We're Here!

Edit: I know I said that I would edit the pics as I lay here on the couch, but I just realized that that involves selecting which pictures to post as well as changing the size. So I'll just pawn that off on Jesse. Too much effort. Sorry.

We loaded up the truck (we used ABF, which I recommend, but tape everything well because things come back REALLY dusty) and left Friday morning. We drove up to Ann Arbor, MI (8 hours) and stayed Saturday and half of Sunday with good friends of ours, Ben and Telia. We had a great time seeing UM's campus, visiting local stores, and getting cider donuts. We went to church the next morning with them and then left after church to continue our trip. (Sidenote: I saw Brigg Turner's sister at church! What a small world.)

After leaving MI, we drove through Wisconsin, which doesn't deserve as bad a rap as it always gets. The portion we saw from I-90 was really pretty.

We drove through Minnesota, which was also pretty for a while. One thing about MN, though, is that they had a LOT of windmills. Lots. I didn't mind them, but Jesse found them creepy.

After Minnesota, of course, was South Dakota. That state also was...good. Lots of flatness. So flat that you felt like the road was pressing you up into the sky, and being on the slightest hill made you feel like you were driving off the edge of the world, because all you could see around you was the small area of the hill you were on. But South Dakota gave us the Badlands, which name sounds cool enough. It was also pretty. Look:

Badlands occur on every continent. The unique structures are where a higher plain is eroding down and turning into a lower plain. The South Dakota Badlands are really cold during the winter, and super hot with no shade during the summer. That's why they're called bad.

Ian ran around:

Kellan enjoyed his warmth:

We took pictures of small rugged hills that look like mountains:

After the Badlands we went to see Mt. Rushmore. We had never been before, and I was actually really excited to get a picture of our family in front of the presidents. Isn't it the all-American thing to do?

Here are the big four:

And other shots:

Our family photo:

I guess when Jesse asked the gentleman to take our picture, it was ridiculous to assume he would know we wanted the humongous national landmark that was right behind us in the picture too. I think it was actually probably harder for him to get a picture of us without the mountain face than it would have been to take a picture of us with it in the background.

After that we moved on and drove through Wyoming, then into Montana, Idaho, and Washington. Here are some more pictures:

Since we've arrived, we've just been getting settled and working at REI. Oh, and I guess we've been getting sick. We've all been sick at least once, most of us twice, since we've been here. But Jesse has still managed to get started studying for his tests, and I've thrown all my energies into wishing for a great winter. I need a lot of snow to wash the bad taste of those DC winters out of my mouth.