We made it!

Well we have made it back to our home in Washington.
The trip here was not without it's share of adventure. But then again, in case you haven't noticed, my life seems to be full of adventure.

We had planned to leave mom's house at 4am Saturday morning, push through the drive, and make it home by 4 pm. As most of my plans go.... this one didn't fair too well.

We actually left my mom's closer to 5am... and while we were at the gas station, we got coffee and changed a burnt fuse, then got a phone call saying we forgot Hunter's Nerf blaster...so we went back to get that crucial piece of equipment... and eventually we did get out of town...

As soon as we got on to 80... it was INCREDIBLY windy! So windy it was helping you make lane changes whether you wanted to or not. The car I was driving began to make this terrific sounding noise... worried that it was a noise to be really worried about we pulled over as soon as we got to I-5 in a town named Dunnigan. This town has a very rich history of unscheduled stops for Jody and me, but i will leave that story for another time.
We parked and Jody started to check under the hood... all the fluids and such... we tried to hurry because we thought that the Pilot gas station sign was going to fall on us and end our trip...
Satisfied that everything was at the level that it should be... we were once again back on the road. The car was still making the noise... but we found out when the wind subsided in Red Bluff.... that it was merely the sound of the wind howling through some piece of the car when it blew in just the right direction... because after we got to Red Bluff... i never heard the noise again.

We stopped for brunch in Weed, Ca. and had a fairly uneventful drive up until Bend, Or. That is where it started to get fun.
We pulled into Bend about 4 pm... remember from above???... that was when i wanted to be home. .... sigh....
Bend is 3 1/2 hours from home on a good day. We stopped there because Jeremiah had to go potty...
Jeremiah.... hates clothes. Due to the fact that he was strapped into his car seat... the only articles of clothing he could dispense with were his shoes and socks. He needed these to go into the bathroom. So i set my keys down by his chair, and put on his shoes and socks. Then i got him out... and went to the front seat to make sure my wallet was hidden... and locked the doors, and shut them. The same millisecond that the door clicked shut, i remembered the keys were sitting in the backseat next to the chair.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jody's eyes met mine..... and he quietly turned and walked to HIS car to see what he could get out of the trunk to rescue the keys. Me, i just tried not to freak out.

Having nothing better to do for the foreseeable future we went in to use the potty. After that was done, i went to see how Jody was fairing. He was still at the trunk of his car trying to fabricate something out of who-knows-what to stick down the door as a makeshift "slim jim". I sheepishly tell him "sorry".... he looks at me and smiles....and tells me " your not just a job, sweetheart, your an adventure." He then walks over to my car and attempts to break in. I secretly pray that he will not get arrested for Grand Theft.

After nearly dropping the tip of his devise into the car door to be lost forever, Evan came back from inside the store with a large wire thing that sort of resembled a Shepard's hook... but they were trying to pass it off as a wire coat hanger. He tried this for awhile, and was not getting very far. Then this guy that pumps gas there comes over and asks him if he needs any help.... he says he might have some things that could help. Turns out he was a former tow truck driver, and had a stash of tools from back in the day. He let Jody use them and we were in the car in 5 min. (i think he came over about the time that my friend Katrina was praying we would be able to get the keys out... but only God knows the whole real timing of the situation... ) We thanked the guy PROFUSELY, asked if we could buy him coffee... wash his car... shine his shoes... anything to express our gratitude... he smile and told Jody that it was real nice of us to offer to repay him somehow... and told us to just drive safely and have a Merry Christmas.

Now that they key are out... it is 5:00... and starting to get dark. We are back on the road.... Now, if you know ANYTHING about me, you know i HATE to drive in the dark. I have great trouble seeing the road when there is oncoming traffic and the road is unlit. So we are on the road again after telling Jody he can NOT race ahead of me, and leave me with no tail lights to follow.

He zipped ahead of me about 5 min out of Redmond. It was my undoing. I started to cry. So now i can't see the road because of the headlights AND because i am crying. Something is on the inside of my windows, and it is making the outside look foggy.... and i am a wreck. Tayler is next to me praying out loud... telling me i am doing great... being my cheerleader... Hunter is wiggin out in the backseat cuz he is bored... and Jeremiah has decided NOW is the best time to begin making screaming noises because he is bored. Did i mention that i was a wreck?

I have Tayler text ahead to Jody's car... and tell him we need to stop in the next town to fix the window, cuz it is really hard to see and i am wiping it down on the inside every few minutes. The defroster isn't helping me see any better.

We get to Madras... and we get the window clean. Jody looks at me crying... ( i still hadn't been able to stop that yet...) He asks me if i want to just stop for the night... i nod yes. So now we hunt for a motel. We find one next to Taco Bell ( the kids were thrilled! ) I took a bath... and decompressed.... it was money well spent.

The next day we drove the rest of the way in the sunshine... and the road ice had melted... and i was a VERY happy mommy... I enjoyed listening to the sounds of Hunter run a military operation from the backseat of the car. He shot out the tires of the enemy ( the oncoming cars ) He threw grenades at the enemy bunkers ( lone trees ) and called in for air support to blow away the factory ( some poor farmers house with grain elevators next to the barn )... it was hilarious... they boy has a SERIOUS imagination!

Now we are home safe and sound.... and i can't wait to sleep in my own bed!