4 1/2 Hours at Starbucks

Last night a friend and I went out to celebrate her birthday. We met at Starbucks and thought that we might go to a movie or to dinner from there, but we ended up just staying and chatting at Starbucks for our entire evening out. After a cup of coffee, a glass of water, 4 1/2 hours, and a prompting from the Starbuck's lady with a broom we called it a night. When I realized how long we had been there I was amazed. It had not seemed that long at all. We had such a great time just visiting and getting to know each other better. I love talking to her. She has such great insights into life. We have a lot in common, and we like to share and compare our life stories. I guess that the phrase "time flies when you're having fun" is true. Happy Birthday Bea.

Sentimental

I am a sentimental person... probably too sentimental. I save every alomost every paper my kids write on - especially when they are learning to draw smiley faces and write their names, I keep way too many toys and books that they have played with - I can't bear to pass on some of the things that I have such fond memories of them playing with, I have saved almost all of their baby clothes - I can't even think about giving those precious things that bundled my babies away, I even have significant clothes of my own that I will probably never wear again - who needs the dress that they left their wedding in or bridesmaid dresses? Well, there is something less common that I am also attached to. Trees and bushes at my house. I always hate it when they get trimmed. It always seems like too much. Maybe it is because I am so bad at growing flowers - trees and bushes are pretty self-sufficiant. Maybe that is why I get so attached to them. Maybe their fullness reminds me that I kept them alive. Maybe I just like things more natural looking, less manicured. Well, today I literally cried over Corey trimming and cutting down trees at our house. After consulting my outdoorsey brother, he decided to "clean things up" in the back. I hate it! My little cove of overgrown trees is gone. Maybe it looks better, but I don't care. It was cozy. It was what I loved about the back yard when we bought this house. Now it is gone. So call me too sentimental, I don't care. I like things the way that I like them.

Little Boys

My little buddy has a soul-mate friend. He is a neighbor boy that happens to go to school with Jack too. They have spent most every day together for much of the summer. They don't do anyting overly exciting when they are together... they are just little boys that do the things that little boys do. Usually they are outside - riding bikes or scooters, playing "cowboys", swimming, playing board games, making plans to build a clubhouse, hammering boards together, playing with plastic "guys", playing "good guys/ bad guys"... Ocasionally, they will go inside of one of their houses and play video games or watch a movie. They have not once uttered the typical kid-words, "We're bored." They just love to be together having simple fun. I love that about them! They are both very sweet, innocent boys. In no way macho or too cool to have good old fashioned fun. Today, Jack ran in and said that they were going to take a picnic to the neighborhood picnic tables. He promptly started slopping peanut butter and jelly on bread, shoved some Starbursts in his pocket, grabbed some juice boxes, and ran out the door. As I watched them, they were so cute eating their little boy lunch at that big ol' picnic table! I am thankful for the gift that my Jack has in his friend Josh and pray that they will continue to be friends forever.

The Drinking Log

Traditions are funny. Some of the ones that my family has, I don't even know where they came from or why. Like drinking from "the drinking log". I know that my mom's side of the family used to have family reunions in the Cimarron Canyon when she was a child and would drink from this log. Ever since then, anytime a Hennigh decendant (at least those on our branch of the family tree) pass the log, we stop and take a drink from its natural "spouts". It is probably a gross thing to some people, but it is a fun highlight of our family trips. One that my kids started talking about before we ever left Texas and reminded us of the whole trip..."Don't forget, we have to stop at the drinking log on the way home."

Our Vacation - The Long Version

So, here is the run-down of our wonderful, quick mountain trip.

Last week...

Monday -

We decided to go to the mountains this Thursday afternoon after Corey worked a 1/2 day.

Wednesday -

Corey called me at 2:00 in the afternoon, and said, "Let's go ahead and leave today." Nothing was packed, but we pulled it together in record time.

At 6:00 someone showed up, unannounced, for a showing of our house. We were not completely packed and Corey was in the shower, but we threw it all in the car and were gone in about 15 minutes then we ran a few errands before we headed out.

We arrived at my granparents' sometime in the middle of the night - 1:30ish, I think. We sat up and talked with them for an hour or so. It was wonderful hearing their stories... the first time he saw her, living in the mountains as a boy, trips their family had made to the mountains, etc. I wish I could record all of the stories that they have told me in my life. I love them all.

Thursday -

The alarms (yes, 2 of them) went off at 5am. Corey turned them both off. Too tired. Grandad woke us up a little later, and we enjoyed making and eating breakfast and more conversation with my grandparents.

At 9am we got on the road. After a very long stop and getting lost in Amarillo and taking a wrong road in New Mexico, we FINALLY got to Red River and found a camping spot.




It is luck-of-the draw, which spot you get, and ours was pretty good... on the river, near the restroom, and close to bridge that leads to Fawn Lakes. We got the tent up but had not bought groceries yet, so we went to town to eat dinner and go to Der Markt - the tiny little grocery store in town. We ate outside on the deck overlooking the river and the ski mountains at Capo's - the little Italian restraunt - like we do every time we are in town. It was great. The kids threw rocks in the river while we waited for our food. After dinner we went to the tiny, overpriced, old, but somehow quaint grocery store. When we were getting into the car, it started to rain. No big deal. It rains almost every day in the mountains - for a little while. We were all tired from our long day in the car anyway, so we just went back to the tent and all read by the light of our flashlights UNTIL the drips started. At first it was not too bad. The tent leaked a little, but we had towels and were sopping up all that we could. Corey even went out in the pouring rain and worked on the tent so it would drain better and dug a trench so the water would not accumulate by our tent. We got all tucked in again realizing that it might not be the most comfortable night ever, but we would survive. Then we dozed off.... About an hour or so later I rolled over in my sleep, and the pond that had accumulated on the other side of the bed followed me! I am not talking "a little damp" here, people. I was WET! I turned my flashlight on and shined it at the celing. It was RAINING in our tent! I shined the light over to my kids, and it looked like they had been sprinkled by a watering can all over their sleeping bags - although they were sleeping through it. Knowing that it was only going to get colder and that this was no "mountain shower" but was a full blown rain storm, we decided to load everyone up - In the rain. In the middle of the night. - and go to town to find a hotel room. I had taken my socks off, so they would not get wet, and my feet were literally "pruney" from the amount of rain on the tent floor! As you can imagine, not much is open in the middle of the night in the tiny town of Red River, so we went from hotel to hotel until we found one that had a vacancy - and a kitchen for all of our newly purchased groceries. Again, we moved all of the kids. Allie was able to stumble to the room on her own, Jack never woke up through out the whole ordeal, and Cooper was very confused - to put it mildly. He cried and cried and cried saying, "I want to go home!" Finally, we all got settled, and got to sleep sometime in the middle of that night.

Friday -

We woke up in our nice warm beds. Jack was scared when he woke up as he did not know where he was or how he got there. We cooked a big breakfast, drank hot chocolate by the fire, and opened up all of the windows and doors to breathe in the mountain air. Then, we went to our campsite to assess the damage and get our wet blankets, pillows, and sleeping bags, so we could let them dry. We played there for a while then came back to town. We laid all of our things out to dry then Allie & I went shopping and the boys rested in the room. Then, Jack & Corey went fishing and the girls rested in the room. After that, we all went to the little shops and the local playground. We spent the evening in the room - fire in the fireplace and windows open again. It was so wonderful. We broke down and watched some TV, but even that we so enjoyable and relaxing.





Saturday & Sunday -

We spent the morning in town because we knew once we got back to our campsite, we would not want to leave. We went swimming at our hotel (cold!!!), the kids found a patch of snow, we rented the funniest little car for an hour and took turns driving around town, the kids played at the park, and we took family pictures at the bridge over the Red River - like we do every trip. When we got back to the campground we did our favorite mountian things - throwing rocks in the river, digging in the dirt, reading books, sitting by the campfire, roasting hot dogs, making s'mores, going on walks, fishing, napping, playing games and singing songs with the kids... It was perfect. Also, Jack and Corey went on a special hike where Corey gave Jack his first pocket knife. A little nerve wracking for the mama, but Jack sure was proud! Oh yeah, we also Scotchgaurded the tent and hung an extra tarp over it for good measure.










Monday -

We woke up to our last glorious morning in the mountains, ate breakfast, and broke camp. I sat by the river and had a little cry - I love it there so much and did not want to come home to all that awaited me here. The kids and I fit in another walk to "the island" that they had discovered in the river then we all loaded up and headed to town. By that time, it was lunchtime, so we stopped at another Red River favorite of our family's - Shotgun Willie's- and ate. After a little souvenier shopping, we were off.






We made a stop in the Cimarron Canyon for a few family traditions... to take a drink out of "the drinking log" (more on that to come in a future entry) and to take a picture by the Palisades - or as Jack called them "the Poweraides". When we got back in the car, we rode with the windows down and felt the mountain air until we were out of the beautiful Rockies.





We drove, and drove, and drove. We only made one "big stop" after the mountains and that was at the Cadillac Ranch. It was cool! We had always heard of it but had never seen it. When it was almost 11pm, and Cooper had not slept at all and was unhappy - to say the least - that he was still in his carseat we decided to stop at my grandparents'. Our "4 hour trip" to Clarendon - where they live - took 7 hours. We had planned to drive straight through to get home, - Corey had a 9 am and a 10 am appointment the next day - but at the last minute, we decided to stop and sleep at Grandma & Grandad's for a little while. When I called and let them know that we were going to drop in - last minute and late at night - I apologized to my Grandma for the inconvienience. She said, "I'm your Grandma. That is what Grandma's do." I felt so loved just from hearing that little statement.



Tuesday (today) -

At 4:00am Corey's alarm went off and by 4:30 we were on the road. All the kids stayed/ went right back to sleep and slept until we were about an hour from home. That was a huge blessing! We pulled into town about 9:30am, Corey jumped in the shower and was off to work by 10:00. I have spent the day trying to acclimate to real life as I revel in the memories of the mountains.

Home

Well, we're home... although I somehow felt at home while we were camping in a tent by the river in New Mexico too. I think the mountains are where my soul is the most content. From the minute I saw the majestic mountains, rolled down my window and smelled the fresh pine air, and felt the coolness on my skin I felt more like myself than I ever do here. I love wearing sweatshirs, getting my feet wet in the river, taking walks in God's beautiful creation, sitting in the sun yet not being hot, the laid back lifestyle that the mountian-people live, watching my kids explore and find fun in the simplicity of nature, falling asleep to the sound of the river. If I could, I would pack up today and drive right back to my home-away-from-home.

Mountain Fun

Here are a few of the 349 pictures that we took on our trip to the mountains. Hopefully, we can get a slide show together to post later. Until then...

Friends

Here are a few pictures of my kids with their buddies today at the creek. (2 of the Linebarger kids are not pictured) They have all been friends since they were born. It is fun watching them grow up together.

Creek Day

Today we went with our friends, the Linebargers, to a creek in town. We tried to take pictures of our kiddos - although the lighting was not great. The kids had a blast! The big ones explored and the little ones had a blast throwing rocks and splashing. It was great old-fashioned fun.

We're Going To The Mountains!

Every year about this time Corey and I get an itch for the mountains. This year we had not even considered going... until about 2 days ago. That is when the point-of-no-return desire for the beauty, peace, solitude, family-time, and cool weather kicked in. We talked it over for about a day and yesterday we decided that yes, it would be worth it to make a flying long-weekend trip to Red River, NM. We love that little town. In some ways it actually feels like home. Nothing changes much from year to year, so whether it has been 2 years or 5 since our last visit it always seems like we are picking up right where we left off last time. The last time we went to Red River was 2 years ago. Our baby was 3 months old. Yes, we camped for a week, in the mountains with a 3 month old baby. It was wonderful! I am a little nervous about this adventure as that little 3 month old has grown into quite a rowdy 2 year old that happens to love the water. So, I am not sure if the river is going to be quite as relaxing this time as it was last time. That's okay. It will be a memory. A true adventure, I am sure. Today when I told my grandad that we were going to the mountains, he said, "That's great! Do it while you are young. You never know when you won't be able to do it anymore." This from a man that loves the beautiful mountains but whose health will not allow him to visit them anymore. So, we are going! Last minute and with other hurdles that need to be jumped, but we are going!

Laundry

Today = Laundry for me. Laundry, laundry, and more laundry. Does anyone else wonder how in the heck their family makes so much laundry?!? It baffels me that we 5, who wear many of our clothes and use our towels multiple times, could create such an amazing amount of dirty laundry!!! Well, the dryer just buzzed, so I'm off to my destiny for today... LAUNDRY!

2 Year Olds!

When people tell you how hard being a mommy is I think that they are usually talking about the sleepless nights, the being on-call 24 hours a day, the no time to yourself, etc. The big secret is that having your kids' picture taken should be added to that "hard things about being a mommy" list. Oh my gosh! Every time I have taken one of my kids, when they are little, to get pictures taken I reach a point that I am sweaty, frustrated, and near tears. I was at that very point yesterday as my sister-in-law and I tried to get 2 two year olds (and a photographer... long story) to cooperate. Our two little bundles of joy are special cousins. They were due on the same day and born 9 days apart. So I like to say that we get to "play twins" with them. We have dressed them alike, had birthday parties together, and have taken them to have birthday pictures the last 2 years. They are great fun! I love to watch them together - even when they are snatching each others toys and whopping each other in the head. They are so funny. They are learning about life together. So, because they are so cute, and I want to capture it, I endure the photo sessions. :) I am so glad that I endured yesterday. Have you ever seen anything cuter than 2 babies on a motorcycle in their leather jacket and boa?!?!

My Little Cowboy

Yesterday I took Jack to get his pictures taken. It had been so long since he had any taken at a studio, and I wanted some of him that were taken at the same time as Allie's. (I recently took Cooper for 2 year old pictures too.) Anyway, Jack was such a good sport. When I look at his pictures I think about how he is still just a little boy in cowboy boots and hat but on the verge of being a big, big kid. Where did the time go? So much of his babyhood is a blur to me. I was an overwhelmed mommy of two little ones most of his early years, but I do remember the intense love I felt for him. That love has just increased as I see his little personality emerge more and more every day. He is such a generous guy. So thoughtful and innocent. He cares about other people. He wants to please God. I am so proud of my little cowboy!

My Girl and Me

My Model

Last night on our date I took Allie to get pictures taken at a new studio in town. I love taking my own pictures of my kids, but Allie really wanted to check out this new place. The thing that I think she was most excited about is that she got to change outfits half way through. It was a photo shoot for her. She was the model. It was so fun to see her having fun as she had her picture taken. After we got done at the photography studio, we went dinner. We had so much fun visiting, laughing, sharing a milkshake and even arm wrestling. She is growing up so fast. No longer the little girl that I think of at first thought when I think of my Allie. Sometimes I wish that I could have stopped time. That I could keep her in her little rompers with the big bows on her head. That I could still hold her little dimpled hand. But I also love the times that I get to spend with my big girl.