The need to get on the road early allowed us to appreciate a beautiful Lake Superior sunrise.
We enjoyed a long weekend on the north shore with Brenda and my parents.
Travel
(Late) Spring Break Trip
So, we’re taking Hill’s spring break to go to the South West. The plan was to fly in to Denver, rent a car, and drive to Las Vegas, from whence we would fly home. Along the way, we’d see Mesa Verde, Petrified Forest, and Grand Canyon.
And then Denver got a giant spring snow that dumped a lot in the mountains. So much for driving thru them.
So, went south to Santa Fe and will go the southern route. So far, we’ve stayed with friends, ate a lot of good food, and driven a lot of miles from Denver to Santa Fe.
Here’s some pics.
First step in Bryant’s quest for a Spanish adventure!
MN passport office. We arrived 10 minutes early and were first in line. By the time the office opened the line was 26 people long. Our paper processing took an entire hour; good thing we got there early! Yikes!
An Outlandish Evening
with Diana Gabaldon in Denver. Excellent book talk by one of my favorite authors. She’s a fascinating person with fans who are also an interesting and entertaining bunch. Annie, Amy and I were amazed at the rock star atmosphere; Celtic music, wine, men in kilts… what a night!
Dolphins and Snorkling
Florida Keys
Hemingway house, Key West, 6 toed cat cemetery, Kapok tree… 
Spring Break in the Everglades
A rather unusual destination but a fantastic place to visit. You really do see tons of wildlife right up close but in the wild. Bromeliads, a manchineel tree (tree of death), it’s sap -and fruit can kill you, crocs and alligators together- the only place in the world that happens, unusual birds, mangroves galore and Burmese python, the invader. The only one we didn’t see was the manatee; seems like everyone else saw them, though. I guess we weren’t patient enough.
A little weather
So, I’m in the FL keys with the family for spring break. Was all Margaritaville until dinner. Key West was cool, etc. Then WHAM. Drove 40 miles back to the hotel in it. Not super fun.
Hoping tomorrow is drier!
Making lemonade in December
So, Bryant doesn’t want me to post this, but I’m not ashamed to admit that the girls and I had lice. Ugh! Not fun, but what can you do?! Pay the Ladybugs (lice removal squad) $600+ and move to a downtown hotel for 48 hours, that’s what! It’s a spontaneous stay-cation. When we get home, there will be no living lice or nits, guaranteed! And HSA eligible! Except for the hotel. Anyway, we’ve enjoyed 8th floor Macy’s, visited Santa, explored the skyways, splurged on room service and maximized the hotel pool. Later today we’ll go to Holidazzle Village and then we can go home to our lice free beds.
Buffalo Gals on the ranch!
For MEA we spent a night at the Buffalo gals ranch in Houston, MN. We took the scenic route down hwy 61 along the Mississippi. Had a great time touring the ranch and stayed overnight in Cody’s Cabin, named for the buffalo who “starred” in Dances with Wolves. Bryant found a bleached skull for his office, to complement the Navajo blankets he got from his grandpa.
