Long live the holidays! Or at least this vacation. 3,000 miles in the books and we’re not even halfway complete on our miles yet. If the first ten days are any indication of what lies ahead, then count me in for the fun.

Breakfast Hellos and Goodbyes

Mondays can be sad in any given week. I mean they mark the end of the weekend and start of the dreaded work week. This one is no exception as we say goodbye to half of our traveling party before continuing into the unknown.

On the good news front, there was still time to share breakfast together. And we all met up with my cousin and his wife in Newport Beach for a fantastic meal and conversation.

Pain Du Monde was the spot and my fried egg sandwich with arugula, tomato, bacon and Swiss cheese on croissant was just what the doctor ordered for a sad Monday.

We wish we could have stayed longer but we must venture onward. There were tears for the kids and there were hugs…until we meet again.

And when we do, it will be like we just saw each other yesterday; because, that’s the thing about family, you will always have a bond that keeps you close no matter how far apart from you they live.

Easing into the New Drive

As we headed out of California, we found that finding the familiarity of the Route 66 drive was needed in order to ease into the next phase of our trip. How did we do that you ask? By finding something giant along the way of course.

The world’s largest thermometer to be exact. And if you can’t see it in the photo, it’s registering 104 degrees. Hot!

Also available at this location was a penny press to mark the occasion. This is something I haven’t spoken a lot about in the blog; but, it definitely deserves some attention.

I am a collector of pressed pennies. They are a fun souvenir and take up very little space in the grand scheme of things.

Finding a pressed penny machine can be difficult. Not a lot of places subscribe to the idea. You can imagine my delight that there have been a plethora of machines along this journey. I have even made Ben a huge fan of the press. We can no longer walk by one without using it to create a souvenir.

Home Away from Home

Can you hear that familiar Elvis tune playing in your head? From that movie he co-starred in with Anne Margaret? Well you should soon because we finally reached our destination for the evening. Sunny Las Vegas, Nevada!

Las Vegas you ask? With a six year old? The short answer is absolutely. We only had one night in Vegas so our activities were quite limited. We took a short ride on the tram and ate a fancy dinner where Ben discovered the “Shirley Temple” cocktail for kids. I’m afraid his future is ruined with his new love of soda.

We rounded out the evening watching the fountains of Bellagio. But this just barely touches the surface of the things you can do in Vegas with kids. I could dedicate a blog just to that topic. As a matter of fact, that’s exactly what I’m going to do next. Stay tuned for a fantastic diversion.

Carving routes