The Moving Vacation

 “Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind.”

 – Seneca

Another cross-country trip from Idaho to Texas, but this one had something different....my little sister Karlie was joining us.  Zoey was more than ready to go this time, having made the trip already twice.  This trip, though, we were going to take a little more time at a our usual overnight stops.  ***Warning you are about to be bombarded with pictures.  I tried to scale down, but it was just so hard, these are the best of the best.***

We had cleared out the house of any last boxes and belongings and scrubbed every corner, and finally the morning of,  we loaded up our beds and swept our way out the door.  I filled my car to the brim with my belongings and even commandeered the majority of Karlie's cab.  This proved a little hazardous as the bedding I worked so hard to shrink into a "Space Saver Bag", lost it's seal and invaded what little space she had.

We set out early in the morning and quickly put scenic Idaho behind us. We arrived in Las Vegas in the early afternoon and took some time to enjoy our hotel.  Later we walked the strip then took the tram from the Monte Carlo to the Bellagio where we saw the chocolate shop fountains...

...conservatory and botanical garden...

  ...and the beautiful dancing fountains.

 We finished the night with an amazing dinner in the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood. 

The next day we visited the Mandalay Bay Aquarium, which is a common stop for Zoey and I.  It was feeding time for the sharks, so we enjoyed watching that, but unfortunately they have to put the sea turtles in a separate holding tank at that time, which was a bit disappointing since they are my favorite.  

The Jelly Fish are her favorite.

We strolled Las Vegas Blvd. ducking into casinos and shops.  We saw the pyramid at Luxor, the Eiffel tower at the Paris Casino, the grand statues at Caesars Palace..

 the flamingos at...well you know where...

 ...the Ships at Pirates of the Caribbean...

  the canals at the Venetian and so much more.

  A surprising highlight was the Coca-Cola, World of Soda Tour which allowed us to try 16 different sodas from around the world.  One platter was enough for all of us to taste and quench our thirst with an overload of carbonation and sugar, and the experience was a blast.

We closed our evening with a show at the V-The Ultimate Variety Show.  The many acts varied from comedy, juggling, magic, drums, tap dancing, aerial acrobats, and vocal music (they did the instruments and singing vocally).  Even Zoey kept up with the high paced energy and interjected her own accolades to the performance.

The next morning we set out for Tucson, Arizona.  Along the way we stopped for: some photo-ops at the Hoover Damn...

On the dam, the new bridge behind us.

...and Joshua Tree Forrest...

 ...and lunch and a tour of IKEA in Phoenix.

The next couple days we enjoyed the beautiful Tucson weather and sights.  We strolled down town Tucson and took some candid shots, 

  ...found the missing statue from Easter Island,,,

This one tickled me.

...visited the beautiful Saguaro National Forest...

  ...visited the Reid Park Zoo...

They have some weird animals there!

...and enjoyed time with my wonderful mother-in-law.

Our final leg of the journey took us through a rainstorm that spanned from Arizona to New Mexico and turned into a flash flood in Texas.  The flood didn't affect highway driving so we made it safely to Midland, Texas in the evening.

This road trip was one of my favorites.  I got to make a lot of fun memories with my little sister and daughter.  For Karlie it was a milestone as her longest road trip ever and moving week for her (we take a whole week to move).  Now it was time for us to settle into our new lives.