What I've Learned on the Road - Guest Post by my Daughter Emily

Today's post is my first Guest Post.  My 17-year-old daughter Emily journaled some of her thoughts about our four months on the road and it's just too good not to share with the world! 

From My Emily:

I haven’t written much about our trip.

Mostly because I’ve been living, in a richer and scarier way than ever before.

Not knowing where I’m going to be living next week is scary. Not knowing what might happen in the next three days is scary. Not knowing my surroundings is scary. Not knowing if my cell phone and wifi will work at my next temporary home is scary. Knowing I won’t hug my best friends for at least six months is scary. Knowing I won’t have a house when I enter the Lone Star State is scary.

I’ve traded those securities for a life full of things I will probably never get a chance to do or see again.

I have jumped in the current of a lake carved by lava thousands of years ago in Firehole Canyon, Wyoming.  I have climbed a mountain (albeit it was a small one, but still!!). I have stood by with huge eyes as a buffalo walked five feet in front of me in Montana.

I have seen purple lightning strike right next to a vivid rainbow in Wyoming's blood-red sky. I have laughed until I cried under the stars of Tennessee with my brother. I have seen an arm of the Milky Way in Wisconsin. I have seen the sun rise over Lake Michigan and swam in its freezing embrace. I have seen mud bubbling out of the earth’s belly and Old Faithful bursting out in astonishing glory in Yellowstone Park. Zip-lined through the Indiana woods, six feet off the ground as branches whipped my legs. 

I have walked through the Creation Museum’s startlingly lifelike version of Eden, a place I have longed for and wondered about my entire life. Hiked through the wooded hills of Indiana. Watched the Nolichucky river rapids sweep over boulders like a crashing, mad stampede. Seen glaciers for the very first time in Montana. Slept under shooting stars in Washington. Bogged for crawdads in Montana. Ate at the original KFC. Stepped into Texan dinosaur footprints that dwarfed my size-10 foot. Seen moonlight shining through Arkansas’ fog. Eaten sweet wild mulberries right off a tree in both Indiana and Tennesee. 
Walked over ground that Laura Ingalls Wilder, one of my heroes, regularly treaded on in De Smet, South Dakota. Screamed on roller coasters I was dragged on at the Mall of America. Ridden a horse (without assistance!) through a Tennessee wood. Driven just feet from the edge of a cliff in Glacier Park. Sat stone-still in the van as huge bighorn sheep rushed past us in the parking lot.

I’ve learned:

·         that you never drink out of still water. Pick clear, quickly-moving water.

·         that purification and lavender oil smell really good combined

·         I don’t *need* Starbucks every week (now it’s much more of a treat than it ever was!)

·         what reasonable propane costs are

·         how to assemble a campground in less than a half hour

that apples and avocados ripen each other very quickly

·         fig bars go amazingly well with coffee

·         hot showers are a luxury and not a necessity

     how to elevate a camper

·         how to set up five beds in ten minutes

·         you don’t have to have a silent environment to write or work

          you don’t NEED to download the new Skillet album the DAY it comes out

·         baking soda and lavender draw out infection

·         how to wash a full dishload by hand in 20 minutes (paper plates are my best friend!)

·          and many, many other little tips and tricks I never would have had to learn outside of my current lifestyle.

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 Not to mention the household things I’ve learned. I’ve been using a lot of essential oils, which are now my go-to medicines: mint really helps headaches and girl cramps and PanAway helps with stressed or strained muscles and knots! I’ve learned how to cook large meals on a foot-wide stove or over a fire. When Mom was gone in China for a week, I got a taste of what she goes through every day of her life. 

I think the most difficult things for me to master have all been internal. I never thought of myself as selfish, materialistic, or vain, but when we moved into my moving home, my supposed good virtues got a prompt smack in the face. Learning to get along with ten other people in limited space has required a lot of dying to self, patience, and biting my tongue till it hurts, even if I’m 99% sure I’m right. Letting go of most of my earthly possessions was harder than I thought, but four months later, I’m starting to forget I actually have more stuff in storage (most of which will probably be given away!) Having just a few feet to primp and preen has been embarrassingly rough, actually. I used to spend an excessive amount of time on how I looked, curling or straightening my hair or painting eyeliner wings. Getting over having noisy bunk mates is still being mastered, but I’ve found wearing a smile and staying quiet is in the best interest for everyone.
  

Being cautious and careful with money is a new thing for me. Sure, I might have watched my account back home, but I also had three jobs that ensured I would always be comfortably topped off. Now, most of my money is either for things I actually NEED or an occasional treat. Imagine that!!

I feel as if I was in a comfortable, safe dream, and then was whisked away to a foreign and frightening world that was all the same beautiful and breathtaking, a world that very suddenly ripped off dross and revealed gorgeous gold beneath, however painful it was.

I’m still in the refiner’s fire and am still learning every day, like my brother learning how to walk. My legs are shaky and nervous, but I want to see what else is out there, and walk into the rest of God’s world I haven’t yet laid eyes on. 

Emily, I'm so proud of you.  I'm proud of the way you think of others. I'm proud of the way you have embraced change.  I'm proud of the way you have chosen to see things through new eyes when you could have just chosen to bide your time until we got home.  I'm proud of the growth and maturity I see in you.  Phil 1:6 makes me think of you, "He who began a good work in you will be faithful to carry it on to completion in Christ Jesus."

BEACH FUN!

Yesterday we spent the day at Indiana Dunes State Park.  We decided that the name of Lake Michigan should actually be The Michigan Sea.  

IT'S GINORMOUS!

We were on the southeastern side of the beach and could see the Chicago skyline faintly in the distance.

After they got used to the clear, cold water, the kids splashed and played all day.  

Caleb mostly ate sand and watermelon

The water Lily Anne is standing in, is from a creek that flows down from the oak forest above the beach.  The oak trees drop acorns, branches and leaves which have tannins in them which make the water the orangy color you see in this pic.  The lake water was very blue and clean. 

Sarah got cold, so we buried her in the sand with a monkey floatie for a pillow... if only we had some peeled grapes to feed her!

Abbie being too cool for this floatie!

My Biggest Boy and my Baby Boy 

We left for home sleepy, sandy, sunburned, and happy. 

Love, love, love the beach.

p.s. there are ALOT of rules at this beach. For the amount of time and man power spent enforcing these rules they could have had enough life guards to open the other parts of the beach and let people use whatever floaties they want.  I kept feeling like, You have got to be kidding me!  This is a BEACH, PEOPLE! Lighten up!

Creation Museum, Petersburg, KY, Prepare to Believe

Oh wow, I am pretty much speechless, so I'm writing a blog post, lol!!!

We just left The Creation Museum I feel saturated with truth, and hope, and boldness!

My kids are asking questions about sin and salvation, origins and the future.  

If you have to choose between this and Disneyworld for a vacation, choose The Creation Museum.  It's not as big or as expensive, but the quality of the exhibits and the TRUTH your family will take away from this are invaluable.  

First of all I want to thank the two families who gave us passes so we could enjoy the museum FREE OF CHARGE! You read that right.  What would have cost us around $200.00, was provided for us for free.  All tickets are two day passes so we will be going back tomorrow to see more!  It definitely takes two days to take it all in. 

From the first display replicating the "Lucy" bones found in Africa to the last exhibit we experienced, the planetarium, God's word was the cornerstone of all the information presented. 

Questions were raised about all the information which is so often presented as fact.  How many times have you read or heard, "Millions and millions of years ago...". We just did recently when we visited Mammoth Cave, the Ranger who led our tour authoritatively informed us that the caves were ten million years old.  In contrast, when he talked about what happened in the caves a few hundred years ago, he was more vague and willing to admit he didn't know how work was done by native peoples or how certain artifacts that were found in the caves were used.  There was no question however, when he explained that the caves were formed over millions of years by underground rivers.  

At The Creation Museum, there was so much to see and absorb and we were encouraged to ask questions and seek answers in God's Word.

Emily's favorite was The replica Garden of Eden which was absolutely beautiful.  Considering the pre-fall condition of the world was a new experience.  Imagine a world without pain or death.  Stop. Really imagine that. It was perfect, and it's where we are headed in the future in the new heaven and the new earth.  Lions lay down with lambs, it happened once, it will happen again, and you will want to be there!

Or maybe the espresso stand was Emily's favorite!

Doug's favorite was Walking through the life size Noah's ark where we considered that Noah was given a huge project by God to do.  He was faithfully obedient to Gods instruction resulting in the salvation of himself and his family.  God judged the entire planet, but provided a way of escape for the righteous who obeyed Him.

Ben's favorite was the planetarium where we flew through the skies and felt like we were really In a spaceship seeing the planets and stars.  It prompted the kids to ask, "If there are so many galaxies, what makes Earth so special?" While we don't have a perfect answer, we can consider that because God sent His one and only Son here to die for mankind, He thinks the inhabitants He created for Earth are pretty special.

At the dragon exhibit we observed the connection of the phenomenon of dragon lore across the centuries and the continents, presented creatively with concepts of young earth and dinosaurs cohabiting with humans. This was both educational and entertaining.  

We got to hear Buddy Davis talk about the T-Rex and how interpretations of it have changed over the years.  Archeologists and paleo-artists are really part detective, part artist and much of what they create is interpretive. We made our own t-Rex sculptures from green clay, straws, and toothpicks. 

Finally at the end of the day, we met Ken Ham the founder and creator of The Creation Museum.  We were able to thank him for his work, tell him about the big billboard in North Houston we were excited to see go up, and take a few pictures with him.  Being in the presence of believers was a breath of fresh air, a sigh of relief, and a sense of renewal.  

Visit www.creationmuseum.org and start planning your trip today!

Bourbon, Yes, I'm writing about Bourbon!

Yes, I'm writing a blog post about Bourbon.  Actually, our experience touring The Makers Mark Distillery was delightful!

When we entered the first building we were greeted by a young lady who was blown away by our family size.  She thought Doug was joking when he said we were bringing nine children. Ha! Happens all the time. The building, which was essentially a museum, was very hands on and entertaining.  Laid out like a house with a baby book of the patriarch on the table along with fruit and fresh flowers, we felt cozy and welcome.

Going into the den, we saw pictures of the family on the wall, imagine our surprise when they started TALKING to us!  Everyone gathered around to hear the history!  Natalie enjoyed flipping through some books on the shelf

and Abigail answered the old-fashioned phone when it rang then she heard a story about the family.

Emily and I looked through the sketch book the Samuels used to create the name and logo.  (We are pretty sure Zane would be geeking out over it!)





Apparently, Mrs. Samuels had quite the hand in discovering the recipe for the bourbon because of her mad bread baking skills.  In the kitchen, I got some pictures of her hand written bread recipes and flipped through her cookbook! 

Her notes were extensive both about chemistry of ingredients, textures, and taste.  Emily loved the black and white checkerboard tile and the look of the 1950s kitchen where cold lemonade was available for the guests.




This clock is very similar to one my grandma had in her kitchen all my growing up years.



We all gathered on the back porch for our tour and the kids were very well behaved and interested in the process.  The unique quality of Makers Mark Bourbon is that it's made from wheat not rye making it sweeter and smoother than other bourbons.

We saw where they make the mash, where they filter and distill it finally putting it in barrels which are aged like wine.  The barrels they use are from white oak from Arkansas which adds to their unique flavor.

Lily Anne and Sarah spotted a kitty laying in the shade outside the bottling room so we hung out there and let them play with her.  She was a sweet and patient kitty letting them pet her.



The bottling room was really loud, but very active and colorful, it held everyone's attention.

Finally we got to the Tasting room which had some great artwork on the walls, even a neat mosaic.  Doug and I tasted four different kinds of bourbon, honestly, they all tasted the same to me, but I have a cold and my nose is very stuffy, not ideal conditions for any kind of tasting!

After the tasting,we all got a delicious chocolate Bon Bon before going into the gift shop.  In the gift shop one can dip a bottle in their trademark red wax, Doug even dipped a baseball cap bill for a unique look.

We met a nice couple here from Hawaii for a wedding.  Their daughter and my little girls, Sarah and Lily Anne hit it off.  Fast friends, they played, twirled and ran around like little girls do.  The mom and I talked baby carriers and traveling with kids.  

It was a sweet encounter in an unlikely place... Two moms of littles hitting it off at a whiskey distillery!

I don't normally drink bourbon (aka whiskey) but seeing the process by which it's made was quite interesting and a fun (if not educational) experience.

Reflections on Tennessee

Tennessee definitely had a rough start for us. 

Arriving at 8:30pm after a 650 mile drive with sickness on the horizon, we should have known it was going to be rough.  I won't rehearse it but you can read about it here.  

We started out on the road Monday morning in Hot Springs, Arkansas and we drove… and drove… and drove… 650 miles from Hot Springs, Arkansas to Lebanon, Tennessee.  It was too far.  

(But at least we got some good car pics!)

We made a stop in Memphis to see some Elvis history and unfortunately it’s all tourist trappy (there’s a reason that rhymes with crappy…) 

But we did see Sun Records. 

The most memorable thing about that was being honked at by a punk-looking girl as we were crossing the street to the studio only to realize the girl was an employee returning from a break.  Welcome to Memphis.  Memphis was dirty and unfriendly.  We only drove through it but didn’t see anything that made us want to go back. 

We arrived at our campsite an hour east of Nashville at about 8:30pm and were in bed by 10:30pm.  Getting all settled in, we found good laundry facilities, rustic bathrooms, a spacious playground, and NO INTERNET OR CELL SERVICE.  It cramped our style, but we survived!

I have to say our experience at Show Hope was the turning point completely redeeming our time in Tennessee.  

Several of us rode horses.  (You'll have to ASK DOUG to post his video...maybe if he gets enough requests...)

I took the kids to the State Capitol and Tennessee State History Museum while Doug was in Houston puking his guts out.  We saw some amazing architecture and enjoyed reading all the Memorials in the courtyard.

All in all I'd say our time in Tennessee has been a "win".  It's time to move from Nashville to Knoxville today.  We are looking forward to seeing more history in Davy Crockett Park and touring God's handiwork in the Great Smoky Mountains.  

Hope you're enjoying touring with us.  We are missing our friends so leave a note if you can, we'd LOVE to hear from you!