Last Post, Mile 56, 926

I love to make lists. I love data. And if you want to see the data you can find it here. 

In ten years, we visited 50 states, 23 National Parks, 5 Presidential Libraries plus 6 additional presidential landmarks, 10 National Monuments, and 129 Historic Landmarks. 

We spent 102 nights in a hotel/condo/lodge and the remaining nights in tents, wigwams, Tipis, Treehouses, Yurts, historic cottages, old schools made into enchanted castles, and who could forget, The World Famous Clown Motel! 

We've traversed this great nation in an old Toyota Sequoia, A new then old Yukon XL, planes, trains, sailboats, WWII DUKs, Kayaks, Canoes, RVs, Lobster Boats, covered wagons, on horseback, on dogsled,  Jammers, a 1965 55' Chris Craft named Tahoe, Ski Lifts, Gondolas, Trolleys, Ubers, Subways, Inclines, cable cars, Hot Air Balloons and Helicopters.  

We've slid down great dunes of sand, skied down snowy mountains, rafted the Snake and New Rivers, held 1 million dollars in our hands, floated in The Great Salt Lake, Zip-Lined through the Ozarks, Snorkeled in the Dry Tortugas, flew in a 1940's puddle jumper over the Alaskan Wilderness, rock climbed, took a sound bath, surfed, flown in a helicopter and seen a total of 5 dead bodies!  

We've ridden roller coasters at Cedar Point, Hershey Park, Mall of America, and in Las Vegas. We've eaten all the BBQ from St. Louis to Memphis to Austin to Kansas City. As well as competing pizzas in Chicago, New York, and St. Louis.

We've seen the homes of William Taft, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Elvis, The President, The Goonies, Warren Buffett, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Taylor Swift (we think), Ernest Hemingway, Andrew Jackson, The Vanderbilts (x2) and The Golden Girls. 

We've seen obscure wreaths of human hair,  bullets that killed presidents and the guns that fired them. 

We've worshiped at The National Cathedral, Thorncrown Chapel, Barratt's Chapel, Chapel of the Holy Cross, and First United Methodist Church in Honolulu. 

We've visited Fenway Park, Yankee Stadium, Cowboy Stadium, and Wrigley Field.

I have forced my children into over 60 museums! (contact me for a full list of ways to torture/educate your children)

Curious about our "World's Largests" List? We saw 51! Ranging from the obscure, World's Largest Stack of Filing Cabinets, to the amazing, World's Largest Man made Arch! (Again, contact me for detailed list. I know that particular data might not interest the masses, or anyone other than me and my friend Erika Nelson from Lucas, Kansas.

We've entertained ourselves at SummerFest (World's Largest Music Festival), Broadway Shows (Matilda and Hamilton), Route 66 Drive- Thrus, Timber Tina's Lumberjack Show, a Nascar Race, Rodeos, and a Wild West Shoot-Out.We've seen Blackberry Smoke and The Preservation Hall Jazz band in concert. We've visited an Urban Farm, a Mennonite Cheese making operation, The Ford factory, a working dairy, and a Reindeer Farm. And we've watched a cute little parade of ducks strut their way through a hotel lobby. We've eaten a Pork Tenderloin Sandwich in Iowa, Pat's and Geno's Philly Cheesesteaks, Pink's Hot Dogs in LA, Cincinnati Chili, Hawaiian Shave Ice and a Nebraskan Runza. 

We spent over 400 hours in the car, 71 hours in an airplane over 16 flights, and traveled 56, 926 miles.

And now we're done. 

But, more than the numbers, I am also consumed with our family heart. A mama's heart that wanted her children to experience our great nation in a way that she never had with a weird, fun, quirky spin.  A Daddy's heart that wanted to show our kids the outdoors and how to persevere and stretch themselves in harsh environments. 

John and I hatched this crazy plan after being inspired by our friends, Lea and David Fisher. We coined it "See the Nation by Graduation". We knew it would take extreme planning and extreme flexibility. I decided I would write about it for them, but my memory is so terrible, I guess is has become for me too.  We gave ourselves 10 years to reach our goal before our oldest graduated from high school. I think back to how difficult it was to travel with those three little people, the youngest barely potty trained to our final trip where they all packed themselves, carried their own luggage and scattered at the sight of us unless they were hungry. There are sweet memories of Mae's summer birthdays spent in random places and not at home with her friends. But birthdays so unique and special that you could never recreate them at Monkey Joe's or some other Jumpy place du jour. How we must've gone through every size of Chaco or Keen sandal in those ten years, each smelling worse than the pair before. We shared memories with old friends and new friends along the way, but most of all we grew our family. We learned our quirks, we teased and laughed at ourselves and each other. We fussed and made up. We shared beautiful moments and ugly ones. But, we did it together. And now we are on the precipice of division. All of these many years of cramming into hotel rooms and rental cars and restaurant booths are coming to an end.  In the coming years, the children will branch out. They will go their separate ways. And, we want that for them. That's the natural thing to do (and I don't want them living in my basement forever, because I don't have a basement) To college, to jobs, to marriage, and children. It's not the end, but a beautiful beginning. But, the change is so very raw. So tender. So delicate that I don't want to approach it or touch it. But, I know I must. I will purchase the cap and gown. I will have to pick out dorm bedding and endure weepy phone calls from far away campuses. I will have to be strong for the little sister who just lost her best friend and life-long roommate to higher education. But, I will be able to tap into the strength that I have learned from the All-American road trip. The road is curvy, the road is bumpy. Sometimes there are detours and closures, and potholes and wrong-turns. But, there are also kind strangers, unplanned surprises, unexplainable beauty, poignant moments, silly laughter at stupid inside jokes, incessant noise,  new friends and old friends you meet up with on the road, radical hospitality, and new chapters.  And you always make it back home. May their winding roads always find a way home. 

I hope they've learned how to be flexible, but stand up for what's right. To have perseverance, but also how to "drop the rope" in a power struggle. How to appreciate beauty and learn from the ugliness that you encounter in history and on the road. How to problem-solve and think independently. But, above all, I hope they know we love them and that they have an opportunity to be a reflection of what's good in this country. It's a good, good country, Y'all. And, that's all I'm going to say about that. 

                                     

Day 8- Oahu

 Another ambitious itinerary awaits! We'll start with Pearl Harbor, follow that with a climb to the top of Diamond Head Crater, Drive the length of the island to The North Shore, Eat dinner, and catch the red-eye back to Atlanta. Okay! Go! 

We had booked the first tour at Pearl Harbor this morning. It was drizzling and somber. As it should be. We toured the wreckage of The Arizona and walked through the exhibits. As we left, a full rainbow covered the bay. I reflected on the lives lost and local impact of such a aggressive show of force. I checked Thomas' texts to his friends that night. Although he got the date wrong (he was off by a month), he was deeply moved by the stories of the men dying in sinking ships while their friends could do nothing.  It was a good thing that we struck a chord. A little discomfort that leads to an expanded world-view is good for a kid. 

The Arizona Monument with Flag Flying. Gone But Not Forgotten. 

Rainbow over Pearl Harbor. All is not lost. 

After we left Pearl Harbor, and consumed a champion's breakfast of M&Ms and Beef Jerky, we headed to Diamond Head Crater for a hike. I'll give you three guesses who hatched this plan, and the first three don't count. But, I will say, as the least athletic Bullington, the incredible views and gorgeous payoff at the top made this trek worth the huffing and puffing. And, I am not bitter (lies) that you think you are almost to the top when they pull a bait and switch and make you climb a 175 step stairway to heaven. 

Top O' The World

We made it! 

 We headed back to the resort for one last MaiTai and Surfboard Rental. Because surfers gonna surf, on your dime. Because our surfer has lots of plans, but not lots of jobs. 

Hang Ten, Bruh.

But wait, there's more! We should totally drive two hours round trip (during rush hour) to see the North Shore because that's a surfer thing to do and our son likes surfing! Makes complete sense! We went to see Banzai Pipeline at the wrong time of day so it wasn't it's normal size. It was still impressive and we got to see lots of actual surfers! The North Shore was much more our speed and way more chill than Waikiki. Glad we took the trek! Maybe we'll be back one day! Then back in the car and back to Waikiki!

Bethany taking in the North Shore for the first time

North Shore Sunset

Our last night in Waikiki was scheduled around a special dinner outing planned by Thomas. He's got a thing for Japanese Culture meaning he has Pokemon cards and watches Anime. So, this obviously makes him a cultural expert. He begged us for weeks before our trip to eat at a Japanese BBQ restaurant.  Unlike BBQ joints in our neck of the woods, These restaurateurs leave the cooking up to you and charge you twice as much! They bring out all sorts of meats and such and you get to cook them on your very own little grill. They even finish with S'mores! It was so fun and we were afforded the opportunity to educate our children on the importance of avoiding cross contamination and salmonella poisoning as to not befoul the long plane ride home.  

So excited for my parents to pay real money to cook their own food! Suckers! 

Barbie on the Barbie

Mr. Bullington concentrating real hard not to mix up his raw meat tongs and his chopsticks

We tried to squeak out one more shave ice, but we just didn't have time. We raced to the airport and barely made our flight. We Bullingtons like to squeeze the life out of a vacation! Next post will be my last.... It's going to take me a few days to get that one together. 

Day 7 -Oahu

 This morning only Master Thomas needed to be up with the sun. Time for another surf lesson! Thomas has a heightened sense of confidence when it comes to surfing. He's on his 3rd lesson in life plus several summers of Wakeboard Camp. We fear that his confidence might land him in a heap o' trouble out in the open ocean, so we've opted to pay the professionals wrangle him. We've jokingly started calling him Bethany Hamilton all week. Not because we think he's going to be disfigured by a shark, but because we know nothing of surfing and we've seen Soul Surfer. So "Bethany Hamilton" and a flock of Canadian friends headed out with Ohana Surf Project for a morning of "shredding".  While the rest of the Bullingtons were slow to awake. We tired.

 

I took to the beach sharing sand and air with all sorts of folks. Most of them influencers. #Influencersgonnainfluence

I reckon I am not the target demographic of this gal. Upon observing her antics, I was not inclined to cup my parts (I'd prolly need more than two hands). But, I was most curious about her "handler". I'll call her Sad Cindy. She took a million photos of TikTonya and then sat in the hot sun editing and posting to social media whilst TikTonya frolicked in the ocean. Put yourself out there, Sad Cindy! This ain't no way to live! 

There were also grown men Boy Scouts and lots of precautions against sun (full body suits) and waves (adult water wings).  This particular inlet was neither too deep nor too rip-tidy, but lots of safety first. Unless you're me or a pale Canadian from Vancouver. We opted for the no-sunscreen-because-I-only-have-one-or-two-days-to-get-a- savage-tan train of thought. And now I am crispy sunburned. Perhaps I need to procure a full body suit....

This fella walked full on in the surf in his sock and shoes. #Bunionsnofunion

Waterwings and zero tan lines

SPF Level 1000

Some things never change

This Little Surfer Boy stepped on a Sea Urchin and found himself with a foot full of spines. But, a trip to
 Urgent Care and Baskin Robbins did the trick!

After deep frying ourselves at the beach, we dressed for a wonderful dinner at House Without A Key. A beautiful locale with delicious food and excellent live music, five out of five stars! 

Another Waikiki Sunset

Great Music at House Without A Key

We clean up alright

Day 6 (Molokai and Oahu)

 Hey look, kids! It's the 6th day of vacation! And, today you only have to be up at 6am! Y'all could probably hear the moans and groans from wherever you are. My baby people are TIRED. But this morning is special. For 10 years, we've attempted to see the nation by graduation. We've experienced so many unique modes of transport. (1940s Bush Planes, Hot Air Balloons, Dog Sleds, etc) But, we'd been saving the helicopter.  It is a splurge, but something that 4/5 Bullingtons have never done. Mr. Bullington Fancy Pants has ridden in a Blackhawk, so he trumps us. We piled into our chopper with our sweet captain Kirk. Yes, his name was Captain Kirk. We flew over West Maui to Molokai (another island) that is home to the highest sea cliffs in the world.  They are 3000-4000 feet high and when you approach them from the top and the whole world drops out from underneath you it's fun to feel how many of your body parts you can clinch at once.  Because I was new to helicopter flight, I didn't know how very close you could get to the side of a mountain, so close you feel like you are moments away from crashing into it and meeting your heavenly father. I am not certain that I drew a breath for the entire 45 minute tour and I am fairly certain that there were moments that my heart stopped beating. It was truly amazing and I would do it again.....with a Xanax. Note the pictures I was prepared for and those that Mr. Bullington captured while I was unawares, perhaps a more realistic capture of my terrified self. After we landed and I peeled my white-knuckled hands from the back of the seat in front of me, we were off to the other side of the airport to catch our flight to Oahu. 

Mom is so fake excited!

I'm glad everyone else is feeling all hunky-dory while I contemplate the afterlife

Breathe in, breathe out

The relaxed faces of naivete 

We checked into our resort in Waikiki and I was encouraged at the sight of beautiful water, blue sky, pool boys that will bring me drinks, and most of Japan and Canada. Waikiki is crowded, y'all. Strange mix of tourists. I would say that 90% of the people we met were either from Japan or Canada. Bit of a language barrier with my Japanese friends, but those folks from Vancouver are a fun lot! We (I) decided that in order to bring my blood pressure down from this morning's dance with death, I should probably just lie here and drink a MaiTai or two. 

We cleaned ourselves up and headed out to First United Methodist of Honolulu for their Ash Wednesday service. The 6:30 service was a blended English/Tongan service. It didn't look that different from what we were used to except their church is open air so the wonderful Hawaiian breeze blew through the sanctuary. And, half of the congregation was Tongan and dressed in traditional Tongan clothing.  A unique and wonderful worship service for our family.

Then it was off to Dinner at Duke's! This iconic Waikiki spot was named after Duke Kahanamoku. A famous surfer who surfed the same wave for 1 1/8 mile in 1929. He's enough of a legend that they named a restaurant after him. And it was enough of a tourist trap that it trapped us.  It was actually a lovely little place that felt very "Old Hawaii". We dined looking over the beach while being serenaded by a live band featuring, of course, a Ukulele! We finished off our dinner with a slice of Duke's Hula Pie that is like a slice of delicious Diabetic Shock, if it were to be served in pie form. And you eat it with a Spork! Long live the Spork!

This picture's purpose is not only to showcase the pie and the spork, but also the fun game that the children have invented that I've named, "Sneak up on Thomas and make him be in a picture with the sisters".  You see, fair reader, teenage girls love to be in pictures of themselves, teenage boys....Not so much. So the Bullington girls devised a plan to sabotage Thomas all day long so he can be in awkward pictures with them. We shall file this under "A study of the awkward 13-year-old boy being loved on by his sisters" There's a chance it won't age well. 

Day 5 (Haleakala and Road to Hana)

 Okay. So there isn't much relaxing vacation to this relaxing vacation. We had yet another early morning. Fortunately for us, we have only teenagers. And teenagers love nothing more that to wake up early on days that they don't have to go to school. This morning was exceptionally early. Our alarms sounded at 2am because this very morning we were racing to be last! Last Americans to see the sun rise! There is this thing that crazy people can do if they are next-level crazy. You set your alarm for midnight 30 days in advance of your target date so that you might snag a sunrise reservation and be afforded the opportunity to drag your exhausted teenagers up the road that holds the world's record for the highest elevation gain in the shortest distance. In the pitch black dark. Fortunately, in the dark you aren't able to see the cliffs that neighbor your trek up the mountain. You are death adjacent, but none the wiser.  Then when you get to there, even though you left the temperate Hawaiian climate of 70ish degrees, at the summit of Haleakala, it is about 35 degrees with a windchill of arctic tundra during a cold snap. And, inevitably, one teen will forget their coat on purpose because coats are stupid and "it's not going to be that cold (because i'm a teen and I know that all weather scenarios are fine with no coats/also shorts)". But, if you know me, you know I love some humanity. And there is just something extra special about huddling together with a bunch of strangers. Surrounded by a rainbow of colors, and ages, and languages. All crazy like you. Sharing one beautiful, poignant moment when the sun peaks her shiny face up over the clouds. A bunch of strangers get to start a new day together. And all that tries to divide us does not exist in that moment. Just a bunch of people taking pictures for each other and freezing our faces off. Because fresh starts can happen every time the sun rises. An important thing to remember when traveling with/raising teen-humans. Because, they are a lot....

Come on, Sun! You can do it! 

Above the clouds

Another National Park!

As we were headed back down the mountain, we stopped at a little fruit stand where we met the farmer, David. He grows a variety of fruits in his orchard and gorgeous exotic (to us) flowers. He was so sweet and gave us a few on the house!

 

 

We descended the mountain and landed in the cute little town of Makawao. We happened upon this sweet little bakery, Komodo Bakery, that has been in business for over 100 years. And they were serving their special pastry that they only make on Fat Tuesday! And guess what today is?!?!? Those tasty little pastries paired nicely with my coffee from Espresso Mafia. The cute little owners gave us lots of tips for the rest of our travel days! 

Maui Cookie Lady makes Cookies the size of your head 

We've a rather ambitious itinerary today. After our bright and early start, we are also tackling the "Road to Hana". This little trek might be one of my favorite things in the world. John and I drove the entire loop when we were last here and couldn't wait to share it with the tired teens. And bonus, the Jeep provided lots of closeness and very little personal space.   For eight hours. We Bullingtons aren't afraid of a road trip, and this is the ultimate! The "road" is narrow at her best, has over 600 hairpin curves, 57 100+ year-old bridges, stunning rainforests, waterfalls, and the grave of Charles Lindbergh. What more could a girl want?

Waterfalls at every turn

Jeep Life

Drinking out of a Coconut as one does when in Hawaii

I don't know what he's looking at, but I know he's not looking at a screen

Whew! We almost left Hawaii without visiting a weird grave in the middle of nowhere. RIP Chuck...

 

There were moments of Zen and of chaos. There were moments when certain siblings accused other siblings of having thumbs that looked like toes and this was deeply offensive and became a thing. There were sister giggles (my favorite of all of the giggles), brother noises that annoyed sisters but made them giggle and lots of togetherness. There were daddy yells and mama yells, but we soaked in the gorgeous scenery. Mr. Bullington gets major props because he drove the entire way without a break. The rest of us snuck in a few cat naps because we'd been up since 2am. 

After we got back we grabbed a quick dinner from Coconuts (known for their fish tacos for a reason, Yum!) and then took to the bed. Because guess what? We have another early morning tomorrow! 

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