XC x 2 - Texas to Florida

We spent several days in Texas during our trip.  A few of those were just driving, and a few were spent having fun while Ben job searched.  The first big stop was in the Dallas area, where we stayed with Ben's brother Joseph and his family for a few days.  We had a wonderful time with their family - the kids played, played, played, and the adults stayed up way too late talking.  It was great.

Lindsey and I took the kids to a children's museum one day,
which was a huge hit with everyone.

Cousins!  Here are John Morgan, Jack, Eliza, Savannah, Levi, and Cat
The youngest of each family aren't in the picture: Luke and Marshall.

Joseph & Ben
(Recipe for a fantastic picture: Wait until way past bedtime, then use your phone.)

After a couple of days in Dallas with Joseph and Lindsey and their crew, we drove to Houston so Ben could do some job searching and networking with a few of the companies Ben was targeting.

We stopped for a snack at a Sonic with an eat-in area.
Jack and Eliza loved it.

 

We found a cool splash pad where the kids could play the first afternoon we were there.

That night we went to Chick-Fil-A for dinner.  Right when we arrived, Cat informed us
that this comb was stuck in her hair.  I got it unstuck the best I could, then Ben broke it to get it out.
Ben's way was much faster.

When we went for dinner that night, the employees told us that Cow Appreciation Day was the next day and we could get free food if we dressed up as cows.  Then they gave us a bunch of black spot stickers and cow headbands to use the next day.  When we all showed up in partial-cow-costume, they gave each of us a free meal.  Just another reason to love Chick-Fil-A.

Upon arrival, we met a few special guests.

 

We took a chance on a dive right off I-10 in East Texas.  We were looking for good Southern food, and we were a bit disappointed, but it was still a fun experience.  One of my favorite things about the stop was the fact that we had our first real downpour of the trip while we were at dinner.  It was awesome!  I should have gotten a picture of the clouds and rain and lightning, which made me feel right at home.

Getting closer...

More rain!  Yeah!

The Bayou.  Look at all that Green!  And that water!
Love the South.

Mobile, AL

The Wallace Tunnel, which goes under the Mobile River.

HONK.

When we emerged from the tunnel, we saw a huge traffic jam on the Interstate crossing Mobile Bay, so we decided to stretch our legs and take some pictures of a conveniently located battleship, the USS Alabama.  It was cold and rainy but ask me if that bothered us...

And finally... FLORIDA!

We celebrated by having dinner at our favorite 5-Star Restaurant.
Yeah for Waffle House!!