Saturday, July 9, 2011
What's up for the Goulding's Great Lakes Trip (GGLT) 2011?
The itinerary is set and the motel/hotel reservations made for the 2011 trip. For the details and memories, you'll need to follow along on this blog as I don't want to give away all of the electrifying information about our stops here. BUT to give a hint - our first scheduled stop is at the World's Largest Bottle of Catsup followed by a Giant Bowling Pin. Yep, I can feel your excitement building!
Actually, we have three Primary Stops/Goals (briefly mentioned in the 6/30 post) - put our feet in all five Great Lakes, get one of those cool bio-degradable blue ponchos at Niagara Falls, and see who cries 'mercy' first on the rollercoasters at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH. Not counting these, we have 59 minor stops on the itinerary.
Our travelers (also in the 6/30 post) now include Flat Brace Boy (FBB until we name him). The Goulding girls orthodontist is having a summer vacation contest, and there are many options on categories, including most places visited. FBB may lose his photogenic smile by the end of this trip!
Off to start packing....
p.s. Everyone send Marianne, the current undecided-but-potential traveler, an email telling her to take the once-in-a-lifetime GGLT!
Actually, we have three Primary Stops/Goals (briefly mentioned in the 6/30 post) - put our feet in all five Great Lakes, get one of those cool bio-degradable blue ponchos at Niagara Falls, and see who cries 'mercy' first on the rollercoasters at Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH. Not counting these, we have 59 minor stops on the itinerary.
Our travelers (also in the 6/30 post) now include Flat Brace Boy (FBB until we name him). The Goulding girls orthodontist is having a summer vacation contest, and there are many options on categories, including most places visited. FBB may lose his photogenic smile by the end of this trip!
Off to start packing....
p.s. Everyone send Marianne, the current undecided-but-potential traveler, an email telling her to take the once-in-a-lifetime GGLT!
Goulding Trip Background - GGW
In 2003, one of the Gouldings...may have even been me...had the brilliant idea of a long family road trip. I planned a two-week itinerary for anyone wanting to make the journey known as the Goulding's Go West (GGW) trip and reserved motel rooms to get us started. We started with 16 people in KC, and with a good Catholic mass send-off by in NKC and having a group photo, we were on our way. We had numerous exciting sights, as found at www.roadsideamerica.com (RSA), to keep the enthusiasm going. I'm talking to the level of eating at the Red Barn where Cheryl Ladd was a teen car hop! Here a few of our sights and experiences:
Sioux Falls, SD - saw the rapids and a laser show
Laura Ingalls Wilder's homes in South Dakota - (Lisa and Abby were in LIW heaven) - kids had a pony ride and learned how to make rope; all of us had a wagon ride and saw how small people were back then; I pulled out surprise bonnets that I made for the ladies and the guys even had a pic with them on
Corn palace in Nebraska - yup, everything made of corn and the building exterior decorated with corn cobs
World's Largest Prairie Dog - where's the wackem' mallet when you need one!?
Badlands - need I say more
Car problems - okay, this wasn't a planned stop - but it was a sight to see - all of us loitering around the repair shop and looking for stuff to do. The other sight to see along the way was walking in to a restaurant and saying 'table for 16, please!'.
Custer State Park, Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse - the genius idea of those blasting rock from Crazy Horse: take the rock pieces to the visitor center and invite people to take a piece of history with them while getting rid of their 'trash'
Deadwood and Sturgis- Luke and Dave meccas
Yellowstone and Old Faithful - memories of us (mom, Nikki, Molly, Abby, Emily, me) on a four-person biking cart going to a stoplight and me saying 'pedal, girls, pedal!', Mark falling in the water while fishing, cuz Julie having the errant horse that kept trying to knock her off by going under tree limbs
Idaho - Mark's mecca - we barely crossed the state line and bought a bag of POTATO chips at the first gas station, but we can say we've been there! Everyone had one chip.
Lincoln Highway - Lincoln head on a monument - and pyramid in the middle of nowhere - These, and many more, compliments of RSA search
North Pole, CO - Mark got to meet Brad Garrett (Robert) from Everybody Loves Raymond and cuz Sheryl snapped a long-distance photo of them
Royal Gorge and Pikes Peak
AND, we topped it off with 37 Gouldings in Denver for Peter and Theresa's 50th birthday, and Mike's 38th.
There are sooooo many stories to tell, many which have faded within the last eight years, so we're off shortly on the Goulding Great Lakes adventure, and my goal is to document those memories here as they are made; not only to share with our non-traveling family and friends, but to get them 'journal-ed' as sister, Julie keeps demanding!
Sioux Falls, SD - saw the rapids and a laser show
Laura Ingalls Wilder's homes in South Dakota - (Lisa and Abby were in LIW heaven) - kids had a pony ride and learned how to make rope; all of us had a wagon ride and saw how small people were back then; I pulled out surprise bonnets that I made for the ladies and the guys even had a pic with them on
Corn palace in Nebraska - yup, everything made of corn and the building exterior decorated with corn cobs
World's Largest Prairie Dog - where's the wackem' mallet when you need one!?
Badlands - need I say more
Car problems - okay, this wasn't a planned stop - but it was a sight to see - all of us loitering around the repair shop and looking for stuff to do. The other sight to see along the way was walking in to a restaurant and saying 'table for 16, please!'.
Custer State Park, Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse - the genius idea of those blasting rock from Crazy Horse: take the rock pieces to the visitor center and invite people to take a piece of history with them while getting rid of their 'trash'
Deadwood and Sturgis- Luke and Dave meccas
Yellowstone and Old Faithful - memories of us (mom, Nikki, Molly, Abby, Emily, me) on a four-person biking cart going to a stoplight and me saying 'pedal, girls, pedal!', Mark falling in the water while fishing, cuz Julie having the errant horse that kept trying to knock her off by going under tree limbs
Idaho - Mark's mecca - we barely crossed the state line and bought a bag of POTATO chips at the first gas station, but we can say we've been there! Everyone had one chip.
Lincoln Highway - Lincoln head on a monument - and pyramid in the middle of nowhere - These, and many more, compliments of RSA search
North Pole, CO - Mark got to meet Brad Garrett (Robert) from Everybody Loves Raymond and cuz Sheryl snapped a long-distance photo of them
Royal Gorge and Pikes Peak
AND, we topped it off with 37 Gouldings in Denver for Peter and Theresa's 50th birthday, and Mike's 38th.
There are sooooo many stories to tell, many which have faded within the last eight years, so we're off shortly on the Goulding Great Lakes adventure, and my goal is to document those memories here as they are made; not only to share with our non-traveling family and friends, but to get them 'journal-ed' as sister, Julie keeps demanding!
Friday, July 8, 2011
Wow - What a Week!
So, it's Friday night. The girls and I spent T-W-TH evenings at the church setting up for the garage sale. I'm really proud of them as the worked hard and didn't complain (much). Today started very early. Woke up a 3:30 and couldn't go back to sleep so I went through clothes that my sister dropped off, straighten the house, etc. etc. then Abby, Emily and I were out of here by 7:10 to go to the sale. I was home by 8:10 to give my car key to Mark - oops, forgot and took it with me so he had no way to work! Sale went fine, however I cannot believe some people! We have tables and tables of folded clothes and this adult son and mother went through grabbing stuff, holding it up and dropping it back on the table! It was very frustrating. SO, I went and stood by them folding what they had dropped....they got the hint. Lazed in the pool for an hour, threw together chicken alfredo and here I am. Is it 9:00 yet so I can go to bed????
The only trip prep tonight was writing out the to-do list for the house sitter. She'll be excited! (not)
Tomorrow (before/after the sale) will begin my trip packing. Yeah, getting close!!!
The only trip prep tonight was writing out the to-do list for the house sitter. She'll be excited! (not)
Tomorrow (before/after the sale) will begin my trip packing. Yeah, getting close!!!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Lazy Day - July 4
Ahhhh, in the pool alone at 9:30 a.m. for a couple of hours of floating and tanning. Does life get any better?
Sister and family for a pool visit.
Shopping with the girls. Geez, do they have to look so good in slinky party dresses??? When did they grow up?
Watching the neighbors fireworks and in surrounding cities - thanks for sharing!
Ahhhh, bed.
Sister and family for a pool visit.
Shopping with the girls. Geez, do they have to look so good in slinky party dresses??? When did they grow up?
Watching the neighbors fireworks and in surrounding cities - thanks for sharing!
Ahhhh, bed.
Monday, July 4, 2011
July 4 - Happy Birthday, America!
Catching up from Friday's post -
Saturday was an early morning (as usual). I started cleaning in the pool area them moved to that one flower bed that never seems to get attention. What a feeling of accomplishment - when you actually clean out the weeds to see that there are flowers under all of them! The girls and I spent the morning setting up the church garage sale then we worked more on the house and yard. Mark and I played the beat-the-rain game. With the help of bil Adam and dn Matthew, the acreage was mowed and trimmed in record time, the horseshoe pits prepped, and the garage straightened up. The workbench was left the disaster that Mark created.
Sunday, July 3 - Party day!
It was a busy day, but I did manage a two hour nap on the front porch. Gotta love the porch; there's almost always a breeze on one side or the other. Pyromaniacs David & Luke usually lead the way into our July 4th celebration, however Marianne (sil) led the arrivals which was a unique twist. We love her - but she definitely travels on Goulding-time! Food was awesome and plentiful! As cuz Renee said - how can 40 people go through the food line and it look like we didn't even touch it. Desserts - Mom's choco chip cookies, homemade sugar cookies (if someone knows - who brought those?), and cuz Lisa's jello cake with blueberries and strawberries looking like the American flag- yyyyyuuuuummmm! (OMG - I just realized that I sound like a small-town news reporter writing for the social section!!! If I start writing about blue hair dye, grain profits, and card parties - someone save me!) SO, the fireworks started around 5:00 with the flash and bangs then at dark (of course) moved to the light show. I must say that David and Luke out-did themselves with an AWESOME display! Neighbor, Barb, said she took pics to try out her camera at night, so I'll post some when I get. The excitement? D&L set up the display about half-way to the back of our property. Throughout the night, people migrated between the house area and fireworks area. (There were about 45 here.) The budding pyromaniacs have to observe the professionals to get their training, of course, so the kids were between the pool and fireworks. Well, it's dark, there are about 20 people out by the fireworks and the D&L van full of fireworks and a lit one fell over! It started shooting all over the place including UNDER the van. People ran, and I held my breath for the van explosion! THANK GOD no one was hurt and the van didn't explode, but it was a heart-stopping moment! It was a potential tragedy, and I don't even think Lisa, medicine woman, could have fixed that one. New rules for next year - only adults in the fireworks area, no vehicles and definitely no kids!!
As for the GGLT, Lisa and David were totally excited to get the travel book (or game book as Mark calls it), and Lisa said she would definitely be reading the details out loud in their vehicle while we're on the road. Me, too! The t-shirts are a big hit, even if they will have scissors applied to them to make modified versions. David, Lisa, Luke, Mark and I talked quite a while about things we are going to do including our group shot at the starting point (in Columbia, MO). Lisa decided that D&L can't be anywhere near each other when we do the White Water Walk by the Falls (Niagara Falls). We are all beyond excited about the Top Thrill Dragster (TDD) ride at Cedar Point roller coaster park which is 310 feet straight up and straight down! We are on the countdown to the GGLT - 13 days.
Saturday was an early morning (as usual). I started cleaning in the pool area them moved to that one flower bed that never seems to get attention. What a feeling of accomplishment - when you actually clean out the weeds to see that there are flowers under all of them! The girls and I spent the morning setting up the church garage sale then we worked more on the house and yard. Mark and I played the beat-the-rain game. With the help of bil Adam and dn Matthew, the acreage was mowed and trimmed in record time, the horseshoe pits prepped, and the garage straightened up. The workbench was left the disaster that Mark created.
Sunday, July 3 - Party day!
It was a busy day, but I did manage a two hour nap on the front porch. Gotta love the porch; there's almost always a breeze on one side or the other. Pyromaniacs David & Luke usually lead the way into our July 4th celebration, however Marianne (sil) led the arrivals which was a unique twist. We love her - but she definitely travels on Goulding-time! Food was awesome and plentiful! As cuz Renee said - how can 40 people go through the food line and it look like we didn't even touch it. Desserts - Mom's choco chip cookies, homemade sugar cookies (if someone knows - who brought those?), and cuz Lisa's jello cake with blueberries and strawberries looking like the American flag- yyyyyuuuuummmm! (OMG - I just realized that I sound like a small-town news reporter writing for the social section!!! If I start writing about blue hair dye, grain profits, and card parties - someone save me!) SO, the fireworks started around 5:00 with the flash and bangs then at dark (of course) moved to the light show. I must say that David and Luke out-did themselves with an AWESOME display! Neighbor, Barb, said she took pics to try out her camera at night, so I'll post some when I get. The excitement? D&L set up the display about half-way to the back of our property. Throughout the night, people migrated between the house area and fireworks area. (There were about 45 here.) The budding pyromaniacs have to observe the professionals to get their training, of course, so the kids were between the pool and fireworks. Well, it's dark, there are about 20 people out by the fireworks and the D&L van full of fireworks and a lit one fell over! It started shooting all over the place including UNDER the van. People ran, and I held my breath for the van explosion! THANK GOD no one was hurt and the van didn't explode, but it was a heart-stopping moment! It was a potential tragedy, and I don't even think Lisa, medicine woman, could have fixed that one. New rules for next year - only adults in the fireworks area, no vehicles and definitely no kids!!
As for the GGLT, Lisa and David were totally excited to get the travel book (or game book as Mark calls it), and Lisa said she would definitely be reading the details out loud in their vehicle while we're on the road. Me, too! The t-shirts are a big hit, even if they will have scissors applied to them to make modified versions. David, Lisa, Luke, Mark and I talked quite a while about things we are going to do including our group shot at the starting point (in Columbia, MO). Lisa decided that D&L can't be anywhere near each other when we do the White Water Walk by the Falls (Niagara Falls). We are all beyond excited about the Top Thrill Dragster (TDD) ride at Cedar Point roller coaster park which is 310 feet straight up and straight down! We are on the countdown to the GGLT - 13 days.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Day 2 of My Adventure Blog
I exited work early today so I could get started on the weekend. I am coordinating our church's garage sale...interesting how I get myself into these situations! (Help! I need remedial 'no' class!! But, I find it to be a family trait.)We are also hosting the annual Goulding family and friends July 4th party. Although this year, it's on the 3rd. That going to work on the 5th really dampens the party spirit.
Anyway, Julie and kids were here so I finished up the GGLT books for the McCoskeys and us. Julie got quite a laugh about my books. YES, they have page dividers by day. YES, I planned out the route, stops, hotels, restaurants and the Cedar Point ride plan. And, YES, there are games for the kids. All I can say is that we will not have a boring moment! I think I put 46 stops on the t-shirts. YES, we have group t-shirts and I do say they are pretty cool! After the books, I started pre-cleaning (i.e. putting all of the STUFF away that gets scattered about when you're on the run.) For those of you who have maid service, it's the crap you put away before the maid gets there to actually clean. Julie and kids left after an hour or so, then the real cleaning began...floors, bathrooms, refrigerator, microwave, yada, yada. Hmmm - now I know why I don't do it that often! Of course, four dust pans of dirt later, I'm thinking that volleyball shouldn't take so much time so we can actually clean our house occasionally. I'm frequently at at Catch-22 on this. We have three kids and they should learn to keep things picked up and the cleaning side of having a house. But, they are busy with volleyball and dance, as are we, the parents, so it's a come-in-and-drop/take care of the dogs kind of life for us. So, to close out my day - I accomplished a lot of my to-dos today (even after waking up at 3:30 and reading two hours) so I feel like the day was a success. Oh, yeah. I also got the mail a bit ago and have the Justin Bieber video, Groundhog Day movie, and Disney's Legends so the girls can learn about Bieber (like they don't already know), Punxatawney, Johnny Appleseed and Paul Bunyan...all glorious stops on our GGLT. Good night!
Anyway, Julie and kids were here so I finished up the GGLT books for the McCoskeys and us. Julie got quite a laugh about my books. YES, they have page dividers by day. YES, I planned out the route, stops, hotels, restaurants and the Cedar Point ride plan. And, YES, there are games for the kids. All I can say is that we will not have a boring moment! I think I put 46 stops on the t-shirts. YES, we have group t-shirts and I do say they are pretty cool! After the books, I started pre-cleaning (i.e. putting all of the STUFF away that gets scattered about when you're on the run.) For those of you who have maid service, it's the crap you put away before the maid gets there to actually clean. Julie and kids left after an hour or so, then the real cleaning began...floors, bathrooms, refrigerator, microwave, yada, yada. Hmmm - now I know why I don't do it that often! Of course, four dust pans of dirt later, I'm thinking that volleyball shouldn't take so much time so we can actually clean our house occasionally. I'm frequently at at Catch-22 on this. We have three kids and they should learn to keep things picked up and the cleaning side of having a house. But, they are busy with volleyball and dance, as are we, the parents, so it's a come-in-and-drop/take care of the dogs kind of life for us. So, to close out my day - I accomplished a lot of my to-dos today (even after waking up at 3:30 and reading two hours) so I feel like the day was a success. Oh, yeah. I also got the mail a bit ago and have the Justin Bieber video, Groundhog Day movie, and Disney's Legends so the girls can learn about Bieber (like they don't already know), Punxatawney, Johnny Appleseed and Paul Bunyan...all glorious stops on our GGLT. Good night!
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