Off like a Herd of Turtles

We've been boppin' around so much lately that I don't even have time to keep up with myself these days! I'm going to have one heck of a time backtracking sooo I'll do a quick "Wedgie" to catch everyone up so I can write some posts about other things...other than our dailies!

One morning, I was sitting in our camp gazing at our awesome view, looked over and I saw the cactus next to me had a perfect heart "paddle". It indeed made my day and made me realize you can find love anywhere...even in some "dangerous" places...i.e. my cactus!

[caption id="attachment_4886" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Perfect.[/caption]

We (my tribe and Camp Mellow, Bryce) left Sedona and headed toward the Flagstaff area. It had just turned too hot all of a sudden, sitting anywhere but in A.C. was exhausting...and that rarely happens. We had heard that Bob and some others were out toward Williams so we headed that direction.

We ended up on some really nice, quiet public land and only about 3 miles from town. Williams has Historic Route 66 going through it so there's tons of cute shops, restaurants and things to look at!

While we were so close to town, Bryce was a sweetheart and let me borrow his bike so J' & I could ride into town together...but not before J' tried it on his own...and then made a basket for the Nana Bug to come too! Did I mention our dog is spoiled rotten?

J' took one of our milk crates with some nuts & bolts and bolted down the milk crate onto the bike rack, then Savannah has a carabiner connecting to her harness to keep her inside the crate. The first attempt was a little wobbly because she didn't know what was going on and she wasn't locked in tight enough, but after getting used to the bumpy roads, she rode like a champ! Now we all get to ride into town as a family.....awwwwwwww.

[caption id="attachment_4896" align="aligncenter" width="350"] The beautiful town[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_4893" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Savannah is so chill...think she likes bike rides?[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_4894" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Making History![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_4895" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Riding home...such a good girl![/caption]

We had a ton of fun riding in and around town together. It was nice doing something like that with all of us...one bike doesn't do much for a family of three! Thanks to the B-man for letting me take his cool new bike, it was hella fun...I felt like a kid again!

Weeeeeeeeeeeee......

When was your last play date?

PEACE

 

Babes & Bicycles

Not too much to report today.

The boys went on their first trail ride today and the girls stayed home due to some personal issues I didn't factor into the equation...grrr. They were gone the majority of the day but they seemed like they had a blast and that's what matters!

Back at camp...

I can say that I tried to 'hold down the fort' but it was so dang windy I took the fort down!! So I guess I did hold it down, eh!? I took the awning off (not a simple chore for this girl...alone) around 2 p.m., the wind seemed to start dissipating around 4 so I put the awning back up but since I don't have the brute strength of the hubs it was flying all over the place...so down it came again. Needless to say, we had to stay in the van all day but the bed was down so it wasn't too shabby...just one of those days. The boys returned to camp around 7 p.m. and in their possession a new bicycle...not a second one, a new one. In a week the one we bought was almost toast, so the boys went back to get another one and the "bike builder" gave them all brand new parts to build a new bike with...and it was a little cheaper! All the guys say they like this one much better than the one that was returned...I guess they will find out tomorrow on their next ride!

[caption id="attachment_4684" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Build-a-bike[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_4685" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Wreaking Havoc[/caption]

PEACE

This is How we Do... ♫ ♪

We knew when we went to bed last night that we had a pretty 'busy day' ahead of us.

A.m. rituals, work some, then...Spaaaaa Daaaaay!(Oprah voice) A real spa day! Say wanted to 'reward' us for helping her with her website...what better way, than spa day!?

We were up early again this morning, hopefully it's turning into a habit. I'm sure the nicer weather and the places we are going is going to make that time even earlier. It feels great to be up & at 'em, getting all of the usual stuff out of the way, then by 9 a.m....It's on!

❤Love that Sunshine!!!☼

After getting up, I walked Savannah, tried to go into Petsmart but I was too early...again. I did read the sign wrong, they open at 9 a.m., not 8...boo. I'm sure we both would have enjoyed it. We all met up in Joon Van and while they worked diligently, I made cafe' and worked on some of my stuff. A couple of hours later, everything is looking good on her site and everyone is ready to blow off some steam at the spa...yes, I just said that! haha We packed up and drove Downtown to the Spa Resort. The weather is perfect today, it's a little overcast so it won't be too hot, perfect for Nana's set-up. We walked into the club...Sayward giving us the grand tour. This place couldn't be a better place to be. The Spa has a fitness center, a full day (women & men, just separate) private spa with mud baths, saunas, massage, tranquility rooms and 3 different pools as well as an attached hotel, restaurant and casino. After the full tour, we were signed in, given keys and the doors were opened to our afternoon playground. We all went off in different directions: Say-Pool, Me-locker room, J'-Showers.

[caption id="attachment_4205" align="aligncenter" width="304"] Workin' it out[/caption]

I started in one of the weight rooms, there were a bunch of different machines for pretty much everything: arms, legs, chest, butt, abs, back. I moved around the room mostly working the things I would like toned, it's not every day you get good machines like that! I finished up on a spinning bike for about 15 minutes at a good pace with some pretty good resistance. J' did his own workout with weights and jump rope. We both met Say out by one of the mineral pools after our workouts. The sun has been peeking in and out of the blankets of clouds that are lying on-top of us. It's super nice.

There is a great breeze that is the perfect blend of warm and cooler air. I feel like a kid getting into all of the different pools, all 3 pools are set at a different temperature, the cool breeze against your skin is such an exhilarating feeling...makes you feel your skin! Sayward asked me what I was thinking... I said, "I was just thinking to myself...do I want to get into this pool...or that pool." She giggled with happiness that that was what I was contemplating at the moment.

[caption id="attachment_4207" align="aligncenter" width="313"] Spa Eye Candy![/caption]

Our lunch was probably the most refreshing thing we've had to eat in a minute...other than the world's best sandwich yesterday...A huge chicken salad with spinach, cukes, roasted peppers, tomatoes, egg whites, bacon bits, olives, BIG blue cheese crumbles, cheese and avocado, with the most amazing homemade salad dressing. The salad was of amazing proportion and was just divine...yummmmerssss. I don't even have a picture because I wasn't missing out on any of that!

....

We said our see-ya's to Say and were driving down the road by 6:30 p.m.

[caption id="attachment_4216" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Good day![/caption]

The Coast was calling our names, we had to mush on.

Wish us safe travels...

PEACE

Chilly Climate = Warm Wishes

The wind and chill stuck around for the most part of today, although it did warm up enough for us to take a walk around the parking lot later in the afternoon. This parking lot is so big that it's a really nice walk, actually feeling like we're getting some exercise. We walked around, gabbing and taking in all of the different sights...still getting used to all of the different cactus and plants...they're pretty cool. We walked over to one part of the lot that looked like it might be a sidewalk to a walking path, but just ended up being a dead-end sidewalk with a bunch of cactus 'balls' on the ground. J' went to kick one of the 'balls' and it stuck in his shoe...he was amazed, never had he gone to kick something out of the way just to have it stick in his shoe. He spent a few minutes trying to get it out of his shoe as well as trying not to get it re-stuck in his finger! Crazy cactus balls!

[caption id="attachment_3860" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Kick the 'ball"[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3861" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Ball gets stuck in shoe!![/caption]

I shot a few more pics of the crazy cactus that are out here in this parking lot...they are super neat looking...I'm going to have to find out the names of these things!

If anyone knows what they are called, please let me know. Other than that, just another lazy afternoon of walking, working and Winter! I hope the weather starts getting a little nicer and warmer and then stays that way...I'm getting over this whole Winter thing here! haha

PEACE

Yo' Vanilla...Let's Kick It!

We decided yesterday to make some goals for ourselves, nothing too crazy but something to strive for and if nothing else, to give us something new to do! So to kick off the "official" start of our goals we came back to the park we found the other day, Desert Breeze Park. J' brought his weights, jump rope and push-up bars out to the soccer field. I brought Savannah and some other things.

[caption id="attachment_3750" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Sir-Jumps-A-Lot[/caption]

We both did our own thing; he did his workout, I did mine and I also flipped through my Healing Crystal book and we all ran around, chased each other and played together. It's a beautiful day today. I also laid in the grass, soaking in the sun...it feels good to have sun touching skin again, also watching J' jump rope.

I love watching him jump rope, he's so darn good at it. He can do some crazy moves and he's hella fast...it's really cool.

[caption id="attachment_3753" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Sorry for her butt...[/caption]

When I jump rope I look like a second grader taking two hops in between one spin...I'm a watcher, not a jumper! haha We walked the trail back to the van, even though the van was parked literally right where we were in the field...more exercise! Plus, the park is so awesome and again it was a beautiful day!

We jumped back in the van, did a few errands, ran over to Wal-mart bought ourselves a Soccer ball and went back over to the park. J' has been wanting a Soccer ball and/or a Football since the Summer and today seemed like thee perfect day to get one...so we did! He played Soccer throughout his childhood, I on the other hand, tried to stay very far away from Soccer while growing up, for a few reasons: 1- I did not want to get kicked and having to play in grade school, know this is a fact of Soccer. 2- I did not like running. 3- I didn't want to get hurt. 4- I was a swimmer...not a person who ran after soccer balls getting kicked in the shins! haha When we had to play in school, I was always at the opposite end of the field from where the ball was, getting yelled at to, "Get in there!" Uh, nope...I was good at 'this' end of the field, where there was no ball kicking action goin' on!

So, this would really be my first attempt at actually kicking the ball and getting the ball kicked back to me, oh and running....ugh running! I think I did enough running for the both of us today due to J' being able to kick the crap out of this ball and my kicking it back to him was like the 2nd grader jumping rope...funny stuff! It was fun though and a really good workout. It's good for the hand-eye coordination, which I actually have! I'm not a total wussy girly girl, I did swim but I also played Water Polo for many many years and that is not a sport for wimps...and it taught me really great hand-eye coordination. It was fun and I think kicking this ball around a few times a week, my legs, ankles and feet will get stronger and it will just get easier! Savannah was so funny to watch, we let her off of her leash because there wasn't anyone around, she ran with us the first couple of times then she just stood off on the side watching us...she's afraid of the ball! This little dog will run, growling and snarling at strangers, bicycles and motorcycles but when you start kicking a soccer ball around, she is the most timid dog you've ever seen. I wanted her to get some exercise with us but every time the ball would go near her she would jump and run away so fast, then come running over to me with her ears down and her tail between her legs. She's such a weirdo. I tried to get her used to the ball by sitting on the grass with her and touching the ball to her back and you would have thought I was trying to 'brand' her with a hot iron.

She's a crazy dog...a good dog, but a crazy dog! She doesn't know what's going on, she's so confused! Poor baby.... haha

Well that was our fun-filled, glorious goal driven day. I hope you were able to get out of the house, RV or van and do something you wouldn't normally do.

Hooray for goals!

PEACE

Hunting + 'Bug Hugs = Happiness

This morning when we woke up, we walked down to another little plateau right below the spot we were parked at. J' thought maybe if we got a little closer, we would get TV plus, it looked a bit more level and we would have a better view of the water...so we moved on down.

[caption id="attachment_2769" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Love it[/caption]

As soon as we moved I remembered I had put that big piece of Quartz, I found yesterday, by the tire so I walked back up to the 'old' spot to grab it. I asked Savannah to come with me...not on her leash. She's so funny, she is so used to being on a leash with me, I think she thought something was "going on". She was walking behind me with her head down like I was up to something, and kept looking back at Daddy  like, "Do I have to?" She's such a weirdo, as soon as I get the leash out, she's like Heck yeah man and gets totally stoked...crazy dog!

[caption id="attachment_2770" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Like pulling teeth! Come on Savannah!![/caption]

Once I got her over to me...a good 5 minutes later...she looked so pretty so I wanted to take a picture of her. I have never seen a dog dislike pictures as much as she does...as soon as she sees me pick up my camera or turn it toward her, she turns away. And she's so photogenic I don't get it!

[caption id="attachment_2771" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Now, look away...good girl![/caption]

When we got back to the van, I found J' on top of Joon digging some things out of the crates on top.

[caption id="attachment_2772" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Joon Frog?[/caption]

I washed all of our dishes, they were in need of a good overall cleansing and since I was outside I let Savannah hunt alongside me.

We made a romantic lunch of Ramen noodles and I made a little pit for our burner because the wind was blowing a little too hard, it actually blew the flame out!

I was getting a little bored and restless in the van so I took Savannah on a walk, we would both get exercise and we could both hunt...for different things of course! She would be bug/critter hunting and I would be hunting for rocks!

[caption id="attachment_2776" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Scopin' it out[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2777" align="aligncenter" width="300"] And another...[/caption]

During our hunt, I came across some interesting plant life...

[caption id="attachment_2778" align="aligncenter" width="225"] What is this?[/caption]

I even found a big enough rock to put the camera on to take a picture of the two of us!

[caption id="attachment_2775" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Self-po with the baby[/caption]

When we turned around a corner of pretty big plants and bushes, Savannah was hunting like crazy and I wish I had a bulldozer to carry all of these awesome rocks I was finding. I guess pictures will have to do!

[caption id="attachment_2781" align="aligncenter" width="300"] I love the different colors[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2782" align="aligncenter" width="225"] These looked metallic[/caption]

We hunted for about an hour, maybe longer. We started back for the van when the sun started to go down. When we got back to the van, Savannah got crabby (as usual) to me, of all people (as usual) and got in trouble... she was told by Daddy to go make-up with da' momma...

[caption id="attachment_2783" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Wasn't expecting a kiss[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2784" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Make up Hug[/caption]

As we were talking about what tonight's feast was going to be along with movie night, dinner and a movie...do I hear date night!? J' said, "Wow, look at that!"

You know it...another amazing sky from Mother Nature!

[caption id="attachment_2787" align="aligncenter" width="300"] To the left of Joon...[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2788" align="aligncenter" width="225"] ...to the right of Joon[/caption]

I'm sorry but it just never gets old.

Tonight's movie= The Big Lebowski!

Have a restful night Dude!

PEACE

Cleaning, Grinding & Digging

I know you are just dying for an update and I apologize for being a few days behind. First things first, the torsion bar... J' ended up walking over to Home Depot a couple of days ago and got an angle grinder to take it out. The darn thing just would not come out or off any way ya sliced it...so he sliced it in half and finally got the darn thing off!

[caption id="attachment_1674" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Grinding away[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1675" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Only half of it![/caption]

Our new friend, Wayne, offered us a couple of jack stands that he isn't using.  He came to check in on us after reading about the torsion bar problems from the blog, how cool is that!? He then whisked J' away to get some fresh water...FREE Water!! He's a super nice guy with a heart of gold.

Thanks Wayne! 

During the day, while J' was walking, grinding, refreshing, grinding, etc. I started feeling not so well throughout the day but figured J' already had a lot on his plate for the day, so I thought I would help with some things. I did my first potty dump ever, probably not the cleanest of all things I could have done but it needed to be done. ..so now it's done! I spent a good hour or so spraying, wiping, rinsing, filling...all of the fun stuff! 

[caption id="attachment_1676" align="aligncenter" width="225"] So fresh & so clean, clean[/caption]

The next morning I would find out that I did a few things wrong:

1&2- I twisted off the wrong cap to pour deodorizer & water into the wrong area! 3- When I twisted the cap back on, it actually didn't twist back on but crossed the threads, so it leaked a little (good thing we have the mats like we do, they got taken out and washed). 4- I didn't put any water into the top of it. Well, all I can say is, at least I tried to help. It did get a very thorough cleaning AND all the gummed up T.P. was taken out, so I did do some good! I also cleaned the inside of the van up, it looks so purty!

 I hung curtains on the outside of Joon to make it cooler on the inside...it sure heats up in here during the day. A big thank you out to SoulRaven for the curtains!

The rest of the day, when J' wasn't gone or grinding, he was working or reading on the torsion bar. I moved from one spot to another moanin' & groanin' and Savannah dug herself into a frenzy trying to get a hold of one of those Kangaroo Mice...poor things! She sure is a good digger though...she's bound to strike oil out here!

[caption id="attachment_1679" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Digging to China[/caption]

 We all know what she would do with those little mice too...exactly what she does with everything of hers... saves it for later!

[caption id="attachment_1683" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Sha-Sha's all locked up![/caption]

Let's just hope for everyone's sake she never catches up with those scared little mice but it is good exercise for her! haha

PEACE