midway

we're in NE. i looked on the map and it said that the most central town in all of the U.S. is right below where we are now.

we've been taking a break from the driving. last wednesday we left d.'s house and went to momby's cousin's house. if i'd not gotten lost on my way, elenora would have slept the whole car ride. but i accidentally had the gps set to take me to my final destination via the place i really wanted to go, so it took me right past and suddenly i found i was going to spokane. i had to back track through rush hour traffic, and ella woke up and started crying and it was stressful.

i'm sick, too.

but jeanette and gene were so nice to me and i got elenora a tubby and put her to bed and then went to bed early myself. in the morning momby was there and i was just so thankful to see her. after taking care of ella and lorien and helping my brother with things i just wanted someone to take care of me. plus, my clingy baby loves her grandma, so it was nice to be able to leave ella with someone while i walked out of a room.

here we are just before starting on our journey across america (notice my new car!):

thursday we left for spokane. first we went through the cascade mountain range where we lunched in the middle of a ski resort in a restaurant with snow just piling off the roof. gorgeous.

the middle part of WA is pretty empty, but towards idaho it got very lovely. we stopped semi-frequently so that elenora could have breaks and crawl around. j. got me a picnic blanket for mother's day that was so wonderful to take breaks on.

we got to the hotel after ella should have been in bed, so momby and i just ate our dinner in the hallway outside of our room so that elenora could sleep.

friday we traveled from spokane to montana, via idaho. it was so gorgeous. we saw huge mountains with snow on them and there was this incredible view in coeur d'alene ID with a lake in the valley of these pretty mountains. we lunched at a small burger joint where we set out the blanket on the side of the parking lot in the grass.

montana looked exactly as i'd always pictured it in my head. there were wide open grassy areas with large grassy hills and then huge mountains with snow in the distance.

we stayed in gardiner MT for the night at a lovely hotel with a beautiful view of the mountains. and elenora crawled for the first time on her hands and knees! just took right off. she must have been so happy to not be in the car.

saturday we had a long day of traveling that started with us going straight through yellowstone from the northern entrance to the southern entrance. we saw buffalo, deer, a bear, a wolf, a moose and antelope. the sights were just amazing. we were up so high and could see so far. there were hot springs and waterfalls and frozen lakes and thawed lakes that reflected the pine trees and snowy caps.

we lunched at a really nice lodge at the end of yellowstone where we had the soup and salad bar and let ella crawl about. i got her a little stuffed animal bear to remember the trip by.

we continued through wyoming for the entire day. WY is such a strange state. it is vast and barren, with different scenery around each bend in the road. we saw tall mountains with snow and flat open spaces that were kind of like deserts. the land is really not good for farming there. we saw large sandstone plateaus and lots of cattle.

there are miles and miles with no towns, and then the towns you come across are so small they look like ghost towns. there appears to be much poverty in WY. there is a lot of land, but the homes are trailers and shacks. we had to stop in Rawlins for the night. very sketchy. i woke up around 4 am having had a terrible nightmare, and i just kept expecting someone to break into our room and murder us.

we lived, of course.

here's ella in Rawlins. i couldn't put her on the floor because it was sticky.





sunday we had a long day of driving (12 hours) since we didn't make it to cheyenne the day before. elenora was such a good little girl the whole trip. we kept her entertained and tried to make sure she got naps. for lunch we picnicked in the grass and had wendy's and some ice cream.





then we made it all the way to lincoln NE by 8:30 pm. we were so happy to pull in here and to see momby's family and to just know that we can now relax for a few days without going anywhere in the car.


poor elenora was a mess yesterday morning. i think she's just so thrown off and also overtired from losing sleep each night. between the time change and the napping in the car and getting into hotels late at night, it's been very strange for her. but after a good morning and afternoon nap, she was much more pleasant and ready to enjoy seeing her cousins.










oh, and c. is here, and her children! and we're having so much fun. c. is so amazing and i'm so blessed to have her friendship. we just get along so well. i feel so comfortable here. we took the children to the park yesterday afternoon and i pushed ella in the swing. c. and i walked last night after the kids were in bed, and then we sat with momby and aunt m. until midnight just talking and laughing.


yesterday when ella started to cry at one point i said "elenora, where is mommy's button?" which is a question i've never asked her before. she immediately stopped crying and looked down at my sweater and grabbed my button!!! now i hadn't mentioned my button to her that day. she just knew i was wearing a sweater that had a button. what a smart baby. also, when i pretend to call her on her toy phone, she stops and listens and then makes little talking noises into the mouth piece. she also knows what to look for when i ask her where her duck, bunny lovey, cody, big ball and "mary had a little lamb" are. i can't believe how much she can comprehend. oh, and she knows where her feet are and if i'm lying on my belly and have my feet up behind me and ask her where mommy's feet are, she knows that too.


brilliant little girl.


everyone says she looks like j. i don't mind. he's a cutie.


today we're just chilling. elenora has been a sweetheart. she's napping now.