Idaho or Bust!

So, we barely fit it all in...

...and took off for Idaho. Thankfully, Steve conceded to a three-day trip. We left late on Monday and traveled to St. Joseph, Missouri. Both Steve and Emilie were sporting colds; Steve's carried a deafening cough. But our plight was nothing to compare to what Hurricane Gustov was doing to the Gulf Coast. Passing campers following convoys of utility vehicles heading south on I55 was a sobering site.





We drove diagonally through Arkansas, then through the Ozarks of Missouri to St. Joseph (outside of Kansas City, MO). Arriving at 2AM, we realized after we checked in that we had double beds. Steve had such the restless half-night sleep! He just could not unwind!! The two of us were sandwiched into a double bed that we would've barely fit into 25 years, and many pounds ago. He kneaded the bed between us for the rest of the night. The only problem was that my limbs were in the way of his kneading. Thank goodness I had brought some of his shooting ear plugs to save my eardrums from his cough! Emilie slept like a baby, solo in her double bed!

We left St. Joseph later than we had on Tuesday morning and made our way across Nebraska and into Wyoming.

We had a reservation at The VeeBar Guest Ranch in Laramie, WY. We arrived there in the dark around 10pm. After settling into our room, Steve and I walked out to look at the vast night sky. The Milky Way was so easy to see among the bright constellations. It was beautiful!
We awoke the next morning to find the quaintest setting and a most delicious breakfast.

One of Steve's close friends lives in Laramie, and we had hoped we'd be able to stop and see Grant and his family; however, that would have to wait for the return trip as Emilie was understandably ready to get up to Rexburg. So, off we went for the last nine hour leg of our journey. Emilie and I watched movies in the back seat of this third day of driving: One Fine Day and A Walk to Remember.

We arrived in Rexburg just in time for supper and indulged ourselves with one last pre-college family meal at The Pineapple Grill. This link offers a tour of the interior of the restaurant which has beautifully lush, floor to vaulted ceiling murals of an Hawaiian Island paradise...and the food was unique and delicious, too! I had the Eleena's Specialty sushi roll...so, so good!

We watched Sara Palin give her VP Republican Convention speech, and turned-in because Emilie had plans for an early start in the morning! She wanted to get her room assignment first thing so as to secure a particular room that the Chapman Hall dorm suites offered that she had scoped out last year when she was at BYU-I for EFY. She wanted to then quickly dash a few things up to secure her pick of rooms in her assigned suite, and immediately head for the I-card (I.D.) line, so she could have her picture taken while she still looked good...

After standing in the 10-degree-below-normal, brisk, Idaho, eight o'clock morning air for 45 minutes, we entered the Ricks Building to receive Emilie's dormsuite assignment. It's a good thing that she's flexible, and open to inspiration! After finally entering a warm building, Emilie decided to go ahead get her I-card (ID) and acquire her Dining Dollars application to her I-card. She suggested that we divide and conquer: Steve and I stood in the Dining Dollars line, and she went to stand in the ID line. By the time Steve and I had finished paying for her Dining Dollars for the semester (cha-ching!), Emilie had become best buds with the student standing in line behind her. Apparently, Nicole was quietly ranting to her mother about the dress standard restriction on flip-flops and capris, among other things; and Emilie turned around several times to agree with Nicole and offer quickly saluted inputs to the rant. Immediately, they discovered the depth of their kindred spirits. They were even assigned to the same dorm building; Emilie is upstairs, and Nicole is nearly right below her. When Steve and I caught up with Emilie, she declared their solidarity and insisted that we introduce ourselves to Nicole's parents and make plans for supper that evening because participating in the orientation planned luau was objectionable to both girls! Awkwardly, we stood there listening to their instance until they finally obliged the introductions themselves. By the time the girls had their IDs in hand, the four parents were realizing their connections as well....and Emilie's ID turned out great, to boot! (the flash washes out the true brilliance of Em's I-card!) What a coup for her to have a most attractive I-card pic, since she will be flashing it as her lifeline for the next four years!!