Dallas

From West Virginia we headed to Memphis. It was a long drive (the first of many), but we were able to break up the drive with a nice stop at a park for pizza. 

Elise with her favorite person.

Elise with that other person she'll put up with if Dad's unavailable.

When we finally made it to the hotel, Elise was not interested in her pack and play.

Queen beds with fluffy pillows are what Elises require. 

And then, after another long day of driving, we made it to Dallas!

Russell greeted his cousins with a hug.

Or a lightsaber: 

Aaron was super excited to go visit "Aunt Mario." He had one request: he wanted her to take him to the beach. I tried to warn him that it was unlikely we would find a beach in the middle of Texas, but Mario delivered! It was a happy day for Aaron: 

Only Russell braved the water up to his neck: 

Catherine was happy making sand creations: 

Elise was napping for almost the entire trip but woke up in time for a little sand and water. 

We had a great time with the Kofords. Well, maybe Russell didn't have a great time. Turns out his youngest Blood cousin is a bit of a bully:  

"Who, me?"

From Dallas we made our longest stretch (10 hours) to Alamogordo, New Mexico. It was not a lot of fun, but we made it (thanks to several hours of Horrible Histories).  We stopped for dinner at Denny's (a big hit with the kids) and headed to the hotel.