After days and days of traveling, and a day or two of rest, we finally reached Minneapolis on Friday night. It's nice to be here and just sit around doing a little bit nothing for a day or two before Ben heads back to St. Louis and then to the Netherlands.

Since we had very limited internet access since leaving McLeansboro, IL, here is a little recap of our past week and the final leg of our big drive:

On Tuesday afternoon, we packed up the doggies and set out for Ben's Uncle David and Aunt Julie's house. We stayed in their basement for a few days and had a really nice time seeing everyone for Thanksgiving in Springfield. David and Julie live in the country so whenever we took Bella and Spud on walks they had lots of interesting things to sniff and see, especially cows. Spud didn't really notice them at all, but Bella DID NOT trust those things one bit.



















She didn't even like standing there for the picture. She had to keep looking to make sure no sneaky cows were going to pop up and get her.

After a big Thanksgiving with lots and lots of delicious food, we got on the road yet again early Friday morning, just in time to fight the crazy shopping crowds on our way to a gas station. Our final day of driving was pretty uneventful except at one point, when we were leaving a gas station in Wisconsin and Spud popped up in the back window and started growling and then barking at something. We looked back to see what he was barking at, thinking perhaps there were squirrels frolicking in the parking lot, but instead saw this:















Yes, a statue of a deer. A fake deer. Spud was pretty sure he could chase it down and kill it, if only we would let him out of the truck.

So now we're in Minneapolis with nothing much to report. We've done Burgett family portraits (but we don't have them yet), gone Christmas shopping, spent time with the family, eaten some good food, gone to Target, and enjoyed several walks around the neighborhood because the weather has been really nice, in a slightly chilly sort of way. On the schedule for tomorrow: truck maintenance and maybe another trip to Target, just for fun.

Monday

Today was a day of rest. We traveled all the way to Sears to have a Morrison family portrait taken. The photographer didn't seem to know what to do with an entire family of grown people. Apparently, he is used to small kids who just sit there and gurgle.

We probably misbehaved more than your average 3 year old AND you couldn't just pop a cute hat on us and wave a teddy bear until we smiled, so he had no idea how to handle us. Luckily, we had more creativity and photography than him, so we managed to end up with a few really good photos.

Here's our favorite. We directed. He pressed the button. Maybe next time we'll just buy a remote for our camera and cut our the Sears photographer altogether.

Sunday

Today was long and boring. "Long" kinda sucked, but "boring" was a good thing. No truck breaking down. No long stops at tire stores. No crisis of any sort. Just a long drive through Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Illinois.


A little contest for you:
Q: Is this photo from...
A) Texas
B) Oklahoma
C) Missouri
D) Illinois














The first person to get the correct answer wins a key chain from the next gas station we stop at.

Saturday

We got up early (and when I say that, I mean Ben and the dogs got up early while I slept for another 30 minutes) so Ben could get right to work on fixing the truck. He went off and got into grease monkey mode, and back in the room:


The dogs very much enjoyed all the amenities of the hotel room. They especially enjoyed the part where they were allowed on the bed. If you can't tell be Bella's expression, it was very, very exciting.

Finally, the truck was drivable so we set off. Goodbye, Deming, AZ...

We had to make a little stop in Las Cruces to replace our mangled rim and tire. While Ben dealt with all truck related issues, the dogs and I relaxed in a beautiful shaded pavilion:


Finally, we got on the road for real. We passed some pretty interesting places in New Mexico. For example:Mmm, Radium Springs, sounds delicious and refreshing.

For most of the ride, Bella was pretty stressed and anxious. She dealt with it by spending 99% of her time with her head pressed against my arm. Spud passed the time by passing gas. It was really lovely.

We found a really nice, pretty rest stop (really!) in New Mexico and stopped there to feed the dogs and walk around. It was a nice place to hang out and watch the sunset. After that, the day was (thankfully) uneventful. We made it to Amarillo, TX all in one piece and went to sleep because it was a very very long day.

The house was empty...













The truck was ready...













The dogs were excited and ready to roll, and so...
















We waved goodbye to Fort Huachuca and started our long long long drive.






























There isn't a whole lot to see in Arizona and New Mexico. Mostly it all looks like this:















However, to break up the boredom, you can always satisfy your curiosity and go pay $1 to see "The Thing" at a middle of nowhere gas station:















Of course I can only show you a sign for it. If you want to know what "The Thing" is, you'll have to pay $1 for yourself. Telling you would destroy the mystery.

All was well. We made it to New Mexico without incident. But then, in Deming, NM we were going to stop and fill up the tank, maybe even let the doggies breathe some air. However, our exit from the interstate was puncuated by loud grinding noises when braking, and then a sharp thudding grinding halt as the front right end of the truck dropped. We jumped out and saw a flat tire, and after further investigation discovered this:















Yes, the rim of the tire is completely destroyed. The brakes aren't so much working right now. We managed to get a spare tire on the truck and coast slowly to a stop at the Best Western a block away. Ben has great hopes for fixing the truck tomorrow and getting back on the road. I have great hopes for finding some decent chocolate in this town because I've nearly exhausted my supply due to stress and accidental meltage.

And now, to sleep.