From Sea to Shining Sea

Yep, I drove my three boys from Jacksonville, Florida to Burbank, California by myself.  So this all came about....Mike was told MONTHS ago his job was going away.  We were holding out for a severance package.  Finally we had to give up and Mike went in to give his 2 weeks.  Turns out that day he found out if he stayed until May 2, he would get the severance.....That was awesome and all, except Baskin Robbins has a 4 week training program in Burbank, Ca and the class Mike was signed up for started April 21.  So after much thought and lots of lists, we decided to stay for the $$$ and I was going to go to training.  There were SO many details to figure out to make that happen. Mike was staying to work and for Isabelle to go to school.  They were going to pack up the house and I was taking the boys with me to California. So I left April 16 with the three boys. It went phenomenally well. The award for best riders go to Michael and Spencer....are we surprised?  Luke is still a pretty crappy traveler. The award for best listening ears at our stops goes to Spencer and Luke....once again, are we surprised?  Haha! 

But really it went so well.  I was nervous about getting everyone in and out of hotel rooms solo.  Just so happens, I have a best friend in Houston, an old roommate in El Paso, and a cousin just outside of Phoenix....PERFECT!  It was so fun to see them and have good stops.  The downside was wanting to stay up late talking and catching up. 

It was SO fun to see the scenery change literally "from sea to shining sea."  I took pictures of my view out my windshield.  Ignore the increased bugs as the pictures go along. :)  

I cannot believe how good my boys were.  Now, granted we had an iPad, a tablet, a Leapster, and a DVD player among other books, coloring things, action figures, cars, and whatnot.  Oh and food....tons of food! I gave them food anytime they asked for it.  

"The Wall of Trees"  This is the view pretty much from Jacksonville until Alabama/Lousiana-ish

Then it opens up to lots of water

Just so happens mid-April is the PERFECT time to catch all the Texas Wildflowers.  It was GORGEOUS!!!  It was actually so sad driving around and through Houston without my parents there anymore.  

Spencer was perfect.  He just sat there sucking his thumb and sleeping.  He rarely made a peep. 

This is close to my parent's old house exit....sad to keep on driving. 

I stopped at my best friends mom's house. This was my second home as a teenager. Just so happened it was Easter weekend and Ashleigh was coming for the weekend anyway!!!!! She has a 5 year old and a set of twin babies a month older than Spencer.  Luke and Michael called this "The Baby Party."  I got in early in the afternoon and loved every second of being with my "aunt" and life long bestie. It was TOO SHORT!  Aunt Joy even made me home made bread and a loaf for the road.  DELICIOUS! 

More Texas WildFlowers

Texas has some awesome upgraded rest areas with playgrounds.  I sat on benches and fed Spencer while the boys went crazy and got some wiggles out. 

The part of Texas between the super green and the dirt. 

More Texas

Texas

And More Texas. :)  It was my longest day from Houston to El Paso.  This is what it looked like until California. 

I got in super late, but stuck around Saturday morning at my roomie's house, Nicole.  She has adorable kids.  My kids had a blast.  Somewhere I have a cute selfie of Nicole and I. 

Back in the car

Then we made it to the other side of Phoenix at my cousin, Lissa's house.  It's been YEARS since I've seen her. She was one of my closest childhood cousins.  It was so fun to catch up!

California, baby!

We rented a furnished two bedroom apartment for the month.  Moving in by myself with three kids was....an adventure to say the least.  Let's just say I was really glad I found the elevator after a couple of trips to the third floor. The strollers proved to be handy tools for the job. 

It's a strange picture of me, but after 5 days in the car....yeah.

Some fun facts from this trip....Glow sticks are SUPER fun for kids in the car at night. I don't like driving more than 12 hours in one day by myself. Individual hummus and peanut butter for baby carrots, precut celery and apples were fantastic snacks and completely worth the splurge on price for road trips.I didn't have that gross roadtrip feeling, we all kept up on our fruits and veggies and in general were happier. The bluetooth in my van is AWESOME, however, with children it's somewhat difficult to actually have a conversation with someone. I listened to 30 whole MINUTES of the 30 HOURS of audio books I had downloaded for me. I heard the movie Frozen at least 11 times....I quit counting after that.  We live on a beautiful Earth filled with variety.

All in all, it was a fantastic trip.  I gave myself a long time to get there for fear of something going terribly wrong and it was nice to go as we pleased. I had a fun time with just my boys.