from Gilmore Girls, Friends, and Big Bang Theory, among otherRead more
Universal Studios Hollywood
June 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F
The kids favorite day of our trip (so far) was going to Universal. They all loved the Super Nintendo World, and getting to ride on the Mariokart ride. For once I researched and planned ahead, and weRead more
Sequioa National Park
June 5, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F
We took a detour on one of our travel days to take a look at the Sequoias, which I’ve always wanted to see. Unfortunately we didn’t have a whole lot of time to spend there, and Caleb got aRead more
Winchester Mystery House
June 6, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 82 °F
We spent the morning at the house of a very eccentric and very rich lady of the past, the Winchester Mystery House. It has 160 rooms, 2000 doors (many which lead to nowhere, or to large drops), andRead more
Stop to see the Golden Gate Bridge
June 7, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F
While driving up the coast we of course had to stop to check out the Golden Gate Bridge, and could also just see Alcatraz Island as well (even though it was a foggy day).
Glass Beach
June 7, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 57 °F
We spent some time at the Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, which was quite cold, but fun. The kids enjoyed the tide pool in particular, which had warmer water.