Just thought I’d drop a line and tell you all that the trip has been great so far. Here’s what we’ve been up to:
Day 1: We stopped in Little Rock and spent the night with friends that we used to homeschool with there while we lived there. It was so great to see them.
Day 2: We drove to Eastern Tennessee and spent the night in a hotel close to the Smoky Mountain National Park. It was too late to do much but eat dinner (Cracker Barrel tasted wonderful after sandwiches in the car two days in a row, but it couldn’t beat Teresa’s delicious ROAST the night before). [Seriously, it was the best roast I’ve ever eaten… I must have your secret, Teresa!]
Day 3: We drove in to the park and enjoyed the colors of fall… the lovely peaks of the smokies… the cool air. We ate lunch at Chick-Fil-A before heading to DC that night. It was a loooong drive and we got in really late. Sleeping with the baby between us on a full sized bed makes for a pretty sleepless night, too – so this morning on Day 4, we started out TIRED.
Day 4: We visited the Capitol Building, the Air and Space Museum, and the Library of Congress. We barely scratched the surface of these places because of the enormity of them, the fact that we weren’t rested up properly, and because the baby was a grump. We had to sneak him some apple juice inside the Capitol bldg. where they don’t even allow you to take in sealed bottled water or snacks unless you have an infant and they remain in your daiper bag (shhhh!). He finally fell asleep in the stroller before we headed back to the parking garage – and tonight he was asleep before 9PM for a change. [I forgot the camera, so I’m hoping some of my 13 year old’s photos come out for a later post… or else I’ll have to resort to the iPhone pix I shared on twitter and facebook. I’ll have to admit that it is much easier to carry an iPhone around on a long – mostly uphill – walking tour of DC than it is to carry a heavy camera bag and a DSLR, though… so I’m only half-way sorry. I found out why they call it Capitol HILL today.]
The photos in the above collage are mostly from when Chevy dropped off the vehicle and our drive through the Smokies. The ‘Speed Limit Enforced by Aircraft’ sign is from Virginia. [I had never even heard of aircraft-enforced speed limits and our snarky family came up with some hilarous scenarios between auto and aircraft while we drove along through the Virginia hills.] The photos of the outside of the vehicle were taken in Arkansas. We’ve been through 4 states so far – TX, AR, TN, VA… and our fifth comes this Thursday when we arrive in PA. The jury is still out on whether we’ll come home by way of West Virginia or not… I guess it all depends on how we feel about adding a little bit of time to the return trip – which will not be as relaxed or slow since we’ll be splitting the drive back in HALF rather than THIRDS (ouch!).
You can follow along with the Relevant road trip by checking out these hashtags on twitter: #Relevant10 and #sweetRIDEChevy. I’m tweeting about the little details we find interesting on the trip as we tootle along. Tomorrow we’ll be seeing more of the free sites in DC. You can check out my tweet stream and facebook page for pictures and travel notes.
In Him,
Samantha says
I am from WV, it would be a gorgeous time to see it! We have seen those signs before in VA. Pretty funny in some spots!
melismama says
Heather, looks like a fantastic road trip so far….can't wait to meet you at the conference….are you planning on taking the kiddies to Chocolate World in Hershey at all? Fun FUn!
Rachel R. says
Oh, how fun! Even for those of us who live (fairly) near DC – it's almost impossible to see everything. I've been again and again, and still not seen all there is to see at any one place.
As far as the speed enforced by aircraft…apparently there are marks on our highways and the helicopters know how long it should take a car to travel from one to another at appropriate speeds. We've never actually seen them make use of this, though. And I assume the aircraft operators don't do the actual enforcing! lol Never heard of anyone being pulled over by a helicopter. 😉 I guess they must call it in?
Krystal says
I am so thrilled for that you got to go. Welcome to Va.! BTW… WV is pretty but for my family the up, down and around = carsick. Choose your roads wisely.=)
Hodgepodgemom says
So enjoyed the photos and update! Can tell y'all are having a great time.
The Adventurer says
We are on a road trip too. We just spent the day in DC visiting the white house. Enjoy your trip:)
NotaSupermom says
The troopers in cars are quite strict, but they put up the signs about speed limit enforced by plane and then never had the money to get the planes in the air.
So, no ticket dropped on a tiny parachute. That would be almost worth it!