Post 7: Salt Lake City: All Road Trips Must End

My mom and I had just spent time exploring ski resorts, national parks, hiking, and more. I wasn't ready for the trip to be over, but the travel portion would end today as we made our way to my house in Utah. She still had a couple of days in Utah before flying back to Indiana, so we were going to savor these last days together.

Travel Day to Utah

Keith and I were celebrating our 18th wedding anniversary on this day. This was the first time we weren't together on our anniversary, so it was wonderful to have my mom with me. She bought me breakfast at Persephone in Moose, WY, on our way out of town. If you remember from the last post, this coffee shop is one of my all-time favorites. We opted for a pretty chill day since we had a 5.5-hour drive to my house. Technically, we could have squeezed in another activity, but we felt pretty fulfilled at this point.

Travel "Chores"

It felt strange walking into my house. I had been gone for 17 days. I'm used to being gone for long periods of time, but this was different because Keith was off riding his bike, my mom would be with me for a couple of more nights, and then I'd be on my own for a couple of weeks while Keith finished the Tour Divide.

Mom and I did a few travel chores once we got to my house: clean out the car, unpack luggage, do laundry, exchange pictures from our trip, etc. We spent the early evening lounging around and then decided to head out for a sweet treat. I had been wanting to try Rockwell Ice Cream in Provo. For some reason, I had just recently become aware of this shop, even though it's been around for 10 years. That's one year longer than we've lived in Utah. Instantly, I became a fan and even took Keith once we returned home later in the summer.

Girl's Day

Once again, we had the options for some more vacation-like activities, but we decided on a simpler day. One that we might get to spend together if we lived closer. Our day would mainly be shopping and then having a nice dinner together.

It's a known fact that, umm... how do I describe myself?? I can sometimes find myself not making a certain decision. It doesn't happen often and ends up being in a more unusual situation. The current situation is that I haven't picked out a 40th birthday present from my mom, even though I recently turned 46! My mom gifts my sister and me money to choose a present for milestone birthdays. Thus far, we've both always chosen jewelry, and I truly treasure those pieces. My mom and I actually went shopping when we happened to be together about 5 months before said 40th birthday. I didn't choose anything then and have looked since, but I just haven't found the right piece. It's now become a running joke. Anyway, it's always better to share in this experience, so we planned to hit the jewelry stores. I proved to her that it's not as easy as it sounds. We didn't leave empty-handed handed though, because I did end up buying two necklaces! The only problem with that was that even two necklaces didn't add up to a fraction of the budget for this gift. So instead, I used some other birthday money I hadn't spent yet. Yup, 7 months old birthday money. I guess my issue really is just with birthday money!

We ended our day at Ruby River Steakhouse for dinner as we enjoyed our last evening together. She would be flying out the next morning, so it was a great way to wrap up our trip ❤️

All on my Own!

I'm a girl who likes her alone time. I was honestly looking forward to some time to myself, and had a whole list of things I was going to do. I will say it didn't live up to my expectations. First, I immediately got sick after my mom left. I just felt like crap and was sleeping for hours during the day. Between trying to work and take care of myself, it wasn't easy. I did take a couple of pictures during this time: a plant I bought, went to a favorite coffee shop, and got kolaches I had been craving!

The next thing really surprised me. I had some inkling of it already, but I just missed Keith so much. I, of course, was worried about how he was going on the ride and all that. But this was much more, and really an unexpected feeling of just missing him greatly. We are used to being with each other nearly every day, all day, so it was lonely. I was super happy and excited for him to complete this goal of his. I was so proud of everything he had already done at that point, so it was confusing to feel this way.

Upcoming Post

Check back next week as Keith nears the end of the race, and I make plans to meet up with him. I also decide what we are going to do after the race, so he can rest and recover.

How do you like to spend the last day of a trip? Do you try to cram more into the adventure or take it easy and relax? Let us know in the comments section below.👇 💬