Wednesday, November 4th was the beginning of our journey to our new home in Maryland. We left Texas around 2 o'clock in the afternoon. The boys were set with books, Nintendo DS, Leapster 2, and portable DVD player. We were sad to leave everyone and everything familiar, but I think we were excited about the adventure before us. We spent our first night in Little Rock. The boys were very excited about swimming at the hotel. Unfortunately, we didn't arrive until 8:45 and the pool closed at 9. I promised the boys they could swim in the morning, without realizing the pool didn't open until 10. That was a much later start than I wanted to get, but a promise is a promise! We had a relaxing morning and ate lunch before we headed to Nashville for our second night.
Once again because of our late start we didn't arrive until dark. I think it was around 8:30, but it felt like midnight. We were so tired. I decided that we needed a day to just have fun and not be on the road. Friday we visited The Hermitage, General Andrew Jackson's home. It was so beautiful. The trees were yellow, orange, and red; perfect picture of autumn. We took a wagon ride around the grounds. We spent the morning there. That afternoon we went to the Adventure Science Center near downtown Nashville. It was a lot of fun exploring all the different exhibits. I think the boys' favorite was the one on normal bodily functions. Kind of gross, but really interesting! Right in the middle of the museum was a science playland that went all the way up to the ceiling. I think Luke counted nine floors. It was an amazing view of downtown Nashville! Of course we went swimming again that evening.
Saturday was our longest driving day. I think we started around 9 o'clock. We arrived around 7 that evening. We spent the night in Virginia. After dinner, we went swimming. After a good night's rest and a hearty breakfast we left friendly Virginia. We were anxious to get to our new home. We crossed the Shenandoah River into Maryland. It was so beautiful! We will definitely have to go back and spend more time there. After about 6 hours on the road Sunday, we finally arrived to our new home. We were so glad to be out of the car. Jarrell had decorated the door with a "Party Is Here" banner and the house with balloons. He had bought us a "Welcome Home" cake. I think he was glad to see us!
I was very grateful for our safe trip. The boys did great for such a long trip! They were amazing!
