There and Back Again: Part three - Dallas/Fort Worth

We took most of a day to drive up to Dallas as we were in no hurry and wanted to enjoy the little things along the way.  Here is a picture from the road of a rainstorm heading our way.  It's been a while since I have driven in a rain storm.  We don't get many of those int he desert!

In Dallas, we were able to stay with some of our friends from our days at Dallas Baptist University.  It's such an amazing thing when you can pick back up with a friendship after so many years just like you've never been apart.  We really appreciated being hosted in a real home after so many nights in hotels. 


Here is a picture of three of our kids being entertained by the frisky squirrels as they chased each other around the trees.

We took the next day to visit with extended family and catch up.  It had been many years since we had all been together.  Here is a picture of my mom holding an exhausted little Timmy as he napped after lunch.

Later that evening, we ventured to the Fort Worth Stockyards for a little Texas culture and some good food.  Here are a few pictures of our time there.

Cousins.

This picture has some lighting issues (my camera doesn't do well with low lighting) but I'm happy that we were able to get a picture of the whole family together.

Here is a picture that one of the kids snapped of Peter and I.

The next morning, we took a tour of our alma mater, Dallas Baptist University.  This campus has really grown and changed in the last...well, quite a few years:)

No longer 20 year old students!

DBU did not provide scholarships for my kids or in anyway compensate me for this post.  This is just me sharing about our trip and reminiscing about the fond memories that we have from our time here.

 Stay tuned for the last leg of our journey as we tour Carlsbad Caverns and enjoy White Sands.

There and Back Again: Part four - Carlsbad Cavern and White Sands

We decided to make the drive home in three days instead of the crazy two that we did on the way to Galveston.

First stop along the way, Carlsbad Cavern, New Mexico.  I remember going here as a child but really can only remember how freaked out I was about going down in the cavern...haha.  Thankfully none of our kids seemed concerned and we were able to see this amazing place.  We enjoyed how cool it was and were in awe of the enormous size of the part of the cavern that we toured.  I'm thinking that the early explorers were out of their minds for climbing down on little wire ladders!
The lighting was tough and the pictures don't do it justice but here are a few pics.

After resting up, we set out for the last day of our journey and the one that would take us to home sweet home.  Before hitting the road, we made a quick trip north to visit White Sands.  The contrast of the cool, white sand to the rugged, blistering desert was fascinating.  We took a sled and let the kids go down the doons, roll  in the sand, and tried desperately to leave it all there.  However careful we were to dust off, I was finding sand in shoes and pockets for a week after the trip.

Here are the pictures of or time at White Sands.

And that completes our journey.  We had fun, but, are content to be home and back to our daily routines.