Of yesterday and today

Yesterday was spent driving across Minnesota, which was about six hours total.  We had spend the last two nights in Jellystone RV park, which was a fun and relaxing place.  It had some fun perks such as a 'jumping pillow', and useful things like a large laundry room.  Needless to say, we made ourselves at home.  We even met Yogi Bear, the camp's host... :) 

Warming up before hitting the pool

Yogi!!!!

We made a long stop at Wall Drug, a very interesting and fun place.  It had shops, bookstores, candy and fudge places, and even a tiny chapel.  They are partly famous for their free ice water, a tradition of over a hundred years! 

Hmm...interesting...

Minnesota is a pretty place.  There are miles and miles of corn fields, large wind machines and farms dotting the rolling fields.  There seemed to be many old, worn farms with tall silos and big barns.  Some were clearly abandoned.  What stories those structures must hold!  If only walls could talk...

We drove to Winona, at the very border of Wisconsin.  There we camped in a very small, heavily wooded state campground, which was very beautiful, very green and teeming with mosquitoes!  We must have put on at least two applications of bug spray, and we still got eaten alive.  After dinner, we took a short walk to the edge of the bluff, overlooking the great Mississippi River.  It was dusk, and the water was high and still and the sun just setting.  It was breathtaking.  

Today we drove to Madison, Wisconsin, to spend four days with mom's side of the family.  My great-aunt and uncle, and my two second-cousins and their spouses.  We are also going to see my great-grandmother tomorrow.  It took only a mere two hours of total driving time, including two or three stops at truck stops to see if we could get into a truck wash.  Unfortunately they were all too crowded.   

Dad in his now-typical work setup

When we arrived at our reletives, we girls got set up in the prepared bedrooms in the house, and dad got set up to work.  It will be nice to get a small break from the trailer bunks, before the next two+ months of crowded sleeping quarters.  

After doing some video skype with friends, we girls made personal pizzas for dinner and cheesecake brownies for dessert.  We ate out on the screened-in porch, which was very cool, comfortable and bug-free!  Our aunt joked that she would put a 'for sale' sign on our trailer so we wouldn't have to leave!  

...Fresh...hot...chewy...cheesecake-y...

Pizza, anyone?

More tomorrow, Lord willing...