Lawrence, KS/Senior House

The last stop on our 10-day road trip was to Lawrence, KS to visit Taylor and help her get moved into her last KU house.  I can't believe it is senior year already!  We had a few nice dinners with her and Andrew and got to see some of her other friends as well.

This is her new senior house...shared with 8 other girls.  It is super cute with a nice front porch

and a great garage with lots of storage and parking in the back.

She is sharing a room with Hallie and they were able to make great use of their space!

Taylor's closet

Their shared bathroom

One of the 2 kitchens shared with the 4 other girls that live downstairs.  I think this year will be quite social despite the COVID situation.  With 9 girls in 1 house, there will always be someone to hang out with and help make this senior year a special one!

The ride to the airport and flight back to California were pretty emotional for Matt and me.  On one hand we are so proud of the independent young ladies we have raised and excited for our new chapter as "empty nesters", but something just didn't feel right leaving them both in Kansas.  It will be a time of adjustment, but I think everyone is where they are supposed to be and have worked so hard to get there!

 

Salina, KS/KWU Move-In

We were up early and stopped for breakfast at Red Beard Coffee (served by the red-bearded owner himself) in Dodge City before making our way to Salina, KS.

This was our view most of the way...little towns with grain elevators and lots of cattle!

We made it to Salina by lunch time!  Allison is excited to call this home for the next few years!

We spent the next 2 days doing LOTS of dorm shopping,

checking out some hikes and lakes

and visiting with the Wilson's...Allison's amazing host family!

Wednesday morning was move-in at KWU!  It is such a pretty campus and the weather was perfect for move in!

We went to the Student Activity Center for check in

and got tons of help from fellow students/coaches to bring everything from the truck to Allison's room.

Within a few hours, she had converted her room into this very cozy space!  I think she will be very happy here

and I hope she feels like this is her home away from home.

We took her out to one final dinner at Martinelli's and said our goodbyes.  We can't wait to watch her play via live stream and hope she makes the most of her first semester.  

She and her roommate Kaylen seem to get along so well and we hope they make many memories together!

 

Dodge City, KS

We drove through gorgeous areas like this for the first few hours of today's drive from Durango, CO to Dodge City, KS.  

Within a few hours, we were on flatter land as we crossed into Kansas.

Dodge City looked more like a ghost town than a cowboy town, but we had fun exploring it with the place to ourselves.

We were able to walk from our hotel to the downtown area, which was full of cool statues, unique architecture

and some really cool murals.

We got some pretty good Mexican food (got to eat indoors and no one wore masks), surrounded by a lot of local cowboys/families which added to our visit.

We walked past the Dodge City Police Department,

Boot Hill Distillery

and some gigantic trains on display before heading back to the hotel for the evening.

 

Durango, CO

Matt and I celebrated our 23rd Anniversary today as we drove from Flagstaff, AZ to Durango, CO.

We stopped along the way to see the Dinosaur Tracks in the Navajo Indian Reservation.  Unfortunately, due to COVID, the tours were closed and all of the little shopping shacks were closed.  

We still took some time to get out and explore the area ourselves...literally had the place to ourselves!

We entered beautiful Colorado,

and not long after, made it to Durango.  Masks were required EVERYWHERE,

but we spent some time walking around the town, eating dinner and visiting the train museum.

The Animas River runs right through town so we drove around checking out some cool views of the river and walking across a few different bridges.  Hoping we make it back here some day. So many outdoor activities available!

Happy 23rd Anniversary to US!

 

Flagstaff, AZ

The first stop on our road trip to Kansas was in Flagstaff, AZ. 

 We strolled along Route 66,

walked into a few shops (while watching a very disturbing protest against law enforcement), 

and ate dinner on the patio while watching numerous trains go through town,

and finished the night with a drive around the NAU campus.

 

Some Hard Goodbyes

Allison had a rough few days of goodbyes.  We did one last bonfire with Kylee, Turbo, Reanna, Zoey and the moms

and there were lots of tears saying goodbye to her trainer Kevin.  He presented Allison with this plaque which will be hung up at Dynamic Fitness and I know she will anxiously await working out there again over Christmas break! Lots more tears shed on Thursday saying goodbye to Kylee

and then to the pups and the house on Friday morning.  Not only did she have to pack for college, she had to pack her room for our upcoming move.  So many emotions!

 

Oh The Places They Will Go...

These 3 are all grown up and off to do great things in college.  Leslie organized a fun photo session before they headed across the USA.

Allie is off to Kansas, Turbo is going to Tennessee and Reanna is headed to Illinois!

Wishing them the best on their new adventures and excited to see what their bright futures hold!