The end of the road...

Oddly enough I took this pic at a rest stop on the WAY to California.  Look at my pointer finger marking "Marsing" now follow the red road south way down by the bottom of the picture in the white area, you might read Jordan Valley.  Please note there is NO cell phone service from way before Jordan Valley to Marsing.  Nothing.  Nada.  Zilch.  And there my friends is where I and my family happened to just break down.

There is nothing anyway, why would they need cell phones?

Oh the warning signs...

Headed home and Oh sooo tired....

and the road....well it's straight.  Yes and I was speeding....

Enter Jordan Valley....and Jim's station where I was unknowingly going to spend way too much time... We stopped to use the bathroom, and as I was pulling out there was this weird noise that I thought was the air wrench at the station from someone changing tires, or using an impact wrench as mechanics have a weird habit of doing.  But after I got a few feet onto the road (really, like maybe 20) it did it again, and Chris immediately knew what it was, and ordered the turn around back to the station.

Broke down.  So thrilled (note the ding in the side of Savannah's nose, it is from Braden's boogie board during a big wave, she is ver ver proud of it for some weird reason)

Braden, and his blistering stubborn non sunscreen wearing self putting on a fake happy face...

Colton curling up into a ball...

And Olivia and her sun burnt nose enjoying the snuggle time with Jenny.  Did I mention we LOVE Jenny?  She does amazing things.

And they are off on a tow truck.. and we get to stay behind until Chris got back with the white Suburban to get our posse home... or pay an extra arm for "the old man" to "loan" us a pick up truck for 100 bucks for five people to follow behind the tow truck.  Oi.  The choices just left my head swimming!

 Did I mention no cell phones, and I couldn't get a pay phone to work? I called my Mommy.  On a land line.  Collect.  And actually had to get a live operator on the line because I couldn't remember how to do it...

And I had to keep just the things with me that would be necessary for us, and keep us light on our pedestrian toes?

So we pedested.

And then saw a note that said that Charbouneau died near here.  Great.  If the notoriety of this place is for killing off hardened trappers, we're in for a fun time...

But we found the J.V. Club Cafe (thanks to a local who thought if we asked, I could probably get the kids into the bar to play pool too).  The food was really good, and it was clean and friendly.  We chose NOT to take the kids to the bar. 

but I ordered two sundaes for us to split thinking it would bide some time before we headed out into the cold.  It was cold folks.  So two sundae's (for $5.00 a piece) and they arrived, in to go cups.  Closing folks.  Don't have to go home, but you cannot stay here.  Thanks for coming in!  Oi.

Chocolate makes girls smile.  A good thing.

We then sat in a C-store's lunch counter for two hours (under the sign that read "no loitering") until they kicked us out and headed over to Jim's as it was the only LIGHT left on in the town on a Sunday night...

So we found out there is a hotel attached to Jim's gas station.  We could choose one bed for $65.00 or two beds for $75.00 and they are "clean as hell" according to the gas station attendant, who by the way was smoking right next to the "Danger, do not smoke" sign at the gas station.  I chose to just wing it.  Not sure how clean hell is, but by dang it, that hotel didn't have windows, and that made me think of a cell and I haven't ever stayed in a cell let alone paid $75.00 to hang out in one for 3-4 hours!

And I thought it was creepy.

Not that the gas station was a whole lot better, but it was better lit.  And had people around...when they stopped for gas anyway.  But it was open 24 hours, and because it is Oregon and you cannot pump your own gas there we were lucky to have the attendant that was on shift next offer to let us stay in the mechanic's bay so that we could stay warm.  He even turned the heat up for us ( I think we had a "look" about us like stray puppies that needed a heat lamp to make it through the night).  He even brought me a chair, and was very gracious.  I was thankful for that.

The hot chocolate sucked.  Truly gross.  Kids drank theirs anyway.  I put mine in the oil trap.  Just kidding.  Kind of.

And around 10:45 Chris came and drove us home .... hallelujah and amen.

Home.....it never looked so good !!!

In the most desperate times....

 Why would anyone take a picture of their hotel bathroom when on vacation!?

And why would the cute little sign in the rental cottage matter enough to document?

 Well, first of all the hand painted sink was a great touch and I liked it thank you very much...

... but mainly because of the strangely frequent times I came into contact with less than desirable situations while traveling....

Pictured above is inside an old Russian submarine, there were 2 toilets for all aboard.  um... scheduling issues?

Above, is inside a museum, actually a working ship that is the only of it's kind still in working order. Simply a narrow closet with a board and a bucket (and thank goodness) a door.  What I thought was a little disturbing was the apparent need for plexi-glass over the opening ( Oh dear...)

But mostly after Karen tells you that you have 204 miles until the next turn, let alone the next TOWN, bathroom needs become...well....DIRE.
And then you drive through a town...we'll call it ROME for fun.  And well, doing as the Romans do isn't as easily done as said...And then you have to buy something for the PRIVILEGE to use such facilities as sooooo many apparently have before you.  And THEN they don't take debit cards unless the purchase price is over $5.00, so you leave with a bag of M&M's, Skittles, a gourmet root beer  and a postcard of a wild horse, and the violent need to wash ones hands...And are OH so happy to see that the next place has TONS of toilet paper, and although it was 40 degrees in there and stainless steel toilets that made us women wonder about frostbite dangers, well, it looked pretty dang good.

Needless to say the hotel bathroom all lined in yummy marble, and the rental cottage with it's sea side blue and white tile all sparkling and waiting JUST for us was like... well fresh air. (pun intended)

Gadgetry today...

When we got married, my husband could hardly turn a computer on.  In fact I remember when his little cousin Fred showed him how to play solitaire on their desk top out in Missouri.  Really.  Now he (also read we, cuz I am right there with him) can hardly live without his technology. School, work, and now the military just kind of require the use these days.  There are mornings when his phone starts dinging him before his eyes open.  That's early man.  Early.

 So he's not using tech here, but it fit somehow in the theme...palm pixi (came after his palm pilot became obsolete much to his horror)

And his flip camera.  Video and WATER PROOF video ...

vacation ala technology..ahhhh...and checking on OP orders, not so ahhhh (for me anyway)

he does NOT use tech when driving, with the exception of Karen...yes she has a name.  Karen saves our sanity on a regular basis and never gets impatient.  She keeps quiet during long boring drives, besides I think he likes having an Australian woman tell him what to do...
Maybe that is why when we broke down in Jordan Valley Oregon (almost home) that he went with the tow truck... the tech here was just too out of his realm?

Meet Jenny...

Jenny is not new to our family.  In fact I cannot remember WHEN exactly she joined us.  We aren't big on stuffed animals around here.  And when I say "WE",  I mean "I"...they just kind of get in the way, get left on the floor and well...they get kind of grody and dumpy looking...and well, I will stop there, because this is NOT about that...It is about JENNY.

Jenny is amazing.  She is a little puppy of unknown age or origin whom my daughter Olivia loves.  And not love like some kids like ice cream...but LUUURVES her, adores her, and takes her with her (except when her parents make Jenny stay at home for naps because the beach is JUST NOT GOOD for a stuffed dog no matter what Olivia thinks...)

  Jenny is  BIG DEAL.  She has had her tail sewn on multiple times, and one ear is a little floppier than the other...don't know which one, but I bet Olivia does.  The last time we visited my Mom and Dad's place, my Mother took compassion on the poor dog.  She was getting scrawny (all her stuffing was falling out) and her tail was tearing off of her body (thus a gaping hole that the fluff was falling out of).  Grandma Ball fixed it, and all is well in the world with Jenny.                                             

 Olivia loves her as much as always.

 Did I mention Olivia loves her?

Just don't feed her peanuts carrotts (woops wrong pet, Piggie is allergic to peanuts, Jenny is allergic to carrotts, but only a little bit, it just makes her cough, where if Piggie has peanuts, she cannot breathe.  Get it right Mom!)  She is allergic.  Really.  And apparently she has a hard time keeping her nose clean...