We arrived yesterday, safe and sound. 25 hours of driving and the kids did really well, especially Ruthie.

After leaving Albuquerque, NM in the morning, we had a mere 300 miles to drive, far less than the 700 miles we were averaging the last two days. That being said, the 300 miles turned into 400 miles after we had to detour from our route 60 miles short of Flagstaff, AZ. I’ve been stopped by bizzard conditions and flooded roads before, but the cause of this detour/delay was a first:

Those are not ominous storm clouds in the distance, that’s zero visibility blowing dust from an unusually strong Pacific storm that moved through the area.  The Interstate was shut down for two days!

We found a route south that navigated the mountains and it ended up being a beautiful two-hour drive through the world’s largest continuous Ponderosa pine forest.

This morning we woke up at 5:30AM (body clocks thinking it was 7:30AM) and the Legos made their way out.  The house is more than accommodating and the kids, at least, were well-rested.

On to Sunset Crater National Park today, and some groceries (the locusts’ appetite are insatiable!)