We have passed through New Mexico, Land of Enchantment

It's hard to believe that Monday we were in Washington, it's even harder to believe that we were in Napa Valley two days ago. We now find ourselves in Argyle, TX, just north of Fort Worth in eastern Texas. The last two days we've moved like bats out of hell. Monday we left Portland to go to Crater Lake. Crater Lake is, from my understanding, where an old volcano caved in and is now filled with melted snow. It's amazing how blue the water is, I don't know if I've ever seen water so pure. I attempted to capture the lake in picture form, but this is an impossible task. I don't care how good the picture is, there is no way to help someone understand how vast it is until they stand on it's banks and gaze into the blue themselves. We camped just shy of the California border. The next day we headed west to Crescent City, California and south along Hwy 101. In this drive we passed through but a small section of the Redwood forest. We continued on to drive California 1. I've heard many times from many people that everyone in their life needs to drive this road. I wouldn't recommend it. It was nice but not worth the detour we were forced to take. We finally arrived at Napa Valley. Our expectations were a little different than reality. A minimum of 10 dollars was required for a tasting at the vineyards. We ended up just buying some local wines from a small store we found:a Pinot Noir, a Merlot and a Mourvèdre. I want to go back someday with more money and sample a number of different wines from the valley. That night we slept in the valley. The next day was started by touring San Fransisco for an hour or so then we headed south. I attest to this, never in my life will I again travel to south eastern california. America's butt crack? It was 101 degrees as we drove through the vast nothingness. We would travel for 40 miles and not see any sign of civilization. But in 1 day we traveled from Napa Valley to a small town south of the Grand Canyon. Since Washington we had been waking up at 5 30 to get a good start on the day, but south of the Grand Canyon we woke up at 3 45. Because we were up so early, pulling in at 4 45, we entered the park free and drove to the edge to watch the sun rise in the canyon. Beautiful. We left the park at 7 o'clock and arrived last night in Argyle at 1 o'clock in the morning. So in two days we drove from Napa Valley (just north of San Fransisco) to Fort Worth Texas, half the country. We're staying with a friend here for the next few days, then it's on to Jackson, Mississippi to stay with another friend, then Anniston, Alabama to stay with my grandparents for a night or so, then home to the QC.

From Powell's Bookstore in Portland

A quick analysis of the title reveals our location. The last two weeks of our trip deserve a more adequate description than previously given. When we arrived in Wenatchee, we spent three nights living in a nursing home with Grandma Fishbourne. It was a great time, complete with 7:30 breakfast dates. The first Saturday there we landed an invitation to a wedding of a family that we would get to know over the next few weeks. Most succinctly described, it was Grandma Fishbourne's family. Grandma has 7 children (all now in their 40's, 50's and 60's). The wedding was of her Granddaughter Katie to a guy named Danny. I must admit it was a bit strange b/c Katie is not yet 21 (a few months shy). But at the wedding I danced with family as if I was on in the same. Apparently a girl in the family (the sister of the one newlywed) was taken aback by me. Too bad she is 16. Perhaps in the future we will marry and I too may join the Fishbourne descendants. We then worked for two weeks for a couple named Aubrey and Austin(Aubrey is a grandchild of Grandma Fishbourne) in Ellensburg, WA. Austin broke his foot a couple weeks ago and needed help to finish renevating a house that he has been working on and is and preparing to sell. So we painted, did yard work, put in an irrigation system and did various tasks around the house to spruce it up. During the two weeks we lived with Aubrey and Austin and their two kids Kaelynn (3 yrs ) and Halle Mae (5 1/2 months) . We got to know the family really well and had an amazing time living with them. It turned out to be harder to leave than we originally thought possible. The stay seemed to last but a few days but it seems like we've known the family for longer than a mere two weeks. We then went to Seattle and had an amazing dinner and were honorary firefighters for a day as we rode the Lake Washington on a fireboat and waved to the people ashore.

Last few days in Washington

A lot has happened since I last updated. We took up residence in Ellensburg, Washington and worked construction for two weeks. We stayed with an absolutely amazing family with whom we got to know and become good friends. I don't have my computer at the moment so I can't put pictures up but I will as soon as I am able. Our plans have changed since I last wrote. We aren't staying in Washington for the summer but are in fact leaving this Monday. We're going to head south through California then east through Texas, Miss, Bama, etc. until we arrive back in Charlotte. We have a few people to stay with along the way and should be on the road for a little over two weeks. The trip is shaping to be far more epic than we originally planned. Right now we're in Seattle. When I have access to my pictures I'll write more about our time in Ellensburg complete with pictures.