Across the Mississippi!

July 10. Happy birthday Pop!!! Can't wait to see you!! And good by to Minnesota, where the state bird is the mosquito. The kids are constellations of bites to prove it. We exited the wind farms and corn fields of Minnesota across the Mississippi into Wisconsin. More corn fields but no wind farms. We have been traveling mainly back highways on our journey into the Upper Penisula to spend the night with my cousin Randy and his family. It is refreshing to be off the interstate seeing small towns with people lounging at the town pool, combines filling up at the local gas station, white picket fences and brightly filled flower pots. Rolling green hills of trees surrounding farmland. Silos. And more corn. Yup. We are in the Midwest!

Today is the first day we are eating on the run. Dished up last night's spaghetti and meatballs on the road to appease the monsters in the back seat. I have been avoiding eating in the van primarily because of potential mess. One has to find control somewhere, just ask Ruby. After reviewing the calendar, New Hartford, NY is just around the corner. His siblings and lots of cousins are there, and it is the jump point for Cape Cod. How slow and fast time seems to simultaneously move sometimes. Hard to believe we will be out of the van for a few days soon. Long day in the van without stops. Ruby wore out the battery on the iPad. Randy drives in tonight after us to catch us before we push off in the morning. Surreal to think how far we've come. How little conversation we have had outside of family. The windows are down because it is so pleasant and the mosquitoes can't get in. Trees tower over the road, clearing only when someone bothered to clear t

hem. Lakes slip by on either side. Birch has replaced Aspen as the white bark. Ferns everywhere. July 11. Great night, a bit too much wine, and lots of fun in the UP with family. Camp G is a wonderful spot. A couple of cute, comfortable cabins nestled in eleven acres of woods and lake. A lot of care and thought was put into decorating the cabins and landscaping the area around them. Mary and the girls spend the summers up there and Randy comes up for the weekends. The visit was entirely too short but we managed to fit a bit of fishing in. It reaffirmed connection, from the history of shared lineage as well as we are often more alike than different. There was no problem establishing common ground, we are all about the same age, with kids, shared values. I can't say enough how fortunate I feel to have spent time with Mary and Randy. We have just finished lunch at Lake Superior, the largest lake in the world. Reese says he can see Canada. I can't. On our way to the border. We are headed into Canada for a few days, to the Muskoka Lakes. I grew up going there to visit grandparents. Really looking forward to seeing Amy and her family, and anyone else who shows up. Won't be posting from across the border unless I have WIFI. Too expensive to use cellular data. See you soon. Thanks so much to Randy, Mary and the girls for a fabulous, but too short, stay!!