Greetings From Highway 29 South in South Dakota

Guess what?  I am blogging from the highway!!!  The old verizon broadband usb modem is working wonderfully as we cruise towards Des Moines Iowa… our destination for this evening.  We are officially headed home and I must admit I am ready!  I always hate it when a trip is over, but this one has been longer than most and we are all pretty tired.  The camper is a mess both inside and out and I am looking forward to being able to move around without triping on someone or something. 

Yesterday we had a lovely day in Deadwood.  We spent the whole day exploring the old west town.  In the evening, William, Pops, Shemp and I went on a ghost tour of the Bullock Hotel.  We didn’t see any ghosts first hand, but we heard lots of great stories.  William had a blast and it was an awesome tour!  I would highly reccomend it to anyone passing through Deadwood!

Today has been spent driving… South Dakota is a long state to get through.  We will be home on Monday but we will have to drive our butts off to get there.  Its alright though, as it will be good to get back to everyday life… as long as reality remembers to go easy on us until we get our bearings back!

Montana is Marvelous

We interrupt our regularly scheduled chronological programming to say that we think the state of Montana is fantastic!  We had a wonderful day at the Bozeman KOA… swimming in the pool, walking along the creek, looking at the mountains… and of course doing laundry.  Earlier today we visited the worlds best gas station in Helena Montana… it was full service and the guys came out and tended to the cars like it was a NASCAR race.  Shemp was thrilled when our lunchtime stop at Burger King only cost $13.00 and we figured out later that they have no state sales tax here!  Add in legalized gambling and saloon beers the size of well… Montana… and you have got yourself a state worth visiting.

Calgary Stampede

2009-07-08 12 30 08

Originally uploaded by lmfawcett

On our second night in Canada we were treated to a night at the Calgary Stampede. The weather had turned iffy on our way into Calgary and I was nervous that we may get rained out. However, just as Pops predicted it cleared up and the races were ago. The Stampede itself is like the biggest fair you could ever imagine… all sorts of games, attractions, rides & food. We spent some time walking the midway trying our hands at a game or two. We are now the proud owners of several stuff animals. We enjoyed a corn dog or two and then it was time for the Chuckwagon Races.

The Chuckwagon Races were awesome! It is so fun to take part in something so exciting and new. The fans are really into it. I didn’t know who the people racing were but I just cheered for the team who had the prettiest wagon. It was an excellent once in a lifetime experience.

Off to a Shaky Start

Border wait

Originally uploaded by lmfawcett

It took us two hours to cross the border in Sweetgrass Montana. They only had one window open… not nearly enough man power to handle the last day of a holiday weekend. It was stressful all around, especially after a less than positive experience at the Duty Free Shop. The boys were full of questions like “whats duty” and why are their guards here and little did I know that once I crossed the border I would also be without wifi for like 10 days or something. In the end, we made it into Canada without much ado and headed off for the adventure of a lifetime!

Oh Canada…

We are off to the Great White North today! Lets hope we all make it through customs without incident…The boys and I have a little argument brewing… they swear that today’s drive will be shorter than the previous two… I say it will be just as long. My calculations (ok Google maps calculations) we have like 551 miles. Tune in later to see who ends up being correct. Perhaps they figured out a way to move Canada closer!

We have no reservations tonight… we are going where the wind takes us… lets hope the wind is blowing in the direction of Lethbridge Alberta… all we really need it to make it to Calgary tomorrow for the Calgary Stampede.

As we head into pioneer land, I am unsure as to what type of connectivity to expect. Don’t worry if you don’t hear from us right away and remember… I love you!

Greetings From Miles City Montana

BigTrip2009 144

Originally uploaded by lmfawcett

Well we made it another 640 or so miles today. The two worst days of driving are behind us and tomorrow we make the crossing into Canada. The kids are doing pretty well riding along in the car, although I have had to break up an argument or two.

Tonight we stayed in Montana and were treated to a local fireworks show.

I know these posts have been pretty boring so far… but I guess that is because we really haven’t done that much. Stay tuned I promise it will get better… in the meantime enjoy a few of the new pictures I have posted on Flickr! Happy 4th of July!

Broke & Travelin…

Today we saw a guy standing on a corner in downtown Minneapolis with a cardboard sign that said “Broke & Travlin”… looking for people to give him some spare change. I rolled down the window and yelled “hey… me too!” and gave him a big old thumbs up. Afterall, we had just left the Mall of America.
You know what else is funny? We left the baseball game over an hour ago… and it is still going on! When my team blows a six run lead I drawn the line at nine innings.
Tommorrow we drive to Miles City Montana… never been to Montana before! Bus leaves at 8:00 am & by the sound of it the baseball game could still be going on!

Day One – On the Books…

We got up, and out despite the fact that I overslept.  We were supposed to meet the inlaws at the freeway ramp at 6:00 am… I didn’t wake up until 5:41.   We were lucky though, because everything was ready to go and we still made it… sort of.   Three tanks of gas and twelve hours later we made it to Maple Grove Minnesota, just outside Minneapolis.  Tomorrow we head to the Mall of America for some shopping.  In the evening we will be at the ballpark for the Tigers - Twins game.  I will take some pictures to post tomorrow… but for now I am off to bed!  Nighty night!

What Fawcetts Do At Rest Stops

What Fawcetts do at rest stops

Originally uploaded by lmfawcett

Beloit Rest Area #22… we stopped to eat lunch and Will & Jack found this hill to roll down.

and Don’t Forget the Kitchen Sink

We leave in 8 days and I have only just begun to pack. I am overwhelmed each time I even consider it. We will be gone 19 days and while I know I will have to do laundry, I want to make sure everyone has everything they need! Thankfully, I can just throw it all in the camper and work it out on the road… glad that we have a van that can pull a heavy load!