We woke up to the pitter patter of rain drops hitting our RV this morning. We stayed the night at Trailside RV Park in Grain Valley, MO which was definitely the most basic park we've been to yet. No frills but suitable for what we needed. Most people seemed to live here from what we could tell whereas the other places we've been staying at are more of a traveler's stop.
I took over for the last leg a little outside of St. Louis and drove for around 200 miles yesterday. The roads were fairly empty once we got through rush hour and the city. At one point during my drive, the sun was setting and it was absolutely beautiful. There is just something about driving into the sunset!
We pulled off for some gas in a town called Boonville, MO. There was a sign at the exit for a peach farm down the street so I decided to inquire about it while Jimmy filled up since fresh peaches sounded delightful. I was told that they weren't sure if there was crop yet. This was actually their first year harvesting again after a huge ice storm declared Boonville a disaster area when 22 inches of ice fell down on them. All of the farmers lost their crops and the government had to step in to help them recover. The gas station gave me the number for the farmer of the Peach Tree Farm, Bruce Arnett. They told me to just pull up at his house/small country store. If he was home, he'd come out when he saw us in his driveway. I felt a little weird about just showing up at this farmer's house given it was around 8pm on a Friday night. I was assured that it was fine to do this. I guess that's how they do it in Missouri - or Missour-ah as the locals pronounce it! We drove less than two miles down the road and pulled into the driveway where the huge peach tree farm sign was. Two teenage girls were sitting in a John Deere tractor when we pulled up and definitely gave us some odd glances. Their three little dogs came darting over to greet us and shortly after, the girls did too. I explained to them that I inquired at the gas station about their farm and that I was interested in some peaches if they had any. One of the girls told me that they didn't have a lot of inventory but I could buy a 6lb or 10lb box, half with peaches, half with nectarines. I decided on the 6lb box and the girl left to make it up. She returned with a box of great looking and fabulous smelling fruit that was picked that morning! I was happy! :)
We got back on the road and I continued to drive into the sunset when an appropriate song came on - “Once in a Lifetime” by the Talking Heads. They lyrics seemed fitting:
And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile (Ha, yes! As a matter of fact I AM!)
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful Wife
and you may ask yourself-well...how did I get here?
Needless to say, I cranked this song up LOUD and continued to drive. I really enjoyed my driving portion yesterday through Missouri. Surprisingly, it’s not as flat as I thought it would be out here in the middle of the country. Its nothing like Nebraska which is the flattest area I've ever driven through 6 years ago when I helped my good friend Tina move from NJ to SF. She rented a U-Haul and I told her I'd love to accompany her on her drive across the country. We had a blast during the week we spent driving out, stopping at various friends and Tina's family members homes along the way. We drove out on Route 80 and when we got to Nebraska, I felt like we were driving through the background of a really old cartoon. We kept passing what seemed like the same scenes over and over again. Irrigation.......cows.........farms.....irrigation.....cows.....farms....repeat! Ahh, Nebraska.....I'll never forget the most beautiful sunrise there that Tina and I saw. We had driven through the night and the sunrise was a nice warm greeting that morning to our delirious and punchy selves!
Back to this road trip - Jimmy and I stopped for dinner last night at, funny enough, Applebee's. It was our only choice besides fast food again since we keep having late dinners. We joked about being on Applebee's tour across the country! ;) Some of you may be wondering about our little kitchen in the RV and why we aren’t using it. It does function, however, the fridge and the freezer don’t work when we drive. We haven’t been using it to store things since every time we go somewhere new, we’d have to take everything out. We have a cooler though that keeps all of our drinks frosty cold. The oven and stove might work but we haven't tried them out.
After dinner, we were only a few miles away from our home for the night. It was another easy check-in since we called ahead to make reservations. By 11pm, we were driving into our pull through spot #30. We uploaded and sorted through pictures, talked about the rest of our travels and got into the Missouri spirit by tuning into some country music on 95.7 “The Pig” Now, I’m not really a country music fan but I have to say, we were really enjoying the tunes they were playing. We heard Kenny Chesney’s “Guitars and Tiki Bars” and well, it’s all we’ve been signing since last night.
When I've had it up to here I go down there.
To guitars, tiki bars, and a whole lotta love,
Mangos and marley you know, fit me like a glove.
That part just keeps buzzing through our heads, lol! Thanks for entertaining us last night 95.7! I’d recommend their rocking music after midnight. I’m pretty sure you can stream from their site if you want to listen to "Sizzlin’ Country”
Right now, we’re in Kansas passing through Topeka. We have the air off because its actually cooler out today. I’m sitting at the dinette table writing this and the breeze blowing through here is so nice. It’s a treat to get this weather after a few hot days we’ve experienced.
I’m feeling a little tired, sluggish and moody today. Those that know me well know I have times of moodiness, lol. I’m just trying to take a few deeps breaths and push that negative energy away that I must be exuding. I’m already feeling better actually.
Daisy is on my last nerve right now too which probably is the main reason for my moodiness. She’s still extremely uneasy while we are driving. We’ve been letting her roam free, but she will only stay with us up front. She insists on lying with her top half over one of us and well, I want some space right now. Yesterday, we even called Susan Greenbaum who owns Barking Hills Country Club where we brought Daisy for obedience classes to get her advice on what to do. Susan knows us well since we were freak shows about Daisy and her behavior when we first got her through her first 8 months of life. Susan said if she’s eating and drinking (which she is) then she’s fine. She recommended us belting her in (safety first) and said that she should be more comfortable within the next few days of driving. We did bring a doggie seatbelt for her but when we used it a few days ago, she freaked. We decided to try it again during this drive because I just really couldn’t deal with her all over me. Let’s just say she’s less than thrilled. She’s shaking, whining, yelping…anything to get our attention really. We’re ignoring it though and she seems to be a little bit more settled. The panting still continues………
Photo time! Keep checking our Cross Country Photo link regularly as we will continue to add to it! Thanks to everyone who’s been reading and leaving us comments – we love them!
PS – I could really use a Starbucks right now! I wonder if they have them in Kansas? I'm used to seeing them on practically every corner so not having seen one for hundreds of miles is weird! I could go for my usual - grande nonfat Iced Latte. What stinks is that we've got fresh beans from Bean and Leaf (thanks again, Bones and Lani!). However, we're without a coffee pot and a grinder! They will be a treat when we arrive in SF, for sure! They're doing a great job of making the RV smell like freshly roasted coffee beans though, mmm!
~*Jennie*~
2 comments:
I'm craving peaches now. They sound delicious! I just looked at your photos for the first time - love them. Glad you enjoyed what could have been my hometown, St. Louis :)
i want some peaches too!!! the pix were great and your blog is very fun and entertaining to read. Good to hear Sebs is doing well in there but too bad about Daisy. I guess there is just so much excitement for her she can't contain it! I can't wait to hear what happens next...
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