Oh Yeah... Pictures!

We got a few good ones, so here you go!

First, our intrepid explorer children crossed the Continental Divide. I would like to point out Ben's pose: it is entirely his own.

This next photo is indicative of some of the cool New Mexico (um, or possibly Arizona) scenery we drove through. Reminded me of some of the scenery surrounding Radiator Springs in Cars. Nice shot by Matt, considering he was in a moving car at the time.

Next stop, the Barringer Meteor Crater . Plus requisite picture of boys thereat. Walking down that path behind them takes you down to what was once probably a very cool observation point, a wooden deck built out over the crater with several telescopes pointed at interesting features. However, the wood is now rickety and creepy and also very high up off the ground, and of course a boy's first instinct is to climb the fence surrounding it, so Mommy spent all 30 seconds she could tolerate being there huddled in a corner seeing visions of her and her children's deaths. Moving on!

Also good for people with acrophobia: the Grand Canyon. We got there late in the afternoon, when the sun was in just the right position for making the boys miserable. "C'mon! Look at Mommy! Look at Mommy! No, with your eyes open! Please!!" Ah, the moments that make a man ponder.

The next day we finally got to Gamma Wiggles house. Joseph was plum tuckered out. That, or his Auntie Claire is just really, really comfy. Joshua found other ways to unwind. Ben conquered his fear of fearsome beasts. Mommy and Daddy were too busy relaxing to take many more pictures than that. Dang it.

All of my pictures from Simi are in my cell phone. Sorry!

The drive home was basically the drive out, just backwards, and was therefore largely uneventful. Except for breakfast in Amarillo at The Big Texan. You are all commanded to stop there if you ever have a chance to drive through Amarillo. Holy cow, what a fun place! An old Route 66 classic. If you can eat the 4.5-pound steak in under an hour, you get it for free! Also, you have to eat it on a stage in the center of the restaurant. Ben and Josh each had a go, albeit in plywood-cutout-for-tourist-photos form. Kids meals come with cowboy hats (complete with sheriff star). But what's a sheriff without a moustache? Sheriffs without moustaches are pretty cute, too.

Our little cowboys were pretty anxious to get home by this time, but overall they were great to travel with. Especially when they slept.