Junction, TX 9/26/16

So so close to Kyle & San Antonio, but we decided to stop here for the night. There were 2 other people checking in ahead of us & hubby was already inside. As those two folks left to get into their site I decided to get behind the wheel. Eeck! I slowly pulled forward about 50 feet. I was all excited & happy with myself for “driving” the truck & “hauling” the trailer that short distance. While I did that awesome trick the kids were playing at the playground right in front of the main building where we were parked. When hubby returned I made sure to show him my big accomplishment. Hey it was a big deal to me. Anyway, talk about a nice place next to the river! It had a nicer park then the previous place with an old school merry go round, swing set & those ride on swaying horse things. The kids were so excited to play & I was happy they released that pent up energy. Once we set up the trailer they rode their bikes to the playground then back to our site when it started getting dark. I keep saying I'm going to get a bike too so I could ride alongside them, but for now I walk/run with Dalton by my side. Once he's riding without training wheels then I'll get my bike. We walked over to look at the river, but I know I wouldn't get in that even if it was warm outside. Looked too marshy for me. They had all kinds of cute little cabins throughout the park & I made a mental note in case we ever found our way back thru here. We were kinda off the highway, but not close enough that I heard any traffic noise. Nothing a fan can't drown out. Hubby had to venture out to get jugs of drinking water & of course he brought back doughnuts. Oh boy, can you say sugar rush. Back to the playground we go! Overall a nice place to stay, but again it was a one nighter. I gotta say at this point we have become professionals at setting up & closing the camper. Next stop…..my parents!!

Carlsbad, NM 9/25/16

You'll start to see a pattern here. We hit the road & I start Googling to find a place to stay. No exception this time around. Flying by the seat of our pants. It was another one night stay just to rest up & hit the road again. We were on a time crunch to get across country (I'm sure I've mentioned that a few times already, apologies). This particular campground was pretty dated & filled with oil field workers who looked like permanent residents. I was excited about the indoor pool, but was advised not to use it since the whole outside was aluminum & they were expecting a thunderstorm. Bummer deal so that let to an explanation to my kids on why you shouldn't be in water during a storm, especially when there's lightening. Instead we played on the very outdated metal playground. There were only a couple of metal swings & one of them had the rubber seat torn off so it wasn't very safe in my opinion. They did have these 4 tire swings on a rotating pole so each kiddo could sit in/on the tire & I was able to push them around. I always had visions of a tire swing hanging from a big tree in our backyard for them to play with. Maybe some day, although they may be too old by then. Anyway, here was a laundry room, but it was locked & since I didn't do the check in process I had no idea if there was a key or after hours thing. No biggie, I wasn't plannig on using them, I just wanted to check them out. There was this guy sitting outside next to the laundry room & when we walked passed him he asked if we were they new people staying in site # whatever (I can't remember). I said “no sorry not us”. Even if it was us I wasn't about to let him know. I like to do my best to keep my family safe so I don't volunteer info. I'm sure he was harmless, but you just never know, right? There was a dog park close to our site, but it was not very appealing. The grass was overgrown around it & it was just plain ol muddy. I didn't want to take our pups in there because I didn't want to have to bathe them afterward. Needless to say this place was bare minimum & the standards were met, but that was about it. The spaceing in between sites was ok, but could have used a little more room. However, we were on the end & didn't have anyone next to us so that was a good thing. It did start to sprinkle, but there was never a thunderstorm. Dang it, we could have used a nice dip in the pool. Oh well, not much else to say about this place so on to the next.

Tuba City, AZ 9/22/16

Once we left Camp Verde I started Googling Antelope Canyon to get the scoop on tours & where to stay. Seemed like Page was the place to be, but of course everything was booked in Page. Surprise surprise. I don't understand why there aren't more rv campgrounds in Page. Antelope Canyon is like one of the biggest tourist spots in all of the U.S. & Page is right there to capitalize on all of it & there were only a couple campgrounds. I tell ya what they really bank on the hotel rooms though. Geez talk about pricey! This is why you reserve in advance & not wait until last minute. The closest place I could find was in Tuba City & thankfully there was a hotel with a rv campground out back. Since hubby's parents were traveling with us this was perfect so we could all be in one spot, them in the hotel & us out back. I gotta say this place was bare bones. Nothing spectacular about it. The ladies at the front desk were nice so that was something. It did have a bathroom & laundry room, but we didn't use either. We weren't planning on spending a lot of time here so we took what we could get. I did have the privilege of seeing a guy pee on the fence outside his tent. He was literally across from the bathrooms. Good grief & ewww. We ate inside the hotel restaurant & I ordered a taco fry bread. Holy smokes it was huge, but oh so good! Service was a bit slow, but what can you do. We filled our bellies & got ready for our morning tour of Antelope Canyon. My father in law volunteered to stay behind & watch our dogs while we all went to see the spectacular canyon. He had already been on the tour before so we would take my mother in law with us since she hadn't seen it yet. Another site for my bucket list to check off. Woohoo!

Route 66 campground & casino 9/24/16

This was a little gem we weren't expecting. As usual we didn't know where we'd stop & we came across this rv park in the back of the casino. It was brand spankin' new & we got the promotional price. It was still pricey for my taste, but it was so nice & spacious & only a few campers out there. No we didn't venture into the casino since we had the kiddos, but that's ok. I don't like losing $$ anyway, which usually happens. This rv park had concrete paved sites & the kids loved the fact that the roads were paved & not gravel. They rode their bikes all over the place & it was pretty windy out there too. There were newly planted trees, but that was about it. Nothing to block the wind, but oh the view! So pretty. I was bummed we couldn't sit outside & enjoy it because it was cold & windy. They had a gorgeous swimming pool, but of course it wasn't opened up & it was too cold anyway, a super cute community center all decked out in route 66 style & two big dog parks that our pups loved. We could tell because they were running fast chasing each other & jumping on the green grass. We were just there for the night so we could continue on. We were on a deadline to get to KY. A nice place to stay, but probably won't stay again because the prices went up after their grand opening. On-on!

Antelope Canyon & Horshoe Bend 9/22-23/16

Yes finally! Antelope Canyon & Horseshoe Bend. These two sites have been on my "must see" list for years. I've seen so many photos online of the beautiful swirly rock patterns & colors of Antelope Canyon with that magical beam of light coming thru and shining on the ground. I couldn't wait to see it. Before you head out there are some things you should know. First of all you have to be on a guided tour if you go to the Upper Canyon area. I don't believe you need a guide for the lower canyon, but it was recommended. There are ladders & steps on that lower tour, just fyi. No way around the UC guided tour, which means you need reservations from one of the local tour groups. You should really set up your tour far in advance because they fill up fast. There's only one tour group that takes first come first served tourists (can't remember the name of the company, but it was an Indian tribe group). Everyone I called was full for that day, but they each told me to Indian tribe group. Thankfully we got a 10am spot. Yippee! This is where hubby likes to chime in with his "see it's ok to wing it" mentality. Nope, I'm a planner & had I known about the reservations then I wouldn't have had all that last minute struggling & stress. Oh & the best time to view that magical beam of light is between 11-1p (depending on time of year), but be prepared to be overwhelmed with professional photographers who are also there to capture that light. *Side note, they offer a professional photography tour also.* So....part of the tour is a 4x4 wheel drive to the opening of the cave area. You're in the back of the open end truck where it's very sandy, very windy & very bumpy just so you know, but so worth it. We loved it, but it was a bit chilly that day so the kids were all cuddled between us trying to stay warm. We arrived at the start of the tour & I was surprised to see so many trucks there. You see all the touristy places have the same or close to the same time slots so it can get a bit crowded & you're almost guaranteed to have strangers in the background of your photographs. Our tour guide was very informative & took pics for all of us using our personal cameras/phones. He knew which areas had the best lighting & angle for best results. He had a wealth of knowledge & it was nice to hear that National Geographic has been permanently banned from taking pics there because they illegally & without permission drilled holes into the sides of the rock to try & capture the water raging thru the canyon. Yes they got it on film, but they also lost all their equipment & it's never been found & no one has ever seen the footage either. Tsk tsk. When you get a nice guide like that be sure to give them a tip. I know he was appreciative as hubby handing him a tip when we got back.

When you walk thru the canyon it's one way in & out. You walk to the other end take a few pics then you turn around & walk back the way you came to get back to the truck. So yes you are walking past a bunch of people coming in. We did manage to see that beam of light, but man they shooed us past real fast because the professional photographer group was guaranteed 2 minutes to take pics without people walking by I quickly turned & clicked a few shots hoping to get at least one without 200 heads in my way. Not magazine worthy, but at least I got a photo. I really wanted a shot with my babies standing in that beam of light, but oh well.

 There really are no words to describe the beauty of Antelope Canyon. The colors are amazing & the way the light shines in is breath taking. There were a couple rocks that were named after presidents because the shape of it looked like the profile of George Washington or Abraham Lincoln. There was also a bear I believe. You could go into that canyon at different times of the day & year & get different looking photos of the same rock formation simply because of the light coming in. You just gotta go see it for yourself, that's all there is to it. Just take it all in. Natures beauty.

Of course it wouldn't be a normal trip without someone having to go pee, ahem Dalton. Unfortunately we were quite a ways out from the bathroom, but thankfully we made it with no accidents. They do have bathrooms at the site to get on the trucks, but they are stinky nasty. We used the port-a-potties & they were nicer than the bathrooms. No bumps or bruises on this tour so I say it was a success! We headed into town after the tour for some bbq. So yummy & close enough to Texas style as you can get. Soon I would have my TX bbq fix & TexMex. Can't wait for that. But for now next up was Horseshoe Bend. It was on the way back to the trailer so we had to stop.

 I read on some reviews that the walk to see Horseshoe Bend was pretty close to the road so I was expecting a fairly quick walk. I could see where all the other people were walking so the walk to the top of this little hill looked easy enough. HA! Once you got to the top of that it was still quite a ways away. Thankfully it was downhill, but coming back....ugh all uphill. Of course it was all worth it. No words to describe it. Every time I look at this photo I see a face in that formation. Do you see it?
 

It was hard not getting the entire bend in my photo (duh why didn't I use the panoramic feature...geez), but this was the best I could do. It made me so nervous having the kids close to the edge. Even I got a bit freaked out looking over to get a good photo. This is where a selfie stick would have come in handy. There were lots of people there, way more than I would have thought. Later hubby told me some Asian guy was taking a photo of Dalton. Say what? That's just weird & had he told me sooner I would have approached that guy & made him delete the photo. I asked him if he did or said anything & he said he just gave the guy a mean look. Grrrr. Leave my babies alone. I know they're beautiful, but you don't have my permission to photograph my babies. Anyway, back to the bend. Annika pointed out a boat at the very bottom & it looked like a teeny tiny ant. Sure wish we could have taken a boat ride down there & taken pics from the ground up. Maybe next time, if we're in the area again. After our pics & walking around it was time to tackle the hill back up to the parking lot. Ugh! Talk about a leg workout & we didn't take any water because I thought it was a "short walk" from the parking lot. Forget that, take some water people! Emry was too cute & was looking for the little lizard she saw on the way in, but we couldn't find him again. He was sun bathing on a rock by the path. It was a nice trek & as usual hubby was waaaaayyyyyy far ahead of us. Good thing none of us got hurt or else he never would have known. Daddy long legs.

 Another place to check off our list. Woohoo!

Camp Verde, AZ 9/20/16

It was a fairly quick drive from Payson to Camp Verde considering the twisty windy road. Ugh! I'm surprised I didn't get car sick. We did a search while on the road (you'll see a pattern here) and chose an rv park called Distant Drum. Wow! This place was great! It was right off the highway, but I never heard any road noise while inside the trailer. Outside I heard a little bit, but really not much. This place was spotless! The concrete pads with greenery in between gave the park a nice uniform look. Of course I prefer shaded trees with ample space between slots, but this was a really good find. My kids were excited about the smooth roads so they could ride their bikes. The staff was exceptional & really went above & beyond to help hubby back into his slot. Keep in mind he's a new 5th wheel driver & this was his first backing up slot. It took several tries IN THE RAIN, but the camp host was there guiding him as well as a fellow camper. They were so nice & we were so appreciative & grateful for their help. Had I been the one guiding hubby....well let's just say he would NOT have been smiling the whole time. Hubby mentioned something about a "pow wow" that evening. My mother in law & I were all excited, but it wasn't an actual full dress pow wow. Instead it was 3 men singing traditional songs. Still it was very nice & they had a fire pit going & free snacks. After the singing we enjoyed smores, cup cakes, fruit, hot chocolate & other goodies. Their laundry room was huge & I had no idea they had a full workout room. I decided to use the showers & took the kiddos along & whoa! They had 6 large private bathrooms with showers in them. Plenty of room for all of us. I was impressed. Overall we enjoyed our stay at Distant Drum & gave it 2 thumbs up.

Since we weren't staying long we had to squeeze in both the Wildlife Park and Slide Rock in the same day. We got up the next morning after checking in & headed to the park. The kids were excited to use their new CamelPaks. Yay talk about a back saver for me....well it should have been. No more carrying bottles of water for the kids was the plan. Now they carry their own water & a couple snacks. Of course I carried my own CamelPak with my stuff (keys, phone, small wallet, wipes, band aids, antibacterial gel, extra clothes for Emry, etc) as well as extra snacks. My back was feeling it & they didn't even eat the snacks I packed. Good grief. They ate the potato chips from vending machine purchased by the grandparents. Uh huh. Of course if I didn't have the packed snacks then they would have been wailing for them. Better to prepare I guess. Anyway, we had been to this wildlife park years ago when my oldest was about 3 yrs old so we decided to revisit. We took the bus tour & it was hilarious! They gave us celery sticks to feed the giraffe & hubby got a wet tongue to his beard by a giraffe. We think the giraffe liked the texture of his beard. I got the perfect photo too. That's a keeper for sure. Annika & Emry both fed the long necks, but Dalton was not interested. Party pooper.
 

 It was a bumpy ride on that bus, but fun & very interesting to learn about all the animals. Afterward we took a tram up to the top where we could walk around & see other animals (tigers, bears, wolves, hyenas, etc). We were passing time as we waited for the animal show to begin. They brought out 3 animals. A big ol snake that all 3 kiddos touched, a cute tiny hedge hog and this weird looking rat/deer/rabbit that turned out to be a Cavy.
 

 After the show the complaining started "I'm tired, I'm hungry, I'm done looking all the animals" etc. I still wanted to do the zip line, but wasn't able to because of the time situation. We still had to do Slide Rock. Thus instead we went back to the rv park, fed everyone then changed into our swim gear & headed to Slide Rock. We drove thru Sedona & that was beautiful....until all the touristy businesses popped up. Why must we put up all these stores & take away from the natural beauty of the land? Oh yeah....money. Grrrrr. I didn't see one store that made me want to shop. What a waste I tell ya, in my opinion anyway.
 

We pressed on & got to Slide Rock, which by the way used to be an apple orchard back in the 1930s. There was a subtle scent in the air....sniff sniff....ahhhh apples! I was craving them from that point on. I was able to buy some wet socks in their little general store. Lifesaver! You see as a mom we think of everyone else first so before we left Tucson I made sure all the kiddos had proper water shoes & of course I never got any for myself. Thus, I was excited to find wet socks for myself. Woohoo on towards the water! I was anxious to get in & then......I felt the water. Brrrrr! Holy freezing temps! I slipped while walking & scraped my knuckle on a rock then Emry slipped & scraped the side of her leg, but she's a trooper & no tears. The older kids told me she stepped into a puddle & much to her surprise it was deeper than expected & she was in past her knees. That would have been funny to see. Hubby walked to the start of the sliding area with the kids, but I could see a lot of hesitation from everyone. The girls came back over to me to wait & discuss what they were going to do. Hubby took our son with him & proceeded to slide. I was laughing because I could not only see the expression on hubby's face, but hear a somewhat high pitched noise coming out of him as a result of the freezing water. I knew he'd only venture down once & I was right.

I was up next. My youngest decided not to go so it was me & the oldest. As we got to the beginning there was this sudden swarm of young teenage boys. They came out of no where. Turns out there was a large bus full that unloaded. Either some kind of camp or after school gig. All I know is that we got most of their backs on camera as I was getting ready to slide. My daughter quickly changed her mind as I was pulling her down to sit. Yeah it was cold alright. My body was telling me to high tail it outta there, but my brain was telling me we had to do it at least once. I had her kinda on my lap in between my legs & I pushed off. Holy smokes did that take my breath away. Have you ever been so cold that you momentarily can't catch your breath? Brrrr!!!!! I lost my grip on my daughter & she kept going with her little fingers clenched to her nose. We got to the first pool area & I quickly yelled "get outta the water, get outta the water". I helped her off to the side then here came one of those teenage boys & he kinda knocked me off balance and there I went further down the pool area. You can hear me on the video making all kinds of noises then I was so numb I couldn't get up on the nearest rock. I felt like a beached whale rolling onto the rock. Yes it was funny afterward. Since hubby only went in once & refused to go again, I as usual took one for the team & stayed in so the kids could go down the second smaller area into the next pool section. The things we do for our children. My son went about 4 more times & my oldest daughter went a few more. My youngest daughter kinda jumped from the side once & that was enough for her. There were really no grips along those rocks so once you went that was it. I went with my son a couple times & I got him to the side safely, but the current kept pushing me. I had a death grip on the side of the rocks to try & get out, but it required hubby's strong hands to pull me onto a rock where once again I felt like a beached whale trying to catch my breath & my strength. It wasn't a raging river, but that current was enough to push you along & tire you out. I don't know how long we were there, but it couldn't have been longer than 30 minutes and we were ready to go. It was a bit of a walk out of there with all the steps to climb up. We did see a red & black striped snake along the way. This little guy caused quite the debate among our family & I had to recite the poem "red & yellow kill a fellow, red & black put him back/friend of Jack". I was right, he was a friendly so on we went & tried to warm up. A few more pics & we were outta there. Checked that on off our list. I'm sure when it's 100+ degrees that cold water would feel wonderful, but it sure didn't on the day we were there. Fun yes, but dang soo sooooo cold, but gotta do it at least once.

Payson, AZ campground

We set off on our new journey and said good bye to Tucson. After 2 yrs 8 1/2 months I was ready for something new. I guess that's the result of so many military moves. Some enjoy the moving every couple of years & some dread it. I for one like it. Yeah it's a pain as far as getting everything out of one house & into another while cleaning both old & new house, but I would always get that itch for a new place, a new adventure, a change of scenery, so yes I was ready to leave Tucson and I did not shed one tear (not that I ever did in our many moves). Yes I was kinda sad to leave the area where we made so many memories with the kids, but the beauty of it all is that we can take those memories with us wherever we go. My oldest didn't want to move because she was going to miss her friends, my middle child didn't want to move either because he would miss our house and his new classmates, but my youngest didn't mind moving. She is still a bit confused about us never going back to our house & that our 5th wheel is now our "home". She asked if we would go back because one of her classmates was going to invite her to a birthday party, but I had to explain that we had moved & we are not going back. She's my adventurous child so she shrugs her shoulders & says "ok" like she's game for whatever. I'm pretty sure she won't remember living in Tucson the same way my son doesn't remember when we lived in IL.

We headed north to our first official stop in Payson where my in-laws live. We got a small storage unit where we put a few items in & I had to do some rearranging since hubby likes to just put stuff wherever. I labeled the boxes "front" and "back" so he knew what went were, but that didn't matter apparently. Turns out my china boxes were on the bottom of several heavy boxes (gah!) and boxes labeled "front" were in the back under other boxes. Not sure why I bothered. I think he just likes to ruffle my feathers. Anyway, we set up at the one rv campground in town. Talk about being close o your neighbors. Geez it was not only a tight fit, but steep as well. The whole park was dirt & gravel, which made for a dusty mess in the trailer, but there were a lot of trees, which made for a somewhat peaceful setting. It was a full house when we arrived since it was the weekend, but it cleared out Sunday morning. Nothing like waking up to the sound of loud motorcycles. It got quite chilly at night & although in the beginning I didn't feel the fireplace in our trailer was necessary, we sure got some use out of it on those chilly mornings & now I'm thankful we have it. We also discovered that we can change the color of the fire & background. Ooohhh aaahhhhh! Anyway, I did find it odd that there were no trash cans throughout the campground. The place was clean no doubt, but I just assumed trash cans throughout would be helpful. I gotta say it's no fun carrying those dog poop bags around & back to the trailer. Speaking of dogs, I'm happy to say that our 2 pups have gotten soooo much better with their no barking while walking. I think they have gotten used to seeing other people, cars and dogs around & don't feel the need to bark like crazy fools. I also think the frequent walks & exercise helps too. We were worried that we would get warnings or complaints from the campgrounds about our barking dogs, but so far they are doing great & they travel so well. Their happy place is simply sitting on the kid's lap.

Speaking of kiddos we did get our first trailer booboo. For some reason the kids like to sit on the stairs of the trailer & my son was sitting there when the door was partially opened & he stood up. OUCH! Yeah the corner of the door hit his head & drew blood. It was a doozy, my poor baby. I swear he's had so many head injuries & he's only 5! Lord bless him & keep his noggin safe. His Abu (my mother in law) was sure to give him extra potato dumplings to make him feel better. I told the kids that this would be their last dose of dumplings for a while since we would be on the road. They had them for breakfast & lunch for a couple days. It's funny that when I say we'll see Abu my kids automatically say "dumplings" and when I say we'll see grandma (my mom) my kids say "tortillas". My son wasn't the only one with a booboo on this trip. My youngest fell off the swing at the park. Her grandpa was pushing her on the swing & decided to spin her at the same time. I was taking a picture & could see the fear & nervousness on her face. I could hear her say she didn't like it or thought it was a good idea. Before I could go to her it was one more spin as she was airborn & boom on her booty she fell with a bonk to the back of her head. She held onto that swing, but not quite enough. Oh boy. Nothing like mama hugs, kisses & snuggles to make her feel better. She's a tough cookie for sure. It was a good 2 days before she forgave her grandpa. Hahaha!

Another reason for our trip to Payson was so the in laws could join us & travel a bit. We had plans to see Slide Rock, Antelope Canyon & Horseshoe Bend. I was also waiting to hear from Amazon on when & where to take my drug screening so I can get the thumbs up to work. Never heard from them so after 3 days we decided to head out.