Grand Canyon Hike

At the end of January I was a able to be a part of a group of eight women who hiked the Grand Canyon. Yes, THE Grand Canyon-one of the natural wonders of the world. It was AMAZING.

But, before I was able to go on the trip, I had a mini trip of my own. Three days before we were to leave for our trip, it started to rain, and rain, and rain. I am not a complainer of rain but it was non-stop. Rain hasn't really ever affected the way we go about our day to day business but with the non-stop rain it was becoming inconvenient to do a few normal tasks. But, what can you do? On day three of the rain, the kids and I ran a few errands before we headed home. When we got the dry wash we cross to get to our house, it was RUNNING and running swiftly. It was kind of a novelty, so we watched for awhile and then headed to Nimrod's office to wait it out. During monsoon storms, the was runs for a little bit and then goes down. Two hours later, it is dinner time and the was is going up, not down. We decide to go out to eat since we are stuck in town and then plan to head home. We have a nice dinner, yadda-yadda, time to go home. The wash was not going down, the rain is not stopping and we need to get home. Nimrod's dad was with us and so they decide we will park our cars at a ranch on this side of wash and walk our home.

We drive to the ranch and park the cars. With the kids bundled up and the daylight slipping away we headed down the railroad tracks and across the railroad bridge to get over the wash. From there we veered off into the desert and slopped through the wet mud while being rained on. Twenty minutes later we see the lights of my in-laws house. We finally get there, wet, cold, and tired. My mother-in-law drove us over to our house just down the road and we were very thankful for our warm, dry home. While we were hiking, I kept thinking, "If this is what the canyon is going to be like, it will be MISERABLE." But, I was set to go 2 days later.

With the continuous rain in our area, the Grand Canyon was getting pounded with snow. The eight of us were throwing emails and texts back and forth, trying to figure out who was still willing to go. There had been more ladies, but with the terrible weather, people were dropping like raindrops. The few crazy ones were still in it. Nimrod's anxiety was going up with each rain drop falling . I was going to be gone for 3 days, it was snowing, I was driving the women and I had never driven in snow. I, however, chose not to think about those things.

The day came for us to leave and it was still raining. I picked up the ladies and off we went. This was the view out my front windshield as we approached the Canyon area.

This is the lodge we stayed in. I could not get over the icicles.

The next morning, the day of the hike down, we woke up to clear skies. God is great! Isn't this an amazing view? You cannot even see the bottom of the canyon from this view.

My self portrait. The enthusiasm is just oozing from my face. This is before I really know what I am getting into.

There were places where the snow drifts were deeper than me.

When we finally got to the bottom, 8 hours later, it was much warmer. The Colorado River looks like chocolate milk and made me want something sweet. I was not to be disappointed. The Phantom Ranch is known for it's great food, especially sweets.

Here is one of the little waterfalls that just flow out of random places throughout the canyon.

When we got to the bottom of the Canyon and were checking into our cabins, I looked up on the mountain and saw 2 big horn sheep. I about died! I couldn't believe I spotted them. All I could think was that Nimrod would be so proud of me for seeing them and so jealous that I saw them and he didn't. While we were down there for 2 days, I was constantly scanning the mountains to catch a glimpse of them again. I didn't see any and was disappointed.

However, on the hike out we were on one of the many switchbacks and heard this guy get really excited. I looked up the switchback and here is this big horn sheep walking down the trail we are walking up. It was unbelievable! The ram just walked down the path while the group above us was pinned against the mountain. Then he just walked over the edge of the trail and disappeared into the canyon. I would have never even imagined that could happen. If you look at this picture, you can see the ram on the left edge of the picture, about half way down. He is on the second switchback trail and you can see the man a little ahead of the ram on the trail.

I survived hiking the Grand Canyon, deep snow and wildlife encounters. It was a unique experience spent with some great friends, new and old. AND, the food at Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the Canyon is definitely worth the hike down. I will do anything for good chocolate cake and I was not disappointed! Of course, I had to drive home with a broken speedometer (a challenge with no cars on the road) and couldn't walk for 3 days. Minor discomforts for a trip of a lifetime.

March Madness

March Madness is usually in reference to the NCAA basketball championship play-offs. However, in our family it is something entirely different. In between Punky's birthday and Baseball season, we were flying around like chicken with our heads cut off. It was an insanely crazy time. So crazy, I didn't even manage to take pictures. Here is a recap of some of the events we had going on.




*Both kids played basketball this year. Nimrod coached Buckaroo's team and I coached Punky Girl's. We had practice twice a week and games on Saturdays from February through the first of April. We all had a really good time.

--The highlight of the season for Punky Girl was getting to play on Buckaroo's team. The first game of the season, his team didn't have enough players. She knew the plays because Nimrod and I run the same basic plays so she fit right in. She played the entire game and held her own. Many parents were wowed by her. Then, she went on to immediately play her in own game. She handled it with modestly while at the gym but when we got home she was jumping out of skin. It was a blast for her.

--The highlight for Buckaroo was playing against the "other" best player in the league (also a good friend of his). Both teams were undefeated when they met up and there was a little bit of hype leading up to this game. Buckaroo and the other player of course had to guard each other. This only helped sharpen their skills and pick up their game play. The crazy thing was that the game ended in a tie! There is no overtime in our city league so that is what happened. Buckaroo had the best game and had fun competitively playing against his friend. It was nice to have it end in a tie. Later in the season they met again and our team ended up winning. Nobody seemed to notice and Buckaroo was just as happy as when it ended in a tie.

In the middle of Basketball season, Nimrod came down with the chickenpox. It was so bizarre. He never had them a child and thought he was immune, WRONG! He was quarantined for a week and we all avoided him like the plague. The nice thing was that while I went off to work, he was at home with a huge honey-do list. It was nice having a "wife" for a week. We heard horror stories about adults with chickenpox but he was very fortunate and had no itching and very little scarring.

Spring Break came and went in a blur. We managed to take in a Spring Training game with Pickles and her mom. We all tried to catch up on sleep and not do anything taxing. The kids and I went to the river 3 different days and played in the water. That was a ton of fun!

Basketball ended at 12pm on a Saturday and Baseball started at 2pm on that same day. We hit the ground running. With Nimrod coaching both of the kids teams and me being president of the league, we were out at the park 6 nights a week....and we wouldn't have it any other way. Buckaroo's team went 11-1. He pitched a game where he struck out 13 players. I got it on video so can watch it when I am old and he is in the pros :) Punky Girl rocked in t-ball! She hit the ball into the outfield and threw players out at first base. I know there are no outs in tball but she still did it and did it well.

Whew! We flew through February, March and April. Actually May too if you knew of all the end of the school year activities. Buckaroo won his grade level spelling bee. Punky placed in her age bracket soccer shootout. She doesn't even play soccer but the schools in the area had a competition and she placed 3rd.

Now you know why my blog is only updated once every few months! I would promise to get better but I know that would be an empty promise. Instead, I will spend a week each summer recapping the last six months.

Mid-Life Crisis

Something happened this year. I can't really explain it. Maybe a mid-life crisis. Maybe a new set of taste buds. (I heard they sluff off every 70 days. Somebody should google that and see if it is true). Anyway, the point is, I have changed. I have become a coffee drinker. I can hear the gasping occurring throughout the Internet as you read this. The shock, the horror, I know. Not only do I drink coffee, I went from cold-brewing it in a glass jar to having my own grinder and press. AND, I make my own creamer. Some of you are thinking, "What has this world come to?" All I can say is, my iced coffee has become one of my favorite parts of the day.

From this...

to this--in six months. It's a crazy world I live in!

Baseball Season

My Favorite Baseball Players

Another year of Little League has come and gone. Punky Girl played her last last year of tball and will move on to machine pitch softball next season. She is definitely ready and wants to be the catcher. Can you imagine any other position of for her? Here she is in her "gunfighter" position, waiting for the ball. She was on the Woodpeckers. We got a few laughs out of that team name.

OOPS! She missed but she tried hard. Look at that stretch.

Buckaroo was chosen for the All-Star team. I LOVE this picture I took of him.

He is an intense base runner and likes to antagonize the pitchers at little bit. There are no lead-offs in Little League but he doesn't return to the base right away just to make the pitchers think twice about him. In fact, in this game, he got the pitcher to throw at first base and Buckaroo ended up stealing second base on the play.

Buckaroo's Birthday

In the Fall, Buckaroo wrote a persuasive letter explaining why we should take him to Opening Day. Well, fortunately for him, we thought that was a good idea since we all wanted to go to. We wrote him a response letter and enclosed tickets for the game. It was a priceless moment. We had a GREAT day at the ballpark!

Dad and Buckaroo watching a fantastic play


Grammie and Punky Girl having a good time

We also had a day at the river with Buckaroo and some friends. I thought this was a pretty cool picture of all of them sitting by the river eatin' their dogs.

Camping Trip

We went on our annual Memorial Day camping trip with our great group of friends and had a fantastic time. The kids played hard, the women talked too much, and the men ate too much.

My handsome men

Punky Girl isn't Punky Girl without a little dirt on her face




Buckaroo killed a squirrel with his pellet gun. He is quite proud of his kill.

Family Fun at the Beach

No beach trip is complete without some fishing done by my family (excluding me, of course)

Punky Girl woke me up to come take a picture of this fish she caught. (I can think of better reasons to have to be woken up, i.e.coffee, but she didn't think I'd mind).

Nimrod hates this picture but I am rather fond of it.



My favorite one in YEARS! You will be seeing it on our Christmas cards.

Fun in the Ocean

This was the year of boogie boarding and surf boards. The water was FREEZING but with the investment of some wetsuits, the kids literally spent the entire week in the ocean. "Chick Magnet" improved his surfing and my kids really got into boogie boarding.

Buckaroo even attempted a few tricks.

"Look, Dad, one hand!"


When we went to buy the wetsuits, she told the store Dude that she would wear ANY color but pink. You should have seen his face. She must have been the first girl to ever tell him that. She was thrilled because she got to get a suit from the "boy" section. It doesn't matter if it is a boy or girl, she still looks stinkin' cute!

A rare moment of non-boogie boarding fun

He is so handsome, I can hardly stand it! Doesn't he look like he belongs at the beach?

Bucakaroo and me boogin'

4th of July

We were blessed to spend another Fantastic Fourth of July at the beach. A few of the family members decided to have a Statue of Liberty contest.

This is Chef S.L.'s entry.

Punky Girl

Cousin "Chick Magnet"

And the winner was...Cousin "Chick Magnet"!


This picture is an inside joke and had to be posted. NICE HAND!

Fire Museum

As one of our summer activities, I took the kids to a fire museum. For those of you who know Punky Girl, you know she was in heaven. She got to dress up as a fireman and drive to a fire. We got to listen to a live police scanner and her firemen get called out. That was very exciting for the kids. We also got to see fire engines dating back to the 1790s. Very fun and educational.

Buckaroo managed to have fun even though it wasn't really his thing.

We found this Chief rig with CFD on the side. I HAD to take a picture of Punky Girl and this rig. Coincidence? I think not!

My Lost Boy

Something happened over the summer. I didn't see it coming but I should have. The signs were there. People kept commenting on it but it didn't register to me what was going on. And then, BOOM! It smacked me in the face with the click of a camera. In the blink of a shutter, my little boy was gone. He grew up, figuratively and literally. One month he was showing me how proud he was of his squirrel kill with his sweet little boy smile and the next month I get flashed the peace sign. As soon as I saw the picture I knew my baby boy was no longer a baby. I should have seen it coming; the pictures tell the story--the tongue sticking out, the aggressive base running, the showing off on the boogie board. All the proof was there, it just took me looking at the pictures to realize the truth. While I jest in this post about it, I am genuinely saddened by the whole process. I will never get him back. I only have the memories and pictures to remember what a sweet thing he was. I am sure the next phase of Buckaroo will be a wild ride, well maybe not wild-it is Vanilla Buckaroo-but it won't be the same.

I know he did my family proud with this peace sign-the tradition lives on!

Mom School

The following conversation is true in it's entirety, unfortunately.

Punky Girl is getting ready for school one morning and as usual there is something bothering her--socks, underwear, pants, shoes, too tight a shirt on her "guns"--the list goes on. As she is fighting with her sock (I think that was it) she says to me, "I don't want to be a mom when I grow up."

me: "Why not?"

Punky: "Because I am already tired of school and I don't want to have to go to mom school."

me: "Mom what??"

Punky: "You know, mom school, where you went to learn how to be a mom."

me: "There is no mom school, dear."

Punky:"What??"

me: "I had to learn how to be a mom from practicing, talking to other moms, reading books and just figuring it out on my own."

Punky: " Oh, well then you DEFINITELY need to go to mom school."

me: "HUUUH...well I guess I will have to work on that." (sarcastically said)

I go into the kitchen and repeat the conversation, in a not so nice voice, to Nimrod. I told him that HE could go in there and help her with her socks since I didn't apparently learn the right way at mom school. So he goes in and tells Punky that I was going to mom school. She got a a little excited and said, "Really?" and he replied, "Yes, to be a teacher there because she is so good at being a mom." Punky rolled her eyes and said, "I don't think that is going to work out."

After I got over my little fit, I decided to work it to my advantage. Now, when I do something "wrong" I just blame it on mom school. This is working out just fine for me. For any other mom school flunkies out there, I hope you too can torment you children a little longer with your lack of parenting knowledge and skills. I intend to make the most of it!

Happy Thanksgiving

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

I hope you all had a wonderful time of rest and visiting with the ones you love. We gave thanks this year for so many things. Even when the rest of the world is in turmoil we can still be thankful for the blessings God continues to provide. When all else fails, His love endures forever and is for each and everyone of us. For this, I give thanks.

Punky Girl made this fantastic turkey to greet everyone that came to her grandparents' house.

This is her preparing to "shoot" the turkey. Who knows why she wanted to pretend to do this, but she did.

Punky Girl and her cousin Smiley. Punky Girl loves having a little one to boss around at all the family gatherings. It is a good thing Smiley has a little bit of "punk" in her to hold her own.



We ended the day with a kill. Buckaroo shot his first rabbit with a gun. He had already killed one with his bow when he was 4, but for some reason a bb gun hunt was more of a challenge. How many of you can say you ended Thanksgiving with a rabbit kill?

The Year of the Appliances

When Nimrod was getting ready for his big hunt, he asked if we had a coffee pot. (He doesn't drink coffee but his dad wanted it for the hunt).I don't use our little coffee pot on a regular basis so I had to dig through the cupboards. Guess what I found? A roasting oven. I didn't even know I had one. It was brand new. I think Nimrod's grandma gave it to us when we got married 13 years ago. So, since I had so much luck with the toaster oven (LOL) I thought I should try using it.

We love 7 bone roast and don't really enjoy having the oven on for 3-4 hours so this was going to be my perfect solution. I put the roast in and 10 hours, yes 10, later and the roast was done. I would like to say that the roaster oven was defective because it had never been used but that would be a lie. As with the toaster oven, I learned something. It helps if you put the oven on the correct temperature. Cooking at 225 degrees takes twice as long as cooking at 325 degrees.

We had cereal that night for dinner.

THE BIG ONE

He did it! I told you how Nimrod had gotten the tag of a lifetime. NOW, he has the deer of a lifetime. This is a 33 inch buck that just may make the record books. He has yet to have to officially scored but I'm rooting for him. Don't you just love the way God painted the sky to make the picture even more beautiful?

But You Said...

A few weeks ago in Punky's Sunday School class they discussed praying. The kids learned they can talk to God about ANYTHING and pray when they are sad, happy, scared, frustrated, and just about any other emotion.

Later that night when it was time to get ready for bed, she did NOT want to take a shower. This surprised me because she usually loves taking showers. She gets in there and "teaches" and plays. I mean she has a running dialogue that could last hours if I would let her stay in there. Anyway, I finally get her in there with tears and screaming. She starts talking to her students and crying about not wanting to be there. FYI-this was day 7 of Nimrod being gone and I had little patience. So I leave her in there to go get Buckaroo started with his shower. I come back and she has stopped crying. She is still going on and on in her monologue. I figured she was whining to her "students" about how mean her mom is. I flippantly say as I walk in, "Are you still whining?" She immediately stops talking-"NO! I am not whining." I let it go and have her finish the shower.



A little while later Punky Girl comes into the kitchen and in her little girl voice says to me, "Mommy, you hurt my feelings when you came in and asking me if I was still whining. I wasn't whining." I kindof rolled my eyes and half-heartily apologized for her hurting her feelings and then quickly followed up with, "It sure sounded like you were whining. If you weren't, then what were you doing?" "I was praying to God and YOU said in Sunday school we could talk to go about ANYTHING so I was telling him how mad I was at you 'cuz you frustrated me when you made me take a shower and I didn't want to."



Oh...maybe I should rethink my lessons so they don't come back to bite me.

Halloween Fun

Halloween started with the carving of the Pumpkins. Punky Girl wanted a "scary" looking one. See left pumpkin. Buckaroo wanted a "vampire teeth" pumpkin. See right pumpkin. I drew, Nimrod carved and the kids scooped. They loved the guts of the pumpkin.

Our resident "fierce" knight

Punky Girl is the CUTEST police officer I know. We made the costume from things around the house that we had. It was fun to do together. Gotta love wonder-under.




Our friend loaned her his real police hat and her daddy bought her handcuffs so that made it extra special.

One Motley Crew-an original purple bird, a policegirl, a "harried" mom and a fierce knight. Guess which one didn't have to make up a costume?