Road Trip 2010

Holy crud- where do I start?! I just got back from a road trip that took me a month- to Canada and back. The point of this road trip was to see friends that I might not get to see other wise, spend time with my family in Canada and to raise support. A lot happened along the way: My good ole’ Camry hit 100k miles, I had an encounter with a bat, I listened to entirely too much Pandora, got two oil changes and have a new appreciation for my iPhone- which saved me numerous times and provided lots of car entertainment (music, sermons, podcasts). I did my best to plan things ahead of time and in true fashion all of my plans got rearranged- luckily God had some pretty awesome things in store for me! Here’s some highlights:

North Carolina, Windy Gap

Got to visit the YoungLife camp that I was the horse wrangler intern at two summers ago- best summer of my life I’d say. A lot of the people I met at Windy Gap, and other YoungLife friends happen to be there this summer. Such a great time! Went on adventures around Asheville with good friends, rode horses, went on a hike, and much more. If you're ever in Asheville go toSunny Point Cafe for breakfast- it's unbeatable. Picture below is Jenny, Paula, Hampton and I and above is me with the blue shirt boys- Micah, Brent and Madison!

Muncie, Indiana

Met up with my family and got to see Kathy, my step mom’s, great family- pictured above. Ended up at Taylor University (right outside Muncie) one day while picking up a U-Haul which was fun because some of Summit’s Staff went to college there. Then drove my car to Chicago where I left it while I was in Canada.

Nestor Falls, Canada

For eight days I got to spend time with my family on an island in the middle of nowhere. No electricity, which eliminates a lot of distractions- I loved it. I didn’t hear a phone ring, a toilet flush, an alarm sound, or the sound of sirens for 8 days straight. AMAZING. I think everyone should get away from civilization or at least turn off their phones for a few days (or more if you can pull it off!). I got to really relax, which is hard for me because I naturally am go, go, go! I had time with God every morning on the dock looking out over the lake, while wearing a sweatshirt (woohoo!). We fished a lot and I finally realized why people get so addicted to it. Got uncomfortably close to a bat that was staying in the cabin we eat meals in. There are pictures on Facebook of Canada. My car was left in Chicago so to get back to it I flew from Duluth, MN to Chicago. The Duluth airport was a crazy little establishment- I waited a good half an hour for a smoothie- at the only place serving food in the whole airport, then they gave my 16 year old nephew who was flying with me to Chicago (and then on to Orlando) a ticket for Mary Ann Smith accidentally so when we got to security they wouldn't let us through and then when I went back there was no one to be found at the ticket counter- so funny how different small airports are, and to top it off they confiscated the jam I bought in Canada and forgot was in my carry on. What's frustrating about that is not that I was silly and forgot it was in there but when I asked the security lady if she could bring it home and enjoy it she told me they throw away everything! Stole my jam and then just threw it away- lame. This is my dad, Kathy and I and their little hunting dog OB (stands for Outer Banks- he's not Star Wars themed).

Chicago, Indianapolis, Nashville and Jackson- MS

Chicago was my favorite new city I visited- it was like NYC but cleaner- in my opinion. My friend Shelby (pictured above at Ed Debevic's) showed me all around CHI town, she lives off Division near Wicker Park- fun part of town. I had a situation where my car was 30 miles South of O’Hare airport and I had to figure that out. I ended up taking public transportation the whole way- subway, train and then walked a few miles. It was empowering and I also had the thought ‘A year from now I could be doing this same thing except with ten people in tow and not a single English speaking person to help me.’

Loved the new friends I met in Indianapolis and Nashville. I went to Fido’s and Sweet Cece’s in Nashville- which are two must haves if you’re ever in that area. In Jackson, MS I got to see some friends, the Denley’s, who just had a little girl- Leighton (pictured above). Had so much fun with them! It was relaxing and so great to catch up and see their new life in Jackson. Leighton is a babe and I loved getting to spend time with her- what a treat!