Our favorite mode of transportation is by automobile. A minivan has all the room in the world for transporting all the stuff we need for all the crazy things we do, whether its dispersed camping, working a Lenspiration booth, running a photography workshop . . . or doing all three on one long excursion!

But when AFHE invited me to come speak about photography at their homeschool convention in Phoenix, Arizona, I knew that 2,027 miles was just too long to drive by minivan for just one event. And Southwest Airlines was still offering 2 free checked bags per person . . . up to 50lb each. If we condensed everything down, between Julianna and I, we could bring all the booth supplies we needed, for free!

So, we decided to fly. And no problem. I have lots of experience when it comes to navigating airports and traveling by airplane! As a single person, I would fly all over the place.

Well, I soon discovered that my flying skills were a little rusty . . .

No Bus In Sight

Our alarm went off at 5:00am sharp.

Even though our flight to Arizona was in the afternoon, we had to catch a bus to the airport Pittsburgh. It would leave at 7:05am. No problem! It was only half an hour away.

We begin scrambling to get the car packed and the house closed up for a 6:00 departure. Donald arrives early to help us pack up and, most importantly, laminate a physical gift card that I discovered last minute that I needed to bring with me in-person to the AFHE convention organizers.

Despite our best efforts, we push off at 6:30am. Half an hour late. But no problem . . . we would still arrive with 5 minutes to spare! On the way up, we rehearsed exactly what we would all do to transfer everything over from the van to the bus in as efficient a manner as possible.

It’s amazing how long red light after red light can feel when you’re on a ticking clock! Finally, we spotted the bus stop shelter sitting in the morning sunshine and pulled into the nearest parking spot.

7:03am. Whew! Just enough time to grab our 200 pounds of luggage and push it to the bus shelter! Thankfully Donald was there to help. He was mostly there to drive our minivan back to our house after dropping us off, but having an extra hand was invaluable in that time crunch.

We stopped to catch our breath.

But we didn’t pause for long. Something fishy was going on. Where was the bus? I checked my wristwatch. It was definitely after 7:05 now. But there was no bus in sight!

If departure was supposed to be 7:05, why was the bus not there? The minutes ticked by.

7:08. 7:10. Still no bus.

Did we miss it? Had the bus arrived a little early, seen no one there, and so left ahead of schedule?

7:12.

Perhaps we could drive to the next bus stop? No, if the bus had already come and gone from this stop, we would arrive far too late for that.

7:13.

My mind started brainstorming other options. That is, if there were other options. I started to wonder if I would I have to ask Donald to drive us the 2-hour one-way airport run to Pittsburgh. That would be awful if I had to inconvenience him in that way!

Our trip to Arizona was not getting off to a very good start . . .

Forgotten Items

Just then, at 7:14, a full 9 minutes late, I saw the familiar green bus coming down the road. Whew. What a relief!

We piled on board and waved good bye to Donald. As the bus pulled away, I looked around to double check if we had everything. Uh oh. Where was my water bottle? A fairly important item when traveling to Arizona!

My mind kicked back into gear. Last I had seen it, it was in the back seat of the van. Could I call Donald and ask if it was still there? If it was, could he possibly meet us at the next bus stop? Or was a water bottle really that important? I could buy another one just about anywhere.

But I decided I would try giving him a call anyway.

And he answered! Yes, the water bottle was there in the back seat. And if I gave him an address, he would do his best to meet us at the next bus stop. The race was on now! Would Donald be able to catch up?

As we approached the next stop, I walked to the front of the bus and leaned towards our friendly driver. “My brother is coming to the next stop with something I forgot. Would it be alright to wait for him?”

“Sure, no problem!” he replied.

And good thing, too. When Donald arrived a minute or two later, not only did he hand me my water bottle, he pulled a freshly laminated gift card out of his pocket.

It took half the bus ride to Pittsburgh for my mind to wind down, quadruple check that we had everything, and switch gears to “airport mode”. And praise the Lord, the rest of the ride was uneventful! We got our luggage, piled it onto the sidewalk and waved the bus goodbye. And we were so early that we had to wait to check in for our flights! It sure was nice not to be under any time pressure.

We found some comfy chairs and while Mordecai ate, I made some phone calls and got in a little work. We went through security leisurely. We waited at our gate for over an hour. Our flight left on time and landed according to schedule. The landscape changed beneath us from lush green treetops to dull brown rock piles. Hello, Arizona!

No Minivan in Arizona

Now that we had safely landed, I set my mind on the last remaining hurdle: picking up the rental car.

Originally, I was going to rent a Standard Size SUV. Not only would it give us enough room for all our luggage, it would be a large enough vehicle for us to sleep in during multiple days of camping after the Convention. I would still bring my small, 2-person tent to put luggage in while we camped. It wouldn’t fit our little family of three, but it could store luggage beautifully when the three of us are sleeping in the car.

But there was a problem. A Standard Size SUV is expensive! At least $100 more than smaller counterparts.

So this got me thinking. Why don’t I get a smaller car, save the $100, and then use the savings toward a larger tent? Like, a 4-person tent. Then we would be like normal people, keep the luggage in the car, and sleep in the tent . . . with even more space then the car could ever afford!

So that’s what I did. I bought a $100 4-person tent and rented a more affordable Compact SUV (which happened to be the same price as a Compact Car).

But as I rode the metro through the airport, I couldn’t help but wonder for the hundredth time, what would this Compact SUV be like? How “compact” would it be? Could we fit all 4 large suitcases, our 4 carry-on bags and a stroller?

Well, my concerns turned out to be groundless. The Nissan Rouge fit everything beautifully! It’s my new favorite SUV now. 🙂

It served us well transporting all the stuff we needed for the AFHE Convention, Lenspiration booth, Photo Class, and Photography Team . . .

. . . plus all the things we brought with us for camping after the convention too!

We camped in Prescott National Forest the first night after the convention. Arriving after dark, I didn’t get any pictures that first evening. But the next morning, Mordecai and I went out to have devotions together so Mommy could sleep in a bit. And what a beautiful Arizona morning we got to experience!

The second night, we camped in . . . well, I’ll have to tell you about where we went, what we did, and the amazing things we got to photograph over the next 4 days of our vacation in Arizona in future blog posts!

Up to that point, we were just grateful to God that we had made it safely to Arizona, we had everything we needed, and the convention had gone exactly as planned. And we would wait to see what other adventures the desert would surely offer us over the next week!