Oh, Arkansas....! (And the Rest of October)

Look at that nice, friendly, welcoming sign: "Welcome to Arkansas! The Natural State."




And yes, right away we found a very friendly campground we could pull into, to take care of business: dumping, filling up tanks, showering, housekeeping, and washing laundry. Little Miss and I did school, too: Little Miss dangling from the monkey bars as I read to her:)




When we were all done, we got back on the road, refreshed, energized, and smelling a lot better than before getting to Arkansas ;-)

We were ready to push through Arkansas, so we could make it to Florida on time. Mr T was signed up to help with campaigning for Governor Rick Scott (with Generation Joshua), and he needed to be in Tampa by Friday evening on October 31st.

Take a closer look at the black and white photo above. Does it look like we are pushing through Arkansas hard?




Nope. We broke down on the highway. Not far from the campground.




We are so thankful for God's protection: while the highway traffic was heavy and there wasn't a wide shoulder to pull over on, we were ok and safe. We have AAA, and after calling the campground we had spent a few hours that morning, we found a mechanic who could help us. AAA arrived promptly, and towed us to Larry's Shell back in Van Buren, AR.




We all squeezed into the tow truck (!), got to the next exit, turned around, and made our way back to Van Buren.




Larry's Shell had a small parking lot, but behind his station was an RV park! We were towed to a site where we could plug in, and safely and comfortably spend the night. Thank you, God!!!




After getting settled, and making arrangements with Larry, we walked to a great restaurant for a yummy steak dinner.

Mr T was worried about not making it to Tampa on time, and we prayed. We asked for a miracle. It didn't look good - we barely had time to drive to Florida as it was, but to be broken down did not help. We reminded Mr T about God being in charge, and just had to leave it in His hands.




So what happened was our oil pump and oil sensor malfunctioned, and we could not go on. Larry from Larry's Shell was able to diagnose the problem, and get it fixed the next morning, so by lunch time on October 30th we were back on the road.

Still praying for that miracle to make it to Tampa on time....!!

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We made it. The Captain kept us going - on Thursday 10/30 through Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi into Alabama.

Friday morning, on October 31st, we woke up next to Bed, Bath and Beyond in Alabama, and I ran into the store for more coffee and Halloween candy:) We drove into Georgia, kept going, and finally made it to Florida, giving thanks for our miracle (of making it in such a short time).

We were able to drop Mr T off on time in Tampa, stopped at the mall where Little Miss got a few pieces of Halloween candy and we got food court dinner. Later that evening our travels continued for a few more hours, and around midnight we pulled into our destination campground, completely wiped out.

And that completed our October! Our crazy travel month. Yes, crazy - yet amazing and wonderful and full of life long memories...

So thankful for the opportunity to travel and roadschool!

Next up, our November adventures - very different from October, yet a lot of fun, too:)

And...... please vote for us!!

(((Thank you)))

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Kun pääsimme Oklahomasta Arkansas'in puolelle, löysimme leirintäalueen, jossa vietimme parisen tuntia pesten pyykkiä, ja huoltaen asuntoauton tankkeja: tyhjäten ja täyttäen. Kaikki kävimme suihkussa, ja Pikkuneidin kanssa pidimme koulupäivää ulkona.

Leirintäalueen jälkeen matka jatkui - vain hetken aikaa... Asuntoauton öljypumppu reistaili, ja matka tyssäsi moottoritien reunaan. Vaikka moottoritien liikenne oli raskas, meillä ei ollut hätää, ja hinausrekka tuli aika nopeasti. Aamun leirintäalueelta neuvottiin minne mennä huoltoon, ja kun hinaaja vei meidät sinne, huoltoaseman takana oli leirintäalue!! Sinne meidät hinattiin, ja pystyimme nukkumaan yön asuntoautossa. Läheltä löytyi myös ravintola, ja kävimme syömässä pihvit:)

Seuraavana aamuna mekaanikko sai huollettua öljypumput ja viat, ja niin pääsimme tien päälle lounasaikaan. Rukoillen ihmettä, että Mr T ehtisi Floridaan ajoissa, hänen piti olla jo seuraavana päivänä Tampassa auttamassa äänestyskampanjassa....! Ilman mekaanisia ongelmiakin tarvitsimme ihmettä, että ehtisimme perille ajoissa, ja yhden ajopäivän menettäminen ei näyttänyt kovin hyvältä....

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Mutta me ehdimme! Torstaina, lokakuun 30. päivä ajoimme Arkansasista Tennesseen ja Mississippin läpi Alabamaan. Ja perjantaina 31.10 ajoimme Alabamasta Georgian läpi Floridaan. Hurja ajaminen. Mutta kiitollisin mielin Mr T ehti Tampaan, ja me jatkoimme matkaa vielä muutaman tunnin seuraavalle leirintäalueelle.

Aikamoinen kuukausi oli meidän lokakuu! Ihan kahelia matkustamista, mutta kuinka rikas ja upea aika perheemme elämässä. Kovin kiitollisia olemme tästä mahdollisuudesta matkustaa, ja pitää kotikoulua (asuntoautokoulua?) lapsillemme.

Marraskuun seikkailut näyttävät kovin erilaisilta, niistä sitten lisää seuraavaksi:)


PS. Äänestitkö tänään? Saa äänestää joka päivä jokaisesta elektronisesta vempaimesta:)