Back from the Desert

Thank you all for the birthday wishes! I'm now another year older and wiser, right?

We're back after a really nice (but too short) vacation in Palm Desert. This picture is specially for Knatolee:

That's the outdoor temp as we arrived in Palm Desert on Friday. But we experienced snow, too:

That pic is from the top of the Palm Springs aerial tramway, about 8500 feet up Mt. San Jacinto. It was in the 50's up there. And the tramway is a great trip, although perhaps not for those who aren't fond of heights.

We also visited Shields Date Garden in Indio, and the Things got to try a date shake:

Mmmm!

We visited the Living Desert, too, and the Things got to pretend to be birds:

The drive to Palm Desert and back was long (over 400 miles each way), but the desert is really pretty this time of year. Here's a crappy picture I took from the car outside Palm Springs:

And here's another crappy car shot from the Mojave Desert:

All the Joshua Trees are in bloom right now. Along with everything else in the desert. Our allergies sure noticed!

Oh, and on the way to Palm Desert we stopped at a Mini dealership (there are none by our house) and I test drove one. What fun little cars! I want one! Well, I really want a Smart, but they're 2 seaters, so I'll settle for a Mini.