Road Trip Home 2025
Finally I can say that we are back home! I did end up needing an extra day because I got a last-minute request from a store owner up in Cave Creek asking about a cuff bracelet I had listed on Facebook Marketplace. I had visited his store about a year ago and he bought a bunch of jewelry for the store. He is a great person to work with - his business style definitely aligns with mine. I have such an incredible collection of vintage Navajo jewelry right now I offered to come up and show it to him. I spent two days polishing and pricing pieces and did not quite get through everything but it was plenty to see. I basically filled small and medium Hulken bags. He did take the bracelet he originally saw plus a number of additional pieces. I was very grateful and it was totally worth staying another day. I am definitely going to get in touch with him in the fall when things pick up again. This is the slower time of year in the Phoenix area because the weather is so hot. However, the store was very busy on Wednesday when we were there. He did say they find the best stuff in the summer!
The store is very cool and eclectic - I just loved this hand carved Spanish display cabinet but we were heading out the next day and I was not sure where to put it. The flowers on the sides are so me!
After our meeting, it was time for lunch so we went across the street to Big Earl's. We did not realize that there were only two tables inside and both were occupied so we had to eat outside. Even though it was 106 degrees it was not too bad because they had the misters going. The food was delicious - I had an awesome chicken sandwich and Kuochun chose a hot dog. The lady asked Kuochun if he wanted ketchup and he started to say yes and I was horrified! I said to the lady we are from Chicago but she did not get it.
This was our second trip to Cave Creek and both times it was really hot. It is an interesting-looking town so I look forward to visiting again when the weather is better.
Vivi was starting to feel sick Wednesday evening and our poor girl was terribly ill all day and evening for our first day of driving Thursday. I will spare the gory details but the back seat of the car was a mess. We have a rectangular dog bed on each side in the back seat and put a small storage bin in the center to keep the girls separated. Although we stopped a number of times at gas stations to try and clean up, it was hard to keep up. Vivi decided she did not want to stay on her side anymore because of the mess and jumped over to Margot's side. Margot was not having it and at the time Kuochun was driving. Margot shot herself between the car door and front passenger seat and I held her on my lap for a while until we could stop to clean up again. We had left super early - 7:40 AM so in spite of the delays we were able to make it to our first stop in Tucumcari, NM well before dark. Heading east, we lost an hour the first day to get to Mountain Time and another hour the second day to get to Central Time.
I booked two king rooms the La Quinta Inn in Tucumcari because Kuochun did not care for the motel format at the Roadrunner Lodge last time. This location did not have the family suite and Kuochun's snoring keeps me awake if there is no room separating us. I was very pleasantly surprised at the size of the rooms and although the style was kind of dated the rooms were spotlessly clean. There was a nice big desk where I could do some work. Kuochun gave Vivi a bath and the girls settled down on the sofa in the sitting area. He then went to Del's Restaurant to pick up some food for us. I had chicken parmesan which was excellent. The bed was surprisingly comfortable and I had the best sleep I have had in a long time, until Kuochun woke me up and said hurry up and go to breakfast because they are closing in 30 minutes. I paid $11.00 extra for the "free" breakfast and it was terrible. There was hardly any food left - no eggs and just one sausage patty. I toasted an English muffin and also made a waffle with their batter but I hated the waffle and only ate half of it. It has to be bad for me to not finish what I take because I do not like to waste food. I guess I am not used to artificial food anymore. Last fall we had breakfast at a local coffee shop and were able to eat together. We cannot leave the girls unattended in a hotel room so we have to each go to the hotel breakfast separately. The homemade breakfast sandwiches at the coffee shop were great and Kuochun loved the coffee. I would definitely stay at this hotel again but would forego the breakfast and go somewhere else.
The highlight the second day was our stop at Buc-ee's in Amarillo, TX. This location opened in December 2024 but somehow we missed it the last time we drove through. I have been hearing a lot on Facebook about how amazing Buc-ee's is. There has been a lot of hype surrounding the Buc-ee's which is currently being built in Goodyear, AZ so I wanted to see if it lived up to the hype. I can say it sure does! This is by far the largest gas station and convenience store I have ever seen. The restrooms were impressive, with red or green lights above each stall and a personal paper holder next to each sink. There were an incredible amount and variety of items for sale. Kuochun highly recommended that I wear shorts on this trip but my legs kept sticking to his leather seats which was very uncomfortable. I was able to find an "anywhere towel" which was made from recycled water bottles which was perfect to put on the car seat. We were able to get some good food as well - I chose a their hot club sandwich on a bun and Kuochun picked up a salad. They were both delicious! I am also really glad we bought one of these protein packs - it was the perfect lunch the next day to eat while driving. Such a great way to keep our energy up and I loved the combination of the grilled chicken and cheddar cheese cubes, the red grapes, hardboiled egg and almonds. I actually took the photo to remember what was in it so I could make it myself. We did not take the time to see the entire store because the girls were in the car with it running but it was truly incredible.
We made it to Joplin, MO which is just over the Oklahoma border just as it was getting dark. I booked the family suite which has one too many beds but works perfectly because there are two rooms which keeps the snoring noise out of my space. We had a different room this time but it was very convenient, close to the exterior door where the car was parked and right next to another door which lead to a beautiful courtyard where Kuochun could walk the girls. We did not know about the courtyard when we stayed there last fall, and I also walked outside because I did not think there was any way to get from the front desk to the rooms. But it was explained to me this time that the hotel is built on a hill, so the front desk is technically the second floor, and it is possible to take an elevator to the first floor where the rooms can be accessed without going outside. We ordered dinner from the attached restaurant which just happens to be called Old Chicago and our choices were very good. I had cavatappi mac and cheese and Kuochun had a chicken Caesar salad wrap. I tried part of his wrap the next day and it was great. Luckily breakfast time is extended by an hour on the weekends and we had plenty of time to each head up there. It was better than the one in New Mexico, with more of a selection and full trays of food. I just avoided the waffles.
The highlight on the last day was our stop at Redmon's Candy Factory in Phillipsburg, MO. We could not help but stop there on our last driving trip from Scottsdale to Mount Prospect in 2021 because of all of the billboards with the guy letting us know what the candy factory had to offer. It is not a healthy place by any means but is cute and a lot of fun. In the main photo, Kuochun is doing his impression of the billboard guy. Off to the right is the World's Largest Gift Shop, which we did not have time to visit the last time but we ducked in there for a few moments this time. It seemed like one half of the store was for kids and the other half was more of the gift shop type items. It was very clean and nicely presented but we did not find anything to buy. From the candy factory, I chose two small bags of popcorn - one was cheddar and the other was orange cream. Both were really good. I also picked out tiny sea salt caramel covered pretzels, little cookie dough bites and peanut butter malted milk balls. We then got a few of the higher-end individual candies - including turtles and buckeyes. Kuochun picked out a couple of chocolate-covered salted caramels in dark and milk and a coconut haystack as well. The candy is super high quality and fresh. It is not cheap but does not have the horrible sticker shock of Chicago-area candy shops.
Other than wind which seemed to be following us cross country, the weather was clear so for that we were grateful. We were very happy to conclude our driving trip and make it back home. Vivi also recovered from whatever ailed her and is doing well now.
There was not much time to post new items but I was able to get two more Federico pieces out there - the man or woman pendant I mentioned last week (which I decided to call a person or figure) and this beautiful butterfly pin with multi-stone inlay.
I did make two sales this week - this gorgeous pair of natural turquoise earrings by Federico and a charming Navajo cuff bracelet with decorative stampings. I am looking forward to getting back to a regular posting schedule next week. I worked hard Sunday and was able to complete two estate sale packages so I have one more to complete on Monday to be caught up. Then the plan is to hit the ground running because both Kuochun and I have personal projects to work on this summer. First up for me is to make an appointment at the DMV to see if I can get Mother's car title reissued in my name, then Rachel will be able to officially take the car over and pay me my share. Fingers crossed that this will happen and I will not have to go through a lengthy probate process when I get back to Arizona.
Until next time!