New Mexico

We took a road trip in August.

.

We drove through the Oklahoma Panhandle.

We had dinner at our favorite steakhouse in Guymon the first night.

Driving out of town the next morning, we saw this vision of loveliness.

Her name is Calamity Jane and she was a 60th birthday present for the man of the house. The woman of the house loves it when people stop and take pictures.

The dogs on the porch weren't so sure about it!

Hello, New Mexico!

Hello, Taos!

We stayed at the La Dona Luz Inn. 

This was our fourth stay at the Inn. 

It is very charming and homey.

I loved these beautiful flowers on the breakfast patio.

One day we walked the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.

On the way back to Taos, I noticed these road signs.

I love that New Mexico is strange.

We walked lots of galleries and saw beautiful art.

Paintings, photographs, furniture, jewelry, fabric art. 

This was posted in one gallery.

How true.

We ate a lovely restaurants.

Lambert's of Taos - This is our favorite. Go in and say "hi" to Frank at the bar.

Mosaic Fine Dining - The food here was good. The owners are a nice young couple.
Martyrs Steakhouse - We just had an appetizer here. It was delicious.

We took a nap every afternoon when the clouds rolled over the mountains and the thunder, lightening and rain came.

We read books.

There was a car show on the Taos Plaza our last night in town.

We drove home through Texas.
See those big fluffy clouds and beautiful blue sky?
The sky was beyond gorgeous the day we left New Mexico.

We stopped in Amarillo for the night so we could eat at The Big Texan.
No, we didn't eat the 72 oz steak.
There was someone there who was close to finishing it,
but we didn't stay to see the final result.
I knew I could check the Hall of Fame later.
He didn't conquer the steak dinner that night.
Poor guy.

Home the next day.
Laundry storted and started.
Suitcases stored away.

When's our next trip?

Road Trip - July 28-29, 2013

Yes, I'm posting about a trip from a month ago. Sorry, but my OCD does not allow me to skip it.

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Sunday, July 28th we took the train out of Chicago to the western suburbs. We visited the daughter of some of The Husband's oldest Connecticut friends. We met her adorable twins and spent a pleasant couple of hours visiting and playing with the babies.

The Husband was very happy to meet the babies. When he moved back to Oklahoma from Connecticut, their mother was about the age they are now!

We returned to Chicago by train and started walking. It was a glorious day.

I love these iconic Marina City buildings.

Beautiful flowers.

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Monday, July 29th we slept late, walked Chicago streets again and then took a train to Wrigleyville for a Cubs game!

We had a great time in Chicago, but it was time to the head home the next day.

Roadtrip - July 25, 2013

Beginning odometer: 56,656
Ending odometer: 56,914

After sleeping late, we opted to pick up a quick breakfast and eat on the road. Nothing exciting happened during the drive, other than the stop for our sign picture.

While The Husband was setting up the tripod, some people stopped to make sure we were okay and not having car trouble. How nice of them!

We continued on our drive and finally arrived at our destination at 4:00 p.m.

CHICAGO!

Specifically, the Sheraton, which is located right on the river.

And, why you ask, were we there?

For me to attend BlogHer13, of course!

My next post will be about my BlogHer experience.

Roadtrip - July 24, 2013

Beginning odometer: 56,417

Ending odometer: 56,656

After a quick breakfast, we drove to the Missouri state capital and took a walk around.

We walked to the Lewis & Clark Trailhead Plaza.

The Husband wanted to be part of the action.

He'd be a great explorer.

We found a perfect spot for a photo of the two of us. 

Here's The Husband setting up the shot with our little tripod.

Why, yes, we are dorks. Thanks for noticing!

After leaving the state capital, we went to a couple of antique malls. 

I walked into the Missouri Boulevard Antique Mall 

and the first item I saw was a beautiful Wilendur roses tablecloth.

I have a couple of cloths in this pattern already, but needed another one 

so I can layer them over my dining table when it is fully extended.

I've been watching them on eBay, but they can be very pricey.  

I picked this one up for $12. 

Yes, $12! 

I was doing a happy dance, I must say.

We also shopped at Yellow Moon Antique Mall.

We didn't purchase anything there, even though the place was full of goodies.

After shopping, we got in the car and headed to Burlington, Iowa.

Here I am waving to a tour bus full of people. The driver waved back.

I couldn't see in the tinted windows to know if any of the passengers waved.

And, here's my posed photo!

The Husband picked Burlington, Iowa as a stop on our trip,

so we could attend a Burlington Bees game!

He loves baseball and makes it a point to see games at stadiums, 

large and small, during our travels.

The mascot was greeting fans at the gate.

It was a perfect night for the game.

We had awesome seats.

The weather was pleasant.

The beer was cold.

The crowd was enthusiastic.

Unfortunately, the Bees lost.

Other than that minor detail, it was a great night at the ball park!

Roadtrip - July 23, 2013

A year ago I purchased an advance ticket to BlogHer13 in Chicago.

Because The Mother is on the mend from her knee replacement surgery and because The Sister told me to "Go...just go!", I'm on my way to Chicago with The Husband. I'll attend BlogHer and he'll play in Chicago.

Highlights from our drive today:

Years ago, this steer was located at 15th & Utica, Tulsa, OK

in the H. L. Moss parking lot.

Who remembers that?

We revisited Chris Barbee's place today.

This post I wrote in 2010 about this bowling ball yard art

is the most popular post on Cindy's Clipboard, with 4715 page views. 

We looked for Toto. Couldn't find him.

Lunch at a park in Gas, Kansas.

Cold, home fried chicken, fritos and Diet Coke. 

A very sweet man saw Steve taking a picture of me and the Missouri welcome sign.

He turned around on the highway and came back to take a picture of us together.

He says he has done this before. How sweet!

We plan to "pay it forward" someday for people taking photos at a welcome sign!

We drove through the Lake of the Ozarks area.

Look at all the water displayed on the GPS display.

Spending the night in the capital of Missouri - Jefferson City. 

We had a very nice dinner at Madison's Cafe.

Our waitress, Amanda, was full of personality and very efficient.

The owner, Rob, was very chatty and nice.

We would recommend this place to weary travelers.

Night folks!

Road Trip #2 - 2012 - Day 20

Tuesday, September 4 - San Franscisco to Cambria, CA

Beginning odometer: 45,081

Guess what? This was my birthday. Yes, I'm 39 again!

We packed our bags and went for a hearty breakfast at Mel's Drive In before checking out of the hotel.

As we drove out of the neighborhood, we spotted this house. I could live there. Oh yes, I could!

We were following the directions on our GPS to get us to Pacific Coast Highway 101. I took this photo, because it was kind of nerve wracking seeing where the road ran out and all that blue was ocean. Take a left! Take a left!

I have always wanted to drive the Pacific Coast Highway and what better day to do that than on my birthday? The views are staggeringly beautiful all along the drive. We did not take many pictures, because we could never capture the beauty of the coast.

What did we see on our drive? We saw:

Big trucks loaded with brussell sprouts fresh from the fields.

Pigeon Point Lighthouse  We didn't stop. Next time, for sure, we will!

A small animal crossing the road that we had no earthly idea what it was. My first thought was a baby coyote, but The Husband disagreed. It was not a domesticated animal, whatever it was!

We took the 17 Mile Drive at Pebble Beach. The neighborhoods were gorgeous. The houses were magnificent. The scenery breathtaking. You could almost smell the money it must take to live there!

Here we are at one of the scenic overlooks. Part of the a golf course is over The Husband's left shoulder.

Not a sign we see in Oklahoma.

We, being good tourists, stopped and took photos at The Lone Cypress.

Completing the 17 Mile Drive took us into the town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. We drove around looking for Clint Eastwood and his empty chair, but didn't find them so we left.

As we headed down the highway, I was excited to see an area where stiles were being used to allow access to the beach. Using a stile over a fence, prevents the land owners worry that someone would forget to close a gate and possibly allow livestock to escape.

Shortly after we saw the stiles, we saw a mixed herd of elk and cattle. It was very strange to see elk amongst the cattle!

We drove into Cambria, CA and found a lovely room at the Blue Dolphin Inn.

We had a great, late dinner at Madeline's Restaurant.

All in all, it was a perfect birthday!

Ending odometer: 45,322
Miles driven: 241