Day 44

SATURDAY: Day 44 of my sabBRADical, but Day 1 of our vacation. Planned to leave the house at 8 AM, but I've learned from youth events to have the time you tell everyone we are leaving and to have a time you really think everyone will be there and ready to go. I used to just push for the time we set, but people weren't there and I was stressed before we even left town. So I was hoping we would be gone by 9. Got out of Hesston by 8:45 so there was no stress at all...until I didn't obey the Garmin (GPS) and went out of town via Lincoln rather than the I-135. It took a few miles, but it caught up with me on where we were going. I like GPS systems, but in my opinion you still gotta know where you are going. Computers are way too literal and can take you places you don't wanna go. Lunch in KC at Subway. It rained so hard from Ottawa to half way between KC and St Louis. Wow! Made driving interesting. We are driving the King's Suburban. It did great in the weather and the kids love the DVD player. We weren't even gone before Carson wanted Pirates of the Caribbean.


We are staying at all Holiday Inn Express (HIE) hotels along the way. So I'll give my two cents on our accommodations. In St Louis, everything was small. Small room that was upgraded to a small suite. Small pool. Small workout room. Small business room. Small breakfast area. Union Station was just down the street and it was raining, so we headed over there for supper. Had Panda Express. I love the Kung "Pow" Chicken. By the time we were done with supper the sun was coming out so we headed downtown. Being the cheap guy I am (or should I say "money conscious") we drove around for 10 minutes looking for a parking spot. Didn't want to pay $6 to park to see the Arch. Found a great spot and walked to the Arch.


Rode in the those cool little pods to the top of the Arch. There's a couple great stories I could insert here, but MOST of what happens on the vacation stays on the vacation. Let's just say there were some memories that were made.


SUNDAY: Day 2- Got on the road by 9. Again, timing was a great success. Hilly roads and tons of trees highlighted the drive. Sal started us off with a devo about being attentive to the needs of others. Taco Bell in Indianapolis for lunch. Drove past the Colts football stadium. Amazing. Would love to see a game there. Carson hooked the Wii up to the DVD player. So Sal drove and I took a little snooze to the sound of light sabers. Got in a 45 minute nap and awoke as were coming through Columbus. Our HIE is in Zanesville, OH. About 45 minutes past Columbus. Brand new. Big room that was upgraded to an even bigger suite. Big pool. Big exercise room. Big breakfast area. Big business room that I'm sitting in right now. Very, very nice.