A long, long drive

I know these are a little late in getting posted, but I've been a tad busy...

About 2 weeks ago, Brian and I headed out of Dad's driveway and pointed our cars West. For the next 1600+ miles I followed Brian's tail lights (except for a little detour around New Orleans...).

At first, the scenery didn't change much. When you're on I-10, Georgia looks like Florida, which looks like Alabama, which looks like Mississippi, which looks like Louisiana.


Even the far eastern edge of Texas looked pretty much the same (though it was getting hotter by the mile).


It wasn't until we were a little ways into Texas that the view started to change. Hills got flatter, trees got smaller and more sparse, and the horizon opened up before us.

The dogs did really well on the trip. They pretty much just slept in the car, sniffed at the rest stops, and wanted to play in the hotels. All in all, it could have been a lot worse!

After three days of driving, we finally made it home! I've been busy unpacking, looking for work, playing with the puppies and occasionally poking around El Paso. Last week Brian and I even took a walk through the El Paso Border Patrol Museum and the El Paso Archaeological Museum, which had a neat nature trail outside.

I have to say, I like El Paso more than I expected I would. That might be due in part to the fact that hardly anyone I spoke to had anything positive to say about it, so my expectations were fairly low. But the heat isn't too bad as long as I stay out of the direct sun, the view of the Franklin Mountains is gorgeous, and we have a really comfortable home. Oh, and I'm finally living with my husband. What's there to complain about?!

So much to be thankful for...

This has been a pretty full year for me, and there are so many things for which I give thanks regularly. I'm thankful for a job that I love, friends and family who are loving and supportive, a great town to live in, a creative streak a mile wide and so much more.

But this Thanksgiving I has something extra special to be thankful for: going on an amazing Caribbean cruise with Brian!


We sailed out of Ft. Lauderdale on Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam to rather rough seas and high winds. But that didn't keep us from exploring the ship and enjoying the fresh sea air.

Our stateroom was very nice and the stewards kept it immaculate and decorated!

I almost felt like I was at summer camp as there were so many things available to do each day. There were pool games and musical shows, educational seminars and a movie theater, a fitness center and bingo. The hardest part was deciding what to do!

The chefs were amazing, not only at creating wonderful meals but also beautiful desserts and decorations!

Day or night, the ship was lovely. As big as it was, I was amazed that we were able to get right up into port for the day trips.
The nature lover in me enjoyed finding the wildlife on each island. This little crab was lightening fast at skimming across the beach and burying in the soft sand.

I have no idea what kind of lizard this is, but I thought the curl of the tail to be a nice touch.

Never again will I scoff at photos of the clear blue Caribbean waters. Words just can't describe how beautiful it is here.

In Grand Turk we had an awesome time Snuba diving (it's kinda like Scuba, except the tank is floating above you an a raft and you have about 20ft of tube to swim around). I'm still getting the film from the underwater camera developed, so stay tuned for those photos!

On San Juan we signed up for the ATV ride through the rain forest. Brian drove most of the way, but I still got a little time in the driver's seat. The scenery was beautiful and the ride was fun. ATV is not something I would have opted for if I was traveling by myself (hiking is more my style) but I enjoyed it more than I expected!

We made time for a little sight seeing and some shopping (I had no idea that jewelry was such a bargain here!) and even got in a little bit of relaxation.

It was interesting to see several of the other cruise lines compared to ours (on the right). Many of the people we met on board said that Holland America is one of the best out there. Not having anything to compare it to, I'd have to say that it was pretty fantastic! We're already thinking about our next adventure...maybe Alaska??