Finally settled in CA for a few weeks

I have been so blessed by all of you who have been following my travels this summer. It has been frustrating to not have a regular internet connection since Arizona, so for all of you faithfully following us, here is a snapshot of our trip since then!
July 4th we went and saw the Grand Canyon. What an amazing sight! It was spectacular. We wished we had more time to enjoy a hike, but we needed to end up in San Diego that night and had to leave by lunchtime. The drive took us through the Mohave desert. I have been impressed with the rugged beauty of the desert. Vast, hot and we went miles and miles between any signs of life. This leg of the trip was also where Micah discovered a love for photography and honored us with a self-portrait in the car!
We dropped Jess of with her friend Liz in San Diego and then headed over to the Embassy Suites for 2 nights. We went to Legoland on the 5th and enjoyed some cool weather, with the high temp. only at 70 that day. The park was just the right size and we all had a great time. The next morning we had a leisurely morning at the hotel and got back on the road around noon. I believe the hotel was just as exciting for Mandy and Micah as Legoland! They enjoyed the pool, each had their own bed/couch to sleep on, were delighted at the all-you-could eat breakfast, and jumped at "jobs" like filling the ice bucket or calling the elevator.
On our way to my sister's home in San Luis Obispo (SLO), we stopped in Santa Barbara and visited with Marina and wandered through the Westmont campus. I had pictures taken outside Clark P/Q, my freshman year residence and enjoyed fond memories as we toured the campus. There is much reconstruction on campus due to new building projects and changes due to the fires from 1+ year ago. We crashed with my sister and brother-in-law in SLO with a yummy dinner of chicken fajitas and Madonna Inn cake.
Wednesday we finally reached my family's' house just up the hill from Paradise, CA. We took our time and enjoyed the breathtaking views from route 1 which winds up the coastline. We took that road from SLO up to Santa Cruz, and then headed into San Fransisco and over the Golden Gate Bridge. It was cool and windy along the coast, but as soon as we headed inland, the temps rose quickly. In northern California, we skirted the southern edge of wine country around dinner-time and made it to my parent's home just after 9pm. We were treated to one of the most beautiful sunset's I've seen as we drove highway 70 north of Sacramento up through the farming fields around Oroville. Pictures cannot do it justice.
We had one day of rest and prep at home before we headed 2 hours north into the mountains for a weekend at my parent's cabin at Lake Almanor. That adventure will have to wait until next time. It is time to wrap up the writing for the day and spend a few hours with the kids.
Enjoy the photos! I'll update again tomorrow if all goes well!
Blessings!
Cami Foerster

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Stefan is with us!

Today was a beautiful drive through the southwest, with unexpected views along the way. We left Mariwyn in El Paso, TX around 10:30am to continue trekking west. We so thoroughly enjoyed their hospitality overnight that the best way I can describe it is an oasis along the way. From swimming, to roasting marshmallows over a fire pit Friday evening to sleeping in a bit and being treated to a fantastic breakfast of pancakes, bacon and fresh fruit.
The drive from El Paso to Flagstaff took most of the day, but only because we enjoyed 3-4 hours in downtown Phoenix after we picked up Stefan at the airport. We ate dinner at Hard Rock Cafe, walked through downtown, and had Cold Stone Creamery ice cream for dessert. I love not being in a rush during the summer. I also love that Stefan is with us now for the rest of the trip! It is good to have the family all together.
Surprises along the drive: a giant roadrunner sculpture / statue along the side of Interstate 10; the rugged beauty of the boulders and cacti throughout Arizona; the bright evening stars in a moon-less sky along the dark road.
Thanks for joining us! Tomorrow morning we are off to the Grand Canyon! Then it is San Diego or bust. California, here we come!
Blessings from the road!
Cami

The epic trip to Texas

We have landed in El Paso, TX. The weather is a bit cooler than their norm, which means it is warm and perfect pool weather! The kids are swimming and I've had a nap, so we're ready for the rest of the day. Our trip here is story worthy, so let me see if I can remember it ll.
Did you ever have a day when nothing seemed to go as planned, but it turned out to be better, overall, than your original plan? That is a good summary of yesterday. I should have suspected we were in for a bit of a different day when the first unusual thing we saw was 4 hay bales, piled on top of each other, painted to look like Sponge-Bob Square Pants. That was a new one for me. Shortly afterward, we encountered a detour due to a closed road. What we didn't realize until afterward was that Kansas detours take you 15-20 miles out of the way, and are not well marked, so you are constantly wondering if you missed the turn. Then you remind yourself you haven't passed any turns yet so you couldn't possibly have missed one!
Next we followed our google directions to the Little House on the Prairie site in Independence, Kansas. While google may have given us the most direct route, it was unaware that it took us COMPLETELY down a dirt road with an obstacle course of tractor tire ruts at the end for some excitement. Needless to say, it took us some extra time. The absurdity of the whole situation climaxed as Jess and I asked ourselves what some poor farmer may have thought if he saw our mini-van with MA plates bouncing through the cornfields...this thought was followed by 5 minutes of laughter and tears! Oh my!
We finally found a main road and got to the house. It was a cute stop and the kids had fun. I was thankful I had a mini-van to cross the country with and not their covered wagon! After stretching our legs we got back on the road and headed to Claremore, OK to visit Lucy. We arrived HOURS after we had intended to leave. Jess and I decided it was useless to be in any kind of a hurry at that point, so we hung out with Lucy for quiet a while. She gave us the grand tour of the sheep farm she is working at, gave Micah some hands on experience in spinning wool to yarn and introduced us to all the barnyard animals. She was able to get some time off so she accompanied us to Tulsa, OK for dinner at the Olive Garden. At the end of our dinner time, Cory Strnad joined us and everyone had a good time catching up.
At 9pm-ish we pointed the car south and began our drive through OK. Being behind, but so grateful and at peace with all time spent visiting friends, we opted to head straight for El Paso, TX and not stop in Waco. I was sad to not spend time with the Lockes, but we had a 14 hour drive ahead of us and chose to drive round the clock to get in to El Paso as early as possible. Jess and I drove in shifts and we only stopped for both of us to sleep at a rest stop from 5:30am-7:00am. We pulled into to Mariwyn's drive at 11:30am. Despite the sleepyness, I did really appreciate the beauty of the landscape here. It is teh most unique scenery we have seen thus far. And it is amazingly beautiful.
Today we have napped, the kids have swam, we had fantastic Mexican food for dinner, got a tour of downtown El Paso and are relaxing in the backyard. During the tour, we saw Tres Puntos, the mountain at which Mexico, Texas and New Mexico touch. We also observed the contrast of El Paso next to Juarez, Mexico. As we drove along, literally just across the fence we were looking into Mexico. It was quite the stark contrast of American and Mexican. Tonight we will relax, regroup a bit, and sleep. Tomorrow we head out between 9-10am to pick up Stefan at the Phoenix airport!

Blessings till tomorrow!
Cami Foerster

Getting ready for Texas

Good morning. We have had a fantastic time here is Texas. It was a welcomed stop along the way. After a looooong drive of 700 miles on Tuesday it was nice to have a day not in the car. Although the kids did great and didn't melt down until about hour 11 in car, the change of pace has been well-timed.

Along the drive on Tuesday some things I saw for the first time were: a truck pulling a trailer of buffalo along the highway (in TN); The St. Louis Arch...quite a site; the Kansas City Royals staduim.

Yesterday we regrouped and played. I unpacked the car, washed everything that needed to be washed, and repacked it. We also went swimming in a friend's pool and went to a park that reminded us that Kansas was the staging area for many of the wagon trains heading west to places like CA. Lacey Palmer (a student at Gordon) came by to say hello and I giggled as i saw her hometown / high school world collide with her Gordon College world as she greeted Jess and I at the home of her high school math teacher. Her face was priceless! I also was able to give to Pam a cross-stictch I had started 12 years ago for her wedding. It was completed Tuesday along the drive and was one of my favorites to do. We had a good laugh about how long it took me to complete it.

Today we have another long drive, although the car will not feel as cluttered and we are looking forward to some stops. We will go from here to Waco Texas - 600+ miles. We will stop at the homestead of the Wilders from Little House on the Prairie in Independence, KS and also visit Lucy Pleticha, another Gordon friend, who lives in Oklahoma. If I have a chance, I will post some pictures tomorrow.

Hope you are enjoying the journey with us! We are off to Texas!

Blessings!
Cami