They are here!

Liz and Natalie arrived on Thursday night, the 7th. They have been exploring and Natalie has been unpacking. The weather has been great for them the whole time and they have been able to see some really neat things. We had lunch with my friends Barb and Dave yesterday down by one of the marinas in Olympia. Liz heads back to Boston tonight, after she and Natalie spend the day touring Seattle. This is the end of the move! YAY!

Yellowstone

The one room schoolhouse in Cooke City, MT

Bison! 

Lots of bison! and a baby nursing! 

Oh hey buddy. 

Liz at a waterfall. 

Me and SB. 

I forget the name of this one. 

Trying not to fall over. 

Liz at Mamouth Springs. 

Ok tis all for now. good niiiight! 

so close!

Ahh, to be in a comfy hotel bed before 11pm. Today was another busy busy day, but absolutely beautiful. I looooove Yellowstone and want to go back there ASAP. We saw bison, a black bear, elk (I think?), and some very cool things. I want to go on a photo expedition throughout the entire park which will take forever, but it's exciting. We only saw a tiny portion of the park, and it was great. I got quite a bit of sun, and in typical Natalie fashion it's not even in the least bit, but oh well!

Now that we have decent internet I'll post some pictures from yesterday as well. We saw Mt Rushmore which was awesome.

Mt Rushmore from tunnel 1 on 16a. 

Lookin' good guys. 

Spongebob hanging out on the way up the big scary mountain to Cooke City, MT. I think it's called Bear Tooth Pass. 

We're alive. 

Amazing. 

The road ahead...

Can't even explain it.

Oh hey huuuge snow banks. 

The blog isn't finding all the pix I added today so I'll try another post.

Quick post

Good morning!
Liz and I made it to Cooke City, MT after one hell of a road we traveled. For those of you who know the mountain road in Tannersville, this has nothing on it. Very very high. Steep. Windy. Never been so close to the sky or moon in my life. We ended up going at a beautiful time, right around sunset. I took some of the best pictures, EVER, and am wicked excited about it. Internet here is slow so I don't have time to post many as Liz is finishing getting ready (poor thing caught the cold I had- sorry!!) and we're off to explore Yellowstone.
Real quick though, the "town" we're in has a full time population of 98, the school house (I just took pictures of it) is for k-8, one room. 3 kids will go there this year. For high school families have to decide where to send their kids and for the family who owns this lodge (we're in the CUTEST cabin- NOT waterfront lodging mom and Barb!) will send their child to Cody. To get there in winter they'll take a snow mobile down to the parking lot a few miles away and then drive to the school. Roads aren't plowed. There's still snow here. We drove through huuuuge snowbanks last night. Very surreal, but beautiful.

Here's one picture. We also took two video's that I'll be sure to upload once to WA. 

We'll be saying in Missoula, MT tonight about 4-5hrs away from here. Then it's one last push to Olympia. Yee! Though this is all beautiful scenery and Liz and I will never experience it again with anyone else, we're ready for home. I'm sure she's ready for the lights and sounds of Boston, and I just want a home cooked meal by my mom.

Alright, Liz has surfaced and we're packing up. Absolutely no cell service until who knows when. We're alive! Love to all! xoxoxo

One day closer!

Ahhh a busy busy day. We completed over 560 miles since this morning. Crossed into the Mountain time Zone, saw Wall Drug, the Badlands and drove through some cool areas along 90. We're staying in Custer, SD tonight. No cell service, kind of sketchy, but it's a bed. We'll get up and head out early in the morning to see Mount Rushmore and then drive about 470 miles to our next destination.

Trying not to fall off a cliff. 

Sponge Bob hanging out in the Badlands. 

Enjoying the view. 

Badlands, SD. 

Free Water at Wall Drug! (It wasn't very good)

Going for a ride. 

Love love love this shot. Quick thinking with my iPhone. A few miles before Wall, SD on i90. 

Okay, off to bed for the night. Lots of love! 

Day 3

Ahhh, a long few days! We have arrived in Albert Lea, Minnesota in one piece. Saw family this morning which was really nice, then got on the road and drove straight here. A short stop in Wisconsin to take a picture with a sign and wander around a gift shop/firework/cheese place, and then again on the side of the highway to look at wind turbines. Lots of flat earth, tons of corn, and skyline for days.

Yesterday I think we did about 10 hours of driving. We were fried by the end of the day after conquering 5 states and Canada. Whoops, went over the Rainbow Bridge to Canada by mistake! Don't worry mom, they didn't confiscate our plants.

Here's some pictures from our journey thus far...

Sponge Bob at Niagara Falls. 

The Falls 

Me & Liz at the Falls 

Just along for the ride... 

Family! 3 generations of cousins I think?? 

Oh hey sky... I think Wisconsin or Minnesota. 

Lots of wind turbines! Minnesota 

Being a tourist on the side of the highway. 

Alright, that's all for now. We're going to plan our drive for tomorrow. Badlands and maybe Mt Rushmore. Potentially going to get to WA late Thursday night depending on how ambitious we are. Goodnight! 

we are alive!

just letting everyone know we are alive! headed to breakfast with family in Kankakee, IL and then on the road. Next stop Albert Lea, MN. about 7.5hrs of driving. Booked a hotel so we're all set. Hopefully we'll be settled before 8pm so we can relax and get caught up on things.
lots of love!
natalie and liz

A different way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

There is a big Swiss Community in this part of the country. I have found that there are several Swiss Societies and quite a few activities throughout the year. This type of wrestling is pretty cool. The guys have to have hold of the shorts, flip the opponent onto his back, while holding the short in at least one place. Then points are awarded. Pretty interesting.

Lewis Pacific Swiss Society

July 2, 2011

Swiss Wrestling!

Boston to Buffalo- done!

Well, leg one of the journey is over.

Liz and I left Boston around 1ish on Friday after getting last minute supplies at Target. We surprisingly hit very little traffic and sailed through New York. We arrived in Buffalo around 9pm Friday night, put our things down in the hotel and went on a search for Mighty Taco per a friend's request. Sorry to say we were a little disappointed. But! It was a $5 dinner so we can't complain too much.

Liz is getting ready and I'm packing things up. Off to check out the falls and get on the road. About 9-10 hours of driving ahead of us onwards to Kankakee, Illinois. Random spot you may think, but it's where my grandmother lived for many years and I have family there on my dad's side. Family breakfast in the morning which I am looking forward to!

Not many pictures yet. Just iPhone captures, but as Barb says, "The best camera is the one in your hand".

Sponge Bob was ready to go in NH. 

Somewhere in NY as the sun was setting. 

No EZ Pass on this trip! 

The infamous Mighty Taco. 

Alright, off we go. Lots of love!