We finally arrived in Albuquerque in rain, at the end of a great week exploring (and driving a lot) across northwest New Mexico. We had two nights and two days to explore the city and two days of rain forecasted, in a city that is sunny about 300 days per year! We wanted to make sure that the kids really had some time to do something they'd enjoy, so we decided to visit the Biopark - a combination Zoo, Aquarium, and Botanical Garden connected by a real choo-choo train. The rain subsided as we arrived at the zoo, and we had a fantastic visit and got to see many animals that we don't have at our zoo. The kids loved the big birds, the lion who roared just for us (just like Alex the Lion from Madagascar!!!)! 
And of course, this post wouldn't be complete without sharing the monkey story....as we arrived at the gorilla habitat, the kids and I "chatted" with a couple gorillas then headed over to the other side where a group of 12 year old boys was creating quite a fuss. It turns out the monkey had just poo'ed in front of them, them proceeded to pick up the poo, smear it on the glass, and pick at/eat it. Let me just say that they boys were hysterical, and their enthusiasm rubbed off on the kids. I won't post the picture here, but you can visit our full album of pictures if your curiosity gets the better of you!
We arrived at the airport with plenty of time to drop off the rental car, load all our stuff - the 4 of us, 2 suitcases, 2 car seats, a double stroller, 4 backpacks, and a tote bag - onto the rental car shuttle, and then get checked in. As we checked in, we noticed that our flight departure was delayed. We knew that our connection was tight, so we shuffled a change of clothes so that we'd be prepared if needed. The main concerns at that point were making sure we had enough food for the kids throughout the travels, and making it through the trip on the 4 diapers we had left for Jack (actually, one diaper and three pull-ups of Jenna's - yikes!).
And of course, this post wouldn't be complete without sharing the monkey story....as we arrived at the gorilla habitat, the kids and I "chatted" with a couple gorillas then headed over to the other side where a group of 12 year old boys was creating quite a fuss. It turns out the monkey had just poo'ed in front of them, them proceeded to pick up the poo, smear it on the glass, and pick at/eat it. Let me just say that they boys were hysterical, and their enthusiasm rubbed off on the kids. I won't post the picture here, but you can visit our full album of pictures if your curiosity gets the better of you! The kids then enjoyed their first train ride over to the aquarium, but Jack didn't make it all the way. He loved the train, but the vibration got the best of him. He perked up again when we got to the aquarium, and the loved watching all the sharks, turtles, jellyfish, and fish.
The next morning, we packed up and prepared to head home, but not before a trip up the tram to the top of the Sandia mountains. It was a 2.5 mile tram ride and we all loved the view. It was a great way to cap off our vacation as we enjoyed lunch at the top of the mountain. After the tram ride down, we buckled up and headed toward the airport to catch our flight.
The next morning, we packed up and prepared to head home, but not before a trip up the tram to the top of the Sandia mountains. It was a 2.5 mile tram ride and we all loved the view. It was a great way to cap off our vacation as we enjoyed lunch at the top of the mountain. After the tram ride down, we buckled up and headed toward the airport to catch our flight. We arrived at the airport with plenty of time to drop off the rental car, load all our stuff - the 4 of us, 2 suitcases, 2 car seats, a double stroller, 4 backpacks, and a tote bag - onto the rental car shuttle, and then get checked in. As we checked in, we noticed that our flight departure was delayed. We knew that our connection was tight, so we shuffled a change of clothes so that we'd be prepared if needed. The main concerns at that point were making sure we had enough food for the kids throughout the travels, and making it through the trip on the 4 diapers we had left for Jack (actually, one diaper and three pull-ups of Jenna's - yikes!). Our flight was delayed so long that by the time we arrived in Denver, our connecting flight back to Indy was already gone. We waiting in a really long like and with the help of my mom, were able to connect to their 800 number and get rebooked on another carrier the next morning. We were very happy with that solution, because we'd heard rumors that we wouldn't get a flight back for 3 days and were contemplating renting a car and driving the ~17 hours home. We were so glad that 1)we didn't have to do that, 2)got a hotel room for the night, and 3)the bar was still open when we arrived!
After a short night, we did get on our flight the next morning and arrived home weary (and with Jack in the last pull-up), but so glad to be home. We were so happy to be home and sleep in our own beds, and we were especially happy that my mom had dinner for us that night.
I hope you've enjoyed the chronicles of the trip! If you'd like to see the full catalog of photos, you can see them at my Picasa album here => http://picasaweb.google.com/JenQuilter/NewMexicoVacation
Thanks for reading! Now back to the regularly scheduled program....everyday life with kids and quilting!
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