Tim and I were reminiscing one day recently, trying to recall when we went where. I had to go back and look at posts from the last ten years to figure out the time frame of our travels. So I decided I should record some of our bigger trips for future memory sake!
Germany/Belgium/Austria - October 2006: to visit our exchange student Daniel who spent a year with us during the 97-98 school year.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Kentucky - Summers of 2008 and 2009: Tim stayed home. I flew to Kentucky both years to attend the International Ventriloquist Convention.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Alaska - August 2009: Cash was working in Alaska in the tourist industry. Tim and I flew to Juneau Alaska and then took a boat to Skagway and spent about a week with Cash and went with him on many tourist tours, including our own private helecopter ride to the top of a glacier.
San Antonio, Texas - October 2010: Tim and I went on a group tour to San Antonio and the surrounding area including Corpus Christi, the King Ranch, the LBJ Ranch, and several other places.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Las Vegas, Nevada - November 2011: Tim and I and Erny and Connie Bussingter flew to Las Vegas to attend the National Finals Rodeo, something that had been on Tim's bucket list for a very long time.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Sonoma, CA - Christmas 2010 & San Francisco - Christmas 2012: We spent Christmas with Alexis in Sonoma in 2010; and Christmas in San Francisco with Alexis and Val in 2012.
 |
| San Francisco Christmas 2012 |
---------------------------------------------------------------------
February 2011 - Caribbean Cruise: In celebration of our 40th anniversary, we enjoyed a seven day cruise on the Royal Caribbean ship, and a couple extra days in Orlando, Florida. Loved the cruise.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
October 2012 - Gettysburg, Philadelphia, and Amish Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: This was a ten day road trip in perfect beautiful fall weather and colorful autumn colors.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Pureuto Vallarta, Mexico - November 2013: Tim and I, Janel and Tim, and Cash and Annie flew together to Puerato Valarto for the beach resort wedding of Alexis and Val. A very fun family time together.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
October 2014 - Israel & Jordan: A trip I would love to take again. A trip everyone should experience at least once in a lifetime. We were part of a tour group
A swim in the Dead Sea
------------------------------------------------------------------
Mississippi River Cruise New Orleans to Memphis - December 2016: This was a Christmas cruise during Christmas on the American Queen paddle wheel boat. We toured New Orleans at the beginning and Memphis and Elvis' Graceland at the end.
Waco/San Antonio, Texas - Summer 2017: I was privileged to join Cash & Annie and Penny, Charlotte and Wyatt on a road trip to Texas. What a great bonding experience for me with the little kids. Loved every minute of it and was glad to be a big help with the kids.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Costa Rica - February 2018: Another group tour - 10 days in beautiful Costa Rica. We had the best ever tour guide on the bus the whole time - our best tour guide ever.
Washington DC - April 2018: Another group bus tour with Moostash Joe tours out of Fremont NE. This was such a great tour. We had mixed emotions as we stopped and viewed the site of the 9/11 plane crash and memorial in Pennsylvania and toured the site of the 9/11Pentagon plane crash memorial. We remember the day those happened, a day in history one will never forget. Amazing war memorials and presidential memorials, and all the historic sites that played a part in building America and making it great. We also toured Jamestown, the Kentucky Derby track, and the Indianapolis 500 raceway in Indiana.
 | |
| Trying on a Kentucky Derby hat |
 |
| Cherry blossoms were in full bloom |
 |
| The Pentagon 9/11 memorial |
 |
| At the 9/11 Pennsylvania Memorial museum |
 |
| Looking out over the field of the 9/11 Pennsylvania plane crash |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Minnesota - October 2018: Following Josh's football game in Lincoln, we took a week long road trip up North through Minnesota. Also stopped to see college girlsfriends in Clark SD (Diane and Jerry Olson) and Ida Grove Iowa (Betty and Tom Stewart).
Us with Diane and Jerry Olson 
The headwaters of the Mississippi start here
 |
| Us with Tom and Betty Stewart |
Nashville & Smokey Mountains, Tennessee - April 2019: Another group bus tour with Moostash Joe tours. This time church friends, Bonnie and Jim Stolen went with us. We had a great time together. Pigeon Forge Tennessee is a vacation destination for sure. We spent a day at Dollywood, and also went to the Grand Ole Opry, several distilleries and a quilt museum, and the childhood home of Loretta Lynn.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Australia & New Zealand - March 2020: A trip of a lifetime on Tim's bucket list. We were gone for three weeks, making an overnite visit with Alexis and Val in San Francisco before flying into Las Angeles for the international flight. We left right at the beginning of the onset of the Covid pandemic. By the time we got home, everything was shut down and people were staying home and isolating. Even the airports were empty. But it was a great trip and perfect timing for us. So glad we went when we did. It was with Rupiper Tours, a farm/ranch tour company from Yankton SD. So we got out into the country and witnessed the way they farm and ranch in Australia and New Zealand. We also flew to the outback as well, which really completed our Australia experience, and snorkeled in the Great Barrier Reef.
 |
| New Zealand |
 |
| Australia |
 |
| New Zealand kiwi bird |
 |
| Milford Sound, New Zealand |
 |
| Opera House, Sidney Australia |
 |
| Social Hour in the Outback with fly net on! |
