Day 2 Springfield IL - St. Joe MO

Here's the Man!

Great Day.

A quilt store. Beautiful skies.

Smooth roads.

We drove this morning with the windows open....while the clouds threatening rain. This afternoon after the $2.55 per gallon gas stop the sun came out and the clouds were spectacular. We enjoyed, well, I enjoyed getting to meet the quilt shop owner and her family. Nice shop. Jerry enjoyed the chocolate covered cashews that were in the shop.

I found out the camera takes great pictures from inside! Glad it did. Off to fix supper. Jerry is cleaning the windshield. Lots of big bugs in those corn fields. Have a good evening.

Here was our stop for July 30. Chatham, IL just south of Springfield Lake, Springfield, IL.

Today we are headed for MO Star Quilt Co in Hamilton, MO and Jerry is planning on golfing while I do the shopping.

Nice evening.

Good Day!

Illinois -on the road

Hum, hit something on one of the bumps on the road. Couldn't figure out how to continue the post...so anyway, Going across Indy was not really too bad. Got to see a neat downtown with the sidewalk cafes all full and people enjoying the day. Lots of neat archtecture that I had not seen in daylight. Waved at Carla and Cooper who were at the Indy Zoo today as we passed. However, I don't think they saw us.

We are 20 miles on the East side of Springfield and are heading for a campground south of Springfield. It has been overcast since sometime in Illinois and just a few sprinkles on the windshield so far. Jerry says radar is showing that the campground could have storms tonight.

Lots of corn and I think soybeans in the Illinois fields.

And yes, Jerry is driving. I am not blogging and driving! :)

About 12 hours before departure

Good evening, still in Scottsburg.

We have attached the car and partially loaded the camper while the temperature is below 100 degrees.

Excitement is building. We will start off and then fuel-up around Whiteland. Internet shows their prices a shade lower than ours. We'll try the Flying-J. We'll see if our card does any good or if the rebate on the credit card is better.

Had a very nice dinner with Nancy and Ron this evening at Christy's on the Square in Salem. Earlier I was blessed with a visit from Norma, Stephen, and Erick. Stephen got to pick up his birthday present. It is neat that these young folks like the quilts we make for them. Stephen's theme is dirt bikes.

Jerry is off to work tomorrow morning and then, Lord willing, we are off on the trip of a lifetime. It will be a joy to spend a month with my wonderful hubby exploring the Northwest. We will not be sleeping in a tent or taking hikes in Bear country. The reports this week of the attacks makes me want to just visit a museum with stuffed bears and view the scenery of the area from a fortified vehicle. :)

pictures tomorrow! I think I figured out how to add them.

Good afternoon all.
Life is going on as if nothing spectacular is happening.
I had fun with Tierney on Monday. We kept busy all day with only a little down time for a nap. Grandma took hers after "T" went home.

Today, I have been quilting. I have two quilts to finish before we leave. At the time of this post one is quilted and I am ready to begin on number two. WOW. One quilt will be on time for the birthday and the other is before their first anniversary...so not tooo bad for me. :)

Jerry is off golfing in the Tuesday night league. We are Great Uncle and Aunt again. Congratulations to Tiffiany and Jason a beautiful girl, Mia Grace. (guessing on spelling).

Okay off to the quilt room again. If all goes smoothly it might be finished before the evening is over...at least the quilting. That will be a record: two in one day. Now if I could keep that up I could clean out the stock of quilt tops and have a load of presents done. But, oh we are going on a "little" trip.

OH, Oh, we learned we will be able to see at least some of the Phillips family while we are in Vancouver! I am looking forward to meeting them and maybe getting to see the brothers and sisters that I have met again. Jerry is very excited. Vancouver is at the top of his list for this trip as "most excited about".

Good afternoon!

Wednesday, July 21.
We are reviewing campgrounds in the areas we think we may stop. I have found I appreciate the reservation systems we enjoy in IN and KY for the park systems. On line reviews have helped us narrow the search. I wonder how many Wal-Mart parking lots we will try out even though we have none of them on our Wish List.

Reservations are only made for our first night out, Redmond for the Rally, Vancouver, and Yellowstone. Otherwise it is potluck so we are not forced to make it to a particular campground if we find something along the way to view. That is a challenge not to make those reservations. Trying to break into a new travel style challenges the comfort zone just a little bit.

Countdown to Trip

Enjoying dinner with family and friends before we start the tour.

Looking forward to spending time with Cooper and Tierney on Tuesday. Hope to see a goat or two as well.

Oh, do I have enough TP in the camper for the trip. I am sure we will not see any stores that carry our brand. :)

Jerry is working on the map program to be certain we find our way home again. The cats are very worried that the feed bowl will become empty and never be refilled. They know something is up.

10 more days before departure.