Ohio Trip Part 7 The Long Trip Home

On our way out of town we tried to stop by Donalds Doughnuts but were met with signs that said "Sorry Sold Out" which were most probably there from the day before as they were obviously closed for Labor Day. :o( I was VERY VERY sad.

Tucker did such a great job both on the way to Ohio and on the way home. He prefers to sit in someones lap but tolerated his cozy little spot in the back and didn't even whimper. However, whenever we got out of they car he not so sneakily made his way to the front.

We decided to take pictures as we crossed state lines... we have never successfully gotten all of them before. Here we are entering West Virginia the state in which we spent the most time traveling.

Evidently we passed some really neat old car while I was asleep. I thought I was wide awake until we had been on the road for about an hour and a half to two hours. Then sleep deprivation hit. Luckily Jim was able to fall asleep everywhere we stopped for more than 5 minutes... and I am very proud of my family for not pulling anything when he fell asleep sitting around the camp fire.

I always take a picture or at least attempt to take a picture of this building whenever we make this drive. For some reason I have always liked it... and on the way to Ohio it always means we are ALMOST there.

This isn't so bad of a view to look at while driving is it?

When we stopped to fill the gas tank and grab some food... Jim noticed a pink cake doughnut and got it to try to make up for me missing out on Donalds Doughnuts... it was good, but not quite the same. Starbucks... sorry they are a little dry.

Another favorite part of the trip is always going through the tunnels! Yes I make Jim honk still and we decided they should have their own radio station that comes on everyones' radio while they are in the tunnel!

When you come out the other side of the tunnel you are in Virginia!

Our first view of Pilot Mountain! Unfortunately right after this we got stopped up in traffic due to a bad accident up ahead.

Look at all that traffic! We inched along for miles.... it totally killed our time getting home... we would have made it in 9 1/2 hours had it not been for this.

We narrowly got this picture of the North Carolina state line picture. It snuck up on us!

Closer to Pilot Mountain.

Tucker finally fell asleep... I think he finally realized he was not going to be left behind somewhere. Well that and he also had a very busy weekend.

And the last state line! Yeay for being back in South Carolina!

This church right outside of Bennettsville. Which also has a beautiful courthouse.

We were also pleased to see more reasonable gas prices! It is like thirty or forty cents more expensive in Ohio! Yikes!

Ohio Trip Part 6

To keep the busy weekend going... On Sunday we woke up, tore down and packed up our tent and camping supplies. Then we went home, showered and got ready for church and attended the 11:30 service. We got to see some of our favorite people and sat in front of The Ford's (remember them from mini golf and visiting the fire house). There were a lot of other people happy to see me and meet Jim. I love the people at Dresden United Methodist Church! :o)

After church we went to Adornetto's and ate lunch. I got my favorite Tuscan Chicken and a salad. Katy and I went and bought Katy's homecoming dress and made it home in time for her to try it on and show it to us all before it was time to got to the West M biddy league football game where we got to see some of our favorite tornadoes.

Yea basically my whole family lives in the West M district... I was the lone TV Scottie.

Jim got some time holding baby Ben some more. This was before the epic vomiting incident. Luckily it wasn't Jim who was the one holding him when he got sick... although I think his daddy earned what he got. Moral of this story is you should not feed babies Airhead candy.

After the game there was more campground family time.

Ahh the North Star. Again so many many memories... although it seems a lot smaller than it did when I was little. The stage and playground used to seem SO far away.

Look! Here is Jim walking in about to be initiated into the tribe!

And here are all the new members.... smiles all around! Ogga Booga!

I think Jim completely enjoyed the camping experience. He even told me that we need to repeat this at least a couple times a year. I could not agree more... having my entire family all hanging out in the same place for a whole weekend is so much fun. Sniff sniff miss you guys already! Counting down to June 2011!

Ohio Trip Part 5

 Saturday we got up bright and early and drove to Jim's dad's house to hang out for the day. We  were greeted by Dillon... who likes rubbing up against a bush that has burrs in it and nipping my arms, he also doesn't understand the concept of "No" very well either.

We showed off some wedding pictures and talked for a bit. I was excited to hear that Jim's dad reads my blog :oD!!!! (I think that means I officially have more than 9 followers!!)  Soon enough we were outside and playing with Jim's wedding gift. Remember how I got a camera? Jim got a shot gun. So he had to show it to his dad and try it out a bit.

Jim's dad also tried it out.

I don't think he likes it at all. What do you think.

And while they played with guns I got bored and took pictures with my toy. (my camera)

I LOVE fall in Ohio! It was a bit more chilly than I had expected. I actually had on a t-shirt, sweatshirt, and a jacket. The wind was a killer. Notice Jim's sister Alex's coat and boots... LOVE them. I was happy to be sitting up on the fence with her... it's a good excuse to get out of shooting... "Oh no I don't need to try that gun... I am already up here, I'll just stay!" But seriously my favorite is the 22, very little kick.

After they got in all they got in plenty of shooting time we went inside and talked more, watched tv, I cuddled with puppies (Charlie and Brutus love me).

By the time we got back to the campground there were plenty of family members to greet us. We made hobo pies. My cousin Debby had never had them before and she agrees they are the best thing... we don't get how Katy doesn't like them. Oh and by the way my hobo pie maker doesn't melt in the fire... Haylee I think you need to upgrade.

Oh and my Aunt Donna likes her hot dogs charred. There is not enough ketchup in the world for me to eat mine like that! Jaxon also likes his marshmallows on fire... I honestly think he enjoys the blowing them out part more than he likes the burnt marshmallows, but it was fun to assist.

This is my cousin Debby's little man who is teething and totally adorable.

A toast to Wild Bill who passed away. We used to camp here as a family all the time... as a matter of fact this is where my chewy bacon love came about. We all have so many great memories of Bill and Ruth Ann.

Look at everyone hanging out... this is what I miss so much.

Tucker was not sure what to think of this new style of camping... there was actually grass and a lot more people.

Jim wanted taco in a bag again Saturday, when he went to make it my cousin Jeremy encouraged him to just eat it in the bowl since there wasn't much left.... it didn't take much to convince Jim this was a good idea. He was applauded for finishing it all, although he will be teased about this for a LONG LONG time.

Have you ever seen the Piggy goes "Wee weee" all the way home Geico commercial? Yes my family has adopted it as their own and drove around the campground bringing joy to all the other campers and themselves.

Tucker would not sit on Katy or Alicia's laps at the campground and prefered Haylee. He didn't even notice where I was for a long time.

Again it was a cold night in and we were both thankful for great sleeping bags!

Ohio Trip Part 4

Thursday we spent the night with Matt and Andrea so when we got up we had to drive back to Zanesville. On our way through Newark we passed the Longaberger office building. We also really like 161 now that it is all opened up and the speed limit increased.

I was relieved when we were finally back in Muskingum County and since it was lunch time we had to squeeze in one of our check list items. Yes, Zanesville has moved up in the world since they have a Chipotle.

Let's see how well you know us. Can you guess which one is mine and which one is Jim's? 

We even shared some of our food with this little birdie who was watching us... by the way eating outside is not such a great idea when it's windy. 

Tucker enjoyed his time staying at my parents' house. I think he enjoyed being around another dog and three more people to pet and pay attention to him.

After lunch and a little rest at home we went and picked Katy and her friend up from school and then went to visit my grandparents. Then it was time to pack up and go to the campgound!  Yeay Wild Bills! It is crazy how little it seems to have changed in all of these years.  Here is the main entrance.

And the main part of the campground. You can see the stage, playground, pool, and store in this picture.

We had to set up our tent first but then it was time to spend some quality time with the Paul side of the family. We had some wonderful taco in a bag and some meat balls.