Ken & Janelle came to visit us in Las Cruces on January 24. They arrived at our place a little after noon so we went out to lunch at Si Señor’s. In front of the restaurant, their fountain was covered in ice from the recent cold days. Inside, we had a good lunch, some beers and Janelle had a margarita. We went back to our rental, but I had to work, so Karla, Janelle and Ken when for a hike around the neighborhood and on the dam. When I was done with work, Ken drove everyone downtown. We walked and checked out some shops, but it was too cold to stay out too long. We went to the Icebox Brewing Boneyard Cantina. Ken and Janelle’s friends Mike and Steph joined us there. We started off with some nachos and beer and had tacos, and more food, and more beer. It was a fun night with good conversation with good company.

On Saturday, Janelle and Ken spent the day with Mike & Steph. They had a full day of shopping, hiking and New Mexico cuisine. Karla and I spent the day picking up some supplies, relaxing in our backyard by the pool, and walking to Chilitos for some tasty sliders.

Sunday morning I helped Karla make a delicious frittata. It was a nice morning, so we sat outside to eat. After brunch, Ken drove us to Mesilla. We checked out a lot of shops and had a late lunch at La Posta De Mesilla. We went back to our rental and got ready for our trip to White Sands National Park. Our first stop was the visitor’s center for some information and a short, informative film. We then drove the full length of Dune’s Drive. It was only about seven miles but the view of the dunes was fantastic. We got out at the Alkali Flat Trailhead and explored the dunes close up. We wandered around the dunes and it is really otherworldly. We went back to the car and grabbed the sleds we had borrowed from our rental. We tried some sledding but did not have any speedy rides. Some wax may have helped. Or possibly a bigger dune. But we did not have much time to experiment because we wanted to join the sunset stroll. We drove the the next parking lot over and waited for our ranger guide. She took us on a mile stroll with stops to talk about the dunes, plants and animals. She ended the tour on the top of a dune right at sunset. Very cool. Fun trip.

Ken drove us back and I navigated. Once we got back to Las Cruces, we stopped at the Pecan Grill & Brewery. We sat in the bar area and watched the NFL playoffs, ate some flatbread pizza and and had a few beers.

Monday I was back at work. Ken and Janelle grabbed lunch with Mike and Steph. They came back and packed up and headed to the El Paso airport for their return flight to Minnesota.

I am really glad they made the trip and it was a wonderful weekend.

I have added some pictures from that weekend to my Las Cruces album on Flickr.