Thursday we had to say our goodbyes to the Burgesses. We had such a fun time there. We'll have to invite ourselves again. We headed back to Grand Junction and then south to Durango. The drive from Ouray to Durango is so pretty -- one of my favorites from road trips as a kid. Shortly before Silverton we stopped at a pull-off to stretch our legs and stick our toes in a stream. The water was icy cold! I wish we could have spent more time exploring along the way. It was beautiful. We got to Durango at lunch-time. Just as we pulled into town, Camille lost her cookies so-to-speak. We were grateful she was the only one as the road is super windy. Luckily, it was easily cleaned up and we took a nice long lunch break. We waded in the Animas river, reunited a cell phone with Cindy, it's owners wife, ate lunch and generally had a great time.
That night we pulled into Albuquerque. We stayed at the twin sister of our favorite hotel in Portland, an Embassy Suites with a fantastic cooked-to-order breakfast. The next morning we checked out the pool before heading off to Silver City to visit the Welkers. It was really fun to be able to visit both of my out-of-state sisters in one week. Marla & Grant treated Alex and I to dinner at the Buckhorn Saloon & Opera House in Pinos Altos. It was established in the 1800's and has preserved it's rusticity but I'm guessing the menu is much improved these days. I got the chicken alfredo with hatch chiles -- an interesting combo but good.
Saturday, Grant took us on a tour to the Chino mine overlook. Since he heads up the financials for both the mines there he was in the know about all the details and it was really interesting to learn about it. We also did a driving tour of Fort Bayard on the way home. I wish we'd had more time, it would have been fun to explore it more. The kids had a great time with their cousins and we were sad when the time came to leave. We headed for St. David and stayed the night at Mom & Dad Kartchner's.
Sunday was Devon's homecoming talk. We enjoyed visiting with the Duane & Shirley's, Jeff & Kelsey's, Alan & Megan's, Karina, Devon, Mom & Dad and the assorted aunts, uncles and cousins that stopped by to stay hi. After we'd grabbed a bite, we headed home to Queen Creek. Did I mention how much I love my bed!?! 4 states, 27 hours of driving, 5 kids, thank goodness for a 12 passenger van, visits with 12 cousins and ONE wonderful trip!
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| Julie, Carter, Camille, Lydia |
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| Eve celebrating freedom from seatbelts. |
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| Lydia, Alex Eve & Brad in the Animas River. |
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| Camille was not going to be left behind. She wanted to wade with the big kids. |
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| Eve at the Chino mine. |
1 comment:
It was so fun to have you here! Our kids can't wait to play with cousins again!
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