Backlog: Moving Cross-Country Day 3

I woke up in New Mexico to grey skies and a dry throat. After hitting up the hotel's breakfast bar for a yogurt cup and cinnamon roll, we headed back to the car for a long day of southwest driving. 

New Mexico was a beautiful state; my dad fell in love with the colorful landscape and laid-back feeling the scenery provided. New Mexico was the perfect blend of prairie-plus-mountain. I really enjoyed the drive as well. As we got closer to the Mexican border, signs dotted the highway warning us to avoid picking up hitchhikers. The local correctional facility had posted these to deter drivers from transporting potential illegal immigrants. 

The sign reads: Please do not pick up hitch-hikers in this area. Thank you. Springer Correctional Facility

You can see the mountains emerging in the distance

The further into New Mexico we drove, the prairies began to be replaced with stunning rock formations. We passed through a city called Las Vegas, which was adorable, but nothing like the Las Vegas most people are familiar with. Had we more time, I would have liked to explore this town, but sadly, we were on a mission to get to Arizona. It was during this day I began to feel a pressure in my chest. I didn't know what was causing my unease, but I tried to brush it off and make the most of the drive. Sonja must have sensed my anxiety, because she took the opportunity to have a wee on the blanket in the back seat...Oops.

Getting closer to the border of Arizona

Eventually, we made it to the Arizona border. Native American shops and attractions welcomed us as we drove into the state. After cruising through a rainstorm, we arrived in Flagstaff for our final hotel. In my previous night's insomnia, I took the opportunity to book a hotel in advance, and made the executive decision to stop in Flagstaff, although we could have made it to Glendale within that day. Because we were slightly ahead of time, I wanted to see some of Flagstaff, because I had always been told that it was similar to Minnesota. We settled into our hotel, suggested by my sister-in-law Ashley, where Georgia's anxiety got the best of her and she had a bit of an accident in the hotel room... Oops, again.

Native American attraction just outside Arizona

Made it

We had Chinese for dinner, and I gave the dogs a bath with some lavender doggy shampoo purchased at the Wal-mart near the hotel. Feeling clean and calm, the dogs settled down and actually slept the best in this final hotel. I still was battling my chest pains and insomnia, but distracted myself by watching Animal Planet. 

Sonja clearly felt bad for weeing in the car

All clean and ready for bed!

It was hard to believe that we would be in my new home the very next day...