LIFE BEFORE BLOGS

Ah, I wish I had started journaling all our trips from the beginning... would love to know how many miles we're traveled over the years. Kent's job required frequent travel and we often went along with him. Here are highlights of where we've been (not counting at least 3 trips a year to visit family in Missouri - an 800 mile round trip - and numerous camping trips and get-aways around home.) The specific visit dates at national parks are thanks to the stamps in our national parks passport book.  There are more indepth accounts in the archives of some of the trips.

1981 -

         May - Wisconsin Dells, Baraboo, WI

         Sept - CA for two weeks

1982 - working, working, working

1983 –

         July - MO - Cloud Nine Ranch with 2 oldest girls in rented trailer

         Sept 17 –Lindsay born
         Sep-Dec – CA for 3 months (Kent's work; my maternity leave)
         Dec - MO for Christmas

1984 –

        May – MO (Dana's mom watched two 9-month-old babies while Kent, Dana, two oldest daughters and two cousins went canoeing; grandma said there was no way those babies could pull that planter off the table - we came home to find her cleaning up the dirt)

       Nov - MO for Thanksgiving
       Dec –Dana quit working to stay at home eating bon-bons and watching soaps (isn't that what a stay-at-home mom does??)

1985 –

        Sep-Dec - CA - for three months

        Dec - MO for Thanksgiving

1986 –

        Jan 12 –Stephanie born

        Feb - FL for a couple of weeks

1987 –

        Jan/Feb – FL for two months (funny how Kent always got sent to FL in the winter!)

        Fall - MO, to take the babies to Grandma; then Las Vegas, NV

1988 –
        Jan 7 – Whitney born

        Nov - MO for Thanksgiving
        Dec - MO for Christmas

1989 –
        Feb - FL
        Nov - MO for Thanksgiving
        Dec - MO for Christmas and then on to FL for two months

1990 –
        Jan/Feb - FL

        Nov 16 –Aime born

1991 –
        Fall - campout with church group - rented a pop-up

1992 –
        Summer - church campout in our pop-up (our first camper!)
        Aug - started homeschooling
        Oct – IN - Covered Bridges Festival (2 a.m. setting up pop-up)

1993 -
        Jan/Feb - chickenpox (so we didn't go along to FL this time)
        April - took kids to MO to stay with grandma a few days so we could get ready to move
        May – moved to new house
        May –3 weeks (stayed at hotel or at Dana's brother's apt)
        May 26 - Petersburg Natl Battlefield Petersburg, VA
        Summer– MO to take girls to visit Grandma; Kent and Dana went camping in northern IL
        Aug 23 – Jordan born (in NC; Kent drove from IL to pick him up from hospital)
        Oct - hosted family reunion/Dean & Lyn (Kent's parents) anniversary party in Moline, IL
        Nov 24 – Jefferson Natl Expansion Mem., Oregon Trail – St. Louis, MO; then Thanksgiving in Lebanon

1994 -
        Feb 6 – Nick (grandson) born!
        Feb – AL (Rob’s, Kent's brother) then FL for Dean/Lyn 50^th Anniversary
        April 23 – Gettysburg NationalMemorial Park, Gettysburg, PA
        April 25 – Washington Monument, Washington, DC
        April 25 – Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC
        April 25 – Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC
        June - MO (Dana's grandfather's funeral)
        June/July – Wisc, Minn, SD (two weeks, tent camping)
        Jul 2 – Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Keystone, SD (tents)
        Jul 3 – Devils TowerNational Monument, Devils Tower, WY
        Jul 4 – Badlands National Park, Interior, SD
        Jul 5 – Jewel Cave Natl Monument,Custer, SD
        Nov 6 – Lyndon B Johnson Memorial Grove, Washington, DC
        Nov 6 – Arlington House, Robert E. Lee Memorial, Arlington, VA
        Nov 6 –George Washington Memorial Pwy, McLean, VA
        Nov 6 – Marine Corps War Mem./Netherlands Carillon, Arlington, VA
        Nov 7 - Ft. McHenryNatl Monumentand Historic Shrine
        Nov - VA - Thanksgiving at Doug's in Falls Church
        Dec 7 –Morganne (granddaughter) born in MO
        Dec 14 –Missi (daughter), Ron, Morganne move in with us for 4 months

1995 -
        Jan – cabin retreat, Scott Co. Park, IA
        July - NY, Alexandria Bay; then Ontario, Canada
        Oct 9 – Great Sand Dunes, CO (camping in the pop-up)
        Oct 10 – Mesa Verde NP, Mesa Verde, CO
        Oct 12 – Grand Canyon Natl Park(North Rim), 75^th Anniversary
        Oct 13 – Grand Canyon National Park(South Rim), Grand Canyon, AZ
        Oct 16 – Saguaro NM, Tuscon, AZ
        Oct 18 –Chamizal National Memorial, El Paso, TX
        Oct 20 -George Washington Carver NM, Diamond, MO

1996 –
        Feb - AL and FL for 3 weeks
        Feb 15 – Canaveral NS, Cape Canaveral, FL (hotel)
        Feb 16 – Ft. Matanzas NM,St. Augustine, FL
        Feb 16 –Castillo de San Marcos NM,St. Augustine, FL
        May – MO; mom kept kids; K/D went canoeing for 3 days
        Sept - Doug’s, Falls Church, VA(two trips; health issues)
        Oct - Adams, Lebanon, MO (Doug's funeral)

1997 -

        Feb - Lebanon, MO for Adams 40^th anniversary (at least one trip a month all fall/winter to be with mom and dad after Doug died)
        Jul - picked up new Yellowstone 32 foot Class C bunkhouse in Indiana
        Jul – 2 exchange students for 1 month – Laurianne (France) and Sara (Spain)
        Jul - took 3 exchange students (Inez,Spain) with our family to Lincoln's New Salem, Springfield, and Chicago (slept 10 in our Class C, on Moody Bible Institute's parking lot in downtown Chicago. What a shake-down trip!)
        Oct – 3 weeks – toured eastern Canadaand NE states; left Oct 2, had peak fall colors almost everywhere. Crossed into Ontario at Port Huron; went to Toronto (driving RV downtown again, you think we'd learn) and Ottawa; then Quebec (Montreal and Quebec City); then New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia (Bay of Fundy); back to New Brunswick, then to Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York (Kent and three girls went into NYC, Dana kept the little two home), New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, then home through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. Twenty-two days, five kids, and a lot of driving!
        Oct 19 –Statue of LibertyNatl Monument
        Oct 19 – ManhattanSites CastleClinton NM
        Oct 20 – Valley Forge Natl Historical Park (PA)
        Oct 21 – C& O Canal NHP, Sandy Hook, MD
        Oct 21 –Harper’s Ferry NHP, Harper’s Ferry, WV
        Nov - MO for Thanksgiving

1998 -
        Jan – 1 exchange student for semester – Natasha (Brazil)

        Feb - IN - Children's Musuem in Indianapolis
        May - MO

1999 -

        Feb - AL and FL
        Oct 14 – Effigy MoundsNational Monument, Harper’s Ferry, Iowa (Effigy Mounds National              Monument, 1949-1999, Celebrating 50 Years)

2000 -

        Feb - AL and FL
        June –exchange student for one month – Marie (France)
        August – Kent and Lindsay to NYC for Lindsay HS grad present
        August - exchange student for school year – Elena (Russia)
        Oct/Nov - Charleston, SC, James Island County Park (they were setting up and testing their Christmas         drive-through light display)
        Oct 22 – Great Smoky Mountains Natl Park, Gaitlinburg, TN 37738 (horseback riding!)

2001 -

        May - moved to current house
        June – kids went to camp; Elena’s going away party
        Sept 10 –Natasha visited from Brazil
        Aug - IN, for scholarship competion at IWU
        Nov – Steph went to Russia on missions trip (also grad present)

2002 -

        Feb - AL/FL/AL
        Feb 4 –Castillo de San Marcos NM,St. Augustine, FL
        June-Aug –Dean and Lyn stayed in Molineall summer
        July 13 – Ty (grandson) born!
        July –exchange student for one week (to tutor English) – Guillaume (France). That was also the week           Rob and family spent with us, moving from TX to IL
        Aug – IN, take Lindsay to college (IWU)

2003 -

        Spring - AL (tornado warning and the hotel sequestered us in the glass atrium! A lady from NJ asked           what we should do; I told her if she saw me grab the kids and run to the bathroom - follow!)

        June - Macon, GA, church missions trip, working at Hepzibah Children's Home
        July – kids were all gone the same week! Had a vacation at home! Put in shade garden
        Sep 30 – Kent retired!!
        Nov - IN, for puppet team show

2004 -

        Jan-Mar - Winter in Texas, Mustang Island
        April - MO
        May 1 – Clarksville, TN – Tom and Missi’s wedding ceremony
        July –exchange student for one month – Natsuki (Japan)
        July 31 - IN, for puppet team/scholarship competition at IWU

2005 -

        Jan-Mar - Winter in Texas, MustangIsland
        Mar 3 – Sami (granddaughter) born!
        April - MO
        April - bought new truck - 2005 Chevy Silverado 2500HD Duramax crew-cab, long-bed
        April – IN trip K/D; Lindsay graduated IWU
        May 13 - Lindsay/Mike wedding in IL; Whitney graduated HS
        June – to MO (taking 2 youngest to grandma), then CA for Whitney's graduation trip; to MO for kids;         to IL for graduation party; to IN to help Mike and Lindsay with house remodeling
        Jul – bought new 2005 Jayco 325BHS fifth wheel
       Aug/Sep – help with Steph and Greg's house remodeling
       August 26 – Dana's grandma died; to MO for funeral
       Sept 2 –Stephanie/Greg wedding in IL
       Sep 30 – Lincoln Home NHS, Springfield, IL (we often escaped to Lincoln's New Salem, a state      
       historic site with a small quiet campground, about 3 hours from our house)
       fall - MO, for grandma's auction

2006 -

       Jan – Gulfport, MS, post-Katrina work with World Hope
       Jan/Feb – Texas, Mustang Island
       Feb 28 - San Antonio, the Alamo
       Feb 28 – San Antonio Missions Natl Historical Park, San Antonio, TX
       Feb 28 – Mission Espade
       Feb 28 –Mission San Juan
       Feb 28 –Mission Concepcion
       Feb 28 – Mission San Jose
       Apr – Dean and Lyn (Kent's parents) move in with us; fixed house up, listed for sale (on market for  
       over a year, no luck)
       May – to Brandywine, MD to Tom and Missi’s (spent 3 weeks)
       May 28 - walked the Mall in DC for hours (Missi hoping to induce labor); went to hear the Marine  
      Corps band in the evening
       May 29 - Memorial Day parade in DC; Gary Sinise grand marshall
       June 1 – Kasi (granddaughter) born!
       Jun 6 -  Visited lots of sites in DC with 2 kids and 1 granddaughter:
           Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove, Arlington, VA
          National Mall Memorial Parks, Washington, DC
          Thomas Jefferson Natl Memorial, Washington, DC
          National Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC
          Korean War Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC
          Constitution Gardens, Washington, DC
          LincolnMemorial, Washington, DC
          Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC
          George Washington Memorial Pwy, Arlington, VA
          US Marine Corps Memorial, Arlington, VA
          Arlington House, Arlington, VA
          Arlington House, Robert E. Lee Memorial, Arlington, VA
       Jun 9 – Washington Monument, Washington, DC
       Jun 10 –President’s Park, The White House, Washington, DC
       Jun 12 –Colonial Natl Historical Park, JamestownVA
       Jun 12 – 75^thAnniversary, Colonial Natl Historical Park, Yorktown, VA 1930-2005
       Jun 13 - 75^th Anniversary, JamestownGlasshouse, Jamestown, VA 1930-2005
       Jul – exchange student for one month – Fleur (France)
       August - IN for scholarship competition at IWU
       August - IN to take Whitney to college
       Oct – Tom/Missi family in IL for 2 weeks before deploying to Germany for 3 (which turned in to 4)
       years
       Nov - Thanksgiving in MO

2007 -

        Jan 25 – Mariska (granddaughter) born!
        Feb – to MO for Adams 50^th Anniversary (and help ice storm cleanup)
        May – to IN, Nora (granddaughter) born!
        May 30 – left for Alaska from IL
        Jul 16– Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska
        Jul 20 – Wrangell St.Elias Natl Park and Perserve, Copper Center, AK
        Aug 19 – KenaiFjords National Park, Seward, AK
        Aug 22 – Denali National Parkand Preserve, Alaska
        Sept 3 – Denali National Parkand Preserve, Alaska
        Sep 12/13 – Fish Creek Wildlife Conservation Site, Hyder Alaska
        Sept 24 – YellowstoneNational Park, Madison
        Sept 30 – Arches National Park, Moab, UT
        Oct 1 - Canyonlands National Park,Island District, UT
        Oct 2 – Canyonlands National Park,Needles District, UT
        Oct 3 - Arches National Park,Moab, Utah
        Oct 4 - Mesa Verde National Park, Mesa Verde, CO
        Oct 6 - Petroglyph NatlMonument, Albuquerque, NM
        Oct 10 – Lebanon, MO
        Oct 25 – Moline, IL

2008 -
        Jan - Steph, Greg and Mariska move into house to be caretakers

        Jan – in IL for Mariska’s first birthday, then to MO
        Feb/Mar – Wales West RV, near Foley AL (2 months); stopped in Gulfport, AL, to visit a family we           helped re-roof their house in 2006
        Apr – Moline ILfor two weeks
        May – IN for Nora’s first birthday
        May 5 – left from IN for Alaska
        Sept 25 – Mt Rushmore Natl Memorial, Keystone, SD
        Oct - MO to parents, IN to see college kids, IL to house
        Nov - Aime left for Germany to stay with Missi

2009 -
        Jan/Feb – Moline ILfor medical stuff
        Mar 9 – Lewis and Clark NHT, St. Louis, MO
        Mar 9 – Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, St. Louis, MO
        Mar 26 – to IN (in the middle of the night!) – Eden (granddaughter)born!
        April - IN for Whitney college graduation
        August - FL (Kent flew down to move his folks to IL; put his mom on a plane, and drove back with his        dad - quite the adventure)
        Sept 26 – Madi (granddaughter) born in Germany
        Dec - Mike, Lindsay, Nora and Eden move into house

2010 -

        Jan/Feb – Quartzsite, AZ
        Feb 25 – Joshua Tree National Park, Cottonwood, CA
        Mar 14 – Joshua Tree National Park, Twentynine Palms, CA
        Mar 28 – Cabrillo NM, Ft. Rosecrans National Cemetery
        Mar – San Diego
        April - MO
        May 7 – Moline IL– Phinn (grandson) born!
        Sept 1 – to Pekin, IL– Asher (grandson) born!
        Dec 14 – Missi and girls home from Germany! Met them at the airport in Chicago for their layover
        Dec 22 – Dean and Lyn move from FL (again!) to care center in IL

2011 -
        Jan - to MO, then to TN to help Missi set up new house (of course, it's the Army, so their Jan 1 scheduled furniture arrival didn't make it there until Jan 25)
        Jan - MS - was suppose to be for two months, but Kent's mom got sick, so we had to come back early; dropped Jordan off with Missi in TN, then to MO to leave 5th wheel (too much snow and ice to park it at the house in IL), then IL
        Mar - MO to pick up 5th wheel and visit/help for a week. On second night, the care center called to tell us Kent's mom had died. Packed up and was on the road by 4:00 a.m., home by noon.
        May - MO - finally had Kent's dad settled enough to be able to go help Dana's parents for a week (got back to house May 24, day of the Joplin tornado)

        May 29 - MO - Joplin - Kent and Jordan took a trailer of supplies from our church to tornado victims; worked with a local church there for a week (Dana didn't go, she had pneumonia; Jordan came home with a ruptured ear drum from infection, but he loved helping and hanging out at night with firefighters from all over the country)

        July 25 - bought our current RV - a 25 foot 2010 Coachmen Freelander, 2100CB, Sprinter diesel (with the corner bed Dana swore she'd never have!)
        August 13 - Tristan (grandson) born! Aime moved back home (into the 5th wheel actually) to be close to family for awhile
        Sep – WI for a week (skydiving); first shakedown trip with new RV
        Nov – MO to help Dana's folks
                   TN - Tom's home from Iraq! Time to visit the whole family!
                   IN - did you know that an RV can double as a moving van?? We had removed the U-shaped dinette for extra space and barely got all of Whitney's things packed between the RV and her car - good thing she didn't have a couch to move!
        Dec 26 - MO
        Dec 30 – Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Carlsbad, NM
        Dec 30 – Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Salt Flat, TX
        Dec 31 - Quartzsite, AZ, BLM land (Scadden Wash)