35 Hours in All

35 hours in all, that's the amount of time we were on the road from Bakersfield, CA to Shelton, WA. After getting about 5 hours of sleep, we woke up at 5 a.m., and started loading the kids and our belongings back into the van. We drove 1/2 a mile, and decided to fill up our tank. Aaron noticed the tire tread had started to separate, so we spent an hour or so changing it. During that time the kids and I sat in the van. We rolled down the windows to let some air in, since it was getting hot. Out of nowhere swarms of flies and bees attacked our van. They were all over the outside, as well as the inside. All of us were freaking out! We wondered where they were coming from? Then we noticed that we had parked next to several trash cans(*note to self*- don't park near trash cans while changing a tire). It took us a while, but we got them all out. I so wish I had taken a picture of this, but I couldn't find the camera during all the chaos. I did, however, get a picture of our filthy spare!


Nice!

Once we got on the road, we headed towards the House Aaron lived in when he was a kid!

This was fun for all of us!

This is the church from across the street. Evidently, there used to be an older chapel there, but it was sold to a congregation down in Mexico. The wood was still in great shape, so they use it to build a chapel down there.



This Wiener Schnitzel has been there since Aaron was a child, and is still going strong.


We then drove to Visalia, CA to visit Aaron's Grandmother, our kids Great-Grandma Barry. She's 86 years old. We really enjoyed visiting her.



Grandma Barry collects stuffed animals! Our favorite was this singing, Mexican Chihuahua!


From this point we started to drive like crazy! We decided to eat at Denny's (kids eat free night). Instead of stopping for the night, we planned to push through to WA.



My husband, after being stuck in the van for too many hours. Just Kidding, we were totally messing around! Scary, huh?


We drove and drove! At some point a child woke up and needed a bathroom break. We found a Wal-mart. It took us a while because we ran in to purchase a few items. When we tried to start the car, the battery had died. I think the kids were watching a movie, while the car wasn't running-- oops! It was cold, and we waited for a while before someone would jump us. I think Aaron fried the alternator at that point, although he won't admit to it(shhh, don't tell him what I think, we'll just keep that between you and me). After we charged the battery, we continued to drive, all through the night! Aaron and I took shifts, and at times, when we were both too tired, we'd pull off and sleep somewhere. At about 8 a.m., I noticed the red battery light was on. Aaron knew immediately what was wrong(mmm). We pulled off the freeway, and into a Napa Auto Parts store, just in time. The van died as we rolled in. What a blessing!

The bad part was that we couldn't get the alternator until about 2:30 p.m. I was so stressed and frustrated! I knew I had to change my attitude, but it was hard! We had stayed up the whole night, and I don't do well when I'm sleep deprived! I asked Aaron if he was sure we didn't have any other options, but he insisted that was the only one. I was discouraged. I then realized, that there was nothing I could do to change the situation. So we pulled out the coats and bundled the whole family up. We decided we'd check good ole' Canyonville, OR out! We came upon a library. What a blessing! It was relief-- relief from the cold, wet rain-- relief from fatigue, and a place to entertain my kids. I somehow fell asleep holding Abigail, while Aaron helped the kids make crafts.

After we left the library, we came back to the van, fed the kids lunch, and TRIED to take a nap. Then the sun came up. I was able to play frisbee with the kids for the duration of our wait-- yet another blessing!







As soon as the alternator arrived, Aaron slapped that thing in, and we were off. We drove for hours, and finally made it to the Family Cabin just past Shelton, WA around midnight! I was so tired! We unloaded the kids, and got them in bed. I took a shower, slipped into my p.j.'s, and fell fast asleep-- although I have no recollection of doing so!