1200 miles down.....

Hello from the road,

Well, we got some miles under our wheels, but still have a LONG way to go. We ended up packing all day last Sunday, getting the boat ready to leave for several months. It was a very strange feeling, cleaning the boat, and looking at all the memories we made in there. It was also a bit sad as we drove away and looked back at Mehari, sitting on blocks, and all the decks cleaned off. We had to take down all the sails and tie everything that was loose, down tight, as she will be sitting there through hurricane season, and you never know......last year they had a small hurricane go through Beaufort area and there was some flooding in the marina, but no damage. We are praying for the same result this year!

So, once we had the car loaded, and I mean over-LOADED, it was 10:00 p.m. and way too much work to try and stay on the boat again, we decided to just set out on the road and see how we felt. The kids (and us) were all excited to get to our first stop in Rolla, Missouri with Rachel's sister and family (they have 6 kids also) and so we ended up driving all night and the next day, 1100 miles straight! Rachel and I took turns driving and napping, so it wasn't too bad. The kids, once they were wedged in and comfortable, slept all night. It was actually somewhat peaceful, as it rained almost the whole way, and they were snuggled in. 

We've been here in Rolla for a few days, and have had a great time hanging out, playing lots of games, and even worked in a canoe trip down a beautiful river near here, the Current River. It's a really pretty and the water was crystal clear and super cold when the canoe flipped!! It gave us a LOT of motivation to make sure it didn't :)

It's time for us to say goodbye, or more accurately, see you later, as we will be coming through here again in the fall on our way back to North Carolina. So......some tears, but not too many. The next stop for us is probably a campsite tonight, depending on how far we get towards the Black Hills of South Dakota. We are heading to Aaron and Darla's house (Erik's brother) so we will write more from there! 

~eight explorers?