Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Our Vacation!!

Yea, life is still going on and keeping me from posting more updates! LOL

So, we have been having some fun the last week. We packed up last Tuesday and hit the road by 6:30am on Wednesday morning. Headed up to Chama New Mexico, through some rain and lots of elevation changes, gas mileage went from 300 miles a tank to only 160 mile a tank. We pulled in around 8:30pm Mountain time. Not a bad drive, just long!
Got everything unpacked and settled in at our friends home. The kids bounced off the walls for awhile and then settled down to sleep. The parents sat up talking til after 1am! The next morning the kids were up and ready to go by 7am.... not the parents!
Had a great time visiting, exploring the sites, enjoyed some great food and even all went out to dinner 1 night! Monday morning rolled around with sad faces and breaking hearts.... it was time to pack up and start heading for home. The rounds of good byes had some tears and then we were off around 10am.
We had decided to make a few stop and see things on our way home, we didn't feel like rushing. We also planned on finding a hotel and spending the night somewhere around 1/2 way. So, the 1st stop we decided was a truck stop, to buy a power inverter, to be able to charge the tablet's that were keeping the boys entertained!
Then around 6pm, we stopped at The Cadillac Ranch. It's just west of Amarillo, TX and has 10 Cadillac's 1/2 buried in the ground, standing on end. These cars are covered in spray paint. You are allowed to be creative and graffiti the cars. It was a really neat site if you stopped to look at where the paint had changed the texture and stopped the rusting/ weathering of these cars. I had a lot of fun taking some neat pictures. Yes, somewhere along the years I have always gotten a kick out of taken pictures of textures. There are more pictures at the end of this post!

After that stop we decided to head for the Giant Cross and we thought we would find a hotel near there. The Cross and the display around it were amazing. The kids really enjoyed it. There is a gift shop, but the selection is limited to general religious items and had very few souvenirs for their location. I also was disappointed in their prices, a CD of the builder talking about the Cross was $20. Too much for so little. They also only had about 4 other items for souvenirs, none very good and priced very high. Anyway, I got some pictures just before the sun went down, we went into the gift shop before they closed, then took a few more after dark.
We then decided since it was after 8pm, it was time to find a hotel and dinner. Well, we ended up not finding a hotel until 10 pm, dinner was McDonald's... not very good one. There is not anything around the Cross, so if you want to go, do what we SHOULD have done, plan on staying in Amarillo for the night.
We got up late this morning, Marty around 7:45am, me around 8am and last up was Andy around 8:30am. Went down and got some breakfast and was back on the road by 10am. We drove through town and by an old Route 66 gas station/ restaurant that was refurbished by 2003, and was the basis for Ramon's car paint shop in the Disney Car's movie. It is listed as a historical place and now is used to house a museum and the local Chamber of Commerce. This is in Shamrock, TX.
We continued our drive home, with lots of gas stops as the gas mileage seemed to drop the whole trip! Stopped in Denton to grab some lunch and made it home around 3pm. It's not 6pm, and I already have the second load in the washer, Marty has washed the bugs off the car and the kids have ridden their bikes some. The plans for the rest of the night is to eat some dinner and watch some TV before the kids go to bed early.

Marty is back to work tomorrow at 6am, and then we have church in the evening. Everything is going to be back to normal and the usual activities. I'll check in later this week, or I'll try to! Today's post was a quick one, and an excuse to post some of the pictures I took. I hope you enjoy!

Don't forget to keep scrolling down to see more photo's!






















More texture photos.
















Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Sorry, It's been awhile!

So, I know it's been awhile since I've put up a post! So much has been happening around here and with everything going on, the blog got pushed to the back burner. Going back to the end of June, first part of July. A wonderful gentleman from our church passed away, we didn't know him well but our best friends from NM did. They came down for the memorial and stayed with us. It was a whirl-wind weekend, we had to get the house ready for another family to stay. Then so many folks wanted to spend time with them so we had an impromptu BBQ here so more folks could share their time. We had 13 adults and 7 kids running around, playing music, talking and the ice cream maker going! It was a blast.
 
 








The next week, the boys had to be packed up and sent off to church camp. The left on Wednesday morning, and returned Sunday afternoon. Over the weekend while they were gone, Marty and I just chilled out. Then when starting the laundry, to have clean clothes for the boys, the dryer decided not to heat anymore! New dryer, only 3 months old. So, that had to be fixed on Monday and then the loads of wet clothes the boys brought home, cleaned! 
     I had a Dr. check-up, well just a quick visit for RX refills as she didn't have any openings for a full check-up. With Marty's job change we have had a change in insurance. Also, had to switch Andy's SSI Disability and Medicaid to Texas. That has taken most of my time lately. I have gotten appointments for the boys, myself and working on the dentist appointments. 

     We had Soccer Camp at church, in place of a traditional VBS. All week, we had to be at church at 5pm until almost 9pm. It was hot, Marty was camp nurse, the only medical staff, and we had a few having problems with heat exhaustion. Being the spouse of the nurse, whenever a kid needed to sit inside and be watched, it became my job, so Marty could get back onto the field. It was a great week and no problems. Had Dr's appointments for the boys this week as well. Ryan's weight is up, a little more than we want. He is working on watching his eating and exercising more.
     We then had gotten a call from the Irving Chapter of AMBUCS. They are an organization that helps special needs kids and adults with bikes and sometimes build ramps for homes. The National Convention is in Fort Worth this year and they were gathering some folks to receive bikes at the convention. Andy was on the list. So, we had to get to downtown Ft. Worth by 10am on Saturday the 27th. Got his bike and then had to take it apart into 3 pieces to fit in the back of the Highlander. We then spent the rest of the day trying to find a way to haul it around! The bike is so big, the traditional bike carriers would not fit. We looked at a platform the would go on the hitch, not big enough. We also knew we would need to be able to carry a bike for Ryan. We ended up going to a trailer store and buying a 5x8 ft box trailer. We looked at a 5x6 and 5x8 ft open, flat bed trailers. The 5x6 had small tires and would only allow up to 45 MPH speeds. The 5x8 was only 200lbs lighter and the cost was only $900 cheaper, at that point, why not get the closed for more security and that way we can pack more items like camping gear and use it more! We then went an bought Ryan a new bike! I had a coupon for 5% off everything at Target and we found a 7 speed bike on sale for $40 off regular price. That is his early Birthday gift.  
   

 The same day was a work day at the church. We are getting new air conditioning for our sanctuary, it's been out for over 7 months and we have had to use our fellowship hall for everything. The electrical work was one of the last things on the list of work to do for the day and was scheduled to start around 5 pm. We got there at 6pm and were able to help a little. Well, Marty was a help, I just watched! We finally left there around 8pm, a long day!
     That next week was my birthday! I have been dreading it! Yes, now I'm 40, yes I know it's only a number. But still, it brings you to a point of focus. What have you done with the first half of your life, what accomplishments, what happened to your goals and such. Also, you realize that you are not getting any younger and the weight you have been saying you need to get rid of is still there. It's a milestone that brings reflection and time for re-dedication/ re-focus. 
     So, I have signed up for my first 5K. I also signed up Ryan to do it with me. Between his need for some weight control and my BIG need for weight loss, I am hopeful that this will do us both good. It's a Color 5K, they throw "Color Bombs" at you throughout the race and by the end you are covered in different colors! It should be a fun way to get some extra encouragement to keep going. At first, the thought of 5K was daunting, but then I looked it up and realized, it's only 3.1 miles. When you think about a SLOW walking pace is around 2 miles per hour, 3 miles shouldn't take that long. Marty and Andy will have to watch and take pictures! Neither of them were interested anyway.
     
So, the boys and I went shopping on Thursday, to buy me some birthday gifts, new clothes. I found some great ones and the boys had fun helping pick them out. Plus, I got them on a great deal! Then on Saturday, the church children and families went to Hawaiian Falls water park. We stayed all day, had fun and got pink skin (sunburns), not too bad on most but a few! We already have a plan to go on the 17th, they have a special day for special needs folks and their friends and family, with special pricing of course! We decided to stop at the customer service area and ask about renting a cabana for that day, glad we did because the ones we like the best had only 1 left to rent, we paid and got that all set up. 
So, now your all caught up on our lives. We are planning a trip to NM to visit with our best friends, going for Ryan's birthday. We have been just taking care of things around the house, Marty has been painting and working on the church website. I have been working on the choir folders and helping with music needs. We have to help Marty with his lawn care day at church this Saturday, always hot, but this week the forecast in days in the 100's and heat index warnings. The neighbor has her granddaughter this week, the kids are out in the garage playing and have been riding their bikes. I am thinking it's time to make some lunch and get back to work around the house. I have been working on organizing all the papers in the house. Bought a filing cabinet and a label maker, didn't think it was too bad until I realized we have got papers shoved everywhere! I need to find a supplier for Andy's stuff, one that takes both insurances! 
Talk to you all later. Yes, I am going to try real hard to post sooner than 6-7 weeks. Remind me if need be!