the great midwest odyssey

nc > tn > ky > in > il > ia > mn > wi > (mn > wi > mn > wi) mn > wi > il > in > ky > wv > va > nc

yup. that's right. ten states, ten days, 3500+ miles driven, and then some. needless to say, sam (our fly ride) is a highway veteran. though daunting in distance, we were more than eager for a venturesome road trip back to see family over the fourth of july holiday. here are some snippets from our travels:

nc: trunk full of luggage? check. shirley? check. seatbelts? check. and we're off!

shirley quickly learned that sleeping passes time. go ahead shirls, use our pillows for yourself...

tn: we drove through the great smoky mountains for fun. garmin tells us we have quite a winding passage!

still ascending into the smokies when we hit delays due to the aftermath of a rockslide

[sorry, no pics for kentucky, indiana, illinois or iowa en route]

fast forward to destination #1: austin, mn. pictured, mike and sister grace. it was nice to catch up with them and introduce the new puppy. short but sweet; spent one night there before mike's family left on their own trip out to vail. shirley says thank you for the chicken flavored nyla bone and two different kinds of treats!

squeaky caught in the act of making a break for it! at several rest areas through indiana and illinois, squeaky was almost accidentally left behind. we were sure that we somehow would have lost this beloved chew toy before the trip was over

hinckley, mn: stopped to coax mike into experiencing an infamous tobies donut for the first time in his life. how can you be a minnesotan and never have stopped for tobies in hinckley?!?!

destination #2: lake nebagamon, wi, location of alissa's parents' cabin. one whole relaxing week was spent here in tranquility. during our time here we also made two mini excursions to duluth, mn before heading back over to minnesota once again to resume the road trip

the lafrance doggies! from left to right: bud, bosco, oscar, heidi and shirley. i spy the next cesar millan ;) we wish we had footage of the doggie introduction, but were a tad preoccupied with a VERY petrified shirley as the other four, in their seemingly huge size, bounded towards her to meet and greet. after her initial terror subsided (circa 3 minutes), shirley warmed up and ran laps around the cabin trying to get them to play with her

bosco and bud, tempted to jump off the dock. we swam shirley out to the raft, but she is not currently as much of a waterbug as these two are!

reghann and alfalfa willie takin' a dip

noah chillin' on the pontoon

looking out at the dock from the waterfront

alissa's mom's flowers, vibrantly blooming near the dock

steph and her "friend" eric sporting patriotic face paint at the games

the...sistahs! onlooking the annual village's fourth of july events including a human wheelbarrow race, potato sack race, sprints, shoe toss, hula hoop challenge, and watermelon-eating contest. the lafrance clan may not have dominated this year, but we're planning a strong comeback next july!

alissa's dad gaping at the inferno, er, i mean, grill...

behold, the charred...turkey?! on the fourth of july you ask? as a surprise to mike, alissa planned a pseudo thanksgiving dinner for him (complete with pumpkin pie!) knowing he will be gone for the actual holiday this year. the turkey actually turned out quite juicy and flavorful despite being "flash-cooked"

shirley nestled in a pile of life jackets on the pontoon

evening of the fourth of july

no words needed here, just gaze

the best of buddies now! big o and shirley bird spooning

we canoed up the river that flows into the bay where the cabin is on. alissa's mom accompanied us in the kayak, parting a way for us through a sea of thick weeds

we tried our nautical luck with shirley in the canoe. it was a success!

flourishing lily pads! what a sight! too bad the fragrant water lilies are illegal to pick...

sweet wisconsin roadside wildflowers

it is impossible to visit the lafrances without partaking in either a game of cards (preferrably 'golf' or 'spoons') or scrabble ('take two'). these are staple pastimes!

destination #2: minnesota. there is something calming about seeing minnesota farmland again! we made a layover in minneapolis (to drop alissa's brother off) before hitting up northfield (to revisit our college stomping grounds), and afterwards stopping in both rochester (to drop by alissa's old lab at the clinic) and zumbrota (to spend the night with alissa's sister and her husband) before commencing our homecoming back to nc from zumbrota

reminiscing on our college years in northfield. pictured: old main, st. olaf campus

reminiscing continued. pictured: skinner memorial chapel, carleton campus

wi: shout out to mike's dad - go hormel! passing the beloit plant

il: chicago skyline

hobart, in: we stopped for lunch at mike's paternal grandparents' house. so nice to see them again and visit for a few hours! shirley is grateful for the stuffed piggy you let her swipe...she loves playing with it! ps, sorry if you ever found a tooth of hers anywhere...! she is teething!

fishers, in: we stopped for the night at mike's maternal grandparents' house. it was delightful having dinner there, and thanks for scoring shirley a ribbeting froggy toy, doggie oreos, and several gourmet doggie cupcakes!

one of shirley's gourmet doggie cupcakes, before she inhaled it

wv: posing in front of the mountains at a rest area. sorry, no kentucky pics taken again before west virginia

UH OH, spaghettios!!!! tsk tsk, leadfoot mike!!!!!!!!!!! this is SO grounds for an 'i told you to slow down!'

shirley's goods she acquired throughout the roadtrip, also featuring hamburger and baby ducky passed down from oscar and a new beef marrow bone from the butcher!

ah, home sweet home at last :)