One Sleep Closer

We are spending our last night on the road in North Little Rock, and we were going to go explore downtown, but we don’t want to, so we have chosen instead to hang out at the hotel, until we leave to come home early tomorrow morning.

I want to say a couple of things about this road trip overall, and I want to thank all of you who have followed along with us. It has been a wonderful trip, and I still recommend it for everyone. Pretty sure I will never do it again, but in case you are interested, here are some things that worked for us and might work for you.

1.  Plan. You need to start doing this months in advance. My personality type is not that of a planner, but I will plan the heck out of a vacation.

2.  Join a hotel points reward program. We paid for 98% of our lodging through hotel points, and it helped a lot.

3.  Plan your trip according to your personal preferences and not what you think you are supposed to do. Should you visit the Grand Canyon? Yes, of course. Everyone should see it at least once in their lifetime. Should you visit every national park between here and California? If you want to, but not because you feel as if you should. By the 2nd National Park, the Kingston’s pretty much decided that we were over them.  We don’t regret going, I don’t think, but they took a lot of time, cost some money, and outdoorsy stuff isn’t generally what we are attracted to, so why did we feel we needed to do it? Also, by we, I mean me, because I did the planning, and the other two graciously went along with me. We loved Vegas, but the General Sherman tree? Not ever going to be a repeat trip, unless they have a replica in Vegas.

4.  Be flexible. What you think you may want to do or see during the planning stage may not be what you want to do or see during the actual trip itself. Family votes are important, but be realistic. Don’t try to cram something in just because it is on the list. We dropped several things. Yes, they were nature things and I don’t feel bad at all for dropping them.

5. Try not to do marathon driving. We never drove over 7 hours from one hotel to the next. Rest is important. Very important.

6. Avoid chain restaurants if possible. We did eat chain restaurant food for breakfast, but we tried to go to restaurants indigenous to a particular area as much as we could. Definitely go to In and Out Burger. Also Black Bear Diner is a western states chain that is really good, and they are creeping their way down South. We ate at the new one in North Little Rock today. If you go to Vegas, you must eat at Peppermill. So good!! Also, all food in California tastes better. Even their McDonalds is better. I realize that I said don’t eat at chain restaurants by mentioning chain restaurants. Sorry. Eat at small town restaurants as well. You get my drift.

7.  Plan a rest day. We planned one day where we did nothing. It was a good day to do some laundry, take naps, hang out at the pool, or in my case, obsess over the next earthquake. I need that day back.

8.  Apologize and move on. You are going to get angry with your travel companions. You will get on each other’s nerves. Say you are sorry and move on. It is a very long trip and not a time to hold grudges. Keep it light and keep laughing.

9.  Rent a car and preferably a van. There were only three of us for the majority of the trip, but that van held us and all our stuff, and it was all accessible to us. Plus, a van is just comfortable! You can recline, there are armrests, and the back seat passengers have access to their own AC!

10.  Put the camera down. I took a lot of photos, but it was when I put the phone in my back pocket during that dolphin cruise that I really enjoyed myself, and just experienced the dolphins without trying to get a photo. I wanted the photos so that we can look back at them and remember the trip fondly, but it took away a bit from my overall enjoyment because I was constantly trying to get the “perfect shot.” What I could never capture is the awe I felt when I saw all those mountain ranges so close we could touch them, or the laughter we shared when one of us said something funny, or even the shock we felt at the earth literally moving beneath our feet. No camera can capture that, but they are instances I will never forget, and that can only be forever remembered by those who were there to share it first hand.

Speaking of photos, I did not take one today, so I am going to post one from the photo bank. I need something to show up with the blog on FB.

Thanks again for reading the blog. We will arrive home tomorrow and Anthony and I will return to work the next day. Vacation over.

Nothing

We are in Weatherford, OK for the night. The highlight of my day was driving on flat roads with a speed limit of 75 mph, and with drivers who actually only use the left hand lane to pass. It was heaven on a highway.

That’s it. That’s the blog entry, and these are the places we went.

Also, I touched an actual cowboy in New Mexico when he wasn’t paying attention, and backed into me at a quick rip called Toot’n Totum.

Beautiful Durango and Weed Town, USA

Today we started our long journey home. It has gone from vacation to business trip. We are all about the business of getting home. First, however, we had the pleasure of spending last night in Durango, and if Colorado were not land locked, I could actually live in this part of the state. Durango is home to one leg of the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. You can ride in a steam engine pulled train through the San Juan National Forest, and it looks to be a beautiful trip to take if one has time. We drove through that same forest, and driving was a bit more daunting than riding a train would be, but very beautiful. The hotel we stayed in was right beside the Animas River, and if you kept the sliding screen door open, you could hear it rushing by. We tried that, but all we could smell was weed, so we had to close it again. Colorado loves their marijuana. Downtown was quaint, and we walked a bit since my back feels better, thank goodness.  This morning, I woke early as usual these days, and spent some time sitting out by the river, listening to it rush by.  There is a walking/bike path  that runs along the river as well, and I was almost slammed to the ground by a cyclist, so I quickly went back to my table.

                                              Photo creds to Anthony for the photo above.

After we checked out, we began to make our way to Trinidad to reunite with Anthony's mom and to spend the night.  Along the way, we did some more driving through the mountains, and by driving, I mean Anthony drove, and I held my breath.  There were all these signs warning people not to pull over to the side of the road and get out, which made us wonder just how close we were to going over the side.  The area is beautiful, and it was nice to see the snow still on the mountain peaks, especially given the heat in the valley below.

We arrived in Trinidad this afternoon, and I made sure to learn a few facts before we arrived.  First of all, Trinidad's unofficial nickname is "Weed Town, USA" because there are more dispensaries here than anywhere else in the state.  It lost the title of "Sex Change Capitol of the Country" when the only doctor at the time who would perform sex change operations left and moved his clinic to California.  We did not find anything particularly interesting about downtown, so we are pretty much hanging out at the hotel, listening to the wind howl outside.  It is not a river, but still soothing all the same.

Tomorrow---Oklahoma.

She is definitely GRAND!!

Today was Day 13 of our cross country trip, and all three of us have been dealing with our own physical ailments.  It started for me in Dana Point, CA when I was getting ready that morning, and my back locked up.  It does this periodically and is debilitatingly painful.  I managed to walk it off a little, and take some pills, which took the edge off, and made me forget about it until after the cruise, when it came back with a vengeance.  It gets worse after I lie down, but thankfully does not bother me in the car.  I have Doans Back Pain pills, Naproxen, Bio Freeze, some all natural gel, and hot showers to help.  So far, I am making it okay, except for the sudden gasps I emit when it locks up unexpectedly from time to time.  Kira went swimming several days ago, and has been dealing with water in one of her ears.  She believes it may be getting better, or she may just be getting used to it.  No infection, so that is good.  Anthony woke up with a bad headache this morning, but after eating and taking some Aleve, he began to feel better.  Cross Country Road Tripping is not for the faint of heart, but it is still so much fun.  We find a way to laugh a lot, and have shared so many great times these two weeks that will forever be etched in our memories.  Of course, we have already lost track of where we have been and what we have eaten along the way, but.......memories.

Today, we went to the Grand Canyon.  We left beautiful Flagstaff around 8:30 this morning and headed that way.  After finally finding a parking space, we headed to the South Rim, and beheld the beauty that is hard to describe unless you see it in person.  We did pass a guy with an Auburn shirt on, and he and Kira shared "War Eagles" to one another.  That made us feel good, until we saw two people decked out in Crimson Tide attire.  Why?!?!?!?!  I took a lot of photos and they probably look the same, but it was just too beautiful not to photograph.  We also visited the East Rim on our way to Durango, and it was a different view of beautiful.  We probably spent less time than anyone there, because I think we were there for about an hour.  Once you have seen it, you have seen it, and it is time to move on, especially for a family that hates the heat and does not hike.  It is very beautiful, but it was also time to move on.  We stopped at one more gorge before leaving the area completely and I spent some time talking to one of the Navajo men, and complaining of the heat.  He said "wait until it gets hot."  I thought today was pretty hot, but he told me that at the end of August, the actual heat there is 118.  I tried to explain the Southern heat versus the dry heat, but he wasn't buying it, and I can see why.  The thought of an actual temperature of 118 makes me want to weep.  I told him I was from Alabama at least three times, but he kept calling it Georgia, and finally said "they are all the same."  Yeah.....okay.

               I took a photo of this guy in case I read about him plummeting to his death tomorrow.

After we left the Grand Canyon, we started our journey towards Durango, CO, which has the nickname of Four Corners, because the Four Corners Monument is close by.  It is the place where Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah all meet.  It was designed by Navajo Nation, and is the coolest place.  Before we got there, however, we ate lunch at a McAllisters in a Navajo Nation welcome center of sorts.  The music they were playing over the speakers was that of a wood flute, and it was so calming that I am now looking for playlists on my phone.

We checked into our hotel in Durango around 7:15 tonight, and I immediately fell in love.  This is the coolest hotel we have stayed in because we have a fourth floor view of the Animas River from our balcony, and it is beautiful.  I will share photos of tomorrow.

Good night.

Leaving Cali And Heading East—-Sort Of

Today, we left California after about the most interesting four days I have ever spent anywhere.  We experienced two back to back earthquakes that left me rattled and wanting to go home.  We survived the dry desert heat that was really only hot during the day, and quite lovely at night. We hit the highlights of Hollywood and Beverly Hills, experienced the most wonderful dolphin cruise, and fell in love with La Jolla Cove in San Diego.  It was a wonderful time, and I will be honest;  I could not wait to get out of there.  California is arguably the most beautiful state in the nation, but the risks of living there are so great that I would never be able to relax.  I did become a fan girl of Dr. Lucy Jones while I was there, and I recommend everyone follow her on Twitter.  You think James Spann is popular in Alabama?  No one has more respect than Dr. Jones in California.  She is the authority on earthquakes, and yet seems like someone you could have a great casual conversation with about music and Faith.  Yes, she is a scientist who is also a believer in a Creator.  There are more of them than most people realize, and they have my utmost admiration.  I also admire every single person who calls California home.  I don't know how they do it.  The "Big One" is coming and yet they manage to live their lives knowing they have to be prepared, but not spend every waking moment fearing its arrival. There is a lesson in there for me for sure, and probably for all of us.

One last thing about the dry heat before I move on to our next stop.  Yesterday, on our dolphin cruise, I got my shoes very wet by standing on that mesh, and when I say wet, I mean you could ring water out of them, and they were sturdy athletic shoes.  I put them on the table outside last night, and when I went to get them at 7:30 this morning, they were COMPLETELY DRY!!!  It would have taken a week to dry them at home.

On to our next stop.  Arizona!!  I did not like the majority of this state when we were driving through today.  Most of it was flat, hot, and the sign at the rest area said beware of stinging insects and venomous snakes.  Yikes!! Anthony once again asked me to drive, and once again I thought it would be a piece of cake.  Apparently, there are mountains in that part of Arizona, and I had to drive through them..........once again.  Yellow warning signs are now a part of my nightmares.  I failed to get a photo of cacti today despite seeing tons of them, but I did get a photo of these beautiful flowers.  When everything else around is dead or looks like it, these really stand out.

We finally arrived in Flagstaff around 4:00, and thought we would check in to our hotel and then head to the Grand Canyon, which is 90 minutes away.  I had wanted to take some sunset photos, but my sister told me that once it got dark, the road is a bit winding on the way back to Flagstaff, so I quickly decided that I would put that plan to a vote, and we unanimously decided to grab a bite to eat in Flagstaff, and wander around downtown, because you know how I love a good downtown.  This one did not disappoint.  This part of Arizona is quaint, and modern, but yet holds onto the past, and I just adore it.  There is a train track that runs through the down town area, and people don't even seem to mind.  I live in Shelby County and we mind big time.  Route 66 is here and we walked across it twice.  Walking through this little downtown made it perfectly fine that we missed sunset at Grand Canyon.

We are headed there tomorrow, but are all three anxious to get some rest tonight.

Good night from Flagstaff!

The BEST Day!!

When I was very young, I fell in love with horses. Everything in my room was horse related, and I begged my dad for a horse. He said we couldn’t have one because he needed to use that space for a garden. What he didn’t say was that we lived in a subdivision, and I am pretty sure owning large livestock was frowned upon. I grew out of my horse phase as soon as I heard Olivia Newton John sing The Dolphin Song in the '80s. She wrote it as an homage to that beautiful mammal because of the dangers of tuna fishing and how they were getting caught in the nets in Japan. I immediately fell in love and wanted to join Greenpeace at once. I also toyed with becoming a marine biologist, but then I remembered that I would actually have to swim with jellyfish, and sharks, and in water, so I decided to just watch them from afar.  I also used to want to do one of those "swim with the dolphins" excursions, but they were too expensive, and it just seemed too captive for me. The whole purpose of Olivia's song was for the dolphins to be free.  I did not grow out of the dolphin phase, although I stopped collecting them because I have too much stuff, and every one had them.  Collecting something is no fun when you can find it everywhere.  I did, however, decorate Kira's nursery in dolphins because I wanted them to mean as much to her as they do to me.  To help that along, we started going on dolphin cruises in Orange Beach when she was a toddler, and have honored that tradition every year, despite the fact that she hates them.  We literally get eye rolls whenever we tell her that we have one scheduled, and I got the same eye roll when I told her that we would be going on one this trip as well.  Actually, I got two big WHATS?!?!?! from her and Anthony when I informed them that my original plan was to take a SIX hour cruise to hunt down some whales.  I love these ocean mammals, but even I started rethinking that plan, and promptly canceled.  I got them to agree to about a 2 hour jaunt, and Kira is happy to learn that I will never ask her to go on another one, because this was THE BEST EVER!!!!

First of all, I am going to say that lower back spasms and semi-rough seas do not compliment one another, and I experienced both.  My back does that from time to time, and chose to hit me first thing this morning.  I was undaunted, however, because I was not missing this cruise.  I took some Aleve, rubbed some Bio Freeze back there and off we went.   I am going to go ahead and say that we did not see any whales. I sort of thought we would fall short of that because of the time of year we were in, and I really wasn't even that disappointed.  I know.  They are majestic and I wanted to see them, but it is what it is.  The cruise took place on a large catamaran and was led by a very knowledgeable and helpful crew.   After our safety talk, and photo session, we were allowed to walk bow to stern.  I had already decided that I would find a comfortable spot and hang out, but Anthony and Kira went to the bow to look around.  Catamarans have this large open area at the bow that is nothing but water, unless you stretch those mesh things across it.  In order to get to the bow, you pretty much have to walk across the mesh.  There are holes in mesh!  There is lots of ocean beneath those holes!  Guess who was NOT going to walk up there?  I was comfortable; I was seeing some dolphins off the side, and I was happy.  I decided that if Anthony or Kira got better video at the bow, I would just look at it and pretend I was there.  Thankfully, they decided that I needed to actually experience it, and Anthony came to get me.  Of course I made a big enough showing of not wanting to go that one of the captains (there were three on that cruise), came to help.  He and Anthony guided me across that mesh as if I was a frail little old lady.  Thank goodness most people were watching dolphins and not me.

When I tell you seeing all of those dolphins up close was a dream come true for me, I am not exaggerating in the least. We were so close to those beautiful creatures that we got wet from their tails hitting the water. They were amazing, and seemed to be having so much fun entertaining their guests. I heard the captain say that if someone wanted to lie stomach down across the mesh, and stick their hand through one of the holes, they might actually be able to touch one. Had I done that, I would still be lying there. Kira was sweet to take video of them swimming so that I could enjoy the experience. The photos below are ones she got from the video. No zooming in had to be done at all. That is how close they were to us. It was magical!  The captains estimated around 50 dolphins were in that particular pod.

That boat was gently rocking Kira to sleep at first.

It was magical, and an experience I will never forget.  I will link one of the videos in the comment section so you can see just how active they were, and even that great video does not do it justice, because we put the phones up and just enjoyed the experience so most of it will live forever in our memory, and I am good with that.

Even though we did not see any whales, we did see some sea lions, and this little one waved at us right after I took the photo.  Look at that face!!

After we finished our cruise, we had just enough time to head south to the San Diego area.  We only had time for one experience, and I chose La Jolla Cove right outside of San Diego.  I chose wisely, because it is breathtakingly gorgeous!  The weather was perfect, and even though it was crowded, there was plenty of beauty for everyone.

There were critters galore, and I became obsessed with getting good seal photos.  I also captured a squirrel and lots of gulls.  They are everywhere!!

We leave California tomorrow, and between this trip and a prior one I took many years ago, I have visited pretty much the entire state, and if I had to choose one place in the state to live (without earthquakes of course), I would without a doubt choose the San Diego area.  The weather is perfect (low 70s in July people!), and the scenery is gorgeous.  Definitely my pick.  We had a perfect ending to our short stay.