Seattle to Tucson: Our Road Trip

Phew! These last few weeks have been incredibly tiring. DeLaney got a horrible case of Kennel Cough from her daycare on my last week of work. And with Dean being gone, (he went South to begin work at the end of September) I had to deal with his on my own. She really can't be left alone for a full day just yet, so I ended up taking a few vacation days to watch her. It was really frustrating since it was my final week at work. I missed my goodbye lunch -- which of course brought me to tears. I adore my work family, but my commitment is to my family; so I stayed with DeLaney. It also gave me ample time to pack. Since Dean was already in Arizona...I was on my own with the packing of boxes yet again. 

Dean returned home for one last friend gathering at the house before the movers came - and of course wine in blue solo cups is a must

This move was particularly hard. This was the first house in Seattle where I felt at home. We lived in a beautiful house in a neighborhood where our wonderful friends were within walking distance. The last thing I wanted to do was give up this place. But my true home is where ever Dean and DeLaney are -- so to Tucson we go. And even though I was saddened to leave my Happy Place, I was excited for our Southwest adventure. Especially our Road Trip down! What an experience!

Dean, DeLaney, & Myself at Scelena & Tom's apartment about to leave!

After a little car trouble in Seattle, we were on our way to the first stop: Kalispell, Montana. I was incredibly excited to visit Montana for the first time. I was going to see Glacier! A National Park that I've always wanted to visit. 

To get to Montana, we had to drive through Idaho!

We made really great time! Montana, here we are!

DeLaney did a fantastic job in the car -- of course we gave her meds, so she slept most of the trip. We gave her one pill, and she was SO sedated. It was actually quite frightening. Her inner eyelids were nearly closed when she was awake, and she was completely out of it for a good 12 hours. The rest of the trip we decided to lessen the dosage, but continued to use the medication since our time on the road was so long.

Dean and I in front of Hungry Horse Dam

DeLaney hiking in Flathead National Forest

Me smiling at Dean - it was freezing

Hiking

Gorgeous rivers in Glacier

DeLaney and me in Glacier National Park

 Hungry Horse Water Reservoir - playing fetch

DeLaney fetching the stick - she loves water

All that fetch made me thirsty

We had to BLAST the heat for DeLaney - she was FROZEN

Our second stop was Bozeman, Montana. We only stayed overnight, and woke up to enjoy the day in Yellowstone and drive down to Jackson Hole Wyoming.

A road trip in Montana wouldn't be complete unless you stop at the Dinosaur Gallery

Seriously, so random!

Montana landscape - so beautiful

Dean and Cera the Triceratops

Wyoming...here we are

Here we are at Yellowstone - Mammoth Hot Springs

Elk

 There were a lot of elk

 Mammoth Hot Springs were amazing

Don't touch the hot springs

 Smiling even though it smelled like the Earth cut one

Dean was in shock that the Earth could be so stinky

A pretty waterfall in Yellowstone

We saw Bison

...and more elk

 Old Faithful wasn't very impressive at first

I was a little impatient -- it was FREEZING

There it goes -- thank you Old Faithful

When coffee arrived and Old Faithful really started going, I became pretty happy

I gotta say that Wyoming is the most beautiful state I've ever seen. It's stunningly gorgeous. The mountain range, the plains, the color of the sky...it's amazing. I definitely would love to have a beautiful vacation ranch home there -- if only we were millionaires. 

Storm in the mountains - took this photo on our way to Teton Village in Jackson Hole, Wyoming

We stayed at the Teton Mountain Lodge & hiked all around Teton National Forest - DeLaney loved every moment of Teton, absolutely stunning

Beautiful lake in Teton National Forest (there were huge, gorgeous homes on this lake)

Dean and DeLaney on another hike

Road to our hiking adventures in Teton -- below there is a horse ranch with about twenty horses in few

 We found an ATV road that was super steep -- to burn off some energy we kept tossing sticks down the hill for DeLaney

Dean and DeLaney looking over the edge

DeLaney loves running up and down hills

We stayed at our third stop in Jackson Hole for two days. It was so relaxing and fun to get out and hike. No one was on any of the trails we went on, so we let DeLaney off leash most of the time. She loved the freedom. She would run up the trail a ways, and then run back to us. She probably hiked twice as much as we did!

You can't really see, but there are moose way back there

Our next stop was just some motel in Utah for the night. We really didn't want to take time in Utah, so we just drove through. I was way to excited for our next stop -- The Grand Canyon! I've been desperate to see the Grand Canyon my entire life. So Utah wasn't standing in my way.

Entering Utah

Utah is beautiful though

Arizona -- our new home

A dam in Arizona

Dam in Arizona

I have arrived at the Grand Canyon -- I couldn't be happier

I was cracking up because DeLaney was being impossible & refused to look at the camera

Yes, I loved the Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon

The South Rim allows dogs on the walkway...so DeLaney got to see my favorite place in the USA

We found this awesome trail in the Kaibab National Forest (right outside the Grand Canyon) -- this is Dean looking at the outstanding view, and being quite handsome

DeLaney had so much fun running around at the top of the trail -- we were the only ones, so we gave her full leash freedom

My reward at the top of the trail

Our final stop before hitting Tucson was Sedona, Arizona. ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL! I really want to go back. There are tons of dog friendly trails, and the views are amazing. We really enjoyed Sedona and stayed two days.

Me at the bottom of Devil's Bridge

Gorgeous!

Stunning!

We were on the road for 10 days. We had a great time. I drove most of the way, DeLaney slept a LOT, and Dean worked in the passenger seat for most of the driving time. We are currently renting a vacation home while we find something more permanent. We really want a 3bed/2bath home with a fully fenced backyard with a heated pool. Really hope we get lucky and find a great home to rent!