BootsnAll Travel Network



We’re Off!

packing

 

We left Thursday just before 9 AM. We said goodbye to my parents and drove off. Matthias and I were full of emotions when pulling away, but mostly exhilaration and euphoria that this trip we had envisioned for more than a year was finally a reality. We started out by passing through the rush hour traffic I spent every day commuting in. It feels great to have given it all up and hit the road.

Allison driving    matthias driving

We actually spent a lot of time driving the first two days. The first stop was just past Pendleton, Oregon. We stayed in a beautiful area in the Blue Mountains. That evening was just wonderful. The excitement and the warm weather, and the familiar Northwest forest provided for a great evening.

The second day we traveled from NE Oregon to Mountain Home, Idaho. We stopped in Baker City, Oregon which is a neat town. There is a well preserved historical downtown, with a nice shop, Bella, which sells kitchen gadgets, coffee, European wine and organic food. It was a bit tough with Julian whirling his Big Bird through the air, but the owner is very nice and remembered us from the last time we stopped in there over two years ago.

The landscape changes so fast and dramatically once you are out of Seattle. We are staying in Idaho right now on the prairie. We are surrounded by brown mountains and tumbleweeds. The playground here is not the recycled tires/wood chips surrounding we are used to, rather loose brown silt. Honestly, we’re filthy, but happy and still anxious.

Today was also rough at times. We’ve decided to spend a lot of time in the car to get some distance behind us during the first few days, and that it is a little tough for all of us. Today our high temperature reached 100 degrees as we turned off the highway to a visitor’s center (that was closed) and a leaky propane tank (that turned out to only be a safety overflow) in a town where the only grocery store was a Wal-Mart (which we refused to patronize). It is apparent that we are quite far from our familiar home. But then we met a lawyer who worked in Central America as legal council for a group of American missionaries that were murdered (years ago) and knows Mexico and Central America very well. She gave us lots of suggestions and encouragement for a great, safe and worthwhile trip. I watched Julian practice stacking blocks and worked with him to learn to identify colors (he knows which block is the orange block 95% of the time now). Then the four of us all took a walk together in the area and explored the surroundings. We looked for snakes, watched the sun set, found a bunch of ants, played tetherball and swang on a swing. Despite the long day in the car, the loss of a permanent home, and changing our lives 180 degrees, I’m still ready and eager for the next day.

William & Julian in Idaho 



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