Life at a "Swell's" pace

Rowland, Oklahoma 🠊 Warner, Oklahoma

We woke up after staying the night at a Pilot Travel Center in Rowland off Highway 64. We didn't want to find another location off our path, because we had plans to attend church with my Oklahoma family, and it was so late once we got into the area from leaving Crystal Springs, Arkansas. We got ready on the bus Sunday morning and drove straight to Gore United Methodist Church. We aren't religious and don't attend church regularly, but anytime we are invited by family to fellowship, we don't turn it down. It was a beautiful day and I enjoyed being in church with my Uncle Paul, Aunt Susan, "Aunt" Paula, and a few people my mom grew up with. They were all happy to see us, too. We left the church and went back to spend time on their farm. We got to see their new baby cattle, and Skylar got to ride/drive a four-wheeler for the first time.

Uncle Paul took Jeff and me around the farm on his UTV, while Skylar followed us on the four-wheeler. Skylar loved every minute of it because he got to be up close and personal with all the cattle.

As the day came to an end, the sunset in Oklahoma reminded me of Oregon. I was happy to see a sunset with my uncle and my aunt, but unfortunately we had to get back on the road to our next destination.

We said our goodbyes and I took this one last picture of them on the porch. We had a wonderful time and it's time I won't forget.

Warner, Oklahoma 🠊 Hinton, Oklahoma

We left Warner and made it to Hinton, Oklahoma, to stay the night. It was late when we finally said our goodbyes in Warner, and the sun was gone by the time we got back on the road. I fell asleep before anyone else, but we were all just glad to stretch out and relax from all the excitement and sad goodbyes. This was the last picture I took of the bus that night before I fell asleep.

Hinton, Oklahoma 🠊 Amarillo, Texas

We left Hinton, Oklahoma, and drove to Amarillo, Texas, for the day. We spent the remaining day in and around Amarillo. One place that seems minor to most, but is a huge deal for Jeff and me was the rest area in McLean, Texas, Gray County Safety Rest Area. This is the same rest area we stopped at 20 years ago when we moved from Arkansas to Oregon, and Skylar was only six months old.

It was such a special moment for us to see it again, and especially with Skylar. A lot has changed since that time 20 years ago, Baz and our dog Beau weren't with us this time. Neither was our two cats, Milo and Meia. We also had a cooler with four goldfish, and a Plecostomus (Suckerfish), of which are no longer with us either. It was sad to think about the difference, but we made new memories with Hardy, Eleven, and our three ducks (Fern, Mallie, and Quappy).

The changing table in the rest stop bathroom is the same one that I changed Skylar's diaper and clothes on 20 years ago on our move to Oregon. It was a cool thing to see again after all of these years. It made me nostalgic for that time again.

The rest stop had a lot of informational graphics about the area and what this part of Texas is known for.

The state of Texas is the largest producer of wind-powdered energy.

The view from this rest area was beautiful and it was the perfect day to see it all. The sidewalk leading to the viewpoint had animal tracks in the concrete. I love when places leave the tracks in the setting concrete. It gives a little story to the area. I hope this little raccoon is still thriving.

We ate some lunch while parked and I was able to upload a lot of our pictures from the trip. We had to turn the fans on for a bit to get some air blowing through the bus, but overall it was a nice day with mild temperatures. I tend to be colder than Jeff or Skylar, and in the back of the bus it was perfect for me without a fan blowing. I had a tiny visitor fly in through the window, though, so I had to rescue him and put in the screens after he left. I also loved how the sun reflected on the windshield and showed all of Hardy's little nose marks. He sat on the dash a lot of the trip and helped Jeff navigate through the different states, like a good little copilot.

We decided to call it a day once we made it to Amarillo. We wanted to get some good rest for the night so we could spend some time around the city. We saw a Love's RV camping area on our way down to Arkansas, so we immediately booked it back there. It was a quiet and clean place, and we made note of it for future trips. When we finally got parked, hooked up, and situated, the animals were ready for dinner and a break from driving. Eleven immediately came out from her hiding place and was telling me it was time for her to eat. All of the animals were still doing wonderful on the trip at this point. My main concern was their wellbeing, and they all seemed to be enjoying the new sights and smells. We made dinner for ourselves, did a good cleaning of the bus, and called it a night.

Crystal Springs, Arkansas 🠊 Rowland, Oklahoma

We said our goodbyes to everyone except my parents, sister, and my niece. Kendra and Natalie came with us to downtown Hot Springs to fill our water bottles for our trip back to Oregon. We walked around downtown and took a few pictures. We were sad to leave Hot Springs, but we had to get on the road before it got too late. Natalie rode with us on the bus back to Crystal Springs. We had one last goodbye with everyone before we were really on the road back to Oregon. We stopped at the old gas station, and café my mom used to own. The liquor store (Lewis Liquor) is still in operation and ran by someone I graduated high school with. I stopped in to say hello and goodbye to him, while we stopped to visit one last time with my family. After tearful goodbyes to everyone, we got on the road finally around 9:00 p.m. We drove a few miles down the road and pulled over at a gas station near Mountain Harbor to readjust things and collect our thoughts. All three of us were sad to leave, especially looking out of the bus windows and seeing everyone in my family crying. It's a shame that we live so far away, but I love our life on the west coast. It's a hard choice to make, but 20 years ago when we made that decision to move, I still don't regret any of it.

Skylar and Daddy (Papa) walking around my parent's yard and talking. I was on the bus folding and handing clothes and noticed the moment. I loved looking up and seeing my dad talking with Skylar about things.

Daddy took us on a hike on the Lake Ouachita Vista Trail (LOViT) to see the bench my dad sponsors in memory of my Nana, who passed away in 2011. Hardy and Calvin were already in the backseat of my dad's truck and was ready to go. It was a wonderful bench in her memory and it warmed my heart to have my dad take us there. I could tell that my dad must go here often when he rides his bike and seats at the bench. My dad and my Nana were really close and it breaks my heart for him that she is gone. I took several pictures of the bench to have for my own memories and thoughts. My Nana was a neat lady. She always had a different view on life than most and I feel I got a lot of her insights and perspective. We all miss her so much, and I feel our whole family hasn't been the same since she passed.

The plants were just as I remembered as a kid walking in the woods pretending to be brave. The picture on the right is a seedpod, but it looks like a fossil.

We stopped at the water spigot that poured spring water from the hillside. This water spigot has been here since I was young and when we would ride our bikes over the hill and along the trail we would stop and fill up our water bottles. I love that I was able to share all of these experiences with Skylar. He enjoys the same things I do and he and I both had a great time spending the afternoon with my dad.

We all gathered back at my parent's house and took a lot of pictures for everyone. It's been a long time since we were all together like this, so it was nice to be able to take pictures and cherish the moment that we did have.

I had to take pictures of the bus sitting on my parent's property. It was so funny walking out of my parent's house and seeing the bus sitting near the barn. Definitely a cool story to add to our book of life.

Jeff sprayed out the filters and cleaned up the engine. We are working up plans to get a better flow of air to the engine to cool it off better, especially after going through Moab, Utah.

We said our last goodbyes to Will and his family, and Ryan. We would be seeing everyone else again, but they were driving back home and Ryan had to go to work. It was bittersweet, but we will be making this trip again, hopefully in 2026.

Skylar made sure we avoided hitting anything as we came down the driveway, including my dad's small pine tree he was trying to protect.

We filled up our water bottles at one of the many Hot Springs Mountain Valley Water dispensers downtown. This particular water fill system is maintained by the Hot Springs National Park with the city maintaining it daily.

Another first experience for Skylar. He was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas, but we moved away when he was six months old. Each time we come back to visit he gets a little more experience of the area where his life began. Time goes by so fast. It makes me cry typing this out. I wish we had more time.

Left: Skylar, Kendra, and Natalie. Right: Ryan and Natalie.

The sad goodbyes. I made sure to take a picture to look back on when I got homesick later on down the road. I felt like I was the one being left behind and they were all leaving me. It was a strange feeling.