Only a few weeks until the next trip :(

Finally!  Something good about camping:

Nope. Not for me.

I sincerely do NOT like camping!

Too much fresh air.

Way too much togetherness.

  Limited kitchen supplies.

    Sand.  Dirt. Sand. Dirt. Sand. Dirt.

  Bored children. 

Annoyed teens who could actually be having fun at home. 

Gross public bathrooms which are so much friendlier to boys. 

Camp stores that sell moldy donuts.  

Nope. Camping is absolutely not for me, and there is nothing that will change my mind.

Where in the world is Caution?

We have been enjoying our children's school break this week. Lots of fun eating, significant chlorine-induced asthma and skin rashes, an argument or two about who has to sit in the middle of the back seat, and a well-placed punch to the face while a daughter dreamed that she was fighting with her brother. My jaw has recovered nicely, thank-you.

In ten or so weeks, summer break starts.

Truthfully?

I can't wait !

FF: Trying to stop talking. Really.

 have returned.  Did you even notice that I was missing ?? Humor me on that one, okay?

During my hit or miss blogging during the last two weeks,

*I have slept at the bottom of the second largest canyon in the U.S (Palo Duro) and did  not see a snake.

*I realized that even in the cold and rain, Colorado is one gorgeous state, and if I pay to ride the train up to the top of Pikes Peak and the visibility from the top is zero, I can still convince myself that the ride was worth the money. But no, sadly my boys did not see a black bear.

*I didn't buy a University of Wyoming hoodie and that is something I really regret.

*I realized that we did not encounter one mosquito west of the Mississippi (what's that all about???)

*My friend found humor at my expense when I said I couldn't believe how Mt. Rushmore had changed in the last 30 years ( I meant the gift shops, OF COURSE.)  I also learned that some people go to Mt. Rushmore to look at the carvings.  What a mystery that decision is when there are so many great signs there.

*I thought myself very lucky to sleep on the prairie and see shooting stars and maybe a meteor (okay, fine.  I missed the meteor while I talked about the historical significance of the prairie.  My boys, who were not listening to single word, saw the meteor) until 2 AM when the winds decided to BLOW my modern covered wagon about and I was sure Laura Ingalls Wilder and I were about to meet in the heavens somewhere.

*I found all the missing mosquitoes.  It turns out that they live in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

*I also found the Mall of America and learned a lot about how people use elevators.

*We learned that when a campground is rainy, boys will find something to do.  In this case it involved wet underwear and a stick.  Voila!  Underwear ball had now been invented and it doesn't have a single physical connotation.

* And I met Mrs. 4's IRL!!!!  Suffice it to say, she is smart, very pretty, energetic, svelte, and graciously accommodating.  But I guess you already knew that, didn't you?

P.S. Do you know what happens to Checkered's car when his son leaves a milkshake in the backseat and the car sits closed up outside in the 100 degree weather for two weeks?  Let's just say Checkered is now riding in a veritable cloud of ... well ....  let's just say, "Poor, poor Checkered."  I should buy a gas mask for him.










 




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My Companion

"It is advised that any woman attempting to cross Lake Michigan by marine vessel be accompanied by a friend.  Said friend should have the woman's comfort and well being as a chief concern."

So much learning that my brain might explode

We learned a lot yesterday. We learned that Mt.  Rushmore is still as wondrous as it was 30 years ago.  We learned that it is cool to meet someone who was a Driller on the original project. We also learned that he wasn't nearly as nice when we didn't buy his book.

Our learning curve included understanding more about the Crazy Horse monument and the brilliant man who began the project.  It was very cool to be there during a blast.

We unwittingly scheduled our visit to the Black Hills at the beginning of the Sturgis Bike Week.  It's been fun watching the bikes,  and more fun watching the bikers.

Our worst learning experience of this visit was the chuckwagon dinner.  It might have been more affordable to buy our own ranch,  but yippee eye,  my boys would get to eat like cowboys and sing cowboy songs. I should have known the chuckwagon show would be a bust when the cowboys starting singing Eagles music and through in a little Glenn Miller for good measure. You know, just the typical trail music.

Dare we hope for a better experience at the Little House on the Prairie homestead tonight?

And I Don't Even Like Horses

Dear Wyoming,

I love you. Seriously.  With all my heart. I know I married Michigan, and it's been good to me, but I dream about you constantly and what we could be together.  Well, I mean in the summer anyway.  I long for your vastness, your rugged terrain,  your enormous sky.  So I spend my backseat riding time perusing real estate ads and I've learned what I really want is a ranch. That I can't afford one and would have no idea what to do with one notwithstanding, I still dream.  I've even taken to writing our initials on the backs of brochures:  CF + WY.

Yeah,  I've got it bad

Love you!

Caution

PS Don't worry about Checkered finding out about us.  He's lost his heart to a little place called Colorado.

Germs, Fog, and Missing a Hotel

It would be so nice if I could find a blog - posting program for my phone which would allow me to post more than one photo!  Nevertheless,  this photo sums up our day yesterday.  We rode the cog railroad up Pikes Peak and thoroughly enjoyed the ascent. Beautiful.  Fascinating.  Unique. 

Unfortunately,  a major thunderstorm also made the ascent, too, so the visibility was zero from the summit.  We shivered in the 38 degree weather,  and our feverish birthday boy shivered long after we returned to our very chilly campground,

As a gesture of graciousness,  I have offered to let that sick boy sit in the front during our long ride today. I will be a magnificent mother and take the back seat - right between two wild and energy filled siblings.  We shall see what shape I am in by the time we reach Mt.  Rushmore.

We Hope

We hope the rain really has ended.
We hope the temps really do get above 50 today.
We hope to get up Pike's Peak this afternoon.
But most of all, we hope that this boy who turns 13 today, will always know what a gift from God he is.

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Tennessee Sojourn

My travel companions and I thoroughly enjoyed our time in the Volunteer state, even though we're not sure what it looks like there. You see, for us the visit was all about family.  We lovelovelove my sister and her family and haven't ever lived closer to them than a full three-day drive.  Now they're just nine hours away!!

No, we do not travel by shopping cart, but yes, it is a good workout for Checkered.

Apart from having every.single.thing in common with their cousins, my boys are mighty fond of their uncle.  It doesn't take too many war video games to begin believing that the military is where all the heroes are.  Thank goodness, there's one in our family.

Uncle Hero helped one young man acquire the proper uniform and assisted him in the perfection of a salute.

It was unfortunate that my young soldier learned too late that his uncle out-ranks him by 14 levels.

Tears gathered in all our eyes as our brief reunion ended and we headed west.  Thank - you, Army, for bringing our relatives closer to us.

Next on the vacation agenda: an IRL blogger meeting and a wedding (but not a wedding with a blogger - lest anyone be concerned.)

And so it begins

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I'm an excellent wife; I'm an excellent mother ...

My back-to-nature quest started when Checkered asked for this as a wedding gift. I thought it would be romantic and good for us. That positive feeling lasted until I learned there was no bathroom.

A few years later, with a potty training toddler and another baby due in a month, we moved up to something that looked like this because it would be better for us. That "good for us" feeling lasted one trip.

Two babies after that, with our family out of sleeping room in the Nomad, the transition was to this: I can't say that I ever experienced any feeling whatsoever about this one.

Last year we finally made it to this: Now that felt good!

But then I began to think of nature and how much fun the neighbors have when they camp. Resonating in my memory were images of father/son bonding, birds chirping, togetherness, something that could fit inside our garage, and I suggested we buy this:


I'm an excellent wife; I'm an excellent mother ...
I'm an excellent wife; I'm an excellent mother ...

How long do you suppose I'll have to say that before I really feel we did the right thing?

Oscars: Here I Come

Thank-you, Sue the mermaid, for introducing me to One True Media!! And now, my first video!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Tuesday's Trivia: Amusement Parks and Aging

Teens (especially teen girls) comprise the largest percentage of amusement parks visitors.

AND

People under 35 like new rides.

Maybe that explains why you struggled, Checkered.

He Should Have Been a Haberdasher

Checkered loves hats. To be more precise, he loves ball caps. While our kids collect snow globes, magnets, and shot glasses, my husband collects ball caps. That's okay with me because I like the way he wears them.

When our trip began, he announced that he wanted to stop at a Case tractor place and get a cap. It seems that Fiat owns Case, and since Fiat now owns Chrysler, we are all cousins of sorts. Well, we went by exactly one Case dealership, and it was closed. So much for the Case hat.

But have no fear because by then we were deeply into farm country and I decided that Checkered would look good as a Western man. After stopping at a few Tractor Supply stores, 12 Walmarts, and one Western wear shop, we got him outfitted.

Along the way, he picked up a Texas A&M cap in honor of our niece's boyfriend (how is that for a flimsy excuse?):

And in honor of our new-found love of Texas:

After a National Park Service ranger told us we couldn't wear both A&M and Longhorn caps (we had stop straddling the fence, you know), we opted for another hat altogether.

I think that this hat from the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama looks like a Bill Murray hat, but that's okay because we LOVE Bill Murray.

By the time we arrived home, this was the head gear fashion:

Home Again, Home Again; Jiggety-Jig

4,950 miles.

15 states.

The best vacation ever.

Now, the homecoming.

A hot tub cover destroyed by the dog.

The grass 8 inches long.

The topsy turvy plants pretty much dead (even though the dogsitter did water.)

Checkered and Son 1 off to Boy Scout camp.

No food in the fridge.

One over-due library book.

And this:

Home again, home again; Jiggety-Jog.

I Admit It: I Love the Lonestar State

On Wednesday, we say a sad good-bye to our relatives here in Dallas and head across Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi as we wind our way toward Detroit. There are only a few states I've not visited and those three are on the list, so we're taking the long way home to see a bit of them. I used to love the show, In the Heat of the Night, so my family is sure to be blessed with me humming the theme song all the way across Mississippi.

Our time in Dallas has been lovely. We spent yesterday at a waterpark, and today we rode the commuter train into the city to walk around and visit the location where President Kennedy was shot. The museum and gift shop were very nice, but it was an odd feeling to think about that building and how it must have been that day in 1963. What you can't see in this picture are two X's which mark the spots where his car was when he was hit. The grassy knoll is that grass area to the right.

When we first rode into Dallas on Saturday, it just seemed like another big city. Now we see the beauty of it. We see how everything appears to be clean and new. We are amazed that there are middle class neighborhoods right in the city. We love the public transportation and the mix of cultures. I suspect that we could easily live here.

In another year or two we expect to make this trip again, but that time it will be for our niece's wedding. What a happy trip that will be.

Before we arrived in Texas, I thought it would be hot. It is. I thought it would be big. It is. I thought it would be just another state. It's not. Someone told me today that at the start of each legislative year, the Texas state lawmakers vote on whether or not to succeed from the U.S. It's probably a symbolic tradition, but I think that if Texas ever did succeed from the Union, it would hold its own.

Is Dallas Really a Part of Texas?

The drive from El Paso to Dallas was very interesting ... for one hour (and that's being generous.) Lots of cactus. Ample dirt. And enough sun to recharge any vitamin D deficiency I may have for the next decade. After that first hour, I went into a type of passenger-trance so the next 9 hours are a blur.

We are now in very urbane Dallas with Checkered's sister and are enjoying our reunion time with her family. Yesterday we went to the historic part of Fort Worth so Checkered could look Western and fit in a little better than his new look would fit-in in Dallas or any other part of Texas.

Amazingly, the bank temp displays showed 119 yesterday. But somehow in that heat, our kids walked through a maze at Fort Worth. Now to end on a little braggadocio: my boys finished in 13 minutes. Their sister and cousins (including a nurse and an engineer) finished in 30 minutes.

Now to plot our path back to Detroit. That is, if I can bear the sorrow of leaving Texas.

Saying Good-Bye to El Paso

On Saturday we leave my sister and her family in El Paso and head to Dallas to see Checkered's sister. It's always difficult to say good-bye and harder still to wait the probable two years until our next reunion. I am very fond of this west Texas town. My sister's neighborhood is pretty much mosquito-free due to the lack of humidity, so it has been a treat to sit outside at night and chat while the kids swim. Here's a picture of something we will always remember from our trip:

How funny that when it drops into the 90's in the evening, we all say it feels so good outside!

Someday soon, I will get my thoughts together for a better travelogue. Maybe tomorrow's 10 hour ride will be the time.

It's Hot Here!

We've made it to the land of blazingly bright and hot sunshine. A land where I've been warned we will sunburn especially quickly and where we must watch for scorpions and snakes. But it's also a land where our a part of our hearts live. We are in El Paso, Texas visiting my sister and her family.

There is much to see and learn, and much to tell about our experiences yesterday at Bandelier National Monument and Santa Fe, New Mexico. However, today is for watching cousins laugh and play and revel in their rare togetherness.

It may well also be for figuring out how to use my laptop to access their network and thereby share pix with you.

Only time will tell about that last one.