End of Scout Camp

After their fun but exhausting week, the boys wait in one final line, for a quick breakfast snack, before heading home.

Scout Camp

Two days after returning from Arizona, Matt was off to Scout camp for a week. Here he is with his friend Joey in front of their tent. That white frame behind Matt in the tent is made of PVC, and holds mosquito netting up over his cot. Most of the boys used them in these screenless tents. Didn't keep him from coming home with a lot of chigger bites, though...

Blogger has made it much easier to post pictures now!

Picture Posting?

Just trying out a new way of posting pictures...

Kayla in Petrified Forest Nat'l Park

A picture of wildflowers.
posted by Kayla

Pictures

Now that I'm back to using the home desktop computer, the picture posting works. I apparently messed something up on the laptop, and haven't been able to straighten it out. Probably some simple thing that I'm missing. Anyway, here are a few pictures.

Sandia Crest, overlooking Albuquerque 

An enjoyable tourist trap at the Continental Divide 

Matt at top of Cathedral Rocks trail, near Sedona 

 

Home

Got home at 6:15 after an uneventful 10-hour trip. The good weather, uncrowded roads, and 70-75 mph speed limits made it about as painless as a 600-mile driving trip can be. The van got an amazing 27 mpg over the first 2/3 of the trip, when we were driving 75 most of the time.

Jethro was happy to see us, and did very well during the week, according to our house-sitter.

Will try to figure out the picture thing tomorrow.

Flagstaff to Santa Fe

Back through the desert and the familiar spots we saw on our journey to Flagstaff; mesas, Painted Desert, petrified wood, Route 66, Continental Divide. As we neared Albequerque, the desert turned yellow because of the wildflowers in bloom. We knew when we were driving through Indian reservations because of all the casinos. The best ones had entertainment, though they were all has-been entertainers like Rick Springfield (Jessie's Girl), George Thorogood and the Destroyers (B-b-bad to the Bone) and The Go-Gos (I can't remember; I always get them mixed up with The Bangles). I kind of feel sorry for them, having to regurgitate their hit(s) to polite crowds who are probably more interested in the slots than the songs.

Santa Fe seems to be a neat town. There are strict building codes so all the buildings look like they are made of adobe and are one of about three shades of brown. I don't think there are many chain restaurants here; if there are, they are pretty well hidden. There are lots of museums, galleries and shops. It would be nice to spend some time here. But we are just passing through. Our hotel feels like an oasis after all the time in the desert. Green grass, birds chirping, functioning pool. Just a brief respite before our attempted marathon drive home tomorrow.

Headed Home

This morning we loaded the van with our 4 suitcases, 2 cameras, computer, 3 pillows, 3 blankets, 2 coolers, and 6 bags of dirty laundry, and reluctantly left Flagstaff. We loved the area and would have stayed a few more days, but need to head back now (besides, our Amerisuites free hotel nights ran out).

We're in Santa Fe now, relaxing after an afternoon of swimming and a fine Burger King meal. We drove around for 30 minutes in Santa Fe traffic trying to find a decent restaurant, and finally gave up and hit the drive-through of the nearest fast-food place. Wasn't a total loss though; we did get to see some of the more unattractive parts of Santa Fe.

We've been blessed with good weather and traffic conditions so far, and are praying for more of the same tomorrow, as we're going to attempt to go over 600 miles to finish the trip. The kids have done well, too, and we hope they can stand 10 hours in the van.

Intended to post lots of pictures, but it just hasn't worked. I'll try again tonight; if it doesn't work the first time I'll try again when we get home.