Number of Miles Driven: 533 (to Huntington on 7/27); 362 (to HOME on 728)

TOTAL TRIP MILEAGE: 9,303

Drive Time: 9:10 am - 9:00 pm (7/27; lost an hour and stopped at the Ark); 9:45 - 2:25 (7/28 - didn't stop for lunch/bathroom)

States Driven through: IL, IN, OH, KY, WV, VA, NC (7)


Although we were ready to get home, we were bummed to leave Peoria. We had a great visit with family and weren't quite ready to say good-bye. Aunt Rosie helped us get ready for the trip by packing our lunches and we were on the road shortly after 9 a.m. 

The trek through Illinois and Indiana continued to be flat and mostly cornfields/farmland. We did get to go through lots of states between the 27/28  and we even had a snafu when crossing the Ohio/KY border. We barely crossed into Ohio from Indiana on I-74 before hopping onto I-275 (a bypass around Cincinnati). I-275 actually circled back into Indiana and we thought we were going to cross back into Ohio, but we actually crossed the border into KY. I wasn't prepared, so my picture for the KY welcome sign is pretty bad (but I did get it!). 



Sorry, Kentucky!

We briefly debated driving straight home, but our last planned activity was the Ark Encounter near Lexington, KY and we thought the kids would enjoy that. Also, kids are free in 2021, and we figured we wouldn't make it back out this way before 2022. 

We got to the Ark Encounter around 3:30 (after losing an hour - yay - back in Eastern Time Zone...getting closer to home!). The Ark is a full-size replica of Noah's Ark as described in the Book of Genesis. They took some artistic license with how the inside of the ark was arranged, but it tried to depict how the animals would have been stored and cared for. It was definitely an impressive sight and the kids were in awe of the size. Before even entering the Ark, there was a rainbow entrance that Danielle LOVED! She asked us to take her picture next to the purple - because it was her favorite color. 








The multiple decks inside the Ark. 


The inside of the Ark was set up like a museum with Biblical stories that explain the origins of the Ark and the likely science behind the flood and shipbuilding. A significant focus was on the animals and how they were selected and cared for. There were dioramas and life-size animatronics of Noah and his family doing tasks aboard the ship (e.g., blacksmithing, woodworking, cooking, etc). There was also a welcome center that had live expert presentations and there were informational movies that were playing within the Ark. 

The door to the Ark




 After getting through the Ark itself, there was a small zoo on the grounds of the Ark Encounter with zebras, donkeys, ostriches, goats, lemurs, kangaroos and a few others. The girls enjoyed petting the goals and there was even a goat named Danielle. Matthew really liked the lemurs. The kangaroos were in an open display where we could walk through and get right next to them - that was neat. They must have been hot because they mostly just lounged on the grass - no hopping around.

Walking through the Kangaroo exhibit


Matthew watching the lemurs


Danielle petting Danielle

By the time we were finished (6:30), we were all hungry and Danielle wasn't feeling well (headache and felt a little warm), so we went through a Chick-fil-A drive-through for an easy dinner (so much better than McDonald's!). We drove a couple of hours and stopped in Huntington, WV. I indulged Michael on the last night and booked a Hampton Inn - he was relieved (and it was actually cheaper than the Super 8 we booked in Sterling, CO - gotta love WV!). We watched some of the Olympics and then got the kids ready for bed. Matthew also loved it because he got to sleep in a "fort." We had to use an air mattress and the only way we could get it to fit was to turn the desk sideways and put it under the desk - thus, a fort. He was excited about it and chose it over the bed. Dani also got the air mattress to herself because she wasn't feeling well and she seems to be our problem child with keeping others awake when she shares a bed. She was asleep and snoring very quickly. Andrew and Carolyn were relegated to the same bed again, and they both expressed their strong dissatisfaction with having to share a bed - but by the middle of the night they didn't seem bothered by it (see pic below). Overall, we all got a great night's sleep for our final night away from home. 


Watching the Olympics

Switching between Olympics and Wedding Magazines

Loving his "fort" bed

They did not know this picture was taken...



July 28

Dani woke up feeling better and we all had a nice breakfast at the Hampton Inn. We headed out by 9:45 and were on our way home. It was a quiet ride - we let the kids have extra tablet time since it was the last day. Michael and I commented that the kids did great throughout the whole trip of not asking for table. Perhaps it's because we established a routine early in the trip that they couldn't do tablets until after lunch or perhaps it's because they had become accustomed to being in the car for 5-6 hours at a time, but either way they rarely asked to do their tablet. We also usually made them do their journals before they could do tablet (so maybe that was enough to curb their enthusiasm - ha!), but on today's trip, we removed those restrictions and let them watch a movie on their tablets. Meanwhile,  Michael and I listened to a couple of "How I Built This" podcast episodes. We listened to the entrepreneurial stories of AirBnB, Teach for America, Patagonia, Peloton, and Burt's Bees - all very inspirational because most of them had to take major chances and were on the verge of bankruptcy.


It was exciting to go through VA and then NC - knowing we were getting closer to home. We passed Pilot Mountain and the familiar landscapes felt comforting. The kids were so consumed with their tablets that it wasn't until 1:30 that Matthew looked up and asked when we were having lunch. By this time, we were only an hour away from home, so we gave him an apple and some almonds and told them we'd eat a sandwich when we got home. No one asked to go the bathroom either - which was unbelievable. I fully expected one of them (ahem..Carolyn...) to ask to stop to the go the bathroom with only 30 minutes left, but they didn't. I think they were also excited to get home. 




As we exited off the Triangle Expressway at Green Level Church, it hit me that our trip was over. It was a bittersweet feeling. We had such a great time and saw so many people/places - every stop was such a fantastic experience (okay..maybe 1-2 weren't the best). In one respect it felt like we had just left and were counting down the days to our trip, but in another respect it felt like it had been a LONG time since we had been in our own home. I think we were all ready to be home but not ready for our trip to be over - at least me and Michael didn't want it to be over - does that make sense?



There was a sense of joy as we pulled into our neighborhood. Matthew kept saying (screaming), "There's our neighborhood." I think there was also a sense of urgency for having to go to the bathroom - Ha! 

Pulling into our Driveway

Glad to be home!

As soon as we got home, each kid went to their respective rooms and it was like Christmas morning - they were reunited with their toys. Carolyn was most anxious to get home to check on her "pets" but even Matthew and Andrew were excited to see their stuffed animals. Within a few minutes Matthew was in his room and he had pulled out most of his toys - it was a disaster (even worse than what's in the picture!) He said he missed them all. 


Michael immediately went to work to get everything unpacked from the car and I started unpacking the bags and putting aways clothes/toiletries. I don't think either one of us wanted to do it, but it felt good to get it done. As we were unpacking, all the kids had gathered into the playroom and were doing Olympics. Even after being together in a car for that long, they still chose to play with each other in the playroom. Carolyn had put on her gymnastics outfit and that reminded me that she actually had a gymnastics lesson that afternoon - so it took less than 2 hours for us to get back to the grind of the normal routine (ughh... - I definitely didn't miss that part...). When taking Carolyn to gymnastics, we actually pulled up next to our good friend Heather Musick and her two kids at a stop light - and it felt good to see (even through car windows) friends - I can't wait to start seeing everyone again that we've missed. 

We ordered pizza for dinner and had a relaxed night - it felt good to be home and to sleep in our own bed. It was a trip of a lifetime, and we are so thankful we had the opportunity to do it. So that's a wrap on the Griffins Go West blog. Until next time...

PS - We were reviewing our final route and I pointed out to Michael that we didn't cover the northern US very well (e.g., Minnesota, Montana, Washington, Wisconsin), and I suggested that be our next road trip to which he quickly replied "Too soon..."