Throw Back Thursday {2006} - The time Jake and I drove half-way across the country

I thought I might try something new for Thursdays. I love the #tbt on instagram. I love looking at old pictures and thought it might be kind of fun to do something like this on the blog. My idea was to tell an old story with old pictures or talk about a trip I took before I started blogging. There are tons of pictures and events I haven't shared because they were before my blogging days. So I thought I'd start this off today and if it goes well, I may even try doing a weekly, bi-weekly or monthly link up, if others would be interested. Let me know what you think. :-)

Today I'm going to share a trip Jake and I took to visit his dad back in 2006. It was a wonderful trip, packed with tons of sight-seeing... a trip I will never forget. 

Jake's dad lives in Phoenix, AZ and was a GM for a big Chevy Dealership down there at the time. This was before Jake and I were married, but we had been dating for several years and were very serious, in fact we got engaged later that year. Our main reason for taking this trip was to trade in my 2002 Oldsmobile Alero on a 2005 Pontiac Vibe. Jake's dad was able to get me a good deal. :-)

 Jake was still taking college classes at the time, so we made this trip during his Spring Break. We drove the 22+ hour drive straight through. I had gone with Jake to visit his dad the year before, but we flew then. I was so excited to get to see all the landscape and drive through states I had never seen before. It was a long drive, I will admit that, but it was a fun drive. 

By the time we made it there, we were exhausted. We were just ready to shower and go to sleep. Jake's dad had different plans. He was ready to take me straight to the dealership to get my new car. He's not one to argue with, so we said okay, showered and headed to the dealership. 

After signing all the paperwork and trading in my old car, we headed back to Jake's dad's and got settled in. We spent the next couple days there just hanging out with Jake's dad, step-mom and Jake's 2 step-sisters and step-brother.

Jake played golf one day at TPC Scottsdale.

After hanging out in Phoenix for a few days, we headed out to California for a couple days. Jake had always wanted to take me down the Pacific Coast Highway. We left in the morning and drove about six hours to the coast. 

The first place we stopped was Laguna Beach. This was when the show Laguna Beach and The O.C. were popular. I can remember calling my sister back home after seeing the road sign, so excited to be in Laguna Beach, Ha!!

After spending some time at Laguna Beach, we drove up the Pacific Coast Highway. It was such a beautiful drive!

We drove over to Balboa Island to look at the cute little houses there. So cool!

We made a stop in Santa Monica.

Our final destination that night was in Valencia, CA. We were going to Six Flags Magic Mountain the next day, so we stayed right near there that night. Jake had been to Magic Mountain many times with his Dad and had wanted to take me there. We love amusement parks and had a great time there. We met up with Jake's old room mate from his first year at Mizzou. He had transferred out to USC for his Sophomore year.

After spending all day at Magic Mountain, we made the drive back to Phoenix. This was not a smart move on our part as we were so tired. This was probably the most tired I have ever been, aside from 20 hours of labor. We were exhausted and once it got dark on the drive, we had a tough time staying awake. We did, what we probably never should have done and pulled over on the side of the road to catch a few hours of sleep so that we could make it the rest of the way. We were in the middle of nowhere, so we had no other choice. We survived, thankfully. :-)

We stayed another night in Phoenix and then made the long drive back to St. Louis. On the way, we decided to take a detour and visit the Grand Canyon! I had never seen it and Jake had only seen it once. It was breath taking! We also ate lunch at the Bright Angel Restaurant while we were there. I would love to go back someday and take a full vacation at the Grand Canyon sometime when our kids are old enough to appreciate it.

It was an amazing and beautiful trip! One I will cherish forever!