CHICAGO......and all that Jazz!

The Jensen Clan and the Chicago skyline

After Minneapolis we drove through Wisconsin stopping only in Madison to eat breakfast and straight on to the windy city we flew...unfortunately for us it was the stormy and rainy city when we arrived. Steve stayed at a KOA outside Chicago to do office work in the Winnie and the kids and I packed up to meet up with Nana in a small town outside Chicago called Romeoville. The next day Steve went to work with Joy Bowen in Chicago and we spent the morning with Nana and then said our good-byes. Although it was a very short visit with Nana, it's always good to see her and especially since we are so far from home. The kids and I also enjoyed staying at a hotel for a night and swimming and relaxing away from the Winnie for a change. After our good-byes, the kids and I were off on an excursion to the big city. We hopped on a train in a Chicago suburb and took the train into the city. We got off the train and walked towards the water and the Navy Pier. After their work day, Joy dropped Steve off at the Navy Pier where we rode some rides and walked around. Then we went to the Uno's Pizzeria for some Chicago-style deep dish Pizza and then we walked around the city exploring and staring up at all the big buildings. Emilie loved the American Girl store too...We had a great time in Chicago and exhausted we all took the train back to the car having had a very fun filled day!

Joy Bowen with Steve and the kids after their work day

Navy Pier BIG Ferris Wheel

View of the Chicago skyline from the BIG Ferris Wheel

Emilie ecstatic about her new American Girl dresses. One for her and one for her Bitty Baby that matches!

Mall of America, Minneapolis, Minnesota

After a day in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, we headed northeast to the Twin Cities. One of the big attractions in Minneapolis is the Mall of America. IT'S HUGE! Inside this gigantic mall is a Nickelodeon Theme Park. We spent the day walking around the mall, eating lunch at the Rain Forest Cafe, and riding rides. The kiddos were in heaven! Steve worked with his rep Brian Bowen and got to see a surgery which he thought was very fascinating.

Meeting Dora The Explorer (The highlight for Emmy!)



The Lego store was so cool. This neat sculpture behind Seth & Evan is made entirely out of legos!




The kids meeting Spongebob Squarepants!



Emilie and Seth driving go-carts!



Steve going into a surgery with rep Brian Bowen


Brian Bowen getting ready to go into surgery

Cody Nite Rodeo, Mt. Rushmore, Badlands

After Dad did office work during the day and the kids played and swam at the KOA in Cody, WY, we took off for an authentic night on the town cowboy style.We ate at a super grubalicious restaurant called Bubba's B-B-que and the whole family had spare ribs, corn on the cob, baked potatoes, baked beans, salad, garlic bread, and bread pudding! It was quite the feast! After dinner we went to an RV parts store for a few items and found out while we were there that our fridge was broken and that the RV needs two more batteries! Unfortunately we also found out that Steve's fix on the kitchen floor didn't hold and water was leaking again! We had taken the motor home to a tire place earlier today as well because we had blown that third tire and realized that we needed to just replace all the tires that were on the rig from the previous owner so that puts the record at 8 new tires now! All six of the tires on the Minnie Jack and the two on the car dolly that we found out were 13 years old and illegal to be on the road! At least now we can feel pretty confident that we won't be on the side of the road stranded again- at least not with a flat tire I hope. After the repair on the fridge we were off to forget our worries at the famous Cody Nite Rodeo! None of us had ever been to a rodeo before...it was quite an experience...bare back riding, bull riding, barrel racing and more! The kids got to go down in the arena and try to pull a red ribbon off a calf's tail for a prize.



Wyoming was much more beautiful then we expected. We hit the highest elevation on our trip driving between Cody, WY and Rapid City, South Dakota it was near 10,000 feet. We went to church in Rapid City, SD on Sunday and then Sunday afternoon we went to Mt. Rushmore on the way to the Badlands National Park. The kids earned another Junior Ranger badge at Mt. Rushmore! They are learning a lot about our country. Steve talked to a girl at Mt. Rushmore who works in an Orthopedic section of a hospital and was familiar with Bio Skin products in Denver, CO. It's a small world and fun to make those connections. We stayed near the Badlands for one night and drove on to Sioux Falls, SD the next day. That was last night that we arrived here. It was raining really hard yesterday with really intense lightning. Today Steve is working with his rep Tom and the kids and I are off to discover Sioux Falls....

Cody, Wyoming

The next stop after Yellowstone is Cody, WY. Steve has office work to do so we are camping out at a KOA with internet access and there's lots of stuff for the kids to do like swimming, a jumping pillow, riding bikes etc... I must update you on the mishaps as well after all that's probably the most entertaining part of this blog! So we left Yellowstone and headed towards Cody...we were on the road for about an hour and a half when Steve started to feel something weird again with one of the back tires this time. Sure enough in the middle of Wyoming we blew our 3rd flat tire! Unbelievable! Or actually at this point very believable... however, this time Steve had the tools and was so "The Man". We pulled over and he changed this big rig tire and in less than an hour, we were on our way again. In fact, Steve is becoming quite the repair man on this trip...last night he fixed that "major problem" of the hose that was burst in the kitchen floor! These pictures were taken as we were on the side of the road in Wyoming while Steve was fixing the tire...I'm so grateful that Steve is not only a great husband and a great business man but also a great handy man!

Yellowstone Detour...

Whats making this trip worth the hard times and struggles (ie: roadside mishaps, tight quarters, Steve gone working all day while the kids and I try not to go insane in the RV etc...) is visiting beautiful places like Yellowstone along the way! In Yellowstone National Park we saw so many neat things like hot springs, geysers like "Old Faithful" and lots of wildlife. The kids loved to look out the windows and spot animals like a bald eagle, bison, elk, a coyote, and we even saw two Grizzly Bears eating a bison carcus! We took a picture of them through a telescope with Steve's I phone. While Steve drove up to Billings, Montana to work with Lane Maddock, the kids and I stayed in the Park and enjoyed the scenery and worked on a special cub scout badge called the Junior Ranger. And this post wouldn't be complete without some more drama with the Minnie Winnie. While I was giving Emilie a shower the water stopped working! Her hair was full of shampoo and the water went from a flow to a trickle! Can you believe this luck?? It's like the money pit movie with Tom Hanks! I took the motor home to a repair place and they said it was too big of a problem for them to fix because a pipe burst and water was coming up our kitchen floor! So we have had no water for a couple of days! We must keep our heads up and keep on rvin'!!

Pocatello, ID is the next stop...

After spending the weekend in Tri-Cities, we drove to Pocatello, Idaho for Steve to meet up with Russ McAffee. During the long drive there, the check engine light came on, can you believe it? So in the morning Russ took us to his mechanic. Nothing appeared to be wrong so Steve and Russ went off to work and the kids and I visited the Pocatello Zoo and Ross Water Park. Evan, Seth, and Emilie had a blast and learned about animals like the bear, lynx, and coyote. Evan made a good friend at the water park from Blackfoot, ID named Jaxen.

We made it to Tri-Cities for the weekend...

I forgot to mention something crazy that happened on the way to Tri-Cities beside blowing the second flat tire. We were driving along and Steve thought that something was sounding and feeling funny with one of the tires, so he pulled over on the side of a busy highway to check it out. I was laying down in the bed in the back resting. Steve had gotten out of the RV on one side while Evan and Emilie climbed out for some fresh air on the other side. Steve decided that he would keep going after checking the tire out so he climbed back in the RV and started to drive off! He hadn't noticed that the kids had gotten out. As Steve drives off, I hear a huge scream out the window of the back of the RV! It's Emilie! I jump up (as fast as a pregnant lady can) and say, "Steve, STOP! The kids aren't in the motorhome!" He can't believe it! He pulls over as quickly as he can so we could get then safely back in! Emilie was a little shaken up so I held her and comforted her and of course we made some safety rules so that would never happen again! By Thursday night late we made it to Steve's Mom's house in Richland, Washington. We were welcomed with a delicious home cooked meal and FOUR outstanding homemade pies made from delicious fruits from Judy and Val's garden. WOW! We really needed that after a long day of driving and being stranded in the middle of Washington and almost leaving two of our kids! Steve spent Fri. doing an internet training and office work. Over the weekend we did maintenance on the motor home and worked on making it a little more organized. We were so happy to see a few of our dear friends Jon & Holly, Dan & Stacey, and Jacob & Annette. We were also sad to have not had the chance to see more of our dear friends due to the lack of time.

Some fun in Seattle...

After Steve got home from work, we loaded up the kids in the tow car and took off to Seattle. We saw some neat sand art on the side walk and ate great clam chowder near the Pike St. Market. The kids were amazed and excited about being in a big city! They especially loved the Space Needle. The next afternoon after Steve did office work, and before driving to the Tri-cities, we took a ferry ride from Fauntleroy to an island called Vashon. On the way to Richland, Wa though we had the second tire blow out on the Minnie Jack! The first tire blew out the first night we bought the motor home in Corvallis and on the way home late in the night one of the tires blew leaving us stranded to spend the night just off the freeway a little bit north of Grants Pass. Now, it happened again on the way to eastern Washington and this time in the middle of no where! Yikes! The Minnie Jack is not holding up as well as we would like, but we are keeping our spirits up.

Day Two and it's really sinking in...

Our first day on the road trip the kids and Mom spent the day with Steve's long time friends Jason and Jami Phelps in Vancouver. Then last night after Steve finished working with the Portland Rep Nick Ortega, we drove to Kent, Wa which is just south of Seattle. We checked in to our first RV park at a KOA campground. It's been pouring rain for the last day and night with only a few breaks where we were able to squeeze in some swimming in an outdoor heated pool. The kids also enjoyed an outdoor giant chess game at the playground. Today it finally became real this whole road trip adventure when Steve woke up and drove off to work this morning to meet with the Seattle Rep, Steve Simmons and left me and the kids in the motor home...wow, this is crazy! We are getting used to it though and look forward to everyday ahead.

The Adventure Begins...

The Jensen Family packed up our home and put everything in storage minus the necessities of life and made the first leg of our journey to Portland, Or and Vancouver Wa. On Monday August 18, 2008. The Minnie Winnie (aka Winnie Jack, named after the Winnebago and the Backjack) is packed full! It's the new home for all 5 1/2 of us! Steve (Dad), Sandie (Mom), Evan (8), Seth (6), and Emilie (3). The half comes from the baby on the way due in early December. We had quite the send off from the CEO, Founder, and Managers of the Company that manufacture Bioskin. They and their families came with delicious cakes to share, thoughtful cards of encouragement and a bottle of bubbly to smash on the motorhome to celebrate the beginning of this exciting tour across the country.