I'M FINALLY HOME!

After traveling more than 2,400 miles across six states in the course of a week and a half I have finally returned to New Orleans in one piece and I couldn't be happier to be back!

I left at 5:45 a.m. Friday, May 23 and drove through Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri and Iowa and arrived at my parents house about 10:15 p.m. As you can see from the photos, I stopped at a few Starbucks on the way. Now, there are a few of you out there (you know who you are!) who said it couldn't be done. That was just fuel for the fire. :) I love to drive and I love a challenge so this was right up my alley. It really wasn't as bad as it could have been. The Lord blessed me with sunshine for all but a 15 minute downpour and my car behaved wonderfully.

Leaving the Yellow House was hard as I knew everything would be different when I returned, and it is, but the adventure was also a great one. I planned to stop a few more places than I actually did and see a few more things, but after I got started I realized I just wanted to get to my destination. I stopped briefly in Jackson, Mississippi for my morning coffee and again in Memphis, Tennessee for lunch. I planned to go downtown Memphis to get my official Starbucks Memphis mug but realized I left my map in the trunk. I take pride in my sense of direction so I ventured into town without it and don't you know I parked my car and looked up and there was Starbucks not half a block away! Amazing! I was so proud of myself.

My final major stop was St. Louis, Missouri for dinner. That was a quick trip to Panera (one of at least 7 during my trip because we don't have them here.) and back on the road. I was doing well until southern Iowa. By that time I had been at it for 14 hours and I was so ready to be out of the car! Given the chance to do it again (which I likely won't) I would have started earlier so I could have finished the trip with a bit of light.

But, when all was said and done, even with paying as much as $3.85 a gallon, it was still cheaper than any plane ticket I found. God is good.

Andrew's high school graduation was Sunday, May 25 and his party was the day before. It was a great time to be with family and spend time with many supporters and friends. It was also fun to see so many old pictures of the boys and myself and spend time talking about memories.

After Marion I headed off to Des Moines to catch up with former coworkers, friends and people around Waukee. It was fun to see the changes and drive around looking at what was my whole world for two years. It's hard to imagine it sometimes now. As I drove past my old apartment it was strange to think it belonged to someone else and it was strange to know there was so much about the town that I now don't know because I spent so much time knowing everything that was going on.

I wish I had taken more pictures to put here of my many meetings with people, but we shared a lot of laughs and had a lot of fun. Thank you to everyone who was such a blessing. I attended a retreat with many friends from my former Sunday school class and it was great to take some time so far away from the rush of traffic and schedules. I do miss quiet drives into the country and one night had the joy of driving home after a rainstorm and listening to the quiet roll of distant thunder.

Even so, it was hard not to miss what I now call home. Even with the heat that they tell me is not so bad today (it’s a heat index of 96) and the increasingly cramped life in a camper, I love it. I couldn't wait to return and every mile seemed longer than the last as John and I traveled home yesterday. It was so much better to travel with someone else. We laughed a lot and have a whole list of quotes that are likely not funny to anyone else, but they kept us busy and on our toes. Even though we tried to hurry, it was still a 16.5 hour trip and we are exhausted today. John is being a trooper out in the heat working with some EFCA staff guys and I am catching up on several projects.

Thank you to all who shared good times, homes, beds, food, time, prayers and financial support as I was back. I continue to ask for prayer as we head into a season of work with youth groups from across the nation. Prayer requests, as always, will be listed to the left side of my blog.

And if you are reading this, thank you for making it all the way through this short novel!