Westward Ho! Part I

Well, I have written plenty about plenty of nothing, it is time to write about one of the most exciting things Melissa and I have shared together- our Big Drive... Hattiesburg, Mississippi to Vancouver, Washington. As any First Grader will tell you, a story without pictures is just plain boring, so I wanted to wait until we had our pics downloaded.

Crossing the Mississippi River for the last time as official Mississippians was our first milestone; we were excited about all we would see before crossing the Columbia River and arriving at our new home.

Our first stop: Fort Worth, Texas is the home of our longtime friends Tom and Olivia and their 2 buckaroos Gabe (4) and George (newborn). Gabe became fast friends with both of our dogs and even felt obliged to re-name them. Bug became "Napkin" after showing his efficiency at erasing BBQ sauce from Gabe's hands whilst eating ribs on Saturday night. Rizzo became "Blackie", proving that the imagination of kids is often overrated.

Sidenote on Gabe: He is the only 4 year-old I know that can tell the difference between a Sable and a Taurus or between a RAV4 and a CR-V without reading the nameplate. This kid is nuts about cars and I scored major cool points with him by showing up in a big truck.

It's not easy to keep a restful Sunday while on the road, but we decided to do our best and stayed over in Ft. Worth for church and family dinner with Olivia's parents. Thanks Y'all.

We shot west through the great expanses of West Texas along Interstate 10. I spyed 3 or 4 antelope while Melissa was napping, we saw wind power at work,

And we became official "cotton pickers"

before leaving The South and arriving in New Mexico- "The Land of Enchantment".