Elena's trip log; days 48 - 88

This covers the days up til May 1st...

Day 48 in Robson's Runabout (M arch 21)
Today, we went into Kentucky Horse Park. Mama and I were excited, but the boys were hungry, bored, and grumpy. Included in the boys is Dada. They went to a pub for lunch about 10 minutes into our time there. Mama and I did better without them. We got on a horse drawn trolley and went to a Retired Champions Show. There, was Cigar, Funny Sides, Gypsy, and another champion horse. Next, we went into The Museum of the Horse. After that, we met the boys at The Breeds Barn, for a show that we thought would be better. After the boys left, Mama and I went to look at the miniature horses. They were really cute. Next, we bought tickets for the horseback riding. We stood in line for a few minutes, then a women asked everyone with 10 hours or more experience to go to the top of the ramp. I had to stay at the bottom for my helmet while Mama went to the top. They ended up putting us together because the horses we were on liked each other, not because Mama and I knew each other. My horse's name was Pocahontas, but the people there called her Miss Pokey, so I did, too. Mama's horse's name was Lucky. At first, it was a little nerve racking, how bumpy it was, but after a few minutes, I learned to just enjoy the experience. I didn't want to get off at the end. After we got off, we started the walk back to the campground. We had dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed.

Day 49 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to a BIG, and I mean BIG church. The pastor WAS NOT goofy, which was a relief. I still like the sermons at home the best out of any we've heard so far, Pastor Howe. The church had a big, cool playground, so we played in that for a while. I'm getting used to running around in heels. It's pretty easy now. After church, we went out to look around and go to a restaurant, because our RV was about an hour away. Mama and I were sneaking through alleys, running as fast as our heels would let us. The boys didn't see us, and we beat them everywhere. When we got back to the RV, the boys and I went to the playground and played tag with the kids there. The boy was probably 11 or 12, and the girl was probably 8 or 9. After that, we went back to the RV and watched Planet Earth. Then, Dada started making dinner, and the rest of the night was spent playing Trouble, and going to bed.

Day 50 in Robson's Runabout
Today, it was rainy, so we spent our morning hanging around at the campground and Mama and I going on a long, frustrating, hilly, bike ride. After lunch, we went to Buffalo Trace Distillery (bourbon factory). It was like nothing I'd ever imagined. Barrels and barrels of aging bourbon, up to 6,000 per warehouse, all stacked on big oak shelves. At the end was a bourbon tasting, but obviously the boys and I couldn't have any, so they gave us old fashioned root beer, the best root beer I've ever tasted. We bought a case, just for special occasions. Dada also got a few bottles of bourbon, as gifts. Then, we drove around Frankfort for a while, and went back to the RV for dinner, UNO, and bed.

Day 51 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to Maysville for an Underground Railroad museum. When we figured out it was closed, we walked around the town and got ice cream while Dada got a hair cut. Then, we loaded back into the RV, and drove to the Cincinnati Airport Hotel and got a room (don't ask me why, we could have just stayed in the RV) and went to the pool. It was a nice pool, and the boys and I played in it for about an hour. Then, we got dinner at the hotel restaurant. That was good. Then, Dada went to a meeting, and we went to our hotel room and watched TV. Then, we tried to sleep.

Day 52 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to the RV for breakfast, and went into the pool. The boys and I played for about 3 hours, and then we went to the room. We watched The Andy Griffith show, and took showers. Then, we went to the Creation Museum, a Christian based museum based on showing how the evolution and Big bang theory is wrong. I don't think I've ever seen so many Christians in one place in my life. After the museum part, there was a really nice path with little waterfalls, streams, and marshes. At the end of the trail, there was a petting zoo with biblical animals and animals that explain how some animals came to be, like the zorse and zonkey, crosses between horses and donkeys with zebras. There was one goat who wasn't getting any attention that came right to the edge of his cage, climbed onto a bar to make it easier for me to pet him! He tried to get even closer, but it didn't really work. He was so CUTE! I pet him for a good five minutes, and then Mama had to pry me away so that we could get going. We went to a little historic town and saw a playground. We went over there, and played fro a few minutes. Then, we went to a restaurant for dinner. After that, we went back to the hotel and watched TV. Then, we went to bed.

Day 53 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to the restaurant in the Hotel for breakfast, and then went to the pool. We splayed in the pool for about 3 hours again, then did what we did yesterday after the pool. When Dada got out of his meeting, we started driving to Cumberland Gap, in Kentucky. We passed through Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky to get there. When we got there, we just did what we do every night, eat dinner, play a game, and go to bed.

Day 54 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to a Coal Museum, an hour away. We got lunch at a restaurant where the people were really nice. The ladies there told us to come back after our tour to tell them how we liked it and get a little dessert. It was cute. There was a few letters to families from family members dying in the mines from lack of air, outfits, pictures, all that stuff. After the museum, we went on a tour of Portal 31, a mine that supported the metal industry in the world wars. It was really disappointing at the end of the bumpy, dark, tour when we saw a movie that included how people think it took “millions of years” for the world to be created. I felt like exploding. When we got out of the cave, we drove back to the restaurant for dessert. Then, up the side of a mountain we drove, and we were so high up, we couldn't see 4 yards in front of the car! That was cool. When we finally got to the RV, it was 8:00, and time for dinner. After that, we went to bed.

Day 55 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to the Neas Farm (Kelli Trexler's home farm) in Greenville, Tennessee. When we got there, we parked our camper, and met Grandma Bill (who asked us if we had brought a little brown bunny, but thought a little brown new-born baby goat behind a board was the bunny) and Buddy, the farm dog. He is a golden retriever, and was very fluffy and sweet. The only problem was, he chases the baby goats, who I thought were ADORABLE. We found the piglets Kelli had told us about. Then, we went up the steep hill leading to the Neas's house, and Issac ran ahead. When we got to the top, we couldn't find him. We walked around the house, thinking he was on the other side. When we were at the back door of the pretty house, I said to Mama, “I bet he's inside,” and Mama said, “No, he'd know better than that.” When we were on the other side, I looked inside, wanting to know what it looked like. Then I saw this person on the couch. I would have just looked away and kept walking, but the person was a bit short, and I knew that the Neas's kids were all older than me. And then I noticed that he/she wasn't asleep and was wearing a national geographic tee-shirt, identical to Isaac's. Sure enough, it was Isaac. He had gone inside! I whipped open the porch door, and, before Mama really knew what was happening, yelled/whispered/said, “Isaac, what are you doing? Get out!” He kind of lumbered out, in his bare feet, smiling sheepishly. Then Mama gave him the waggly finger pep talk and asked him where his shoes were. He said, “Inside,” and Mama said the obvious, “Then go get them!” Then, as we walked away, Isaac said that he'd used the bathroom. Mama asked, “Did you flush?” He shrugged and Mama pointed toward the door. Isaac came back to say that he had and that was the end of the matter. An hour after chasing Buddy around, Todd, Kelli's brother, drove down in his four wheeler saw us. He gave us a big bucket of corn and told us we could feed the goats. We did and had a lot of fun. We fed the baby's mom, and twin baby's mom too, and all the others. There were 9 goats all together. The babies wouldn't eat out of our hands but I didn't mind because the tiny one couldn't eat corn anyway. After feeding the goats, we went in to see the piglets again. Before we left them, Buddy got in with them, which I knew could be bad. I told Isaac to run a fast as he could up the hill to get Todd. When Todd came down on his four wheeler, he got Buddy out and thanked us, then drove up the hill. For the rest of the fun afternoon, we did what we'd been doing since we'd gotten there, and then ate dinner, put the goats back in there run, and went to bed.

Day 56 in Robson's Runabout
Today, Isaac and I got up really early, and fed the goats. Then we went to see the piggies, and threw corn at Bennie. He wouldn't eat what we threw. We did what we did yesterday until it was time to go to church. After church, we had lunch then played around with the goats and tried to keep the baby out of the rain. We played all afternoon until Buddy got in with the pigs again. Isaac ran up the hill to grab Mr. Neas, and he drove down. All he had to do was say, “Buddy, out,” and he jumped out! Believe me, I'd tried that. Millions of times. Getting Buddy to go up to the house was a different story. He tried talking to him. He tried yelling at him. Nothing worked. Finally, we gave up. He told us that if we didn't go in, Buddy wouldn't. We didn't go in for the rest of the day. At dinnertime, we went up the hill to eat with the Neas's. We had really good chicken and pecan sauce, biscuits, and salad. For dessert, we had a delicious Banana pudding, and I had six pretzels with a dollop of chocolate and an M&M. After dinner, we chatted for a while and left at 7:45. When we got to the camper, we went to bed.

Day 57 in Robson's Runabout
Today, I woke Isaac up at the crack of dawn, and we went out to feed the goats. We'd told Mr. Neas that we'd let them out too, so we did that as well. After doing that, we walked over to see the pigs (Jonah came too because he'd missed half of the morning stuff). After the boys had grown tired of watching them, Mama came in and watched them. Since the boys were gone, she told me that I could get in and pick one up. He squealed like mad, but was ADORABLE anyway. After the piggies, I went into the RV and watched the boys play the wii until I heard the clueless Mama goat (mother of the one baby), bleating for the baby. I went outside, figuring that I'd find the baby behind the board again. He wasn't there. I checked the next spot that he'd been, in the corner of the shed. Nope. Frantically, I checked the little houses for the goats, even the one I knew he couldn't get into. Nada. I checked the barn, the shed, the other barn, under our car, under the RV, in with the pigs, next to Kelli's grandma's house, in her shed, and basically gave up. I walked sobbing into the camper, and Dada asked me what was wrong. I told him that the baby had vanished, and he offered to go looking for them with me. I gladly but sadly accepted. We searched the entire field. I was sobbing the whole time. After searching to field, I realized that the Mama goat wasn't leaving the barn. After searching under the floor boards on one side, I heard a bleat, a baby bleat. I knew it! The baby was under the floor boards on the other side. After getting the really heavy Buddy out of the way, we coaxed her out far enough for Dada to grab her leg. He finally got her out and I scooped her right up and staryed talking to her. Her mom started bleating like crazy, so I gave her back. Buddy started barking and tried to sniff, but the Mama goat just head butted him away. After we uncovered the goat, we went with Kelli to the horse barn across the street. We walked around for a while, then went back to the farm and got ready to drive to the Smoky Mountains State Park. We said goodbye, and drove away. We drove and drove until we go there, and hung around for the rest of the afternoon, putting up a tent, eating dinner, and going to bed.

April 1
Day 58 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to a big waterfall named Looking Glass Falls. It was beautiful to see the water crash down onto the rocks. We got a few pictures. After that, we went to a bass farm to see all the bass that would eventually be set free to the wild. That was pretty cool, even though I still don't like big fish. After that, we drove the windy road to Asheville, and walked around a bit. We stopped in the original Mast Store, and bought Jonah some Crocs, and would have walked around more, but it was closing so we got kicked out. We walked to Barley's, a pizzeria and tap room. We got two big pizza's and took the leftovers for tomorrow. We walked over to a double decker bus that had been converted into a dessert place and got sweets. Mama and I got chocolate cake and ate half. The boys got shakes and Dada got coffee. After that, we walked back to the car and on the way, stopped at a used book store A)for the bathroom and B)so Mama could get a book. When we finally got back to the RV, it was late so we went to bed.

Day 59 in Robson's Runabout
Today, Mama went to look at the Biltmore Estate while the men and I stayed home and went on a hike, that included lunch and wading through freezing cold water that went up to my mid thigh (Isaac didn't come, so we turned around when we had been on the other side for a few minutes). When Mama got back, we drove to the Wingfield's house and went for a walk in the woods with their dogs. When we left and got back to the RV, Dada made hamburgers/cheeseburgers for dinner and for dessert, Dada and I split the chocolate cake from the night before. Then, after hanging around for a bit, we went to bed.

Day 60 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to Atlanta and, when we got there, met our cousins at the hotel they were staying at, and went to the pool. We played around until they had to go to the aquarium that Uncle Peter was diving at. We went back to the RV park that our camper was at, ate dinner, and then the men and I went to the blow up obstacle course, the ones where you climb up and then jump down and bounce. We played on that until we were too tired to, then went back to the RV for bed.

Day 61 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to the Atlanta Aquarium and met our cousins. Then, we went on a behind the scenes tour (absolutely free) with them, then saw the rest of the aquarium. There was a touch tank with rays and little sharks in it, but I couldn't make myself touch one. After that, Uncle Peter left to get ready for his dive, and we went to a place with a big, 26 inch thick glass wall, where we could see him. There he was! Just swimming around with the GIANT whale sharks (they were only 20 feet long, but would triple in size), the groupers that would attack you, the fish, the manta rays, and the hammer-head sharks. In the middle of his hour-long dive, our cousins and Aunt Sharon (I was including you and Uncle Peter in “cousins”.) went with us back to the hotel to go in the pool. We played until dinnertime, then went to Johnny Rockets for dinner. After that, we walked through Centennial Park, and got soaked playing in the Olympic Rings, water shooting out of jets in the ground, forming the Olympic rings. Next, we went to an Ice cream place, but the soaked ones, Nate, the boys, and I, had to stand outside. Then, we said our goodbyes, and went to bed when we got to the RV.

Day 62 in Robson's Runabout
Today, Mama hid easter eggs for us to find. There were 35, and I found 14-18 of them. I found the most, for sure. Then, we drove in the RV to a PCA church, about 20 minutes from the campsite we were leaving. After church, th boys, Mama, and I went to a little playground across the street, while Dada went to get the camper, which was a few miles away in a big parking lot. When he got back, we ate lunch, and then drove a few hours to Birmingham, and stayed at a state park, which had a lake that we went swimming in. Isaac, Dada, and Mama didn't swim, but Dada in up to his knees. After that, we ate dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed.

Day 63 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went and got the RV repaired at a place in Birmingham. While the repairs were happening, we went to a farmers market and got some stuff. Then, we went to Target for some groceries, and then to a book store. While on boy was looking at books, the other boy went with Dada for a haircut. Both got them. When we got back in the camper, we drove a long way to Natchez, Mississippi. We stayed at Natchez state park, and ate dinner, and then Mama and Dada went for a walk. Normally, I don't mention the walks that Mama and Dada take at night, but this time, the walkie talkie Dada was using died. The boys completely freaked out. I didn't know what to do except offer hugs and comforting words and say, “It's not like they're dead,” or, “They're just walking around the loop! They aren't abandoning us!” A voice crackled through but I couldn't pick it up, which made Isaac cry even harder. Jonah was a little easier to calm down, for once. He accepted the reality of the situation that the connection wasn't very good. When they got back, I was trying to coax Isaac out of a corner, but failed. Mama got him out and started reading to us. When she was done, we went to bed.

Day 64 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to the Emerald Mounds, HUGE mounds of man-made hills. Very cool. They were steep, and I ran down them, trying to avoid the cow/buffalo patties. After that, we drove to a place called Winsor Ruins, what is left of an amazing 200-300 year old home. It had really big, beautiful columns which are still standing, but the rest was burnt away in a fire. Next, we went to a Sonic for ice cream. Yum! After that, we walked in the Buffalo Trace, part of the path people walked in long ago. Next, we went into town and walked for a while before driving to Biscuits and Blues, a restaurant. It was OK. Good biscuits, but you couldn't hear the blues. Then we drove to the RV, and went to bed.

Day 65 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove in the van to Vicksburg Battle Grounds National Park. We watched a movie about Vicksburg, then got a CD tour of the huge park. There were so many memorials. It was crazy! There was one for every state. After the tour, we drove back to the RV and had dinner, then read and went to bed.

Day 66 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we got up really early, and drove to New Orleans Airport to get Uncle Rob. After we got him, we drove to a really nice campground and ate lunch. Then, we went to the campground's little pool, and hung around there. Next, we went into the French Quarter, and walked around for a while. After that, we went to get dinner at a restaurant. We tried alligator, and I didn't care much for it. I kept envisioning how mad it would get if it knew I liked eating it. Then we went back to the RV and read, then we went to bed.

Day 67 in Robson's Runabout
Today, Mama went to drop Dada at the airport so that he could fly home for our church elder election. Then, the rest of us went to the French Quarter and walked around, until we “took a right on wrong street”, Uncle Rob said. It was full of drugged women in bikinis. YUCK! We hurried out and got lunch (It was basically just junk food, chips. I ate it anyway). There was a band playing, and the boys and I danced around (it wasn't an inside place, and we were upstairs so nobody could see us). Then, when we got bored, Mama, the boys and I went on a trolley ride for a few blocks and back. When we got back to Uncle Rob, Aunt Judy and Uncle Ted were with him. We stayed there and got beignets until we got hungry, then Aunt Judy and Uncle Ted brought us to a VERY busy restaurant (we had to wait in line just to get in). I waiter with three nose rings, weird hair, tattoos and mis-matched clothes served us. Kinda' freaky. The food was good though. After we said goodbye to Aunt Judy and Uncle Ted, we went on a nice Horse and Carriage ride. It was really a mule and carriage ride, but horse sounds better. The French Quarter looks really pretty at night, a lot better that it does in the daytime. All the lights from the houses, the people who sit on there pretty porches and wave, it's so much different! The nice man dropped us right off at our car, to the people behind us in cars' annoyance. We said goodbye to Brown Sugar ( the mule who we renamed Maple Sugar) and drove away, back to the RV. Uncle Rob went over to the bar, and we read and then went to bed.

Day 68 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we hung around at the RV until about 11:00, then went to Target to get stuff for the long drive we would have the next day. I got a Farmville gift card, and the boys got star wars legos and action figures. We got snacks too. Then, we drove to get Dada at the airport. Once we had him, we drove to the French Quarter and got slices of pizza at a bar. Then, we walked up to the jazz festival, but it was too loud so we went into a restaurant to decide what to do. It was decided that Dada would take the boys on a trolley ride and Mama, Uncle Rob, and I would just hang around. We went and saw a performing group of men do flips and stuff. Then, Mama and I went into a frozen yogurt shop, where you could mix and match your flavors and toppings and finally, EAT IT!!! I LOVED mine. When we were done with those, we went into a store and tried to get T-shirts. There weren't any good ones for me. Rats. We met the boys and Dada at the car, then drove to the RV. We watched a movie and went to bed.

Day 69 in Robson's
Today, we went to a church in the garden district of the French Quarter, then dropped Mama at a WWII museum and Uncle Rob on a street near it. The four of us that had stayed went to a restaurant, and decided to go to see “How to Train Your Dragon” at a theater near by. We got there five minutes before it started. It was a great movie. After that, we got ice cream at a store, and then met Mama and Aunt Judy and Uncle Ted. We swam in the pool at there timeshare
hotel for a few minutes, but it was REALLY COLD, so we only stayed in for a few minutes. I stayed in the longest. Then, we went to a seafood restaurant, and ate dinner. Then, Dada, the boys, and I walked back to the car, while Mama went to look for Uncle Rob. He had originally told us that he'd get a taxi, but Mama wanted to make sure. She came back empty handed. We left and went to the RV, Mama worried as can be, but we just went to bed, thinking he'd be on the couch in the morning.

Day 70 in Robson's Runabout (until about 12:00)
Today, I woke up and the couch's pull out bed was put away (it had been out when I went to bed), idle. I started wondering what had happened to Uncle Rob. I had an idea, Maybe he did come back, but didn't want to wake us up, so he slept in the car. Is that possible? No the car is probably locked. Hmmmm... Had I only looked I would've found out that he WAS in the car! When Mama walked outside for devotions, she was greeted by a sleepy looking Uncle Rob! It's a long story, but the bottom line was that he'd been in a hotel until 4:00, then got a taxi to the campground worried about us, and not wanting to wake us up, slept in the van. If you want the full story, I think Mama posted it. Anyway, we let him sleep for a while, then we brought him to the airport, and then started our long drive. I'm saying this for the next few days:

Day 70 (after 12:00 AM) through Day 73 (around 3:00 PM) in Robson's Runabout
70: Driving, driving, and, yes, you guessed it, and more driving. Stopped at 6:00 in rest stop at 12:00 (We kids are asleep).
71: Drove until 6:00 PM, then stopped at Carlsbad, NM. Ate, slept.
72: Drove to Carlsbad Caverns, toured, marveled, ate, driving, driving, and yes, more driving until 12:30 PM (We kids are asleep again).
73: Drove, drove, and drove some more, over the Hoover Dam, all the way to Las Vegas, stopping around 3:00 PM

Day 73 in Robson's Runabout (after 3:00 PM)
Happy to have stopped, the boys, Dada, and I went to the RV park's pool. We played around until about 5:00, then got changed and ready to drive into Las Vegas. When we got there, we walked through a casino, which I really disliked, then around New York, New York, a BIG hotel. Then we walked around and ended up in another hotel. They are cool, but crazy! It was 9:00 when we got back to the RV and ate dinner. Then we went to bed.

Day 74 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we just hung around the pool until about 4:00 and then started getting ready to go to a show with the Petrie's, who would be borrowing the RV for a week. We packed almost all of our stuff into the van, and Dada drove it to a storage place and dumped it. We put our stuff into the van, and got into our “fancy” clothes that we were going to wear to a really expensive show that the Petrie's were taking us to, called “LOVE”, a show with a ton of Beatles music. We piled into the van, and drove to our hotel. It was a Homewood Suites, and it was the BEST! Our room was HUGE, and for a pretty good price. I LOVED it. We put our stuff in there, and then went to meet the Petries at the Mirage, the hotel that “LOVE” was at. We finally found them, and then found our seats. We ended up being two seats short of 10, and there were 10 of us. The boys ended up sitting on laps. The show was INCREDIBLE! I loved the way they worked the professional acrobats and actors into the songs. After the show, we went to see the water show outside the hotel. That was impressive too. When we got back to the hotel, we had GOSS (Good Old Soup and Saltines) in our hotel room. Then, we went to bed.

Day 75 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we woke up, and Dada drove over to the RV to show Mr. Petrie how to do some stuff. While he was there, the boys and I watched TV in OUR wing of the hotel room, while Mama slept in her wing. When Dada got back, Mama was awake and we went down to get our complimentary breakfast. After stuffing ourselves with pastries, we went to pack our bags into the car. When we were done, we squeezed in, and drove away. We drove for about 5 hours, and when we got to San Diego, CA, we went to our hotel, the Hyatt. It wasn't what I expected in a suite, having been in that amazing hotel room at Homewood Suites, but it was acceptable. Right after getting settled, we went to the amazing pool that we came for. It had three water slides, two that were the same (for racing purposes) and one for younger kids. We went down both of them. Mama and Dada didn't get in. After that, we went up to our room and watched TV while Mama and Dada rested in the other room. When they were done resting, Auntie Katie and Uncle Erik came over. We ordered out from a Chinese restaurant, and ate in the room. The boys browsed the channels in the other room. When I heard Shrek was on, I couldn't resist. I went in and watched, and when it was over, the boys went to bed, and I went back out with the adults. We chatted until 10:00, then the left and I slept on my make-shift bed, the couch. Everyone else slept in the other room.

Day 76 in Robson's Runabout
Today, Mama and I went down to the breakfast shop for bagels. After eating them, we went down to the pool and swam until it was time to get ready for church. We went to church at a place where Mama and Dada knew some people, like Nana' s friend Mrs. Gross. After church, we went into San Diego, and got lunch. We went to a sushi place, and the food was great. I've always loved sushi. After that, we went back to the hotel and swam. We swam until we got hungry, and then got snacks at the hotel room. Then, we drove over to Auntie Katie and Uncle Erik's house, and then piled into there car to drive to Cold Stone Creamery, where we got dinner. Yum! After that, we went back to the hotel and the boys went to bed, Mama read, and Dada and I watched TV on my “bed”. I fell asleep as he turned the TV off.

Day 77 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we got bagels again, and then went to the pool. We swam around for a while, and then packed a lunch, and drove to Lego Land! It had everything, roller coasters, models, kiddie rides, pedal cars, lego models, EVERYTHING! And we did almost everything too. My favorite ride was the test track. You go up and up and up, and green lights check off that you have the recommended safety things, all except brakes! You go down a steep hill really fast, then back up the other side, then swerve left, right, left, right and then go down a smaller and easier hill, and then you are slowed to a stop. That was fun. When we left, it was almost closed, and we were tired. But Mama insisted that we go see the seals at Mission Beach; I was glad that she did. They were sooo cute! When we got back to the hotel, we went to bed, because it was about 8:45.

Day 78 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to an amusement park in Mission Beach. We were all going to go onto an old wooden roller coaster, but Jonah was a quarter inch too short, so Mama stayed with him and watched. It was nerve racking! Bumpy, so bumpy that you felt like you'd fall off! After that, we went to see what Jonah could go on. He ended up going onto the Crazy Submarine with Dada. Then, we went into store and got me a new water shirt and bikini bottoms to go with it. Then we went to a surf restaurant with a man made surf pool in the back. They were doing a commercial for Mountain Dew Orange. We ate there, then went to watch the surfers. After that, we went to the amusement park to spend our last few tickets. Isaac and I and Jonah and Dada went and spent our last tickets on the Tilt-a-whirl. Mama, with her sensitive stomach, watched. After that, we went back to the room, and Mama rested, while we watched TV. Then, when she got up, we swam and swam until tired. When we got back to the hotel room, Mama went out to dinner with Auntie Katie, and the rest of us ordered pizza. It was good, and when it was almost gone, we watched TV. We kids fell asleep as we were, me in my clothes and baseball hat lying on the couch, Isaac on the chair, and Jonah, he just conked out on Dada's lap.

Day 79 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we started packing up to leave San Diego. Once packed, the boys dropped Mama and I off at Auntie Katie's warehouse. We had tons of fun labeling, buying, and all that stuff. The lotions, soaps, candles, sprays, and body scrubs smelled SO good! After saying good bye, we started driving to Palm Springs, a 4 hour drive. Once we got there, we went on a Cable Car to the top of a mountain, where it was SNOWING! In California, snowing! It was soooo cold, and we only lasted for a few minutes outside. When we went inside, we got snacks, Isey got M&M's, Jonah got ice cream, and, calorie wise old me, got a diet Pepsi. But I did get Isaac to save me a few M&M's. Mama and Dada tried taking us on a walk, but it was too cold, so they let me wait for them and the boys in the building. They lasted no more, but less than 7 minutes. I browsed the gift shop. When they got back, we almost missed the car to get down, but hopped on at the last minute. At the bottom, we bought some postcards, and then went into the city to look for a hotel. And what do you know, we found a Homewood Suites! They were serving free dinner, and the best stuff, spaghetti and meatballs. They had chocolate chip cookies for dessert, and we took some for later. We got our bathing suits on, and went swimming. Even Mama and Dada got in, well, into the hot tub anyway. The boys and I got into the regular pool too. After the pool, we went to the room, and I got in the shower. When I got out, I heard Dada fuming at Jonah. Mama brought Isaac and I to the other bedroom, and read to us. She told me Jonah had brought her to the end of her rope. We went to bed after that.

Day 80 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we got up and got a delicious complementary breakfast. Then the boys, Dada, and I went to the pool. Dada watched and made phone calls. We played for a while in the pool, then got dressed and crossed the street to a playground. We played tag with Dada, then went back to the room. Later, we went to a WWII museum, and saw a
B-52, the plane that Uncle George's bomb group, The Bloody Hundredth, flew in. That was cool. When we left, we dropped Mama at a desert botanical garden. When we picked her up, and then we went to the hotel for dinner. We got FREE barbecued chicken, ribs, and other stuff. For dessert, a delicious peach cobbler! After that, we went to the room and watched our red-box movie, Where the Wild Things Are. Terrible! It was awful. So sad. We all had trouble falling asleep that night.

Day 81 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove back to Las Vegas and got the RV back, and walked to the pool at the RV park. We played in the pool till dinnertime, then we ate, and went to bed.

Day 82 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we stayed at the RV campground and hung around. That is all we did. Then we ate dinner at the end of the day, as usual, and went to bed.

Day 83 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove for a few hours after swimming in the pool to a BLM land campground, and found a spot. We ate dinner, and I made chocolate covered bananas for Mama, Dada, and I for dessert. Then, we watched a movie and went to bed.

Day 83 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we had Family Worship because we didn't have internet to check for a church. After that, we went on a walk to get to a creek that we could swim in. While we were walking, we met a brown cow! They just let the cows roam free through the summer, and send a cowboy out to get them before the winter. We played for a while, and then I saw a HUGE FISH. I screamed “Big Fish!” and Jonah freaked out. He wouldn't cross with me to go to the other side of the river to be with Dada and Isey. I have to admit, I didn't either. Most of you know that I think fish are nicer grilled with a good sauce. Anyway, I pulled Jonah over to the other side. He was going, “AH! Elena! Ahhhhh!” the whole time. After that, it was dinnertime. We ate, and then went to see the cows drinking at the bridge that we swam under. We were hoping to see Burros, but the cows were pretty awesome. We finally gave up, read, and went to bed.

Day 84 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we drove to Cottonwood, AZ. On the way there, Mama, the boys, and I drove away from the RV to go see a ghost town ( Jonah wanted to ransack it). When we got there, we realized we'd come for a dingy RV park with a few old looking buildings and one of those historic signs that you can see all over the place in historic parts of PA; a pathetic excuse for a “ghost town”, what it called it on the map. When we got back to the RV, we drove to Jerome, going down crazy, bumpy, windy, tight, mountain roads that the average RV-Er wouldn't have gone down, but we couldn't turn around, so Dada just pushed us through in our great, big RV. Oh, well. When we finally got to the RV park in Cottonwood, near Jerome, we ate dinner, read, and went to bed.

Day 85 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to lunch at a restaurant, and then went to Slide Rock, Sedona. That was AWESOME! It was a natural water slide, made out of rocks, that were so smooth that you could slide down them. The water was so cold though. But as soon as you go down the slide, you get so numb, you don't feel it. Mama went first ( by accident of course, she was testing the water and it pulled her in. Not to be outdone, I went next, on purpose. It was really fun. When I decided to get out for a bit, I saw a sight that shocked me; BIG TROUT. I was flabbergasted. Hee hee, I like the word flabbergasted. But still, BIG fish, scare the wits out of me. Don't ask me why, they just do. But brave old me, I went again. I faced my fears a) so Dada wouldn't laugh, b) because there were to girls jumping in from high heights and c) the fish left the other girls alone by swimming down to the bottom when they jumped in. That was the main reason. I did it again. After we left Slide Rock, we went to a Dairy Queen to get ice cream. When we got to the RV, we played around, and then ate dinner, read, and went to bed, same as usual.

Day 86 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we went to a restaurant in Jerome called the Haunted Hamburger. We stuffed ourselves, then walked around while Mama went to a museum. I got some postcards too. When we got back to the RV, we saw our neighbor RV-Er's that we had met in the morning and planned dinner with. We played with them for a while, and then when it was time for dinner, we ate it with them. After dinner, I put “Night at the Museum” in for the kids; Jonah, Isaac, Kiah, and Trae. We ate s'mores and I sat with the adults, listening to them exchange stories. At 10:00, they went to their RV, and we went into ours. We went to bed after that.

Day 87 in Robson's Runabout
Today, we walked around the lagoons at the campground. The whole time, I jumped when I heard something in the bushes. It was usually a little lizard or a huge, inch long beetle, but you can never be too sure. Somebody had already seen a rattlesnake, and Dada saw on his way back from the bath house a three foot snake that eats rattlers. I really don't like snakes. Jonah doesn't either. When we got back to the RV, we ate lunch, and waited for the neighbors again. We ate dinner with them again, and the boys and Kiah and I, watched “Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium” until 10:00, then they left and we went to bed.

Day 88 in Robson's Runabout (last day of April)
Today, Mama went into Jerome in the car, and the men and I went fishing. We didn't get anything. We walked over to the dock where a large family fishing trip was going on. For the 40 of them, they caught 20 catfish, using chicken liver! There, we caught three inch long sunfish. We went and got some chicken liver at Walmart and got some for tomorrow, and also got Isaac a new bike, some extra lures for our fishing poles, a fishing pole for me, and some bubble blowers. When we got back to the RV, we drove with the Allen's to the carnival, and got dinner. While Dada and Mr. Allen went to get us seats at the Rodeo, Mama, Mrs. Allen, Kiah, Trae, Isaac, Jonah, and I went to see a monkey show. It was pretty neat. About half way through the show, I went into the petting zoo, and picked up the chickens, the goose, the bunnies, and petted a baby goat. After that, we went to the Rodeo, and watched all the crazy horses, barrel races, and all the other Rodeo-y stuff. We didn't get to go on any rides, and got back to the RV at 9:30, and went to bed.