7 States later...

7 states, 6 potty breaks (just kidding there were a lot more but I couldn't think of something for 6), 5 bags of luggage, 4 days of driving, 3 kids, 2 adults, and 1 car later we made it to San Diego. It was an adventure I wasn't sure that I would live through but surprisingly it wasn't as painful as I thought it would be. Ben's advice the whole time leading up to it was, "just get in the car and drive!" Thanks genius...was my remark! But now I know what he meant.

Day1: We left Des Moines around 7 am. Filled up our car, got our Diet Cokes from QT, and hit the road. Our final destination was to be Cheyenne WY, with a room at the local Holiday Inn Express. The kids (Natali mainly) were really excited to be off on this "adventure" that we had been talking about for the past few months. We made several stops for eating, feeding the baby, and stretching our legs. This was one of the rest stops in Nebraska. My mom (thanks again) let the kids out and ran around with them to give them a break from the car. Just a few pictures.

Natali sat in the "back back" so that my mom could sit next to Spencer and be back there to help provide entertainment and hand out snacks to the troops.

Spencer sleeping peacefully (which he did most of the trip) on the bed in the hotel room.

The first thing Isaac did when we got into the hotel was find the phone and reek havoc!

Natali lounging around! She loved the idea of staying at the hotel.

Day 2: We ate breakfast (which was actually really nice and FREE), repacked the car, and headed off again. Today we were to make it to Utah, Bountiful to be specific to stay with Ben's folks. We had rainy weather the whole way through WY and even had to pull off the road during a hail storm. Apparently WY didn't get the memo that severe weather season was OVER. (There were also tornado watches and warnings) Again the kids did great, thanks to the DVD player and something we like to call BACKYARDIGAINS. Pretty sure I can quote all 4 episodes by heart (at least all the songs). We made it to Bountiful late afternoon. We had Cafe Rio for dinner (yes I did call and taunt Ben while I drove there to pick it up). And we even got to see Great Grandma & Grandpa Hayes. I tired to get a picture with all the kids but surprisingly only Spencer would cooperate. Thanks Mom & Dad for letting us crash for the night! In just 5 short weeks we'll be back.

Day 3: Today we drove to St. George to stay at our VIP only resort...aka Grandma Dove's. On our drive down the Wasatch front (which brought back many memories from my Utah days) we stopped off in Cedar Hills to visit with Hollie and the kids. It was so good to see her and the kids, and Natali LOVED being with Grace. The girls got great cousins! It was nice to have a short driving day and the kids loved staying the night at another grandma's house. We ate dinner on the back deck, soaked up the view of the temple, and sang Happy Birthday to Natali with her special birthday cupcake that Great Grandma Dove bought just for her. Isaac & Natali both took turns pounding on the organ, and I did my best to keep Mr. Sticky Fingers Isaac from breaking anything or jumping off the deck.
Day4: The last and final leg of our epic journey. With children strapped in, baby fed, gas tank full, and Diet Cokes in hand we were off for sunny San Diego! One thing I knew for sure was that we would be eating at IN-N-OUT somewhere today. We stopped at Stateline next to the Primm hotel for a feeding break (and due to the time change some Mc Donald's breakfast). Our next stop was in Victorville outside of Barstow (0r is it Baker) where we stopped for lunch and ate some IN-N-OUT. It was as good as I remembered. We then preceded to wait in line for 30+ minutes to let Natali use the restroom! Hello IN-N-OUT...please have more than one stall for the women's bathroom. That was a nightmare, but I guess the food made it worth it. Finally we made it though the traffic, up the INCREDIBLY windy roads (yes, Isaac did BARF...and yes, we were only 4 minutes away from being home), and arrived safe and sound at Grandma's.


Now we are all unpacked and into our new routines. The kids love it here and so do I except for the whole not having Ben with me part (and all my dear friends)! I have a feeling the time will fly and before we know it we will be packing back up and heading up to Utah for that part of our adventure. But while we are here you can bet I'll be eating lots of Mexican food, enjoying family, and spending a few days at the beach!