Back Before Thanksgiving

     We met a lot of people on the road the last few days who were going south and could not understand why we were driving in the other direction.  I just can't imaging missing the holidays with my family.  We planned the trip to get back home in time for Bennett's birthday and for Thanksgiving.  I find it amazing that the warm Minnesota fall means that the grass is still green and I still have flowers blooming.   I really expected to find some snow on the ground when I was looking at the calendar.
    Our last 250 miles were uneventful except for the three deer who decided to cross the highway just in front of us.  I would have been seriously crabby if we had to spend a couple days in Iowa messing with a deer mashed on our bumper.  However, Bambi and his friends made it across the road safely.  We got home by mid afternoon and had the whole camper unloaded before dinner time.  We have this down pat now.
     We were gone 4.5 weeks, traveled over 4000 miles in the RV and around a thousand more in the car we tow.  We spent more time in big cities - Lincoln, NE, San Antonio, TX, Galveston, TX, Houston, TX and New Orleans, LA - than our usual trips.  We were in the plains, the desert, the seashore, bayous, rivers, forests, farms and miles of city sidewalks.  It was a trip of contrasts from the wide, open expanses of Big Bend to the crowded, urban streets of the French Quarter.  We were healthy and happy the whole time (not counting the irritating bites I had on one foot).  We had no problems with the RV or the car aside from the minor bathroom flooding which  required a mop up.         My house is a disaster.  We closed the cabin just ten days before leaving on our trip so I still have laundry, canned goods, and other junk from the cabin sitting around.  Now I have all the camper stuff too.  I am relieved that Thanksgiving is at my brother's house this year.  It may take a while to get this place back in shape.  But first I have to hug my grandchildren, I miss them more every time we leave home.
    Our next trip is to Maui.  I look forward to traveling with you all again.