Number of Miles Driven: 587 

Drive Time: 8:00 a.m. - 5:10 pm (stop in Meteor Crater 12:45 - 2:30) 

States Driven through: NM, AZ (2)

It actually happened...we packed our car and got on the road EARLY! Our scheduled departure time was 8:00 a.m., and we were pulling out of Las Vegas at 7:56 a.m. We set our alarm for 6:00 a.m., and the kids were extremely helpful with getting packed up. It was a miracle! 

Still mountainous at the border

 
Driving through New Mexico and Arizona was very pretty. I spent the first couple of hours working on blog posts but would check the scenery periodically. We were surrounded by light brown "rocky-type" mountains that were dotted with short trees. And then, suddenly, as we got closer to the Petrified National Forest and the Painted Desert, the mountains were gone and we were surrounded by flat desert-like lands with lots of pretty hues of purples, reds, and burgundies. It's like the mountains were there and then they weren't. It was odd. 


We stopped at Meteor Crater National Monument which is between Winslow, AZ and Flagstaff. Our friends, Rob and Erin Koranda, had just been with their kids and said it was an interesting thing to see. We assumed (really Michael assumed...) we could just jump out and look at the crater in the ground and that our National Parks Pass would get us in for free. We (again, Michael) also assumed it would be a 30-minute detour Apparently, "National Monument" does not equate to "National Park" so we paid the fee and walked in just in time for the introductory video and guided tour. Learning the history of the crater and its role in helping to understand the science of meteor hits was really interesting. Historically, scientists believed all craters were from volcanic eruptions. However, after research in the 1920s - 1960s, it was confirmed that these craters throughout earth were formed from meteor hits. The reason it took so long to prove it was from meteors is because the scientists assumed the meteor would be buried beneath the crater and they never found the meteor. It wasn't until the mid 1900s when a bomb-tester came to the crater and recognized the crater as having the same formations as the bomb sites. The 26,000 mph speed of the meteor impact actually led the crater to become partially vaporized, melted, and blown to various size fragments that are scattered across miles. The crater is more than 4,000 feet across (2.5 miles in circumference) and 550 feet deep (originally 700 feet deep) - even though the meteor was only projected to be 150 feet wide. Andrew liked the analogy that the floor of the crater is big enough for 20 football games to be played simultaneously and the circumference is large enough to hold over 2 million fans. 


The "tour" was not much more than walking along the rim for about .25 miles - but we got some interesting stories about incidents that have occurred at the crater - including a plane crash in the crater due to vortex winds. Speaking of winds, we even got to see a sandstorm cyclone. The tour guide also did a demonstration for the kids in which she had man-made hematite magnets and used them to "pick up" pieces of (supposedly) meteoric-type fragments. She also tested to see if any of the kids were magnetic, and Dani was our only one who tested positive - not really sure what that means... Andrew was extremely nervous to be on the tour because his fear of heights kicked in and he was fearful of falling in (the sandstorm cyclone didn't help). We tried to reassure him it would be okay as long as he followed the rules (e.g., no going off the path), but it took him quite a while to warm up. Finally, by the time we were headed back inside, he was willing to smile for some pictures. 




One of the largest remnants from the meteor - over 1,000 lbs

Petrified wood




Overall, Meteor Crater was a better experience than we even expected - even with the good reviews from the Korandas. We ended up staying much longer than we planned, and we didn't even get to do everything. The kids bought some of the hematite magnets and continued their pressed penny collection (the best and cheapest souvenir around). I still have my pressed pennies from my vacations as a child. 


After Meteor Crater, we resumed our travels to Phoenix to see the Neal Family. Tess was a grad school colleague; and she and her husband, Philip, became some of our best friends in Tuscaloosa. The drive to Phoenix was beautiful. We saw glimpses of Sedona in the distance and the red rocks were beautiful (I wish I had better pictures). And, then, suddenly (again, out of nowhere) - there were fields of Saguaro cacti. It was a pretty cool thing to see - still didn't get any pics. I've realized that pics from the car just don't do anything justice. As we descended into the Phoenix valley, our car thermometer kept creeping up in temperature. It almost became a game for the kids to see how high it would get before we reached our destination. It increased from the low 90s at Meteor Crater to 110 by the time we pulled into the Neal's driveway. The kids were excited to see what it felt like when they stepped outside and they "loved it." They literally swooned over the heat. I told them it was just a novelty and it would wear off fast. 


We were so excited to see Tess and Philip and they immediately made us feel right at home. Their older son - Everett - took us on a tour of the house. He had also taped labels to all the doors of the rooms ("Mom and Dad's office," "Everett's bedroom") and had a sign on the garage door that read "Welcome to are home" - how cute is that?!  Our kids immediately went through all their toys, and Danielle said "I love their toys." 







We let the kids play for a bit after dinner (which was delicious grilled chicken and butternut squash!), but we were excited to get them to bed because Tess and Philip planned a poker night for us. With Peanut M&M's as the cherry on top. In grad school, that was our jam - poker night with peanut M&Ms. It was the best! Michael dominated the poker game and after we had lost our chips, we just sat around, chatted about life (it was a surprisingly deep, but treasured, conversation for a poker night), enjoyed some beverages (sours for me and Philip and stouts for Tess and Michael - from Cactus Taproom Craft Beer), and stayed up WAY too late. We really need to extend our visits with friends/family by at least three days so we don't feel the need to stay up until 2 a.m. to catch up. Oh yeah...because it's still 110 degrees even at night (that might be a slight exaggeration..but not much), we played poker outside and took dips in the pool between poker hands -  it was kinda fun! 



L-R: Me, Phil, Michael, Neal's friends Will and Whitney, and Tess


Perhaps the most memorable event of the evening was when their younger son, Elliott, was brought outside (around 11 pm) by Tess with black eyeliner drawn around his eyes and his fingers painted pink. Tess had put him in the downstairs bedroom so he would fall asleep easier (Matthew was sharing his room and I think he was excited). The downstairs bedroom was the one Michael and I were using, and he had apparently gotten into our luggage and had quite the party. Tess couldn't even process the crime scene because it was so outrageous. She came outside to get Philip for backup (all the while, we are all trying really hard to suppress our laughter as we look upon this guilty-looking three-year-old with black eyelines all over his face). Philip went inside with him and surveyed the damage. He had gotten into our bag of Famous Amos cookies (probably the most heart-felt loss of it all), Michael's gum, my makeup (which he got all over the comforter), my jewelry, Michael's wallet, and likely more that I"m not remembering (turns out he had also taken our car keys to his bedroom but we didn't realize that until the next day when we searched high and low for our keys). Despite the mess, we all thought it was hilarious. No doubt, Tess and Philip were not happy about it and apologized way too many times; but, that event was definitely the source of most of our jokes for the rest of the night and the next day. I just wish we had gotten a picture of the "criminal" in his "crime scene."


The next day (Tuesday - July 6), we had a leisurely start to the morning (out of necessity due to the shenanigans from the late night before) and enjoyed bacon with a new egg dish that Tess' family makes. It's pan-fried bread cooked with scrambled eggs. Delicious! Then we basically hopped in the pool where we stayed for the next several hours. We took a break for lunch and quiet time in the cool house, but after that we were back in the pool. They have a lovely pool with lots of neat features (waterfall, sprinkler, jet stream from the floor of the pool). Andrew and Everett really hit it off and worked hard to stay atop an alligator for the entirety of a lap around the pool. This task kept them occupied for a long time (at least an hour) but they finally accomplished their goal. Everett even told Tess that he and Andrew were "friends...not best friends because it's only been a day. But if we had five days I'm sure we'd be best friends" - again, how cute is that?!




They finally conquered the alligator




We had In-n-Out for dinner (oh yeah...) and watched the first game of the NBA finals between the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks. The Neal family were all sporting their Suns gear, so it was fun to watch it with them - especially since they won the game quite convincingly. After the game, we ushered the kids to bed and had a low-key evening. We couldn't handle another 2 a.m. night. Michael and I got packed up for the next morning (an early departure for the Grand Canyon) and then we had a final drink with Tess and Philip (please ignore the pajamas and wet hair!). 


A final "Cheers" - Cactus Taproom didn't disappoint

Peoria sunrise
It was extremely hard to wake up at 5:00 a.m. the next morning (Wednesday, July 7), but we did it (got to see a beautiful sunrise) and the kids were champs about it. It helped that we told them we were getting doughnuts from Dunkin Donuts. It also helped that Tess and Philip had their own departure of 7 a.m. to go to Vegas so we got to say a final goodbye to them without feeling guilty about waking them up. Tess also found out packed lunches in the refrigerator that we were about to leave (I'm telling you...we have left a trail of forgotten items at every stop - a little token to remember us to by). Luckily we didn't leave the lunches...that would have been disappointing...especially since Matthew usually starts asking for lunch around 9 a.m. 

Farewell Tess and Philip - We had a GREAT visit!

Neal family - thank you SO much for opening your home to us and making us feel so welcome. It was as if no time had passed. We loved every minute of our Phoenix destination - even the late-night robbery and destruction of property! Wish you were closer so we could do it more often. Haha!