Labor Day 2006

Our Labor Day Weekend began at 2:00 AM when our friend Danny came to pick us up to take us to the Amtrak Train Station in Newton. After a quick stop at Druber's Daylight Doughnuts
(which opens at 10:30 PM) to get some "breakfast" we waited for the train to come at 3:30 AM. It was close to on time, but once it got there, Sam decided that it was too scarey and wanted to "just go home." So after practically dragging him onto the train, once on he decided it was pretty cool. Our seats were upstairs, very comfy and very roomy. We stayed awake until the next train stop in Hutchinson, then we slept about 3 hours (that would be Kristin and Sam, I don't think Doug slept more than an hour or so) until the next stop at Garden City, then Dodge City. Kristin learned what it means when you say "the other side of the track" as the houses and scenery at the towns we went through were not in the best of shape, nor the yards very spick and span. We were just one car away from the observation car (the top picture). It was nice to be able to get up and move around. We ate lunch in the snack car (not the dinner car, which required reservations), and then took another nap in the afternoon. We arrived in Alberquerque, NM close to on time, and were met by Grandma and Grandpa Shaffer who picked us up and took us to Aunt Doris' house. It was a fun weekend of visiting the Shaffer cousins. We went to the Alberquerque zoo one day (very nice zoo!), and the Aquarium and Botanical gardens the next day. The train ride took about 14 hours, but it went, overall, pretty quick. The van ride back with the Shaffers was about 12 hours long(with many potty stops and snack stops), and it didn't really go quite as fast as the train ride. But it was nice to be home. It was a great weekend with family, and Sam enjoyed sleeping in his tent at Aunt Doris' house.