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Saturday, November 12, 2011

An end and a beginning

This has been rather bittersweet...tomorrow is the very last day of our trip.  It has gone by quickly, yet the minutes never seemed to go by too fast.  I'm not done blogging, but this has been a season of writing that I'm very glad to have recorded.  My hope is that you all have felt as if you've gone on the journey with us, and got a good picture of what we have done.  This is the end of this journey, but just the beginning of plans for the next adventure!

Back to yesterday...when we were at the Gindorf's.  On Wednesday night, after coming back from the Bible study, we girls slept in the house.  We were dispersed between the Gindorf girls and it was one great sleepover!  Maddie and I stayed up talking for the longest time, considering that when you live 630 miles apart you have a lot to catch up on.  But we got a solid 5 hours of sleep...Anyway, Thursday morning was great too.  Mrs. Gindorf cooked a wonderful breakfast of biscuits and gravy, and Maddie and I took another walk to Vons (the reason being no good reason).  Delaney did some babysitting with Sophia, and Libbey painted and had a tea party with Amelia. 

Unfortunately, we had to get on the road.  So after a great lunch and final conversation, we buttoned up the rig and said goodbye.  We drove 3 1/2 hours down the road to Henderson, Nevada--220 miles.  On the way, we went to Hoover Dam and walked on the new bridge that they built across the gorge (The Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge).  That was a fun and interesting stop, and I got some photos of the Dam that could have only been taken from a helo at one time!  It was in Henderson that we spent our last night in a Wal-Mart and went on our last ice-cream hunt.  Bittersweet.  And yeah, I admit that I actually like Wal-Mart!  I mean, Fresno Wal-Marts aren't so hot, but every other one has been great (plus they're the supercenters).  So, we all had a peaceful night there and set out early-ish this morning. 

Today was a five-hour drive, not counting stops for gas and for lunch.  We crossed into California at around 11:45, which produced quite a commotion for a minute.  We called a few friends and Dad also did some work on the road.  Today was his very last work day on our trip, and he really felt like he made an accomplishment.

By the time we were going through Tehachapi, things were looking more familiar to me.  That was a cool feeling, actually being in a place that I recognized after being in the unfamiliar for three months!  We arrived in Orange Grove RV park at 4:30, in Bakersfield.  It has been drizzling, but pleasantly not that cold.  The RV park is spotless, and Delaney has awarded them the "cleanest bathhouse" award.  There are four pints of Ben and Jerry's in the freezer, and we had some devotions and enjoyed a nice evening together.  A very nice way to spend the last night on the road!

Tomorrow, we hope to leave here early and get home between 1 and 2:00 in the afternoon.  The weather forcast looks sunny, which is a blessing!  I can't believe how fast these 10,000-some miles have gone by, and now we are only 158 miles from home!  Here is the last web album I've made of the trip, and when I get home I will be working on three photo books of our journey.  That will be a fun project, and when they're finished they'll be on our coffee table for all to see!  So come on over!

I hope we can see y'all soon, in person.  I can't wait to spend more sweet fellowship with you and go back to normal living.  God bless.

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