Let's get this party started!

I’m getting ready to pull out of the driveway and start this great adventure!  The car’s about packed, and nearly all the provisions we planned to take with us are in there (I figure we’ll pass at least one Wal-Mart between here and Iowa).  Thanks to some great friends we even have some unanticipated fun stuff to take along:  thanks to Helen for the snacks and games; Christine for the mix CDs (themed and color-coded!); and our great sisters at the Women of Youth Apostles community for the coffee maker and travel mugs, book, and an assortment of cards and hooha that we are to open at designated times during the trip (more on that as the adventure unfolds).  Great, thoughtful, amazing people and we love you all!

 

Yesterday was a pretty stressful day for me.  My usual overambitious tendencies kicked in early and I tried to accomplish three days worth of errands in one afternoon.  Turns out, it’s not as easy to trick out the space/time continuum as they make it look on the SyFy (really? Who’s idea was that, anyway?) Channel. 

 

I finally pulled into the house about 8:30 last night, exhausted and frustrated that it wasn’t the day I had hoped it to be.  About 10pm I walked out to drop a letter in the mailbox and noticed that the sky had finally cleared as promised; the air was clear and the moon was brighter than one of those horrible CFC lightbulbs.  Walking back to the house I looked up to see a very bright shooting star streak across the sky right over the house.  It was awesome!  I don’t look for signs from above, I don’t ask for them or expect them, and I really don’t need them.  But at that moment I realized yesterday was the day God intended it to be – for reasons I still don’t understand – and today will be, too!

 

It would be easy to argue that this is about the worst possible time for me to be jumping in a car/truck/SUV to start a four-week trip across the country.  I won’t lie – a big part of me wants to stay on the east coast and be close to family right now.  But here we go!  Don’t get me wrong, I’m very excited about this trip – about seeing the country, seeing lots of friends, and spending time with Paul.

 

Thanks for your prayers and encouraging messages!  We’ll keep you posted on the remainder of the journey, much as Paul has documented with great wit and incredible detail his trip so far.

 

Time to jump in the car/truck/SUV (seriously, we need a name for this thing!) and go! Peace!