~Hodo Happenings~: November 2008

Our journey was long & stressful, but we finally made it all the way to Texas...here are some pics from our trip:

Brian receiving his PCS award from the Commander of his unit in Virginia right before we left:

Actually leaving Virginia was quite a feat in itself. The movers were a complete wreck - showing up late, not working as quickly as they said they would, making the packing take 2 days instead of the promised one, then we found out our stuff wouldn't all fit in one moving truck because the driver had lied and said he had room when he really didn't, so our stuff had to be moved in 2 different shipments by 2 different companies...and to top it all off one of the drivers knocked over an oil pan in our garage which spilled oil all over the garage floor - that Brian had just spent hours cleaning! The transportation company that was shipping Brian's truck kept changing their pick up times & days, and when they finally arrived his truck was damaged while it was being loaded on the truck! And we were also waiting on a part for my truck we ordered that hadn't arrived yet. For months my truck had been picking & choosing when it wanted to start & if it would start it would randomly turn off while I was driving down the road! We finally figured out it was the vehicle's computer, and we had switched it out twice already before. It would work for a month or two and then start turning off again. We finally decided to order the computer from a different company that had an exact match for the computer I needed...but of course it couldn't be delivered until the very last second! We were literally sitting outside our house in my truck waiting for the part to be delivered because we had already cleared housing and turned in the keys to our house! We never imagined clearing our house would be the easy part of our journey! Anyway, we finally got moved out, cleared, the truck shipped and the new computer installed in my truck & started on our way.

We were not even 30 miles from Fort Lee on the freeway when my truck started acting funny...it wouldn't go over 50 mph - then it wouldn't go over 30 mph - then 15 mph! So we pull over & find an auto parts store (mind you, it's a Saturday evening by now, so almost nothing is open & won't be again until Monday). After much debating our handy dandy mechanics (Brian & my dad - with the help of some of the auto parts store employees & customers) figured out it was the catalytic converter. So we were going to have to spend another night in a Virginia hotel & fix it the next day...

Lily & Zoey bored in the hotel waiting for the truck to be fixed

Jakers wasn't having any of the waiting...he decided to sleep through most of it :o)

When Lily got really bored, she decided to take some pictures...

Brian & Papa working away...

Luckily, after a half day of serious hard work, Brian & Papa were able to switch out the catalytic converter, oxygen sensor & muffler the next day. (Which is a good thing, because I was seriously about to leave that thing in a parking lot & never look back!) So we were finally able to get on our way again.

We finally made it to Florida to visit Uncle Doug for a few days before we continued on to Texas.

Jake meeting Uncle Doug

Breakfast on the floor

Lily thought he would be comfy in the suitcase...

What a handsome boy!

Ha Ha Ha - Jake's 1st Thanksgiving

(And yes, I am aware that he will one day kill me for this :o))

Jake, Grammy & Papa

Lily couldn't keep up with all the excitement. Jake on the other hand is ready to party...

Lily & Jake playing with Uncle Doug's motorcycle while the rest of us get ready to get back on the road.
(My truck is in the background - broke down again - a flat tire this time!)

After my tire is changed out, we get back on the road. This time we are Texas bound!
After dinner at Cracker Barrel, Lily beat Papa at checkers!