We're baa-ack!

Unique experiences from our California trip:

The Southwestern desert, most of which now resides in our van, having been tracked in from rest areas.

The tiny bit of Route 66 we crossed at an intersection.

A counterfeit $10 bill, with which I tried to buy baby wipes at a truck stop in the high desert. I was floored when the clerk announced it fake, but she marked it with one of those special pens and sure enough... Good thing I had a credit card. I wonder if the bank will change it for me?

A Starbucks, in Tucson -- about the only Starbucks between Austin and Los Angeles.

Snow, in Lordsburg, New Mexico. The girls were ecstatic.

Did you know that if you're driving across the country on Dec. 27 and you want to get a hotel room, you'd better make a reservation? We do now.

Thanks to the marvel of Stow-Away seating, we were able to transport a cedar chest home from L.A. and still fit everything (including the children) in the van.

Trying to outsmart the girls by wearing them out at a McDonald's with a playground so that Mom and Dad could have a more leisurely dinner somewhere else. This backfired badly, just so you know.

Hope you all had a blessed Christmas! We'll resume substantive posting soon.