Albuquerque to Taos

June 21, 2013: we left Santa Rosa and didn't look back. It was so hot, we got barely any sleep because it was so windy the tent was blowing everywhere and the ind was bringing so much dirt into the tent. Today was one of those days that we didn't do enough planning and ended up being more boring for the girls. We drove into Albuquerque and found a park. The kids had to use the bathroom in a museum across the street. They discovered a fountain that is there for decoration, not for kids to swim in, but the girls got right in. Molly was literally swimming in the fountain. We wandered around in the old town briefly, then we got some Mexican food from Sadie's (known from Man vs Food on food network). We had burritos and sopapillas, which are little fried dough pastries that you drizzle honey on. We drove to Santa Fe next because I had the idea that I really wanted to see it but the kids fell asleep just as we were arriving and after the terrible sleep the night before I couldn't wake them to look around so we drove around the old town and historic hill and then headed to Taos. We took " the high road" which was a scenic, mountainous drive thru a few small villages. When we got into Taos we found a campground then took the kids to a playground for awhile. We bundled up as we got ready for bed because it drops from high 80's into the 40's. the sunset was amazing, it set in the west and the mountains to the east were beautiful colors. 

Texas-New Mexico

June 20, 2013: we left Oklahoma and drove thru Texas today. We stopped in Amarillo for a bit and checked out the Amarillo Air & Space museum. They are located in a working hanger at a working airfield. There was a warthog doing training runs when we were there which we were lucky to see and thought it was pretty cool. They had a B51 mustang from WWII and a caribou plane that was from Vietnam. We got to go into the caribou and sit in the cockpit, see how they would hook up to the static lines and where they would jump from. Really cool. We had a very short stop at the museum of art and by the time we got to the Cadillac graveyard everyone was asleep so we just did a drive by. We drove to Santa Rosa, New Mexico. It is HOT!!  It was about 102 when we drove into town. We went to a place to swim called the Blue Hole. It's a natural spring hole that is 60 feet in diameter and 82 feet deep. The water is crystal clear and very cold. They have built around it to make a few jumping platforms etc. Molly spent the most time in the water. Julia jumped from the high platform.  She was a little unsure and stood on the ledge for awhile. Everyone at the pool started clapping for her and urging her on and she jumped!  It was funny. We then swam in a regular lake and then in the pool at our campground. We had some dinner and ice cream, showered and are trying to sleep. It is so windy that we are blowing around in the tent. We are in mountain time zone now so the kids need to get to sleep! 

Oklahoma City

June 19, 2013: today I got out of the tent for an early morning run in the state park. I saw a few wild turkey, white tailed deer and even a pig! Then we found a turtle on the trail near camp. We packed up camp and headed into Oklahoma City. We first went to the 45th infantry museum. So random, but it was a really impressive collection. The kids climbed on all the tanks and trucks. Inside they had a huge collection of weapons and the most interesting to us was how many artifacts they had from Hitler's apartment. Then we went into the downtown area. We made a short stop at the Oklahoma City bombing memorial. It is a beautiful memorial, very emotional, but very well done. Afterwards we found some fountains for the Kidd to cool off in. The last stop was in stockyard city where we had a meal at the famous Cattlemen's Cafe. James had the famous "lamb fries" which are fried lamb testicles! He also had a steak and Cattlemen's own brew the Double Deuce. I had a delicious burger. After a quick stop to see some cattle and pigs in the stockyards we headed west. We took a swim at a hotel pool with a splash zone and then camped out in Elk City, OK. 

Arkansas-Oklahoma

June 18, 2013: today we drove to Little Rock after breakfast at the Super 8 in Forrest City, AR. We parked at Clinton's library. The kids promptly soaked themselves in a fountain and then we headed over the Clinton lift bridge. The library is right on the Arkansas river and the whole area is very nice. After walking over the bridge we walked along the river into town. There was an amazing park there. The playground was not a typical structure. Rather it was on different levels with slides and ladders you  could climb and tunnels connecting the areas and levels. The kids had a blast. They also had a big fountain area and the kids played so happily. They were soaked thru but it was so hot it didn't phase them. After we walked home thru the farmers market. A nice guy gave the girls a peach and banana. We got back to the car and had a picnic lunch then took off. The kids napped and we made it to Oklahoma. We stopped at Lake Eufaula State Park. We were surprised to find the lake was muddy looking but I guess it's clean as lots of people swam in it. We played in the water and at the playground then went to set up camp. We are one of only a few campers and our spot is near the lake. We set up camp, made camp dinner, went to the bathrooms to do dishes, brush teeth and get water. Now off to bed. 

Nashville to Memphis

June 17, 2013: this morning we packed up and said goodbye to the Scott's. we hopped back into Nashville quickly to see Antique Archeology, the American Pickers place in Nasville. It turned out they were closed for filming today! Sort of a bummer but sort of cool. The producer ended up letting us in when they were between takes to look around the shop and it was neat to see them set up to film. Mike and Frank were not there but the girl who runs the Nashville store looked like she was pricing or selling a motor cycle. We found some freight trains nearby that we could explore and then headed to Memphis. We did a drive by of Graceland, just stopping to take a look over the wall at the mansion. The entry fee is too high since we are not die hard Elvis fans.  One funny thing, we've been playing some Elvis tunes to the kids as we headed to Memphis. Casey thought "All Shook Up" was "Moo-shhh-ka". Hilarious. Memphis was a cool little city. Parts of it felt like a ghost town with no one around and abandoned stores everywhere. We walked down to the civil right museum at the site of the Lorraine Motel where MLK was shot. It is a pretty sad and powerful place. There is a woman who was the last resident of the Lorraine motel when she was forcibly evicted to make it a museum. She sits across the street everyday up to 21 hours a day in protest. She was there and her sign said in protest 25 years 153 days!  After we rode the trolley around the city. There is a cool pyramid building like you would see in Vegas, you run along the Mississippi River.  We walked on the pedestrian Beale Street which is set up a lot like Bourbon Sreet in NOLA. These kids called the flippers do the most unbelievable back flip routines down the street for money. We had BBQ at Blues City Cafe on Beale Street. James had a little of everything, fried catfish, ribs, chilie, gumbo, beans and Texas toast. We left after dinner and ended up staying in a motel because the weather was ominous. 

Nashville

June 17, 2013: today we had a relaxing morning at the Scott's house. James and I got a run in, the kids played with toys and mid morning we set out for an adventure. The plan was to see Ensworth, the school where JK works. We were going to forgo naps and head into Nashville to explore for a little bit after that. It became apparent very quickly how tired our kids were so we explored the campus, which is beautiful and has the most amazing athletic facilities for such a small school. We decided to go home for lunch and naps. Afterwards we went to the neighborhood pool and it was perfect. The kids had a blast, we got to relax and we could beat the southern heat!  We came home and fed the kids and got them into pjs for the babysitter and we headed out into Nashville.  We had dinner at Whiskey Kitchen, James had pulled pork and we had fried pickles to start. James tried Yazoo and Gerst local beers. Then we drove around a little bit to see music row, riverfront park, and then walked around Printers Alley, and Broadway bars. We stopped in to hear some live music at Tootsie's. it was a Sunday night so there were not huge crowds. Then we went into BB Kings place. It was a beautiful night and fun to walk around with Kate and JK and take in the action. 

Tennessee

June 15, 2013: we had a pretty good sleep at our campground. We started to break camp around 7am and hit the road. It was a pretty drive thru Great Smoky Mountains National Park with more rolling green hills, tunnels thru the mountains etc. When you exit the park you are in Gaitlinberg which we know of from Johnny Cash's song, 'Boy Named Sue'. This place is like Vegas in the middle of TN. Every chain restaurant is there, souvenir shops, etc. so strange to exit a national park and find this. The next town was called Pigeon Forge which is like 2 mile street lined with tshirt stores, rides, go karts, it's like being on a tacky boardwalk. We took the kids to one place to go on rides. They did the pirate ship and swings. Then we took each kid on the go karts. After we drove up to Knoxville and checked out Nyland Stadium where Tennessee plays. We love exploring stadiums. We had sort of snuck in and saw the media/press room, luxury suites, ran on the field and went to the way top. Half of the stadium is very old and run down and the other part is brand new and impressive. We ended up being stuck inside for a little bit right when the kids were breaking down getting hot, tired then we finally found an open gate. We had a picnic lunch and set out for Nashville. We arrived at our friends the Scott's house, our great friends from New Hampton School. The kids played and we all caught up and had a nice BBQ on their deck.