The Adventure

So our trip to visit friends in Missouri turned out to be quite an adventure. We left Thursday morning and drove to Yukon, OK just west of Oklahoma City. We stayed at a brand new hotel, which was very nice until we all got on our swim suits and went to check out the pool and hot tub. The water in the pool was cold. The water in the hot tub was colder! Big bummer! I was looking so forward to that. Greg and the boys swam for a little bit. I sat and watched.

The next day we drove to Nixa, Mo. It was cold and raining when we got there. But we were glad to see our friends who we hadn't seen in a year. That night we went to their church's (James River Assembly of God) Christmas program. It was amazing. They had a huge choir (about 400 voices I think) and a full orchestra. It was beautiful. I guess Benjamin wasn't all that impressed because he slept through most of it!

Emma and Jonathan after the Christmas program.

Saturday we got to go to Emma and Jackson's basketball games. Watching 6 year olds (Jackson's team) play basketball is quite a sight. The 9 year olds were a little more organized. After the games we drove through the fog to Branson and Silver Dollar City. The fog never let up the whole day. Silver Dollar City in the cold (40's) and fog was quite a bit different from the summer. But it never rained and we were dressed warmly. So we had a great time. Jonathan actually rode a roller coaster (a kiddie one, but still a big deal for him). He must love Emma a lot, because he did it for her, but he still hated it and had his head down the whole time! That's him in the middle with the gray hat and blue jacket. Benjamin on the other had loves roller coasters. Greg took him on this one. Zachary got to go on one coaster. (Not all the rides were open.) And I went on a new ride - the Giant Barn Swing. That was awesome! The park was decorated beautifully with lights everywhere and a huge Christmas tree with lights set to music. And of course we ate too much! We all had so much fun.

Jackson, Emma, Jonathan, Benjamin, and Zachary

Greg and me

Jack and Lori

Lori and me

Meanwhile we keep hearing weather reports that are not good. We got up and got ready for church Sunday morning and kept hearing about ice storms. We figured we've better get out before we got stuck. So we went to church and lunch and then packed up to head home. The boys were not happy about this. Jonathan and Benjamin still consider Emma and Jackson their best friends. There were many tears (yes, me too - I consider Lori my best friend and I miss her!) but we knew we had to go. We decided to go south instead of through Tulsa (which got the worst of the storm). We had lots of rain but the roads were ok. We made it to I-40 then had to get off. We later found out there was and accident where several people died. The further west we went the colder and icier it got. But we just took it slow and eventually made it back to Yukon and stayed in the same hotel. (Normally it's 4 1/2 hours from Nixa to OKC. It took us 8 1/2!) There was ice everywhere. The trees, cars, and power lines were coated in it. We got up and headed out again Monday morning. The freeway was drivable. We took our time and made it to Amarillo. Then drove home on Tuesday. Here's some pictures of our car after driving through freezing rain Monday.
So, it was an interesting trip to say the least. But I had a lot of time in the car to knit. I finished this pair of socks that I gave to Lori, knit two hats, and worked on a cable scarf.We're glad to be home!