We Moved (Pt. 3)

Go back and check out Pt. 1 and Pt. 2 of our cross country journey, if you haven’t done so already.

Day 4 had us leaving New Mexico and headed for Texas. Leaving our AirBnB there were multiple hot air balloons flying. The pictures are of one landing as we were coming out of the neighborhood. Don’t mind the bug splatter all over the windshield. Blah!

Once on the road, there wasn’t a ton to see. We stopped at Cadillac Ranch. It was hot, dry, and dusty. If you are going, be prepared with spray paint and sun glasses. The wind was so strong it was blowing everyone’s hats off. It was a cool piece of Americana and I’m glad we stopped.

We continued ambling east along I-40 before shooting south on 287 toward Dallas. We booked a spot at Ole Towne Cotton Gin RV Park. This place was great! They had a small kids area, pool, little general store, community gathering place, and dog run. It was the perfect stop.

The next morning, we packed up and headed out for another day in Texas. Our first stop was for coffee. There are few options on 286 between Amarillo and Dallas but we were lucky to be close to a newly opened coffee and art shop, Turquoise Coffee Stop in Chillicothe. The owners built the place themselves. The mister is an artist and Jack-of-all-trades. The missus is the barista and chef. We each got our favorite coffee and a few delicious muffins. While our coffees were being prepared, the mister showed us around. His art work was all around for purchase and decoration. They were both very friendly and loved showing off their hard work. If you happen to be driving along 286 through Chillicothe, make sure to check it out. It’s worth a stop.

Once full of apple muffins and awakened by coffee, we continued on toward Dallas. We planned to stop at one of the aquariums in Dallas but while grabbing lunch a local advised us to go to Cabela’s in Fort Worth where there was a small aquarium and it was free! The boys were in heaven climbing on boats, feeding fish, and checking out the animals.

The rest of the day had us driving along I-20, past Dallas and through east Texas. We stayed at a motel off the highway for the evening and ate delicious BBQ. It was nice to rest up for our final days of driving.

Have you driven across the US before? What’s your favorite part of long road trips?

We Moved! (Pt. 2)

If you didn’t catch my last post, go check it out. It is the beginning of our cross-country chronicles.

Day three was awesome! After a refreshing night sleeping in our AirBnB, we headed to breakfast at my grandparent’s home. It is so fun watching our boys interact with their great-grandparents. They are so fortunate to have 6 living great-grandparents whom they have been able to spend time with.

From breakfast we headed into Albuquerque to visit Explora! If you find yourself in ABQ with younger kids, this is a great place to go. The boys loved the water exhibit. We spent the majority of our time on the water patio. They also enjoyed making giant bubbles, building with giant foam blocks, creating circuits, and designing marble runs.

After the museum, we stopped for lunch at the public library downtown. They have a cute and delicious sandwich shop.

We were hoping to stop at A Park Above in Rio Rancho on the way home but we were able to find someone to pick up our Pilot and drive it from NM to FL for us! Instead of the park, we headed to meet the car transporter. Once the transfer was complete, we headed back to my grandparents house to relax a while before dinner. And when I say relax, I mean my grandpa got the boys riled up with a massive pillow fight.

After dinner and goodbyes, we headed back to Casita de Sterling for the night. Day 3 really was perfect.

Have you every visited Albequerque or Rio Rancho? What were your favorite spots?

We Moved! (Pt. 1)

In the middle of May 2018 we got word that The Husband would be stationed back in Florida at the end of his deployment. With a bunch of family in Florida, and none in California, we decided to make the trek across the country before deployment. This meant a quick turnaround. We had to pack our entire house ourselves and to move before he left for deployment in early July.

After a good bit of research, we decided to give U-haul’s storage boxes a chance. About a month after we got orders, we packed our entire lives into 5 storage containers and started the journey across the country with two kids and a dog in a Class B RV.

U-Haul Moving Boxes

Goodbye Material Posessions!

Oh, that sounds so easy. It’s never that easy. We ran into one little hitch, the person we contracted to bring our other car across the country never showed up! So, on moving day, we started driving the RV and the Pilot. It’s wasn’t ideal but it worked.

Day one had us leaving Coronado, CA (goodbye good Mexican food) and heading to Gila Bend, AZ. We didn’t head out until around 2pm as The Husband had to work that morning. Have you ever driven east from San Diego. It’s filled with mountains and deserts. It was an enjoyable, beautiful, and fairly short drive. We stopped overnight at the Gila Bend KOA. We didn’t pull in until after dark and left early the next morning so I can’t say much about the place but the few people we ran into were friendly.

Goodbye Coronado!

Ca to Az

Day two saw us heading northeast to Rio Rancho, NM. The drive, without stopping every two hours because you have two kids, takes about 8 hours. It was a FULL day of driving. We left around 6am and arrived at my grandparents house around 8:30pm. After a short stop, we made it from their house to our AirBNB for a good nights sleep.

QYXJ2bIhRfekVTREANKz9Q — View from Casita de Sterling

Part 2 is coming soon. Have you ever driving across the country? What were your favorite places to stop?