Tuesday September 29, 2020 - School and Rain

               This morning Taj, Pepper and I went out when there was a break in the rain. It pretty much rained all day.  It was actually a good day for a rain day. We were all tired and decided to stay home to knock out as much school as we could today. Basically, today was a school and rest day.  It was really nice.  So, I looked at our  itinerary and realized that we will be in Manhattan in 2 weeks. I can't believe how fast this is going. This trip has been the absolute best thing ever. I'm so glad that we still have 10 months to enjoy it.                                                                            

                                                                                     

Monday September 28, 2020 Palmyra and All the Amazing Church Historical Sites

We are currently in Macedon New York.  Our campground is super cute.  The speed limit in the campground is 3. I thought that was funny. We are literally right by the Erie Canal.  The trees are changing their colors and fall is almost at its peak.   The air is still warm.  Locals are saying that it is warmer than normal at this time of the year. New York is absolutely stunning.                                                                                                                
                                                                                    

Sunday September 27, 2020. My favorite Giambrone Family

                Happy happy Sunday. We did our own church meeting today because our local ward wasn't meeting. Our home ward was doing a zoom meeting but unfortunately we couldn't make it. After our family church  meeting we had to pack up fast to check out of our campground.                                                                                                                                                                                  

Saturday September 26, 2020 The Strong Museum and Lake Ontario

              Today Scotty rode his bike and I ran around the campground. We are endorphin junkies.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Friday September 25, 2020- Goodbye Niagara and Hello Batavia, New York

                  Look at these cute sleeping boys.   I just love my family.                                                                        

                                                                   

Thursday September 24, 2020. Stunning Niagara Falls

                                Welcome to New York.                                                                                          This morning we all woke up early to go straight to Niagara Falls!!  Scotty took off the first half of the day so he could go with us. We figured that we could spend all morning at the falls, then we could head back to Homie for school and work in the afternoon.  Niagara was so amazing.  The Canadian border was still closed so we stayed on the American side.  We had plenty to do. The American side had many spectacular views and a plethora of areas to play in the river above the falls.  Seriously, today was magical.                                                                                                                                                

Wednesday September 23, 2020 Cleveland Art Museum and Welcome to New York!!!!!

                Today Scotty and I rode our bikes around Thompson Ohio!!!  While we were riding, I got this crazy idea.  You see, today we are scheduled to drive up to Niagara Falls, New York. The drive is only 3 hours. I kept thinking that I'd like to do one more thing with the Rock's and the Blakes.  I remembered them telling me about the Art Museum in Cleveland and how cool it was.  So this was my idea: Scotty and I would check out of our campground and drive to a truck stop that is very close by.  Then we would unhook the trailer and leave Scotty there to work. (sorry Scotty) Then I'd take the kids into Cleveland to see the art museum. I was hoping that our friends could meet us there for one last party!!!!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                                       

Tuesday September 22, 2020 - The Rock's and the Blakes

          This morning I talked Scotty into running with me. He is such a great sport.  He'd rather ride, but he knows that I love to run so he went with me today!!!  He loves me.                                                                              

                                                                                                       

Monday September 21, 2020 Cuyahoga Valley National Park

                      Cuyahoga  Valley National Park was our 12th national park for this trip.  This park is huge.  It has so many parts to it that are all spread out.  We spent more time in the truck then we did exploring because it took us so long to get to each spot.  The spots we did get to were gorgeous.  The Bridal Veil Falls and the Ledge were our favorites.  I really liked the covered bridge as well.  Ohio is gorgeous.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Sunday September 20, 2020 - WE LOVE THE PERRY WARD

                                       Yesterday while we were driving, I called the bishop of the Perry ward and asked him if we could join his ward for church on Sunday.  Our campground lies in his ward boundaries so naturally we would go to that ward. Bishop Rock was so kind and  not only did he invite us to church, he invited us to his house for dinner without even meeting us.  I was so excited for adult time that I accepted his generous offer without even thinking about the fact that we didn't know them either. 😆 That is seriously the best thing about being a member of our church.  You have family everywhere you go.  We arrived at church and right away people were talking to us and asking about our story.  Then when the meeting was over, we stayed outside talking to ward members for about 30 - 45 minutes.  At one point, I looked over at our truck and my boys were there, surrounded by all these cute girls.  They were in heaven.  We all were.  It was so exciting to be talking to adults.  We fell in love with this ward immediately.  They reminded us of our ward back home in CA.                                                                                           

                                               

Saturday September 19, 2020-Adios Buckeye - Hola Kirtland

             TRAVEL DAY : This morning I had to get up early and get one last run in along the lake.  It was such a lovely morning.  I ran hard and came home ready for a long drive.  We drove 3 hours north-east  towards Kirtland.  Kirtland has so many stunning church history sites that we wanted to see. The drive through Ohio was absolutely picture perfect.  The temperature dropped dramatically the more north we went.  We have officially entered fall weather.  The nights are very cold and the days maintain  a crispy cold feeling.  My kids had no idea why it was so cold.  They have never felt fall weather.  In California, August and September are the hottest months of the year. Not to mention the fires. They are learning all kinds of things on this trip.                                                                           

                                                                     

Friday September 18, 2020- Buckeye Fishing and More Bike Parks

              How beautiful is Buckeye!! This morning Graham rode with me on my run.  I ran around the lake.  For a brief moment it felt like I was running on the PCH by the beach.  The lakefront homes are just like what you'd see in CA.   Graham and I enjoyed the time together chatting about all the hap's of our trip.  We especially liked all the Trump signs.                                                                             

                                                     

Thursday September 17, 2020. Happy Birthday Taj!!!!! And Hello Ohio

OHIO  Thank you for welcoming us. 

                                                                                       

Wednesday September 16, 2020 - Louisville Kentucky

                    We hit Louisville today to see all the cool stuff.  Louisville is seriously a great city.  I've heard that they have had serious protests, but we didn't see any.  We drove by some really cool buildings and were all in awe by the architecture.  I didn't see any homeless people.  That threw me off a bit.                                                                         

                                         

Tuesday September 15, 2020 DEFY Jump House and the Urgent Care

                                      This beautiful morning Scotty and I found a great trail system from the AllTrails App.  I ran and Scotty biked like usual.  It was so nice to get out in nature.  We love our time together exercising. Kentucky is so green and beautiful. We have really enjoyed nature here.                                                                               

                                                             

Monday September 14, 2020. Happy 14th Birthday Graham!!!!

                            Happy Birthday to this handsome boy of mine.  I always tell him that he is cute enough to be Boy Band cute.   We all love this boy so much.  He is a happy,  helpful light in our family.  WE LOVE GRAHAM 💓💓💓💓💓                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Sunday September 13, 2020 Hello Lousiville Kentucky

                         Today we traveled a short way to be closer to Louisville for the week. The drive was easy.  We only had freeways that we had to drive on.  You gotta love the drives that are uneventful.                                  There are a ton of skate parks and bike jumps near the city so that is why we stopped here.  The first thing I learned was that around here, the locals don't say Louisville the way it is spelled.  They say it like Lu-L-Ville.  Scotty has been telling me that that is how they say it but I didn’t believe him until I heard it. Scotty is so wise and really wanted credit right here in my post. 😂😂😂. It caught me off guard the first time I heard it.                                                                                     

                                         

Saturday September 12, 2020. Finally The Arc Encounter!!!!

         Happy Day at the Arc Encounter!!!!!  A life size arc!!!!  Seriously!!!  This place surprised me.  I thought maybe it would  have some cool ideas of how Noah built his arc and how he housed all the animals.  I had no idea how much depth the museum would go into the bible and how Noah fed and  cared for the animals and his family.  If any of you are ever in Kentucky, you have to visit this place.  There are three levels in the arc and many outdoor activities.  I am so glad that we made this stop.  Everyone enjoyed this adventure.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

Friday September 11, 2020 - We made it to Corinth Kentucky

               This morning we pulled away from one our favorite campgrounds. If you ever go to see Mammoth Cave NP, go and stay at Singing Hills RV in Cave City.  You will love it.                                                Our drive was only about 2 1/2 hours today. Scotty had a video call so we had to stop part way through at a truck stop while he worked.  Then  we drove North East to the city of Corinth.  Corinth is about 20 minutes from the Arc Encounter.  We have tickets to go there tomorrow!!!  I'm so excited.                                                                         

Thursday September 10, 2020 Our Last Hike in Mammoth Cave Nation park

           Graham wanted to check out the Mammoth Cave Train Trail today with Scotty and I.  We liked it so much that we did it two days in a row.  This time, Graham and Scotty road up ahead and I ran behind them.  They kept close tabs on me.  I ran 10 miles on the trail and the boys did about 16 miles of it. So beautiful.  The only thing I can do without are all the spider webs.  The boys broke most of them for me but I still ran with a stick in my hand to break the ones they missed.  I hate spiders.                                                                              

                                                                                       

Wednesday September 9, 2020 - Built in Chill Day and School

                               I can't believe that we have been on the road for about 3 1/2 months.  Wow!!!  Time has gone by so fast for us.  We are so happy and really enjoying our time exploring our nation together. Scotty and I have seen many noticeable changes in our family, collectively and individually.    I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father for giving us this magical experience.  Our family will forever be better for it.                                                                                                       We have learned a lot in these last three months.  A few people have asked me questions that I have answered privately.  If you have a question about our trip or about camping or really anything, text me or email me and I will answer the question here on my blog.                                                                                                                                                                           

Tuesday September 8, 2020 - Mammoth Cave National Park

                     My day started early.  I was so excited to find out that our neighbor here loves to run.  Her name is Valerie and they are from Arizona.   She got up early with me to run!!!!  We met at 5:30  and it was glorious!!!!   We watched the sun rise as we ran and she let me ramble on about our trip and the exhausting preparations for it.   Thank you Valerie for the run!!!!                                                                                  

                                                                 

Monday September 7, 2020 Hola Kentucky!!!!! Boy do the Fish Bite Here!!!

              This morning we put another state sticker on our country map!!!  Kentucky.                                                                                                                                             

Sunday September 6, 2020 Goodbye Missouri. We will miss you

        Scotty and I woke up still tired from our late night last night.  We are getting old.  Our goal was to finish packing and leave by 10 AM today.  We almost made it.  Doug pulled away at 11 AM.  Not bad right???  Our next adventure is in Kentucky. As per Wayne May, the Nephites called Kentucky The Hill Where the Blood Ran Red All Day.   The drive from here to there will take us about 9 hours.  I planned two days to make the trip.  We will drive as far as we can today, then finish the drive tomorrow.  We crossed some serious cool bridges and rivers.  The GPS took us back through St. Louis so we got to see the St. Louis Arch again from the freeway.  We took breaks as we were hungry and took our time. Pulling our home everywhere we go is actually super great.  Our bathroom, kitchen and beds go everywhere we go!!!1                                                               

                         

Saturday September 5, 2020 - Paula Fairbanks Funeral and Skate Park Fun

               This morning Scotty, Graham and I got up around 4:30 AM.  The boys had to get dressed so we could leave by 5 AM.  The Kansas City International Airport was one hour away from our campground.  I dropped the boys off at the airport and drove an hour back to Homie.  They flew to Salt Lake City to go to the funeral for Aunt Paula.  Graham was super excited to fly on the plane.  He really wants to fly planes for the Air Force when he's older. They arrived safely to SLC and Tressie picked them up.  They went straight to the funeral.  When the services were over, they had to go straight to the airport to catch their flight back.  I was so grateful because they started a zoom call for all of us who couldn't be there.  The service was very sweet and the music was beautiful.                                                      I had to leave here at 10: 30 PM to be at the airport by 11:30 to get the boys.  We got home around 12:30 PM.  It was a late night but so worth it for Scotty to be able to be with his family at this sad time.                                                                           

                                                                                       

Friday September 4, 2020 Kansas City Missouri

Hello to all of you!!!  We have been so busy.  Late nights and early mornings.  I am about 4 days late posting this so I will try to remember ever thing that has happened.  Before I get into the activities of Friday, I want to add a few funny moments that I don't want to forget.                                                                                                       

Thursday September 3, 2020. Happy Birthday Scotty!!!! Independence, Far West, Adam-ondi-Ahman, Three Witnesses

                               HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR FAVORITE DAD                                                                                                             

Wednesday September 2, 2020 - Lone Jack Civil War Site and a Family Bike Ride

                                                                                                                                                 

Tuesday September 1, 2020

 The kids were much more focused today for school.  They worked hard and got a lot done!!!!! It was good because they made up for the lack of focus yesterday.  Pepper is researching Liberty Jail and Graham is researching Hawns Mill.  I'm excited to see what they come up with.  Taj is doing great and can now spell 6 site words.  His reading has improved a lot since he's been out of public school.  

 

Monday August 31, 2020 - Rain, School and Liberty Jail (the outside)

 We started the day off with the news that Scotty's Aunt Paula died early this morning after battling colon cancer.  We were so sad.  The air all day felt heavy and solemn.  On top of the heavy feeling, it rained all day.  We took advantage of the rain and tried to get as much school done as possible. The kids weren't very focused today.  Doing school is  not the kind of fun we want to be doing, but it has to be done.