Wow, thanks for all the replies!
Haha no problem with staying away from the coffee (I'm probably the only pilot in the world who doesn't drink it) . . . and it sounds like 3 hour legs would be better on the airplane's tanks and mine.
Yeah, the family member has flown quite a bit in small planes . . . he knows what he's getting into (must be pretty desperate )
I have the plane for 4 days, so waiting out weather or planning an alternate route shouldn't be too much of a problem. I guess it's just an issue of how far south I can go, because the border pretty much prevents me from going that far north to skirt the wx.
I'll post the pics on here for you guys to enjoy!