On the Road Again...

Well we are home from our 17 day road trip! It was fun, exciting, and surprisingly restful. Here is a run down of all we did!
Day1: We left bright and early to start our trek northward. We stopped to have lunch in Tulsa with my dear old friend Lexi and her daughter Bella. We left with very happy hearts! Then we drove the rest of the way to my parents place in Branson. I got my toes to the water as fast as possible! Successful day 1!

Day2: I sat out side on a GORGEOUS morning and actually finished a whole cup of coffee without ever getting up! Great start to a day! Then we headed out to Silver Dollar City for the day. 

                                     

Day3: Fun Day on the Lake. We boated to breakfast at Charlies...our favorite and enjoyed lake living the rest of the day!

Day4: On the road again! We went through St. Louis where we crossed the Mississippi for the first of many times this trip! When we got to Indy, we headed straight outside to play in the beautiful cool weather!

Day5: Bennett had school, so we just had a lazy "play in the house" kind of day! It did involve a little "dress-up."

Day6: We went out for Pizza and breadsticks. Indy people dip their breadsticks in nacho cheese. To us Texans, that was weird, but strangely yummy!

Day7: Trip to the Farmer's Market! They had Vegan treats for Tripp and lots of fun to enjoy!

Day8: ZELMA'S! - This is my 90 year old grandmother's restaurant that she has had forever! I have great memories of pestering the waitresses for something from the pie fridge while sitting at the bar. It was great to see her and let her meet the kids. If you are ever in Indy, go see her and get some YUMMY food!

Day9: I can't remember what we did all day, but I do remember we got a night out! Sister time is oh so sweet!

Day10: Donut Day! No matter where you are! We all loaded up and went to Dunkin Donuts (which has nothing egg free BTW!). I appeased Tripp with graham crackers while the rest of us feasted. Yummy, but not fair to the little guy! Come on Dunkin'!

Day11: The kids and I headed out on our own adventure to discover Indy. We found a fun outdoor  shopping center with great stores and play place. We shared some ice cream and good laughs!

Day12: We took a trip to the grocery store and I let Mia push Tripp. Funny, but a little scary! We were missing Daddy really bad at this point, so we sent him a picture of post bath, ready for bed kiddos.

Day13: Play day in Carmel Indiana! This is a beautiful "uptown" area. We had lunch outside at Bub's Burgers. The kids played in a beautiful fountain and ran up and down the walking trails. I would love to spend more time in this area sans kids. Next time!

Day14: We finally get to see Richard!!! He flew in to help up on our journey home! With the smart guy at my sister's house, we decided to tackle a wall treatment. With Richard's math and my sister's skill, a really cool wall was created!

Entertaining ourselves at Lowes while picking up painting supplies. Dancing Turkey hat, everyone needs one of these!

Day15/Day 16: We left Indy and headed out on our next adventure! We decided to head home in a new direction...Nashville here we come! We spent the weekend at Gaylord Opryland and had a great time! We saw Shrek's house and went swimming at the hotel. We also went to the Nashville Zoo and had a great dinner at the Aquarium.

Day17: Time to head home! We could not make it all 11 hours without a few more fun stops. We went to lunch at Huey's in Memphis. It was voted best lunch spot in town and it did not disappoint. SO YUMMY! Then one last stop as we crossed the Texas state line...Dairy Queen of course!

Whew! What a great adventure! We made so many special memories. As busy as it sounds, there was lots of snuggles and naps shared by all. I truly feel rested and rejuvenated. It was great to "vacate" for such a long stretch!
Congrats to those of you who made it to the end of the post!!!