On the Road for Father's Day

Just as Hillary got to begin her birthday yesterday by opening presents, so did I get to begin Father's Day this morning with wonderful gifts.  Unfortunately, because today was all about driving home from Missoula, there wasn't much Father's Day celebrating to be done from that point on; we had to pack up, get our luggage out to the vehicle, check out of the hotel, buy fuel and coffee, and hit the road.  But that's okay because

(1) I got to spend the whole day (albeit while confined to a vehicle) with my children and my wife, the woman responsible for my being a father; and

(2) Susan told me that, soon after we get back home, we'll have a Father's Day celebration to make up for today.

My gifts included two shirts (I'm wearing one of them), a multimedia docking station for my cell phone, the cuff links from last night (remember?), a basting brush to use when grilling, and a collection of manly scented body washes.  Here the girls are wearing the headbands they got Friday while visiting the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

Even the rest stops in western MT feature pretty scenery!  Here I am with my three dollies in the foreground and the beautiful mountains in the background.

We ate dinner at Old Chicago in Bozeman.  By the time we got to Billings, the skies were looking ominous (and we found out later that we drove through there about a half-hour before a tornado ripped the roof off a Billings sports arena!); and when we got to Miles City, the rain was steady, and the weather report announced the approach of a tornado.  We had intended to stop for supper in Miles City, but we picked up fast food instead and ate on the road.  The rains became torrential, and I had to slow way down to keep from hydroplaning and to be able to see the road through the downpour.  By Glendive, the rain had cleared, but the storm clouds hung in the west and followed us home.  There is rain, thunder, and lightning going on here at home right now.

But all the mountains in western and south-central MT made for a lovely drive before we got to the point that I was driving through and away from life-threatening weather conditions.