the bus

A collection of 150 posts

kids

throwback thursday (april 20, 2022)

places we've been

pine mountain

After our mini vacation in Nashville we drove down to Georgia for the rally. We saw old friends, made new friends, won at bingo (twice!) and had a great time. While we were away the girls tried on their Halloween costumes. Emma is going to be an 80s girl and

places we've been

nashville

It's October, which means it is the month of the annual Blue Bird rally down in Georgia. Last year Braden and I spent a couple days in Kentucky before heading down south. This year we changed it up and went to Nashville while Braden's mom watched the girls again (thanks

family

throwback thursday (october 13, 2021)

kids

throwback thursday (september 1, 2021)

family

summer finale

I can't believe how fast this summer went by. Monday the girls have open house and get to meet their teachers. Next Tuesday they start school. We certainly packed a whole lot of fun into our last camping trip of the summer. I love this waterpark campground, but the weekends

kids

summer days

There won't be much to post the next couple days because this is all we will be doing. Plus some time at the petting zoo, ice cream, arcade, candy bar bingo and maybe even a little paddle boarding.

family

waterpark camping

Our last camping trip of the summer is at one of the girls favorite campgrounds. I'm pretty sure it is Braden's least favorite of all time, but I agree with the girls... I love it here. The donkeys next to the goats started making a ton of noise when the

family

heading north

We snuck in an extra day in Texas and started heading home this morning. This time we took a different route through Dallas. We had a lot of places we wanted to visit on this trip. Usually we can't get to all the places on our list, but somehow we

family

monarchs

It wouldn't really be a summer roadtrip if we weren't traveling with monarch caterpillars. I looked all summer and couldn't find a single one. The night before we were leaving for Texas Olivia and I found three at the barn. Turns out the three were really six plus two eggs.

family

schlitterbahn

We got there right after it opened. Stayed all day in a cabana. We left after it closed. We were all too busy riding waterslides to get very many photos. Grabbed dinner at Buc-ees on the way back. Both girls fell asleep for most of the 2 hour car ride.

family

austin

Today's adventures took us to Austin. We visited family, ate Mexican food, swam at Barton Springs, played video games and watched the bats. It was a solid day. We checked off everything we wanted to do on our one day in Austin. Tomorrow we rest.

family

blue bell

Blue Bell Creamery. One of my favorite places to visit while we're in Texas. The last time we were here was 2018.

family

welcome to texas

The last time we were in Texas in 2019 I really wanted to go to Waco to visit the Magnolia Market at the Silos. We didn't make it during that trip, so this time I was hoping we could finally make it there. Eh. Turns out it wasn't really that

family

we're not in kansas anymore

This morning we got an early start. It didn't take us long to get through the rest of Iowa and into Missouri. After Missouri it was on to Kansas. I try to find fun places to stop along the way. Sometimes they're great, and sometimes they're not... but you never

family

away we go

This week was our big road trip week. We've been wanting to go to Yellowstone for the last two years, but it is difficult to get in at any of the campgrounds near the park. This year I scored a site at a campground right outside the park! All summer

family

niagra cave

There are two things I really love checking out... (1) caves, and (2) waterfalls. When I was looking for things to do while we were camping I randomly found a cave with a waterfall 30 minutes from the campground. I'm also a sucker for gem mining. After the tour and

family

lanesboro

Last year we stumbled upon this cute little town when we were camping. We ended up loving that campground, and this town, but the campground was booked this summer. Luckily I found another campground very close. This afternoon we walked around town, checked out the museum, had lunch and ate

family

last day

Today was our final full day at the campground, and I have to admit we are all ready to go home. Olivia said tonight she can't wait to take a bath and sleep in her bed tomorrow. I can't blame her. We've been going pretty much non-stop all day every

family

what a doozy

Yesterday (Friday) was such a craptastic day that meant I started this morning (Saturday) off with a very large mimosa. Let's rewind... yesterday it was rainy all morning. We made pancakes and spent pretty much all morning and afternoon in the bus. Once it cleared up Emma did a little

family

boat tour and pontoon

Another day... another activity (or two) checked off our list. First up, the Itasca Lake boat tour. We learned a lot of interesting information about the state park and the lake. Later in the afternoon our friends rented a pontoon boat, so we tagged along. Braden had to head home

family

butterflies, fish and a squirrel

We've been busy every day since we've been here doing just about everything here at the park. But, pretty sure Chip the red squirrel is going to be the highlight of this trip. Someone at the store found him as a baby so he is used to people and will

family

lots to do and see

Today was another busy day... first up this morning was the fire tower. Several people recommended we do this, and today was the first day all week that it wasn't over 90 degrees outside. I'm really proud of Olivia. She has become a lot more fearless about things like this.

family

itasca state park

We try to visit a Minnesota State Park every summer. This summer we chose Itasca State Park which is popular for the Mississippi River headwaters. We're here all week and have a whole list of things we want to do. First up on our agenda was exploring and finding out

family

home again home again

This was a first... we woke up to a cruise ship anchored right outside our bus. This year Viking Cruises started a Lake Superior cruise that goes from Canada through Duluth to Michigan and ends in Wisconsin. Today we had to head home again, but this time in the bus.