We made it!

For all you worriers out there. WE MADE IT!

We got to Virginia Beach on August 15th...exactly 40 days after we left.

Sorry for not updating the blog, but our laptop is on the fritz. It has all the pictures on it and I didn't dare post without pictures. I hope you understand.

Good news is the computer is fixed and we get it back today!

We made it!

Nauvoo and Carthage

Easy day today. we got chased by a storm, got told we were not very tan. we ran into this classic guy who invited to his house to stay. (Poland Family! this is you! the bed felt GREAT!)

tomorrow, Nauvoo, then Carthage, then who knows?

Nauvoo to Table Grove, IA

popped two tires with little sharp rocks.

super huge thunderstorm. Thanks again to the Poland family for letting us hang out at their house all morning. very slow day, we only made it sixty miles

Got to see the Nauvoo Temple and went to Carthage Jail

Amish

August 2nd

It is amazing how little you can have and still be very happy.

Today I was sitting by my bicycle, and our little tent. I looked at all the stuff we brought on the trip: three pairs of biking clothes, one other outfit, some sandals, toiletries, a camera, laptop, patch kit, waterbottles...and a few other items. Not a whole lot. It all fits on our bikes and we carry it around with us everywhere.

It is amazing how little you can have and still be very happy. I am so happy...we are having so much fun everyday! I love Bill!

August 3rd. Moravia IA to Nauvoo IL

it is amazing how much stuff I need to be happy. today we saw a whole bunch of Amish people. I think they are called a "solemn" of amish. they wear "Plain" clothes. they drive "Plain" little buggies. they kind of look plain. Steph and I did some research on the Amish by reading about them on our iphones. There is an ap for that. Here are some facts about the Amish.

1. "Beachy" amish drive black cars. they are like the wild Amish. they have telephones in thier places of work. the other Amish do not speak to them or allow thier children to marry them.

2. the average Amish has as many years of education as they have children in thier family (6.8)

3. Amish people grow beards when they get married. the men too.

4. Amish get hung up on stuff like how many straps thier suspenders have, how many pleats there are in thier caps and what color of dresses the women wear. if you wear suspenders that have too many straps you could get "shunned" until you confess your sin and repent publicly.

5. when we walked into an Amish shop there was a sign that said :

"This shop is the Lord's shop. stealing from here is like stealing from the Lord. Our price is much easier to pay than His."

Steph and I bought some of the Lord's chips and left.

Iowa is so hilly!

August 1.

the day was tough again. lots of hills, although the road that we were on was much less busy. (the championship Knocks again! thanks for the suggestion!)

we called up the branch president out in Centerville, Iowa and he invited us over to spend the night. James Rodebush and his lovely, wonderful and talented wife, Joyce gave us a great bed to sleep in and a delicious dinner the next day. we will be heading to Nauvoo on Monday!

oh, and we saw some bison today!

Welcome to IOWA

July 30th

we left late this morning. Pam made us a delicious breakfast (Ham! Eggs! Pancakes!) then showed us the way to her friend Tod's house in Council Bluffs. It was only 65 miles away, so Steph and I did not feel bad about leaving at 10 in the morning. Thanks Tod for the bed, dinner and breakfast!

July 31st.

Very tough day today.

We started on US 34 and it was a mess. the shoulder dissapeared and there were tons of trucks. When we got to Red Oak and decided to take county roads. The county roads were incredibly hilly. In some ways it was more difficult than the Rocky Mountains. Just as much climbing, but instead of getting it all done in ten miles or so it is stretched out over sixty miles of hills. About the time that Steph and I started getting tired we turned off of the paved road and on to some gravel. For the next thirty miles.

We never would have made it, but with ten miles to go a little puppy dog started following us. It would run ahead of our bikes, check out some sweet smells and then catch back up to us. It ran with us for TEN MILES! finally we got to a paved road again and Steph and I decided to outrun it. We were trucking at twenty miles per hour and this dog was keeping pace! we named the dog racer and it did not get hit by a car.

We pulled into town just as the sun was setting. The town pool was open, (the owner of the local bank was having a party) and we were invited to:

1. a dip in the pool

2. a shower

3. an apartment for the night

4. breakfast in the morning.

Carl and Jan Knock, you guys are awesome!

July 29th

I was hit by a truck today...I mean I was hit by Bill today. We were pulling into a gas station to fill up on water. There were multiple places to pull into the gas station. I looked over my shoulder and saw that Bill was already in the turn lane, so I got into it as well, thinking we were going to turn right away. Bill was thinking we were not turning right away so he was still cruising pretty fast. At that moment, a car was coming out of the gas station. I thought this would be the prefect opportunity to turn into the station. So I turned...exactly at the moment that Bill was going to pass me. It was a spectacular crash! It ended with both Bill and I on the ground and my front wheel "taco-ed".

That happened in the first 15 miles of the day. A very nice man stopped to give us a lift into town where there was a bike shop. We bought a new wheel and set out for 100 more miles. It was a very long day, but the warmshower we got to was AWESOME!

We got into Lincoln a little late. Pam knew we were coming and had made us salad, bread, and lasagna with zucchini. After dinner she served us ice-cream and blueberries. Everything was so delicious. Where is this lady from??? She is amazing! To top it off, we slept in a wonderful bed and she was making ham, eggs, pancakes, and protein smoothies when we woke up. Do we have to leave?

ps. Pam, I love the glasses!