On to Colorado

10,000 Mile Oil Change

We stopped in Springfield MO after visiting Laura’s home to get our 2nd free oil change from Toyota! There was a great natural food store across the street so we did some shopping.

BASS OUTDOOR WORLD

Then it was on to Bass Outdoor Wrld and the Archery hall of Fame. The store is ridiculously big with at least 1000 stuffed bears and deer, lots of live fish, ducks and alligators and storewide dioramas of outdoor scenes.

Colleen was very excited!

Archery Hall of Fame

Dinner at Price Cutter

We then hit Price Cutter for buns and cooked out in the parking lot.

Love having the pick up truck, takes me back to my ford ranger days, cooking on the tailgate and sleeping in the back. A lady thinking we were homeless offered Colleen a big wad of $$ when she was in the store.

After dinner we headed out at 7pm CST heading toward Denver and Dale’s house.

This is the audiobook I am listening to on this leg of the trip. Written by J.K. Rowling using a psuedonym.It is much better than Neil Young’s 2nd book Special Deluxe which was redundant and boring,  I listened to it on the first part of the trip along with these podcasts produced by This American Life.

The temp in MO was in the 70’s and it dropped 60 degrees as we cruised through Kansas and we encountered ice and blowing snow. I drove until 2:45am MDT and was going to crawl in the back to sleep but Colleen awoke and she drove us the rest of the way to Denver. We arrived at 5:45am MST and we slept in a Target parking lot until 7am and then used the Home Depot ( OPEN AT 6AM!) bathrooms and went ut for breakfast while we waited for Dale and Kristie and Justin to wake up!

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Day 3, 4 & 5

Mason Ohio

We arrived in mason Ohio to visit Colleen’s college friend Stormy, around 11pm on Friday Night, just before they returned from a party.  Ambiana asked us as we were waiting ‘how many families live in this house?’  Just one! Stormy and dave and their 3 kids, Zane, Stone and Indica!

Here are Colleen, Marcy and Stormy catching up!

We spent a relaxing day at their house on Saturday, the kids all played well together and

Dave was super social this visit and I really enjoyed talking with and hanging out with him, especially in his sweet mancave basement.

Zane, Indica, Jakobi, Ambiana and Stone!

Chocolate chip pancakes and BACON!

St Louis, MO

We left Ohio in the morning and drove through Indiana and Illinois to St,Louis!

Colleen had planned it tso we would arrive around sunset to take the last tram up the arch.

Ambiana and Jakobi earned their Jr. Ranger badges!

Then we squeezed into the tram car for the 4 minute ride to the top.

The top was way smaller then I expected and both Ambiana and I were arch sick, feeling queasy, i am not afraid of heights but looking straight down might have done it!

Jakobi was fine!

Montauk Stae Park, MO

We spent the night at a sweet little campground beside a small river!

Rise and shine! Colleen went for a before breakfast run and I went on one after packing up the tent.  I have 3 weeks to train for the Turkey trot in Avon Ohio and am shooting for a sub 22 minute time, sub 21 minute if i am feeling really good.

Nothing like an outdoor breakfast, temps in the 60’s!

Little Farm on Rocky Ridge

After breakfast we headed to Mansfield Missouri where Laura and Almanzo settled with their daughter Rose in 1894!

We are total LittleHouseHeads and asked all kinds of questions on the tour. We go to see Pa’s fiddle in the museum and learned that Ma’s Shepardess is in the historical society in Keystone SD!

We paid our respects to Laura and Almanzo!

We also found Frank Cooley’s grave, he and his family traveled from De Smet SD with the Wilder’s and he was killed in a train wreck.  His story is told in the Rose Years books!

SCORPIO 9th Degree

Ambiana & Jakobi Homeschool Lesson

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