Wildlife Galore!

Since our coyote event, which I am happy to say we have not had another of, we have seen a couple of other wild things ~ dad saw the mountain lion crossing the road in front of him and then Bryce saw a bobcat yesterday! As long as they stay in the wild where they are supposed to be we will be okay! We have aquired a dog since we have been here ~ one of Chuck's dogs that is! Sadie is a chocolate lab that has taken up residence with us ~ it's nice to have one around ~ I miss my 4 legged beasts! I took the kids 4 wheeling on some trails this morning ~ didn't take Maisie since I wasn't sure what we were going to encounter! She does enjoy a 4 wheeler outing though ~ every time they crank up she is out there waiting to go too ~ 18 months and already a biker babe! Mom and I are hoping to do some Pagosa Springs shopping today ~ now of course my dad has to throw a wrench into the day and ride in with us to take the kids to the hot springs ~ heaven forbid we go in separate cars! We have to stop at the grocery store on the way back ~ won't that be entertaining, a trip through the grocery store with 3 kids ~ can you think of anything more unpleasant? That old man is working himself closer to a shallow grave in the middle of all of this nothingness with every passing day! Scott should be here on Thursday for our last week and then it's back to reality and scorching temps! Yuck!
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The Honeymoon's Over!

Yesterday Bryce and Hunter started squabbling ~ Ray Charles could have seen that coming! They have squabbled on and off all day today ~ in my usual loving way I told them they needed to get over it! It has rained for the better part of the day today, so most of it has been spent indoors, although I took all 3 of the kids out for a 4 wheeler tour ~ started raining pretty good on the way back ~ allow me to say that rain is cold! I hear it is 103 in Houston today, so I guess I will take the cold rain any day over that! We had some excitement about 1:30 this morning ~ there is no A/C in the house, so you sleep with the windows open ~ we were awoken by some terrible noise obviously being made by some wild animal ~ mom asked if that was the noise a bear made ~ the park ranger had stopped by earlier in the day to let us know a bear had been spotted and had been letting himself into houses, so if we saw him to call. I thought maybe it was a wild turkey being chased by something because they are all over the place too ~ the ranch manager had come out with his spotlight to tend to the situation ~ turns out it was a coyote calling his friends in for the kill ~ I've never heard a coyote make that noise ~ mom says it's because city coyotes don't need to call their friends in, they just grab a cat and go! Chuck ran the coyote off and the rest of the night was peaceful ~ all 6 of the horses were still there and obviously hadn't slept all night because all they did until noon was sleep! We have come into town to eat at the brewery tonight so I must be off!
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We're Here!

Beautiful mountain views

Rio doing what he does best!

Tux doing what he does best!

Best friends!

Alright, so I am attempting to post via email off of my crackberry since we are headed into civilization today! We rolled in on Saturday afternoon to an outside temperature of 53! It was 98 at home when we left ~ talk about a refreshing change! The scenery here is absolutely gorgeous! The weather is phenomenal ~ warm by mid-morning, but as soon as the sun drops behind the mountains the temperature goes with it! Hunter had a terrible bike wreck yesterday ~ the house is at the top of a hill with a gravel road and he was headed down it when he hit a big rock and became airborne! He only quit flying through the air when he crashed into the fence! Thank god he had his helmet on because you should see the scratches on it! He has a terrible case of road rash and lots of black and purple bruises to go along with it! Fortunately he quit crying pretty quick and after he was bandgaged up he got back on his bike and peddled away! Gotta love the lack of drama with little boys ~ hell, Maisie would still be crying! We are definitely out in the middle of nowhere ~ there is satellite TV ~ thank you Jesus! Not as many channels as we have at home, but there is at least Nick and Disney! The ranch manager informed us there are bears on the property ~ oh goody! No leaving food out and all trash must be double bagged! There has also been a mountain lion sighting recently ~ again, oh goody! Maisie is the perfect size appetizer for either of those wild beasts so we have to be careful about letting the kids out without supervision ~ fortunately you have lots of pretty scenery to take in while you're out on bear duty! Tux and Rio are in hog heaven out in the pasture ~ they wouldn't come to us the first day I think from sheer fear that we were going to put them back in the trailer! By last night though they were happy to see us and gladly came in for dinner! I'll post some pictures when I make it in somewhere with Internet access!

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3 Tents, That'll be $35.....

$35 for 3 tents?

Well you see, they're all very nice tents.

I think that's fair Clark, it seems like a nice place, and they have a pool and everything.

If you haven't a clue what I am talking about here, then you really must drop what you are doing and run out and rent National Lampoon's Vacation ~ classic! Just after this is said Rus and Audrey are running to the pool talking about how they can't wait to get in ~ and when they get to the above ground pool it is totally green and slimy and there are swans swimming in it. This was the running joke our first night when we stayed at the truck stop~ all the kids were interested in was swimming in the pool and this particular scene is what came to mind! Fortunately the pool was in-ground and was clear blue just like it should be.

Tonight we are in Moriarty, New Mexico ~ little town pretty much in the middle of nothing ~ that seems to be the theme of this vacation doesn't it? I think we saw more nothing today than I have seen in my life! We got into the hills today ~ not mountains, hills, and they are massive! Pulling a trailer in this is no kinds of fun ~ my left calf muscle hurts after all of the vertical pedal pushing I did today ~ seriously, you have got to get all up on the gas just to make it up these things at a respectable speed! Pretty bad when you see the 18 wheelers putting their hazards on to go up them because they are just crawling ~ it's quite possible that I could get out and run faster than they are going! Mom is having a rougher time than I am since she is hauling 4000 pounds of horse behind her, but we did manage to make it here, even in a decent amount of time. Tomorrow is the last day on the road and we will be pulling into Pagossa Springs ~ really looking forward to getting there and being done with all of this car time! Should only be about 4 1/2 hours tomorrow ~ our shortest day yet! This also means that we will be checking out of technology land tomorrow as well ~ no guarantees that I will be posting before mid July! The scenery is really very pretty here ~ mom told Hunter and Bryce to look out at the scenery, and she said Hunter looked out the window and said "where?" ~ too funny! She informed him that the scenery was all around him and to take his face out of his TV screen long enough to take some of it in! Can't wait to get there tomorrow ~ will give an update when I can!

Haven't Had to Kill Anyone.....Yet!

Maisie was needing a nap so badly before we

left that she unpacked her blanket and laid on the floor!

Isn't she too cute!

Dad is NOT a morning person!

So we are 2 days into this little cross country adventure and haven't even made it out of the great state of Texas! Damn this is a BIG state! We managed to make it off without a hitch ~ how unlike this group! We left my house about noon and stopped in Segovia which is just outside of Junction ~ not that you have probably heard of either one of those places! We are doing about 300 miles a day, although yesterday was a little more. Maisie did very well ~ she didn't really make so much as a peep until her diaper was so wet that she had peed all out of it and into her car seat ~ fortunately the place we stayed last night had a laundry so I took her car seat out and washed it and then put it back in this morning ~ not nearly as easy a feat as it should have been! Let me just say I drive a Japanese car and Maisie sits in a British car seat ~ these 2 foreign objects go together like peas and carrots ~ then you go throwing an American car into the mix and it no longer works so well! The seat installs with great ease, like it should, if the LATCH is upside down ~ not exactly safe or feasible since then you can't tighten the thing up ~ so I think you are supposed to use an allen wrench to undo the bar that the LATCH straps are on and flip them over for use in an American made auto ~ what a pain in the ass! So twice now I have fought and wrestled installing the usually easy as pie seat until I was sweating ~ ugh! I told her if she pees in it again she's just gonna have to get used to it! The drive was very uneventful ~ we dropped the horses at their hotel and went just down the street to the truck stop ~ thank god it was very clean and literally about 1 minute from the horses. We got off about 11 today and made it to Lubbock ~ again where the horses have a reservation. As we were unloading them they were walking around having some grass and I had Rio when something spooked the supposedly spook proof horse ~ so Wilson, I call bullshit on that label, and I was of course wearing my usual footwear ~ flip flops ~ not much protection when a 2000 pond horse comes landing down on your foot!!!! OUCH!!!!!! I thought at first that he had broken my toes, but I have decided that they aren't broken, just very swollen and purple! Nice! Damn horse scuffed up my freshly pedi-ed toes too! I think tomorrow when we go back to retrieve them I will be pulling my boots out of my bag and making a real fashion statement with them and shorts! We went through several wind farms today ~ one was HUGE!!! It went on for miles and miles ~ I just couldn't believe the size of it ~ really very impressive ~ and there is certainly enough wind out here to turn those things! I have become a real trailer pullin' mama in the last 2 days ~ I even had to back it up tonight and did it all by myself and only had to pull forward 1 time to start over~ guess all of these times I have watched Scott back ours into the garage has paid off ~thanks babe! Tomorrow we will actually be crossing the state line into New Mexico ~ I might have to pull over and take Hunter's picture by the sign ~ he asked mom if we were going to have to go through Mississippi to get to Colorado ~ ahhh the innocence! Maisie has really traveled well ~ as long as you keep Elmo rolling on the TV and toss her a cup of milk and some snacks every once in a while she's good to go. Speaking of keeping Elmo rolling I would like to thank Apple for the i-Pod ~ I am keeping one bud in and listening to stuff I want to hear, but keeping it so I can still hear what's going on around me. I think if I had to listen "la la la la Elmo's World" for 6 hours a day I might slit my own wrists! We didn't have cell service for the majority of the day today ~ really kind of annoying ~ now that you are all kinds of used to being able to make a call whenever, it is odd when you can't ~ guess I had better get used to it!

The Y Chromosome and Instructions

Okay, so we all know that "real men" wouldn't dare stop and ask for directions, much less actually pick up the instruction manual for a child's toy to figure out how it works ~ I guess they all must think that they are smarter than said toy so instructions aer of no use! For Christmas Hunter got a Creepy Crawler Bug Maker Oven ~ what more could a little boy ask for! Anyway, I came home one day, within a few days of Christmas, and Scott had gotten the oven out, filled the molds up, put it in the oven, and turned it on. When I got there he informed me that the oven didn't appear to be working ~ not realizing at the time that he hadn't dared to pick up the instruction sheet, I took his word for it since the oven indeed did not appear to be working. I returned said bug maker for a new one a few days later and brought it home and put it away ~ figuring Hunter had so many new things already we would just stash that for a little later. Yesterday he wanted to get the bug oven out and cook up a few before we left ~ so I pulled the oven out, plugged it in, and turned it on the make sure that it worked before I filled up the molds ~ guess what, the oven again didn't appear to work. I thought, you've got to be kidding me! This one doesn't work either? So being the double X chromosome that I am, I went and got the instruction sheet and right on the front in HUGE letters there is a picture of a light bulb and the words "how to install the light bulb (not included) and prepare your creepy crawlers maker for use". Damn man eyes! I did just as the instructions said and guess what, the oven now works! So in short, there wasn't a damn thing wrong with the first oven either, other than a man had attempted to set it up!

Departure Update

Well you notice it is Tuesday and I am still posting which much mean we are still here! Dad was cleared by the eye surgeon yesterday to leave, so that is a least no longer an issue. Mom called last night to say that Dad had agreed that Tuesday was really just too lofty a goal, so why not postpone it until Wednesday ~ wise decision old man! So figuring that we truly are leaving tomorrow I have finished packing us up, so now all we have to do is wait for our chariot to arrive tomorrow and load it up! I think I have set this up to be able to post via text and email ~ if I have truly managed to accomplish this then I will post again when we stop in Junction! Wish me luck!

Memorial Weekend ~ Better Late Than Never!

Hunter and his new best friend!

Aren't we a motley crew?

We had a very busy Memorial weekend ~ my sister called on Thursday because Wilson wanted to invite Hunter to come up and hang out ~ I'm really glad I wasn't face to face when she said this because I am fairly confident that I had a completely dumbfounded look on my face which would have probably hurt her feelings ~ I was taken by surprise by the invitation to say the least. In Lee's world little kids are nothing but walking, talking, petri dishes (although I think I may have to agree with her on this one given the number of times I have been sick so far this year) ~ she is also a NEUROTIC picker upper ~ so the fact that little people leave a trail of stuff everywhere they go does her in! Although big people who leave a trail behind them also does her in ~ so I guess you can't say that is a little people prejudice. Wilson doesn't have kids either, so they're just not accustomed to having them around and dealing with them and the noise that comes along with them ~ they live in a lovely quiet world! Hunter thinks Wilson is the cat's meow, so he was quite excited to be invited! Anyway, we had plans to go to a crawfish boil on Saturday, but said that we would get up and come Sunday morning ~ they live on Lake Livingston which is about 2 hours or so from here. We loaded up in the morning and were there before lunch ~ really a very pretty place. I haven't ever been to Lake Livingston before and it is much nicer than Conroe ~ still pretty serene, where Conroe is bumper to bumper boats, jet skis, and houses. The weather was beautiful ~ Wilson got out and mowed the bocce ball court, and then proceeded to paint the lines in the right places so Hunter could play. Keep in mind that he is a landscape architect so nothing is done half ass ~ instead of just spraying the lines by sight, he pulled out the string to ensure they were straight! Only an architect! Across the street from there house is some vacant property that they lease and this is where Wilson's huge garden is and where Rio (the horse) and his horse friend Winston live. Hunter had so much fun getting to go over there and harvest stuff from the garden ~ we had green beans with dinner that night that Hunter picked ~ Their lot is HUGE so there was plenty of room for the kids to run around. There is also a beach ~ so instead of there being just a bulkhead that drops off into the water there is an honest to god beach that the kids had a blast playing on. Well, Maisie didn't so much enjoy the beach when she toppled off the bulkhead and landed on her head on said beach! We were getting ready to go out into the lake and float so I had put her life jacket on her ~ you know they have that weighted thing at the back of the head on infant vests to flip them over the right direction should they fall in ~ well let me just say that life jacket weighs damn near as much as Maisie does ~ anyway, I had put the jacket on her while she stood in the grass near the edge of the bulkhead and then I turned around to grab something and let her go and over the edge she went! Lee was standing right there too ~ Maisie was in the middle of both of us and yet neither one of us could grab her before she hit the sand! When I say she landed on top of her head I'm not kidding ~ there was a spot in the sand where her head had gone into it! Poor kid! Thank god she wasn't hurt! We went out and floated in the lake for a little while and then came back in because a storm was undoubtedly coming across the lake ~ made it back inside and got everything picked up just in time! It rained for the rest of the night ~ fortunately we had the entire day before it rolled in. Wilson cooked the most delicious meat I have ever eaten for dinner ~ he has a water smoker, something I had never heard of, and used it to cook some back strap ~ now normally I don't eat just plain old game, it has to be cut 50/50 with beef or pork for me to get rid of that wild taste ~ Lee soaks it in water until there is no more blood and then marinates it ~ man it was AWESOME! It surpassed the smoked sirloin at Texas Land and Cattle and that is by far my favorite carnivore meal ever! The next day Hunter had about 16 hours worth of activities planned to cram into about 4 hours! We were heading to Liberty for the day to the place Scott hunts to ride 4-wheelers and attend a party there so we had to get moving. Hunter opted to spend what time he had left at the lake on a boat ride ~ Wilson owns one of every big boy toy there is ~ so we put Maisie back into her death suit ~ let me say that she remembered the traumatic events that unfolded the day before because of that thing ~ and off we went. We packed up and headed off for the ranch when we left there ~ hung out for the day ~ Maisie is a real 4-wheeler riding mama ~ and then came back that night to get ready for life back in reality on Tuesday! Had a great weekend ~ Lee has been on me about not posting about our trip to the lake ~ I think Wilson secretly enjoys being the star of my blog ~ so I figured I had better get this posted before we are never invited back! Maybe we can go back later this summer and spend the entire weekend ~ Hunter would be convinced that he had indeed died and gone to heaven! So Lee and Wilson thanks for a great time ~ we'll be watching the mail for our next invite!

Still Here

Thought I would post a few things that needed to be caught up on before the big road trip! In theory, we were supposed to have departed by now ~ last week actually, but my Dad had cataract surgery about a month ago that did not go as planned, so we have been waiting on him to recover before taking off. Certainly don't want to get out in the middle of nowhere and decide that he needs serious medical attention! He has another appointment today and if it looks good then we are planning on heading out tomorrow ~ mom said that is an awful lofty goal, but she didn't have the heart to tell him that! Yesterday I got Hunter all packed up ~ all of his crap took up an ENTIRE bag! That's what happens when you are going to a climate that requires different dress throughout the day ~ I can already tell you I could NEVER live there! I like to know that what I put on in the morning is going to be sufficient for the ENTIRE day until I crawl into bed! Phooey on that cold in the morning only to warm up to shorts weather by lunch and then go back to being cold as soon as the big ball of fire in the sky slips below the horizon! So we all have to pack both summer and winter gear (luckily I found 4 pair of pants that still have the knees) ~ still about 38 in the mornings (yikes!) ~ and I also packed him some 4-wheeler clothes so he doesn't ruin his good stuff while he's out being a boy! Scott took Hunter and my dad's 4 wheelers over there yesterday and got them all packed up in the trailer ~ more like stuffed them all into the trailer he said ~ good thing they fit! When we are truly leaving my parent's will drive over here to get us and all of our stuff and then off on the open road we go. We are going as far a Junction the first night ~ our stops have been determined by where there is a horse hotel ~ I had no idea there was such a thing until now, and then day 2 of this adventure ends in Amarillo ~ after that I haven't a clue where we go. We are taking 4 days to get there ~ yes, you read that right, 4 days! The theory being that you can't go as fast while pulling a trailer, the horses need to get out, and the kids are only going to make so many hours a day being pinned in the car. Will probably work out best for all of our sanity ~ at least once you are no longer behind the wheel you can drink heavily to forget about the day you've just had and prepare yourself for what lies ahead! Scott informed me that we would not be taking 4 days to get back home ~ I told him I had no intentions of taking more than a day to get back! The plan for our return is to head out around 5:00 in the afternoon and just keep on going ~ let the little people slip into a coma in the car and keep on rolling. I will try and post some while we are gone ~ I am going to set my phone up, I think, so that I can post via text. Maybe by doing that I can post a little something should I accidentally find some cell service! No promises, you may just have to wait until July!