I showered while the laundry ran, then walked the dogs while the dryer was going. There is a separate dump site near the exit, so I will take care of that when we leave. I was chatting with a young lady in the laundry who had a little boy under two years old… and looked preggers again. They are living in a little trailer on site with the daddy. Their trailer wasn’t any bigger than Blue. WOW. While driving in Carthage proper to scare up some breakfast (eggs sounded good), I found a Walmart and an Auto Zone. I was able to get a new gas cap, and return a couple of things I had purchased earlier at Walmart in OK. I didn’t find the little café I was looking for, but saw some great old homes. The majority were in pretty good shape and obviously well loved and cared for, well except for the first one.
European style traffic circle. I saw a place called Iggy’s Diner that looked interesting. 
The place was swamped! I sat at the counter and finally ordered a cup of coffee and a patty melt with “susy q's”. EVERYTHING on the menu was fatty and/or fried, and I can’t do that without turning my gallbladder into a screaming ball of agony. Turns out “susy q's” are curly fries. The patty melt was rye bread, a tasty patty, mushrooms, cheese and wonderfully grilled onions. I saved some for the “fur kids” and ordered a hand mixed vanilla shake to go to calm the demons. I didn’t eat half the fries, there were so many! It was a kick to watch the waitresses, as this place is super busy and it was right about lunch time. It’s amazing that they didn’t collide with all the running around they did.Once back on I-44 eastbound I found light traffic, and fairly gusty winds. Oh, did I mention it rained last night and was cold enough for my San Marco blanket.
At a gas stop, an older gentleman asked if I was traveling and where I was from. Told him I started in LA, then Phoenix and on to Fort Leonard Wood. He asked if I was visiting my hubby, and I told him, no, my daughter and son-in-law. He didn’t think I was that old….the old flirt!! Turns out he has a 36’ Class A that he hasn’t had out for a while.
Are we there yet?? dog....I’ll tell you, today’s winds were pretty sneaky the first part of the trip. Not fun at all. I went in via the main road to Richland to mail some postcards and my Balloon Fiesta fees and I remembered how to get there!!! Even better, I remembered how to get to the turn off for the house.
Last time, I didn’t meet anyone on the road, this time I met a big dually, another pick up truck and the school bus that takes the grandkids. Turns out there is construction going on across the road from my daughter's driveway, with lots of gravel haulers going in and out.
This is on a dirt road that runs along the river and is just over a lane wide. Was a little scary passing the dually as my right side tires were pretty near the edge, and the river flooded last week. Didn’t want to hit a soft spot!! I parked just inside the first gate on the grass, and was LEVEL!! I let the dogs out and walked up the road, which got pretty washed out in last weeks storm. Smudge was getting excited as she really loved running around here last year. Mr. Frank did an absolutely fabulous job re-grading the road!! Blue at the bottom, about 1/3 way up the hill.
At the top, I found Ajay and Aeden home and playing with their two dogs. We then heard Anjanine roaring up the road in the Safari van.. You do know my eldest has a lead foot, right? She hustled us to hurry up so we could pick up Logan, so I walked back down the hill I just hiked up (about ¼ mile and steep) and put the dogs away. Their dogs got out and chased us partway down the river road. We got Logan from school, and I got mugged by Alizebeth. 
All the kids go to the same small school…. Tiny pre-school, elementary school, middle school and high school, all in a row. By now we had all the kids and were off to the feed store and McDonalds. Turned out John and Pat were waiting for us at the feed store, as Pats plane was late into St. Louis and then they got stuck in traffic. I think Pat was bummed that she didn’t get to ride with me, but as she is having trouble with her legs, it was probably better. After dinner, we went back to the house for a few minutes. Anjanine dropped me off at Blue, and we followed the parade up the hill in 2nd gear with just a couple of slips on the soft spots. I handed out the various things I brought for Anjanine and the kids (from my mom and sister).
We had to hurry up and leave back to the school for a concert the music teacher planned. As Audrianna is in the 5th grade beginning class and Annelise is in the senior high band, we had kids at the beginning and end. For beginners, Audriannas’ class wasn’t too bad (no ear covering noticed) and Annelises’ group was surprisingly good. I believe they won first prize in a competition last weekend in Indiana. Their last number was selections from the Lion King, and the kids all wore animal masks. Pretty clever. Oh, and it was REALLY windy when we left the house, and now as I’m getting ready to turn in, it has calmed down. But, there is bad weather in the forecast!
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