Final Vacay Thoughts

Well, now you are all caught up. We got up on Day 8 and drove 11 hours to Denver, spent the night in a hotel and finished the trip on Day 9 with another 11 hour driving stretch. We got home, found our cat locked upstairs, and started unpacking. I'm hoping to get our stinky laundry done today and the rest of the stuff put away. Rick spent about 2 hours last night detailing our Suburban. Yikes!

Here are some last photos of how we spent our time in the car ...

Sunflower seeds and his iPhone

Countless hours on his DS

Playing with his Ice Age toys (I think we watched Ice Age, seriously, about 8 times on this trip)

Sucking on her key and hanging out with Kyndal. They drew pictures, listened to music and giggled.

Twisting her hair.

Just a joke, folks!!! Like I could sleep in a car with 4 kids!

And here are my final thoughts ...

1. We aren't campers and I am so proud of us for pulling it off! We really did rough it, and I'm proud of us for making it.

2. I'm sad we had a family blowup in the middle of vacation, but am glad that some hidden feelings came out so we can work on them as a family. We'll be discussing all of this with our LifeCoach soon.

3. I am amazed that our children were able to hang out in a car for the better part of 60 hours in a week without any meltdowns! Seriously, there wasn't even one!

4. Every person should go see Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore once in their life! Yellowstone was a little slow for me, but it contains so many natural wonders that it is worth seeing! Every person should make a point to go to the Grand Tetons, even if you stay in a resort. It was breathtaking!

5. We drove through 7 states in 9 days, logging almost 4,000 miles. Wow!

6. Despite our extremely different personalities, which cause occasional conflict, I love my family so much and wouldn't have wanted to experience these sights with any other people in the world. I know we will look back on this vacation with good memories .. and may even laugh at the bad ones.

7. The Thomasons are outstanding people. With a blown transmission, major detour, 4 total flat tires, a goof with the second truck, a messed up bike rack, riding with a complete stranger for 2 hours to get their second truck, and countless other mishaps, they managed to have the time of their lives .. a lesson we can all learn from.

8. I am now looking forward to our luxurious cruise to Hawaii that Rick and I are going on next summer! And, I know we will have a blast in Oklahoma City with the kids for a long weekend at the end of next summer staying in a hotel and only driving 2 hours to get there.