We are home! Tuesday afternoon was grand because we finally we able to get out of the car for more than just a night or two. We went 3700 miles on this vacation--and here is my journal of our trip. Please forgive the choppy places and odd spots. I had this typed on Word and therefore when I copied and pasted I ended up with a funny looking journal. I hope you enjoy what you read--I have so many more pics too, but I did not want to bore you so early on! I am currently getting an error message when I try to upload pictures, so I will do a "pictoral demonstration" later!

Especially read the Thursday, May 10 entry--there you will find the interesting encounter Anna had with a bird and my amazing ability to break elevators! God bless, ya'll!

Friday, May 4, 2007

We finally left the house about 4:15 p.m. Of course, we had to stop and mail an envelope, but then we drove on our way. We stopped at Sayre, Oklahoma and got Anna’s tennis shoes from Mamaw before we began our trek again. Dad had originally planned to stop in Oklahoma City for the night, but Mom figured that we could make it to Fort Smith, Arkansas before the day got too late. We made it six miles from the Arkansas border before Dad shut it down for the night. The hotel we got had a bed made from plywood *I assume* but we had a place to sleep nonetheless.

Saturday, May 05, 2007

SATURDAY—ARKANSAS! We are finally in the “Natural State.”. Dad went to the little hotel office and got a couple cups of coffee for him and Mom. About three cups later he decided that he’d better not look too odd going back yet AGAIN for more. We finally got away from the hotel about 8:30 this morning. We drove the last six miles from the hotel to Fort Smith I made the comment upon waking up that whatever used to be on the front of my body was now on the back. *So much for sleeping well on my stomach* Now, I must admit that I did sleep—hard! J Trees and shrubbery surround us as we are traveling on the interstate. Solid cloud cover makes the day seem beautiful and cool—though I assure you that Arkansas has a middle name of mugginess.
Trees rise from the ground with pencil straightness. Rivers are running with “white” water. I have to admit that Texas rivers have nothing on these babies. We will cross the Mississippi later today and I will try to get more pictures there. Later!
A day later~ well, we did stop and see the Mississippi. And *lucky us* we arrived during the Cinco de Mayo. Maybe it was not the BEST time to be there because of the alcohol consuming crowds, but I admit I did get some great photos ofthe river. After a couple of hours we left and headed towards Dyersburg, Tennessee. We made it to Dyersburg about 4:30 p.m. and visited with Mom’s cousins a while. Anna and I swam in the cousin’s pool with a second cousin who we had never met. (Which is interesting let me tell you) J We stayed with my great uncle and aunt while visiting that area. Mom and Dad took the guest room, I had a twin bed, and Anna slept on the couch. *She volunteered! Don’t think that I “bossed” her into it! Sheesh*



SUNDAY—May 6, 2007

We got up this morning about seven and got ready to go to church. Uncle Joe and Aunt Naydene go to one church, Tina and Barry go to yet another church, and Theresa and Brad are members of yet A THIRD church. When they asked where we wanted to go, Dad did not choose but rather said that we would go where the more youth went. So we went to Theresa’s church. Sunday school seemed pretty good. Somehow I felt a part of the young people. Well, as much a part as a visitor can feel I suppose. Unfortunately, the church’s music leader is dying of a cancer around his heart—so we had a prayer time and heard so many broken hearts expressed through prayers and tears. We ate with the family at Uncle Joe’s and Naydene’s house for lunch. Olivia, (belongs to Tina and Barry) Anna, and I watched Yours, Mine, and Ours while we ate and skipped out on the dishes. J Our family waited until about 3:45 p.m. before we started out again. We are on I-40 headed towards Nashville. I grow more and more excited. I will update more later!


LATER:
Well, we went through Nashville and I got so few pictures it embarrassed me. In my defense it is hard to take GOOD pictures out of a car going 65-70 mph. So there) We drove to the edge of Knoxville, T.N. before we grabbed a room at the Laquinta Inn and bedded down for the night. We got there about 10:00 p.m. our time, 11:00 p.m. their time!

MONDAY— May 7, 2007
We are trekking again. About an hour from the Virginia border, we are puttering on I-40 headed towards Virginia Beach. I am SO excited—though we suspect that another eight hours stretch from here to the beach. We have changed time zones so we have indeed lost another hour. L Time change does not put me “totally out”—though I have a hard time accepting that the night draws to 9:20 instead of 8:20. We have passed through the Appalachian Mountains and part of the Smokies in the dark. I think that that might stand as one reason we stopped—we did not want to miss the view. I will update more later!
A DAY LATER~
Well, we made it to Virginia—and through Virginia—and to Virginia Beach in one day! We all grew a little tired of the car by the time we made to the Atlantic. I was so glad to finally see the ocean. By the way, the Atlantic does not really appear all that beautiful—just so you know. Great to see? Beyond reasoning great. I HAVE SEEN AN OCEAN!


TUESDAY—May 8, 2007

We are currently heading to the Chesapeake Bay tunnel. J It is the most interesting experience knowing that you are going under a bay or ocean in a tunnel. It makes me aware of the technology in which math is used. *which also makes me painfully aware of how much I hate math!* We ate at a little place called the Galley last night. Mom was still getting adjusted to the climate and the roaring seas, so she just sat (almost numbly) in the booth and held her fists in clenched balls. The restaurant seemed awfully dank and strange, but everything seemed that way to me. Our waiter had an interesting sense of humor, though I could have done without it. The buffet was an all you can eat, but they wanted $24 a person! Mom kinda got bugg-eyed, I gulped, and we asked for a menu. Dad is determined to eat seafood tonight—before we go back. I look forward to it—

LATER~

GUESS WHAT! I AM CROSSING THE CHESAPEAKE BAY! AS WE SPEAK! Just think—our forefathers crossed this very bay when they came seeking freedom from a tyranny that refused them their own worship. The land looks like a haze around us—how it must have looked to their weary eyes. “LAND HO, LAND HO,” must have been the most wonderful words.
A DAY LATER—
Well, we made it through the tunnel and back to the hotel. We finally ate seafood yesterday. We discovered that we all ate for the same amount that two people could have eaten at the Galley. I believe that we are back to snacking for the remainder of the trip. After we ate and walked the shops a bit we went back to the hotel and rested. We let ourselves down for a while before we all went and got some sand and sea in three water bottles. We all got wet in the ocean last night. Even Mom and Anna got fairly wet. You might say we got as wet as we could without actually swimming immersing ourselves in it. J We watched three or four surfers ride the waves before we tromped back into the room for a little more R&R. We used the DVD player in the room and watched National Treasure to “prep” us for Washington D.C.. At least—everyone else watched it. After I bathed I fell soundly asleep.

ZzZzZzZzZzZ ZzZzZzZzZzZ

WEDNESDAY—May 9, 2007

We are headed to Williamsburg, V.A. for a visit to the old colonial part of the city. Mom and Dad mentioned something about Jamestown, but I have no idea if we will make it there or not! We left V.A. Beach this morning about 9:30. We are about to go back in the “Hampton Bay tunnel” *or something like that* and then we will be headed to Williamsburg. We rested yesterday—and therefore prepared our feet for the three or four days of walking ahead of us. I will update more later! God bless….
LATER—
We made it to Colonial Williamsburg today and walked over the land. I enjoyed the day immensely! We saw a reenactment, men building a corncrib, a field of tobacco ready for planting, and so much more. Even all the nails that were used to make the buildings were hand made. So far I enjoyed Williamsburg more than anything we have seen. For all I know, the colonial reenactments were as true to the original as they could possibly be. The women were dressed with care to that era. Mom, ever the seamstress, pointed our later that the hems of their garments were cut with pinking shears and left that way. Even though their garments were not sewed to perfection I think they were still quite lovely. We got to go in the Governor’s Palace. I suppose my favorite part of that was the simple beauty of the bedrooms. Mrs. Marion has the taste of that period! The bedrooms exemplify some of the taste she utilizes throughout her own homes. The pictures I took could tell all. Right now we are on the interstate headed for Richmond. It is 5:43 p.m. and we are going to go as far as we can in the daylight. Hopefully I can explain more later—right now I am bushed and in need of a little “brain rest.”



LATER~ It is 8:34 p.m. Eastern time. We are headed to Alexandria for the night. We will have to transfer hotels tomorrow, but we are going to get settled at D.C. for tonight. After all the drive time, I think Mom and Dad have decided to fly next visit to this area.

THURSDAY—May 10, 2007
We did make it to Alexandria last night. (Please don’t ask me what time!) We stayed at the Quality Inn since we did not have reservations until today here at the Courtyard Marriott. I discovered this morning that Mom and I both prayed for God to put a troop of angels around our car—needless to say we did not approve of the neighborhood. Anna had some laundry to do so Dad was making the trips to the machines for her. A guy asked Dad for a quarter—Dad kinda said no. As Dad went to the dryer a while later he saw the man again—stoned on something. Anna says the fella found his quarter. (LOL) We all got to ride the Metro subway today. It was really pretty cool. Takeoffs and stops make ma a little queasy, but it was pretty great nonetheless. The National Aquarium became a short stop instead of the long afternoon station that I had expected. Maybe I had my hope and expectations too high. It was still very interesting. I got to see an octopus—I was not supposed to take a picture but I did not see the sign until it was too late. I have a picture of him anyway! I suppose that you might say we hit the jackpot. We got to see the feeding of the piranhas. The guide said that the piranhas would only have feeding frenzies if they were too hungry. They appeared to eat fast to me1 Needless to say; I do not want to tangle with them—EVER! Our lunch consisted of a pack of crackers and an energy bar in the “food court” of the Reagan Center. While we ate a most peculiar thing happened. A bird decided to “relieve himself” and did so right on Anna’s hand. It splattered and dotted my pants, shirt, and arm; but Anna got the worst of the mess. *she handled it well,bless her heart...*
We rode to the top of the old post office tower and got the full view of D.C. after lunch. We also got to see the bells of Congress. These bells show their massiveness well. When the bells are pealing, the bell pullers have to tug for 6 hours straight. If one person hits a wrong note then the entire group must stop ringing. The bells were actually pretty impressive.
I broke an escalator today. Not on purpose, I assure you. Basically I was sticking my toes as close to the crack between the steps as I could. My toes caught in the groove and stopped the escalator. Yes—it was embarrassing. As a small consolation we were the only ones on the staircase.
We ate at a little restaurant in the Holiday Inn tonight. I ordered some kind of Philly steak sandwich tonight. I don’t know what I was thinking. I HATE onions and this sandwich was FULL of them. Actually it turned our pretty good. *ok, I liked it—so what* We decided to come back to the hotel for the night before we have our tours with Mac Thornberry’s office tomorrow. I think that we will have a TON of walking to do in the days ahead—so I will have to get some rest for now. J LATER! P.s. it is 8:48 right now~
And the trip goes on…

FRIDAY—May 11, 2007

We got up fairly early this morning so we could meet Mac Thornberry’s office by 9:30 a.m. After we got ready we hit the metro and headed for his office. We arrived about 30 or 45 minutes early and had a chance to actually meet with Mac for a visit. Though I did not get a picture, I did enjoy the chat immensely. Mac’s secretary, Kala, took us on the tour of the Capitol. (By the way, CAPITOL is spelled the way it is because Thomas Jefferson said so. He chose that particular spelling because the Roman main center *acropolis* is spelled with an “o.” So there is your worthless info for today) We had to wait about an hour to get into the Capitol and there were quite a few people everywhere, but I loved all of the tour. After that tour we went to the Holocaust museum. Going there was one of those experiences where I would only want to do it once or twice in a lifetime. I mean it was very gruesome. There were four floors to the building and we made it through the bottom floor and then they took us to the fourth floor for the self guided tour. After a short time on the third floor we decided to forego the remainder of the museum and head towards something more lighthearted. We trudged to the Washington Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial where we were all amazed. We even caught a glimpse of the White House from where we were. About 3:00 p.m. we headed toward our next appointment at the Library of Congress. We were beginning to get frustrated, sore, tired, angry, and winded by the time we made it to the Library—15 minutes late. We still made it to our tour before they left. I admit, even though I would have given up earlier the trip to the Library was SO worth it. After our tour there we went and ate some supper before the shuttle came and took us back here to the hotel. I think we are going to try and finish our touring tomorrow and will hopefully hit the trail homeward Sunday. We will see later. I will run for now. I am so tired and my feet need a rest. I’ll update later! J

SATURDAY—May 12, 2007

I did not sleep well last night. We got up slowly this morning, though. Anna jumped in the shower and with all of us there did not seem enough bath time. I did not get my shower so I left feeling a little grimy. We went first to the Arlington Cemetery and got to see the changing of the guard. We stayed there for a few hours and ate our cracker lunch at the visitor’s center. After that we caught the Metro and rode to the Air and Space Museum. We got to watch a few minutes of a video of the “space race” over the past few years, and we got to see a lot of planes, space “thingies” and TONS of other space stuff. The Wright Brother’s plane reproduction was there and we all got to enjoy that. We all trudged over to the National Archives where we saw the original Declaration of Independence and Constitution. We had a great—yet short—time there. We had wanted to go to the Iwo Jima memorial, but our feet hurt. We figured that with the Metro delays we needed to head back to the hotel. We ate at the same place we did last night before we came back here to the hotel and propped our feet up. We will head home tomorrow morning early. I still need to take a bath and kinda prepare all my stuff for the loading Dad is already planning….vacation is beginning to wind down.

SUNDAY—May 13, 2007

Welll, Dad was ready to head out early this morning. We got up about 5:00 and began to get ready to scoot outta there. We were loaded and leaving the hotel approximately at 5:45. We made it to the interstate and are headed home. Today is Mother’s Day and Anna and I gave Mom her presents a couple of days ago. We delivered her cards to her today.
I was thinking back to when our trip first started and I will now do a short recapping overview of everything we have done:

1. Left home and visited family in Tennessee on our way to Virginia Beach…
2. Made it to Virginia Beach and stayed there a couple days—though we did not get to actually SWIM in the ocean…
3. Drove to Williamsburg, VA where we saw the reenactments and the old colonial town…
4. Drove to Alexandria VA and stayed there while we commuted back and forth on the metro to Washington D.C.
We did so much on the “in-between” days—but this was an overview

We did so much more on the “in-between” days—but that was a brief overview. J I think that I am glad to be headed home. I will be energized to finish my school and get to my summer work. I must admit, that after seeing the Capitol and all, I long to act more maturely and be ready for whatever God wants for me. I have said to myself so much lately—“GROW UP SARAH.” Maybe I will this time.

Hello this is Anna, I love you so much Sarah!!!!

MONDAY—May 14, 2007

We did not make it as far as we could have last night. We stopped in a little town called Pigeon Forge, TN., and went to the Dixie Stampede. It was SO worth it. Before the event began we had some time to kill so we all went to the outlet mall thy havd there. Anna found herself a pair of capris that she got for a good price. WE edid not shop long before we headed went to the building for the stampede. We arrived for the “pre-show” and drank our non-alcoholic strawberry-daiquiris and orange sherbets while a really good band played. Anna taped some of their music—especially the fiddler—and she really loved it, we all did! Normally I HATE country music, but what they played was not country. They merely showed their talents on the banjo, fiddle, guitar, and bass through fast music. After our pre-music we went to the main event. I think there were three or four tiers of tables that rose above the arena. The announcer put the opposite sides of the arena against each other as the NORTH and SOUTH. Our waiters and waitresses were dressed as each side would have been—in blue and gray. We were attended by a blue suited waitress named Libby. She was SO nice.
We were all required to cheer for our side and stomp our feet when th announcer said “Stampede.” After a little while our food was served. Our meal came in four courses and here is what we ate:
1. Creamed Vegetable soup
2. A cheese roll
3. A whole baked chicken (a piece)
4. Smoked pork
5. Potato wedge
6. Apple turnovers

They did not give us any forks or anything—so we had to ear with our fingers.
Since we were already divided by sides with a vast arena between us, the war between the North and South was ready to begin. Through a number of races and “audience involved” events the sides took medals for each task they won. Contrary to history—the SOUTH won. No pictures were allowed to be taken of the event, so I have so little to show for what we did. It was one of my favorite things we did! We went back to the hotel and went swimming in the indoor pool for near an hour before we went back up and got some shuteye. We got up this morning and I got a shower. About 6:15 we went to the breakfast room and ate before we loaded up and headed out. Right now we are taking the scenic tour headed to I-40 and Nashville. We are taking a longer route—but a prettier drive before we “rack-er-back” and go homeward again. We might not make it home until tomorrow, but we are headed that way! Till Later! J

TUESDAY—May 15, 2007

We stopped at Sallisaw, O.K. last night. We are about 5-6 hours away from home, but we are on the interstate again. Anna and I got to go swimming again last night. Anna’s ear got stopped up again and the water was so warm that I began to get sick, so we did not swim very long. Two ladies and their children left shortly after we arrived at the pool—and they left behind their long hairs. Those pesky hairs wrapped around our ankles and ran through our fingers. We were SO grossed out and began to lay the hairs up on the side of the pool. We laid up at least 20 or so. *makes my liver quiver* WE slept well and ate a light breakfast at the lobby before we loaded up and started out this morning. It is 7:30 a.m. and we are looking at being home shortly after noon. I am SO looking forward to being there. Maybe I will do one more update to let you know when we got home, but then again this journal has so much to say already. This vacation has been everything I could have dreamed and more. Here are the capitals we have seen:

1. Oklahoma City
2. Little Rock
3. Nashville
4. Richmond
5. Washington D.C.

Here are the mountain ranges we have traveled through:

1. Blue Ridge
2. Allegany
3. Great Smokies

After all the places we have traveled, home still seems like a good place to be. I know that with the time off my school will require my full attention for the next couple weeks. But you know what, I know God will help me—and my summer will show up before I know it. I hope you have enjoyed being my record of our happenings. May I never forget what I have seen and heard.