I knew it was going to be hard to leave home, but I never knew it would have been this hard. Leaving Iowa City was a tough day for me. Saying goodbye to my friends and newly found family was extremely hard. I cried for the first hour of the trip back to Audubon. I thought I was having mini panic attacks thinking about how I'd never wake up and drive to Stuff Etc ever again and I might not ever see some of those smiley faces. After getting to Audubon I was at ease to be with my family. We hung out and did the usual play and eat routine that we normally do. That night was by far the hardest. I cried myself to sleep wondering if I was making the right decision. I wanted badly to just say I am not going and drive back to Iowa City and unpack my car. The next morning didnt help either. It was much harder saying goodbye to my parents than I had anticipated. My mom started to cry and I could tell my dad wasnt far from it either. I felt like they were disappointed with my decision. I felt HORRIBLE driving away and poor Andy had to listen to my bawl most of the remaining drive through Iowa! After a few hours of down time and not talking I finally started to come around. Driving out of the midwest was quite the adventure. There was way more to see than just corn fields so I was able to concentrate on better things.
 |
| Rock that Rheannon gave me to bring me good vibes! Dont worry girl, Ill set it in the moonlight every full moon so it can recharge!! |
 |
| Packin' up the Grand Am! My whole life fits in one car now! It was absolutely packed to the max and needless to say it was an interesting ride. |
 |
| Saying later to my best friend of 15 years!! |
 |
| More hugs! |
Driving through South Dakota my mom insisted that we had to pull off to see the birth place of the reason I exist, my grandpa! It was a tiny little town with nothing there, but it was nice to see where he came from. I wish I had more of a tour guide than just my mom via phone. I wasnt able to find most of what she wanted us to see.
 |
| I dont quite understand how someone can become soo sucessful coming from such a tiny limiting town. I am so proud of and lucky to have my grandpa in my life! He is such an inspiration. |
There was also this horrible little town called Wall, they advertized it for literally hundreds of miles. We swung through it really quick, I dont think Id waste my time going back but Andy thought it was a must see!
 |
| The "pretty" decor |
Our first night we ended up pulling off the interstate to find a hotel but all the hotels were booked for a wedding BUT the locally owned MOTEL had a room available...welcome to floral hell! It was so scary. I honestly thought for awhile that we might not make it through the night. It was straight out of the movie Vacancy. I even had to turn the tv on right away and flip through the channels to make sure we werent on there. I also tried pulling the mirrors of the walls just to double check that there was wall behind them!!
 |
| The windows didnt even shut all the way. It was almost like we were staying in a tiny camper...but worse. The walls were paper thin and we had the pleasure of being waken up very early to a cat meowing outside the door! |
 |
| We woke up and had some good breakfast at a local cafe. Lots of cowboys and several stares. You could tell we were out of place and people were wondering what the hell we were doing in their town. |
 |
| Eat your heart out Paris Hilton. A whole new way to tote around your dog! I had to take a picture, it was just too funny. |
 |
| Before we were even able to leave we realized how shot my breaks were so we went to a Dakota Lube to have them checked out. 150 dollars and 2 hours later we were finally back on the road. |
 |
| After 20 some hours in the car we finally reached Washington! I am absolutely amazed by how clean and beautiful it is here. I hate to say it, but I think I am going to love it here. Heres a preview picture of more to come in my next blog. I love you and miss you all so much!! |
