Day 6-7: Williams

Williams is a little town west of Flagstaff and only about an hour's drive from the Grand Canyon. The sole reason we stayed there was because of the Canyon RV Park and Motel, which had refurbished cabooses to stay in. The boys loved the queen bunk beds (though I did not love having to make the bed!). It was a neat experience and staying there made visiting Bearizona the next day very easy. Bearizona is like a wild animal park with a zoo. There's a drive through "safari" part and then a zoo part you can walk around. Both are great. Highlights included the panther, the many many bears, and the porcupine show.

 

Day 5: Santa Fe

The day after Thanksgiving we went to Santa Fe to visit Meow Wolf, the immersive art experience that Theo and Beckett and I had done when we visited 3.5 years ago. Reed and Jeff  had heard all about it so it was probably less mysterious and magical than when we had gone without knowing anything, but it was still fun (even though everyone was wearing masks and it was crowded). We found a great pastry shop to stop after lunch. Everyone just wanted to go back and spend time with Ernesto, Bahee and Tawny so after we got back to Albuquerque (Rio Rancho) we picked them up and went to the pool at the hotel.

 

Day 4: Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving we spent most of the day at Claire's house with her parents and Reggie and his relatives. Everyone was warm and welcoming and we had lots of wonderful food and conversations. Reggie's son Bronson shared with me his experiences at Standing Rock in protest of the oil pipeline in 2019, which was powerful and emotional. 

Day 2 Petrified Forest

Petrified Forest. We were all stunned to learn that the trees we were looking at were 216 million years old, trapped underwater and then buried by volcanic ash and soil. The organic matter of the trees was replaced with minerals from the ash over time and because there was no moisture, the trees couldn’t rot. 

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving with claire and her family, including her parents and her husband Reggie’s family.