Day 16 - The End

{the full gps track of our trip}

We're home at last. The last day was a rough one, but they usually are. Ellie was a little more fussy than usual, and the train was running very late. We got stopped outside of Cumberland, MD, for over an hour waiting for freight traffic to clear. Made for a long, long day.

Ellie was better at standing at the window in the lounge car on our way back, didn't really need anyone holding her. But she was more into the goings-on around her so she wasn't that interested in standing for long.

Also the East is very tree-y. Makes it hard to get a good picture where there's always trees flashing by the window!

It was a lot of fun seeing the different landscapes go by as we moved from East Coast to Midwest to West and back again, especially going to bed in one region and waking up in another.

It was an amazing two weeks and I can't say I am quite ready to head back to work or anything, but it is nice to be home. Most people probably really like being in their own bed, but my favorite part of being home is taking a shower in my own shower. I don't know why, there's nothing special about our bathroom, it badly needs some updating. But I love it. No matter how nice and fancy and clean their shower is, it's never quite as good as the one at home.

Day 15 - Connections

Today was spent basically watching the clock and counting the hours waiting to see if we'll get to Chicago on time. Our connecting train is scheduled to leave at 7:00. I don't even know what time we were supposed to get there, but by mid-afternoon we were scheduled to arrive at 7:00. That meant any more delays and we're toast. They missed the connection on the two previous days. We're not feeling hopeful.

Woke up, grabbed breakfast, and back to our car in time to watch Omaha go by, along with Offut Air Force Base where they store the extra Air Force One 747s.

Got a bunch more farm shots.

The flooding in Illinois wasn't much different than it was two weeks ago. Not sure where I expected the water to go, but it hasn't gone anywhere yet. We were the last car on the train so it was kind of fun looking out the back window.

Otherwise, we really did spend the time watching the clock, listening for announcements, and tracking our progress on the schedule. If we missed the connection it would mean an overnight in Chicago, which they would pay for, and the next leg of our trip (another overnight) most likely in coach, they would refund our accommodation charge. None of this sounds like fun to us, we like Chicago but we kinda just want to get home.

We roll into the station at 7:00 and find our connecting train right next door. So, off one train and onto another. They'd already made dinner reservations for us and everything. It couldn't have gone more smoothly. Big phew and a nice relaxing evening on the train.

{right = old train, left = new train}

So, we head to dinner. It's community seating so we sit across from a nice older couple who just made same harried train connection. We start chatting and discover that the woman is none other than pioneering astronaut John Glenn's sister-in-law! Wow! They were returning from his grandson's wedding in San Fransisco. She is the only sister of Annie, wife to John Glenn, who has no siblings himself. So, being the only close family, she was there for all the exciting goings-on during those earliest days of the space program. How cool must that have been?!? An interesting end to a crazy day.

Day 14 - Heading Home

Well, we're nearing the end of our big adventure. Now all that's left is to take the train all the way back to Maryland. We weren't scheduled to leave until about 7:00 that evening so we had quite a bit of time to hang out and pack things up before heading back to Denver.

We arrived and found out the train was to be about 30 minutes late. Okay, no problem. Checked out bags, went to a nice dinner across the street from the station, grabbed the rest of our stuff out of the car and checked on the ETA again. 1 hr 30 minutes late. Ugh. We didn't actually get on the train until about 10:00 pm, that's almost 3 hours late. This wouldn't be too much of a problem except we have to make a connection in Chicago tomorrow. We have a 4 hr window...it's not looking good already and we haven't even gotten started. Also, there was no airconditioning in the station.

Day 13 - Garden of the Gods

We spent the morning out at the Garden of the Gods, an amazing rock park in Colorado Springs. The sky was a deep blue and the moon was out, that along with the red of the rock formations made for some neat photo opportunities.

{Pike's Peak}

This also gave us a chance to use the nifty backpack. There are paved paths throughout the park so we didn't really need the pack, but it was nice to have. We thought we'd be more ambitious than we were and get in some real hikes, but at least it came in handy on the train and in the terminals.

Then back to the house. The rain the day before really cooled things down, but it was still hot in the sun. But, eventually the afternoon clouds had rolled back in. Pete and Ellie hung out on the lawn for as long as they could before another cooling rain.

After a week of hot hot hot, unusual for the Colorado I remember, we got to pull out the pants and long-sleeved shirts that I brought just in case.

Day 12 - Quiet time

A quiet day at last. Just spent the day relaxing and enjoying the scenery and being in one place for a few days. Ellie took a walk with Grandma around the neighborhood then sat on the front porch for awhile watching the clouds roll in.

Eventually it rained, really cooling things off (finally).

So nice to just sit. Nowhere to be, no one to see, nothing to do. Ahhhhhh.

Day 11 - Par-tay

Sheeee's ba-ack.

I was really nervous that we'd pushed Ellie too far over the previous week and our reward would be a crabby baby for the remainder of the trip. But after a good night's sleep and a nice morning nap she was back to her chipper self. Phew.

Just in time for a party! The in-laws held an open house similar to the one my mom and step-dad had, inviting all their friends over for an afternoon to socialize and meet the grandbaby. It was a delightful afternoon and evening. Ellie did great being passed around again.

{with Grandpa}

She had a great time watching all the other kids playing, and they helped out a lot by keeping her entertained. Even the older folks got in on the fun. It was nice to see some people that we hadn't seen in awhile and meet some new friends. Party started about 4:00 and most stayed until well past 8:00. Good times had by all. And even though this wasn't intended as a gift-giving thing, I guess people can't resist shopping for baby so we got a few new fun toys, some adorable outfits, and a few new books. Suitcases are filling up.

Day 10 - The Springs

Man, did we have a crabby baby today. One nap in the living room does not a happy baby make. Lesson learned. Will my angel baby ever return?