gila cliff dwellings

The drive up to the Gila Cliff Dwellings is not for the faint of heart.  We were determined and that 40 miles of ascending and descending switchbacks took almost two hours through a changing landscape and even some snowy evergreens. The easy one mile roundtrip trail up to the cliff was easy in comparison.

pictographs

There were seven dwelling spots to view and climb past.  The best part of this park is how they let you in the caves and tunnel areas to see everything up close. The boys spotted the pictographs on the side of the canyon pretty quickly (we learned that they have pigment painting all over this area but not many carvings despite the soft rock).  The light, wind, and views from the caves gave you a really good idea of what it would be like to live there.

white sands

Checked into our hotel in Las Cruces and then took off across the missile fields on our way to White Sands National Monument. Stopped at the visitor's center to pick up some pins and another stamp in our National Park Passport and surprisingly, sleds and wax. The ranger said to just head to the end of the drive where the asphalt turns to packed down sand.  We parked and trekked across the beautiful dunes to find a perfect hill with just enough incline and range. There were a few unnerving and spooky rocket noises that made it even more surreal. The boys traded off the go pro on a headband as they swooped down the dunes on their well waxed sleds.  There were so many ridges that we almost got lost trying to head back to our car ;)

big bend

We finally converted Aiden's paper pass into a real National Park badge (4th graders and their families get in free for a year).  The ranger wanted to talk to Aiden directly about his visit and tell him about what he might enjoy in the park that day. 

rio grande

The Santa Elena area near the Rio Grande was marked as a "must see" and our tour guide app Just Ahead mentioned it as well.  We loved having this app which acted like a tour guide since it was connected to our map system and would point out features and areas to stop as we drove. 

We caught a road runner running across the street, which was a big highlight the boys mention when people ask about the trip.  They were pumped up after hiking up the switchbacks to get to the top of the canyon on the US side. Half way across the river is considered Mexico.  J threw a rock across to Mexico, and how many opportunities do you have to say you are that close to the border. The walls of the canyon have shell fossils all over.

fossils

The newest exhibit at Big Bend includes a really great historic timeline illustrated with fossils found in the area over time. We also earned a special patch for identifying all the plants in the garden outside the visitor center.

terlingua

Stopped in Terlingua on our way to the Big Bend entrance (we stayed north in Alpine to make it easier), and the ghost town has plenty of fun stuff. The boys were more pumped by the gift shop full of crazy stuff, and came home with scorpion stuffies, a turtle flat flute, and a whistle made of real antler. J played some guitar on the porch as the wind kicked up the dust.

alamo

Remember the Alamo! We stopped in for a morning visit.  We learned more about medical treatments in that time than we probably wanted to and tons of information on how cannons work. They had live music setup and Aiden was excited to add this flute to his wind instrument collection (it's expanding!)

peli and sonora

On our way from Houston to San Antonio, we stopped at a new fast version of a restaurant we saw on the Food Network years ago and I've been following for a long time on social media. They are a blend of South African, Indian, Dutch, and French cooking, so all good stuff! It was even more delicious than expected... I loved the truffle fries, and short ribs and the boys loved their chicken encrusted with a sweet crunch.  The manager was so friendly and even gave us a cookbook and t-shirts ;)

We also found this tiny town called Sonora that hosts this fun museum full of curiosities.

houston space 2

So many interactive exhibits and huge parts from real rockets and the shuttle...

houston space 1

A highlight of the trip, given the number of photos I took there, was the Space Center Houston, where all the exhibits were well done and the tram tour gave you a really good behind the scenes view of the real operations at the center.  They showed you the vintage mission control area which is where the actual Apollo missions communicated. Keaton actually sat in the seat where the Queen of England sat in the viewing area.  Seeing the real robots and capsules on the work floor was really neat.  

The boys absolute highlight was the the robot that made ice cream sundaes for them ;) - see the top right photo below:

bye louisiana

We cruised out of Lousiana on our way to Houston, with a quick stop to see some alligators and the wetlands.  Check out that Mardi Gras tree ;)

aquarium part 2

You are greeted with a tunnel full of fish and sting rays when you first walk in to the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas. They were all getting their breakfast and it was so fun to watch!  Then we got to see the penguins get their breakfast which might have been a favorite.  We saw them train the sea otters (they are huge!) and also feed the sharks and turtles.

aquarium part 1

The aquarium was such a treat with so many different areas to explore, we spent nearly all day there. You also get tickets to a 3D Imax show and we saw Titans of the Ice Age.  The aviary was full of birds flying around on a windy day, and they were trying to escape! One even went completely into J's pocket! Between the wind and the frantic birds landing on me and pecking at me, I was not keeping my cool boy mom persona in tact - I was not "playing it cool" with so many swooping birds. ;)  Keaton was so excited to pick out a cute otter stuffie guy, he named Oscar, at the gift shop.

more new orleans

We met up with J's friend at a great seafood restaurant he recommended.  Turtle soup, whole fish and fish cooked in a bag, all delicious... We happened to be there on the evening of the 300th Tricentennial celebration and were treated to a surprise fireworks show from our hotel window over the Mississippi.  Cafe Du Monde beignets and hot cocoa were such a treat! We took a trolley up to Bourbon street and veered off the main drag fairly quickly as it got dark...

new orleans

We earned a junior ranger badge at the Jean Lafitte National Park right off the wharf in New Orleans. We found a chocolate shop and took home a chocolate alligator.  Visiting the Quarter Stitch yarn shop  (I left without indulging in more yarn) and a fun toy shop (where Keaton got a music box and Aiden a new kazoo for his collection).  Aiden's favorite stop was the hat shop, where he picked up his new favorite "winter fedora." :)

more montgomery

More time at the Montgomery art museum with the best kid's section to explore...

A nice visit with our friends who now live on the air force base there...  

montgomery art

Check out this awesome interactive museum which was a nice relaxing treat after cruising into town...

auburn

We finally cruised out of Georgia on dry roads with plenty of ice and snow left on the ground. But we made it to see our old neighborhood friends who now live in Auburn, AL. It was so great to see them and pick up right where we left off... every time!  We had some famous Toomer's lemonade before leaving town.

snowy savannah

Part of the reason we cut down the east coast to Savannah was to avoid snow, but it followed us!  Savannah had the most recorded snowfall on record since 1986 and it had only stuck like his three other times in recorded weather history!  We luckily arrived the night before it hit and didn't have to drive in it or get stuck (we saw many spinoffs later!)  They closed down bridges, roads, ferries, everything, so we were stuck in the conference hotel for J's association meeting. Sadly, many of the meetings were cancelled including J's since he was the only one there.  The boys and I just hunkered down and rested while watching the snow fall on the steaming heated outdoor pool.  #placesyoucanknit