I have to say, that for the most part, it was not a bad drive from Texas to Maryland. Did we have a few hiccups? Of course! Like the first day when Skye had a hot chocolate from Starbucks that didn't sit well. I think she finally lost it somewhere in Arkansas. That was something that enforced my belief that children don't appreciate their mothers! Skye was talking to one of the Grandparents about it and kept saying how awesome her dad was for pulling over the car in time. Of course I was the one standing next to her, wiping down her legs with baby wipes a making sure her hair was out of her face. (think splash back) No thanks for me though. (sigh)

Day two wasn't as exciting. I think the highlight was a gas station in Tennessee that had a plethora of bongs for sale. I do mean a plethora!

We arrived in Maryland on Friday and, after saying hello to Grammy and Grand pop, Josh and I left for the Urgent Care Clinic where I was diagonsed with a kidney infection. It was quite a bad one that lasted the entire visit. I missed the Oriels game and the trip to the Inner Harbor. I managed to get up for the kids to a u-pick and to change Skyes hair from pink to purple. The hard part was that Jason and Liz had brought the boys - Justice and Branson - up for a visit. I hated missing spending more time with them. Skye and Jax hadn't seen their cousins in 4 years but you couldn't tell it. They all get along really well.

Jason, Liz and the boys left on Tuesday and we wrapped up our visit on Friday. It was really hard for Grammy to say goodbye to us, but we know that there is a German visit in our future!

Enjoy the pics of our trip.

The Cross Country Drive

The pictures are a little out of order so bear with me.

Here is the family at the Oriels game. from closest to farest - Jason,Skye,Jax,Justice,Branson, and Shelly (our cousin)

The hotel in Tennessee. It had only been open for 4 days. They didn't say they didn't allow pets, but we smuggled them in anyways. I mean - really - it had only been open fo 4 days. The puppies spot in the car.

The Tomchesson Family Bag Drag

Josh had an awesome idea to practice moving with all our luggage. He wanted to make sure we had thinned it out enough that we could move quickly and efficiently through the airport. The children were warned that they would be in charge of their bags and backpacks as well as a dog apiece. SO, Josh had the kids take everything out into the parking lot of Mimi's apartment and RUN as quickly as possible to the other end. It went pretty well. Skye claimed we were trying to kill her, but she survived. I think that we should be able to move easily through the airports. If not, I am sure I will post it here..........

Visiting Abilene

We came to Abilene to visit a little bit with Mimi before the move. On our first night in town, Mimi took a tumble and skinned up her arm pretty good. We went to a couple of doctors appointments on Monday and she checked out just fine.

On Tuesday, we decided to go to Frontier Texas. It is a local museum that highlights the ways of life over 100 years on the Texas Frontier. The kids really enjoyed the displays. It was all very high tech.

We learned about the hardships for not only the native Indians, but the white settlers and soldiers as well. Here are a few pictures from inside the exhibits......

After visiting Frontier Texas, we went to another museum that showed the different steps in creating pop up books. It was an interesting, educational experience......(They would not allow cameras)

If you are in Abilene, check both exhibits out!
It is going to be more than difficult to leave Mimi behind. We are looking forward to having her move in with us when we come back. (She has ALMOST agreed to it!!!!!!)

Block Party

I would like to say a big thank you to all our friends on the block for having a BBQ on the 4th of July. Hilda and Robert, Sharon and Brian, Patti and Jose, Robert and Julie, DJ and Eric, Jennifer and Steve and the new comers Kathy and her friend. It may have been 1000 degrees, but it was still a great time. We will miss everyone until they come and visit.......

Packing

We didn't really ever believe that moving day would arrive and then all of a sudden it was here. They spread it out over three days which probably could have been done in two. Packing, tagging and then loading. It went pretty well until loading day. They only sent three fellas out to load us. They didn't send anyone to wrap us. (when going overseas, they wrap everything in paper...EVERYTHING) The loaders left the warehouse at 9 am but didn't arrive at our house until 11 am. The also didn't send enough crates. We finished up around 7:30 that evening. That isn't too bad considering it all. It was only disheartening because we had all these wonderful amenities at our hotel - free drinks, swimming, hot hoers derv's - and we didn't get to enjoy any of them. Maybe while we are on the road...........