Matt and Kayla's visit/the drive

The day John and Mikey left for Utah, I picked up Matt and Kayla from the airport.  They flew in to help me make the drive back to UT.  We spent one day in Boston, and tried to cram in as much as possible in the short time we had.

We ate at my favorite, Mike's Diner in Boston and then we went to Fenway Park for a tour.  Sadly, Matt and Kayla did not get to attend a game, but the tour was pretty cool.  We got to sit in the press box and go to the top of the Green Monster. 

In the press box

Seats up on the Green Monster

View of Fenway from the Green Monster

After that, we headed up to Salem, MA for some exploring.  We walked around a lot, saw the harbor, the House of Seven Gables, and an old cemetery.  We then battled traffic back into Boston and headed to Quincy Market for some clam chowder.  It was delicious, and Kayla had fulfilled all her MA desires.  The most amazing part of this day, was that we got a perfect parking spot, exactly where we wanted to be.  I pulled down a side street because we wanted to go to the Holocaust Memorial, and there was an open meter, just waiting for us.  It was magical.

Kayla and Me at Salem Harbor

Salem Harbor

Kayla and Me and our new friend

Kayla in the cemetary

Best. Lunch. Ever.

The only photo of all 3 of us together, at Quincy Market

We also walked over to the North End for a delicious cannolli at Mike's pastry.  It was also magical.

By the time we got back to my apartment, we were pretty beat, but we still made it out for one last dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Not Your Average Joe's.  Yummy.

One of my favorite views of Boston.  Definitely going to miss this city.

The next morning, we got all loaded up and were finally on our way.  I was a little sad to be leaving the first home I shared with John, but I was excited to be making the trip back to UT at last.

The first day was pretty terrible.  We drove for more than 14 hours after getting a late start, which got us to Sound Bend, IN around 3:00am.  Matt was a rockstar and drove the last couple of hours, even though he was super tired.  I'm glad we made it without anyone falling asleep (for long!) at the wheel.  We stayed in a shady Motel 6 but we were grateful to get some sleep.

The next day, we had a planned detour to Chicago, IL.  It was slightly comical because somehow Kayla was the one driving as we got into the city.  I don't know if she was stressed out because of the big city, or because Matt and I kept thinking she was going to freak out.  It was funny, to me at least.

So even though it was cold and super windy, we decided to rent bikes and ride along Lake Michigan.  It was hard to believe it was a lake, and not an ocean, because of all the big waves we saw.  We also rode around Lincoln Park and then back to the waterfront.  For lunch, we rode to Uno's Pizzeria, which is home of the original Chicago Deep-Dish pizza.  It was worth the wait.  The bike ride back to the rental shop was a little scary, riding through downtown Chicago traffic, but we made it safely back.

Lake Michigan shoreline

Me and Matt in a pretty garden in Lincoln Park

Matt and Kayla biking

We hit the road again and our next stop was Lincoln, NE.  The next morning, we were really ready to be done driving, but the best was yet to come! We drove through the rest of NE and then realized that one of my tires was balding.  So then we had a pit stop to Walmart in Cheyenne, WY to get a new tire (it ended up being my alignment that needed fixing).  The last few hours of driving seemed like torture, but we finally got in to UT around 10:00-11:00 that night.

"Imagine corn-as far as the eye can see"

I am so grateful Matt and Kayla could take the time to drive with me, thanks guys!