(43-233) Pros & Cons Of Camping

A couple of weeks ago, my friend, Jenny M, asked me if I'd like to take the kids camping at Lake Pleasant for a couple of days during Spring break.  I thought that sounded like a good idea; until it became more apparent to me that she meant SHE and I take the kids camping.  As in, no husbands; and I jovially reminded her that this was ME she was talking to.  As much as I enjoy camping.  Yes, OLD friends; you read that right.  I said as much as I ENJOY camping; and yes I mean REAL camping with a tent; but admittedly, I wouldn't go without my Aerobed; nor would I go to a campsite that doesn't have flush toilets.  But the fact that I sleep in a tent; and spend time outdoors; now that's gotta count for some camping credits; but I digress.

Jenny told me that Luis was welcome to join us; but David had to work on Friday.  I didn't think that Luis would mind camping with just the women and kids; and sure enough, I was right.  Luis happily agreed to go; and for some reason that I still don't understand; I didn't make the big  deal planning, shopping and packing for this trip, that I usually do; but, I can tell you that this was a mistake.  Yup, a big mistake; (say it with me,) HUGE mistake; because I was rushing my kishkas out; (Kishkas ~ guts for anyone unfamiliar with that Yiddish term;) and I was exhausted by the time we left for camping. 

Now let's take a U turn.  While the kids and I were having lunch today, Jenny left me a message, saying that she had been in Wal-mart and it seemed that a lot of people were buying camping equipment; and that perhaps we should consider what we would do if there were no spots available for camping at Lake Pleasant, since it's a first come, first served camp site and not one that takes reservations.  I suggested that we try Lake Pleasant first and if they didn't have room we could go to the White Tank  mountains; and Jenny agreed.   I tried to call Lake Pleasant to see if someone could tell me if there was still availability; but I had to leave a message.  I then called the White Tanks and a lovely woman, checked and told me that there was still plenty of room.

I shared this info with Jenny; and we agreed to take a chance and try Lake Pleasant.  As I was trying to pack up our clothes, our  food supplies, our cooking utensils, our hygiene products and medications AND make potato salad; I found myself thinking yet again, "Is this really worth it?"  Yes all of the doubts that I'd expressed about camping in, "To Camp Or Not To Camp..." just resurfaced.

Jenny called and said that she would be on her way to the lake by 5pm.  I told her that I needed at least another half hour to get ready; because in between all of the things that I'd been working on; I spent over 40 minutes at the Orthodontist with Nicky.  Jenny and I agreed that she'd call me if there were no spots available at the lake; and if there were; she'd find two.  Just before 6pm we finally turned off of our street.  We'd only gone back to our house twice since pulling out of the driveway; because of forgetting everything from Hershey's food; to a can opener.  A knife, a cutting board and Kelsie's allergy medicine.  We finally hopped on the highway, destination rest and relaxation; and within seconds of getting off our first exit; Jenny called to let us know there was no room at the Inn.

We immediately put plan B in action and headed towards the White Tank mountains.  I was slightly apprehensive about the White Tanks, because with all of my rushing around, I still had to write and publish my blog; and since I'd never been there before and I had no idea how far the nearest McDonald's or Starbucks was; and I would need to go to one for Internet access.   It didn't take us very long to get to the White Tanks; and just as we arrived at the entrance; Jenny pulled up right behind us.  I asked the kindly gentlemen that greeted us if there was any availability and he told me that he thought they had two spots left.  I told him that we in fact needed two spots and he contacted the park host to confirm.

The park host told him to send us up and he'd show us the spot.  We were told to drive about three miles; and as we stopped to use the restroom; we saw a young deer.  We continued on our journey and met the less than charming, park host; who advised us that he'd had a very long day and worked very hard.  He told us that he had two spots left in the trailer parking area; but he felt that he should wait to see if a trailer came in within the next 55 minutes; before giving them to us.  He seemed very reluctant to permit us to stay in the trailer area; even though it was well within the rules; and took us to a restricted area, where he said we'd be welcome.  The sun was setting, and the scenery was beautiful but it was his over enthusiastic warning about snakes, that sent my kids into a tailspin.  The host said that there were a lot of Diamond head rattle snakes there; and I must admit, that scared the bejeezus outta me.  This is when I started weighing some of the pros and cons of camping.  Hmm, Con - I rushed around like a loon trying to pack up.  Con - the work that it takes to load, unload and set up camp; not to mention breaking it down too. Con - having to put up our tent in the dark.  Con - SNAKES.  Pro - when not unpacking, setting up or breaking down; camping is relaxing.  Pro - the peace and quiet. Pro - the cool breeze.  Con - three crying children, who are afraid to stay at this campground because the camp host has scared the crap outta them with his vigorous, warning about the snakes.

At this point; I'm still not willing to make a final determination about camping being worth it.  But, I can tell you that after all of our hard work and preparation; we decided not to camp tonight.  Nope; not gonna do it.  Not gonna have crying kids, miserable and afraid; so instead, we went home.  Jenny, brave soul that she is, decided to stay; and I apologized profusely.  I know that her kids were very disappointed that we weren't going to stay; but I said that we would come back the next day; and MAYBE we'd decide to stay then.  Jenny's kids  replied "OK, but come early!"  I KNOW that my kids feel badly about disappointing their friends; and I was very happy to see that they recognized and owned that; but I explained that if they were afraid and uncomfortable, they couldn't chose to stay just to avoid disappointing their friends.  My kids seemed very relieved to be heading home; even if it only was temporarily; and, I must admit, that for the sake of keeping my commitment to writing "The Bumpy Ride" daily this year; it was the best decision for me too... for now.

What can I say?  It's been A DAY!  I am utterly exhausted, and I barely made it through telling this story; but I am very interested  to see how things will look in the light of day tomorrow.   Perhaps the pros will outweigh the cons and we'll camp after all.
Till next time...
Queen of EVERYTHING

(43-151) Merry Christmas 2010!

This Christmas will be one that I won't quickly forget.  First off, it is the Christmas of my 43rd year; and I can say with all certainty, that I KNOW, it won't be my last.  Second, this Christmas eve marks the night that we discovered that Nicky is allergic to shrimp.  Talk about guilt.  We were invited to the home of Jenny and (SMF) David's, friend Lisa, for Christmas eve.  Jenny told me that Lisa would be making Tamales and she was going to make a seafood stuffed shells dish.  Jenny asked me to bring appetizers; so Luis made his world class, Guacamole and I brought some Hummus, Crab and roasted artichoke spread and garlic & herb cheese, accompanied by sesame bread sticks, pita chips and Naan.  We didn't eat dinner until about 930 or so; and there weren't that many things that Nicky and Kelsie would eat.  I had encouraged them both to try Jenny's shells; and Nicky took a bite and said that he liked it.  I asked if he wanted more and he said yes.  I served him another shell and after about two bites, he told me that his mouth was itching.  He wasn't interested in eating anymore, and he seemed quite concerned about how he was feeling.  We went into the bathroom so that I could get a good look at him, and his lips had started to swell and he was getting a red rash around his mouth; which soon spread to his cheeks and neck.  I immediately asked Jenny for some Benadryl.  I gave Nicky four meltaways, and watched him very closely.  We decided that it was best to go home; so we thanked our hosts, wished everyone a Merry Christmas and bid them a good night.

All the way home I felt incredibly guilty about Nicky's allergic reaction to the shrimp.  I KNOW that there was no way that I could have known that this would happen; but because I had urged him to try the dish; I felt like it was my fault.  Nicky (kindhearted soul that he is,) assured me that it wasn't my fault and swore that he was starting to feel better; and by the time we arrived home, the swelling had gone down and the redness was gone.  My guilt; however, remained well into Christmas day.

I started receiving texts at 6am this morning; but thankfully I managed to get back to sleep.  I slept in until 9, then made my way downstairs to turn the tree on and put up a pot of coffee.  My family slept in till just after ten.  Crazy, huh?  WHAT kids sleep that late on Christmas morning?  Well, I guess tired ones who took four Benadryl meltaways do; and thankfully, the girls did as well.  I greeted my clan, and we made our way downstairs to open presents.  Although the presents were few in number, everyone got exactly what they'd wanted.  AND, I must say that everyone's stockings rocked. 

Growing up I always had a Christmas tree; and we had stockings as well, but I suppose for appearances only; because it wasn't until I lived with my friend Big V, after college that I learned how delightful a filled stocking could be.  I LOVE finding things for everyone's stockings and so this year, I told the kids that they would each be given $2 so that they could buy something to put in my stocking.  I explained that it would be a good opportunity for them to have to be thoughtful, gift givers and it would be a great way for them to  experience shopping. I told them that they didn't have to buy anything for Luis' stocking, because I would; and I have to say that Luis and the kids did a fantastic job.  I received a Reese's peanut butter cup, a mini bag of coffee, sugar free mints, 2 different sets of ribbon for scrapbooking, slim Jims (YES, I said Slim Jims) and a $25 Starbucks gift certificate.  I'm so proud of my family; they truly rose to the occasion.

Going along with the theme of keeping our Christmas simple; we had planned to go to Lake Pleasant in the afternoon with Jenny, David and family; but yesterday, when trying to buy some wood for a campfire, we had heard that there was a no burn restriction for our county.  It turned out that we wouldn't be able to make a campfire at the lake; which meant that we'd be unable to remain there in the evening, because it would be too cold without a fire.  We altered our plans slightly and went out to the lake for a couple of hours.  It was a beautiful day to be at the lake.  It was peaceful, quite and a perfect way to enjoy the day.  The kids threw stones into the lake and enjoyed the outdoors; and Luis and I chatted with David and Jenny as we took in the scenery.  We came back to our house and grilled, as we'd planned to do at the lake; and the kids were even able to have their Smores.

I'm always so amazed at how quickly Christmas passes; after all of the time and planning that has gone into it. In some ways, I wish that we could go through Christmas in slow motion; but this is real life so we don't have that option. Instead, we just have to enjoy the moments that we can; capture as many on film as possible AND commit them to memory, as I have today.
I hope that you were all able to enjoy EVERY moment of your celebration; as I did mine.
Till next time...
Queen of EVERYTHING      

(43-109) LIVE From Lake Pleasant, It's Saturday Night!!

Today’s post is being written as day light fades on Lake Pleasant. Here I sit in my camping chair, typing a word doc on my laptop, while Luis barbecues steak and grilled veggies, Jenny makes Guacamole at our table; Michelle M offers up Jell-o shots and other alcoholic beverages (although I'm not partaking:) and all of our kids play happily. What a FANTASTIC evening!!

The original SMF’s, Jenny, Michelle and I wanted to go camping, but we couldn’t fit it into our schedule; so we decided to make a day trip to Lake Pleasant. Michelle, Jenny and I went shopping for groceries last night; and even that was a TERRIFIC time. We all met at soccer at 710am this morning, since we had team pictures in addition to our 3 soccer games. Well, mine and Jenny' kids had 3 soccer games; and Michelle the trooper, went to Costco while we were at our third game, and purchased the steak and mushrooms that we needed for tonight's dinner; AND chunkeds up the vegetables that we were going to grill. Then by 315 we headed out to the lake.

Michelle and Jenny arrived before we did, and they told me that they had bought a day pass for $6 each, (2 for Jenny, because she had 2 vehicles;) and they said that I should check with the park ranger to see where we needed to go and what we needed to pay, in order to be able to stay into the evening, because they were under the impression that the $6 only entitled them to stay until 6pm. I told the park ranger that I had some questions, and he cheerfully told me that he had answers. Unfortunately, he had the wrong answers. He told me that we could stay until 10pm with the day pass and he pointed us towards the day pass areas. We met up our friends and headed off to the day pass areas. We chose a spectacular spot, overlooking the lake
with an abundance of tables under one awning; and we unpacked our cars. There was no fire pit as promised, but we noticed remnants of a fire and so we thought we’d be OK where we were; but Mike grew doubtful. I suggested that Mike look to see if he could find a sign stating that fires were prohibited and he didn’t but he was concerned about the signs that said the area closed at Sunset.

Mike called the park rangers and was told that in fact we could only stay where we were until sunset. They said that they would refund us on one of the day passes but that we’d need to buy an overnight pass. The overnight pass, was $17, and 2 cars were allowed for that price. Each additional car would be $6, so we’d owe a total of $29 and we’d already paid $24, but being the Queen of FAIRNESS, I didn’t think that we should have to pay anymore since we’d been given incorrect information, and spent most of our time packing up and moving around. Mike and I drove back to the park ranger, and I went up to the booth, sweet and friendly as can be. I told the park ranger (the same one that had “answered” my questions, that I was confused. I reminded him that he’d said we could stay until 10 with the day pass, but we were now being told that it was not so. I explained that we’d been moving around accordingly and asked if we could just trade the passes that we’d paid for and get an overnight pass instead; and he willingly agreed. OK, I’ll admit it; I was VERY satisfied with myself. And Michelle and I agreed that I missed my calling. Michelle said “No one can argue as good as you, when you’re right;” and I added “and even when I’m wrong.”

Mike and I scouted out a new location, staked our claim, rounded up everyone else; and finally settled in. There’s just something about being outdoors in the Arizona Autumn, that’s absolutely amazing. We have 7 children and 7 adults, and yet it's calm and quiet. Maybe the full day of soccer prior to getting to the lake, has tired everyone out and we are all in relaxation mode.

The sun has now set, and I’m typing in the dark; so I think I’m going to have to conclude. We’ve got dinner, Smores and a campfire ahead of us; and I need to help my friends. Today has been full of everything that I love; watching my kids play soccer, spending time outdoors and enjoying the company of our fabulous friends.
Till next time…
Queen of EVERYTHING

What Have I Become?

I'm actually a day ahead of schedule this week. I've committed myself to writing my blog every Wednesday (at the least) but as the 29th is The Big Guy's birthday; and by The Big Guy I mean Luis - I thought I'd try and get this out today.
So now, I'd like to call your attention to the photo above. This photo, God help me; is actually a picture of my feet on our last camping trip (Columbus Day weekend.) "And the chorus gasped!!" And by the chorus I mean ANYONE who knew me prior to my first camping trip in June 08'. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. In my day; and by my day I mean the 80's, 90's and heck - present day; I'd like to think (barring this faux pas;) I was quite the good dresser. Some might even say JAPPY; OK; yes, some did say JAPPY. But as I liked to say back in the day (College, mostly) I had JAPPY clothes but not a JAPPY attitude. And just as a refresher, for those of you who do not remember or are not familiar with the term JAPPY - it is a derivative of JAP - Jewish, American Princess.
OK, so I'm sure you must be wondering (because HELL, I am) what in the world would possess me to wear socks with these flip fops. And the answer is.... The Big Guy, decided to wear my Hot Pink Crocs, and it was cold. Necessity was the mother of invention and hey, it worked. My feet were comfy (and warm.) I was so appalled by myself, and the fact that I even considered this footwear, that I HAD to take a picture to share with you; because you all know how much I LOVE making an ASS out of myself in public. Rest assured that I did remove the socks in the car, BEFORE we went into the local Sam's club. God knows, I wouldn't want anyone in the real world to see me attired like this. Luis on the other hand planned to wear my Hot Pink Crocs into Sam's until I mentioned what a real man he was for doing so; and he thought better of it and decided to trade back with me. Yes of course ALL of this means that Luis and I can share shoes; just yet another pathetic part of my life - The curse of the extraordinarily, long feet. (Yes, I know - at least I have feet...) Too bad The Big Guy isn't a cross dresser; then I might actually get to wear some cute shoes. And the crowd just gasped again "Did she say - Too bad her husband isn't a cross dresser?" In theory people, in theory - it's too bad. I'm actually VERY thankful that he is the lovable, Hunky, Big Guy that he is. We had a GREAT camping trip with the Kalka's. That would be Michelle ( The other day I did hear her trying to convince her husband to change his last name to hers in stead of her becoming legally) K's family. (God I crack myself up sometimes.) We went to Lake Pleasant; which is about 35 minutes from my house; but it was PERFECT. We saved on gas; it was clean (that's right, I said clean.) It was rocky, as you can tell from the picture, so we were not NEARLY as dirty as when we camped up north. We did trade in some scenery for some cleanliness; but I'm all good with that. We're talking flush toilets people; and no one had to hold the door open so you didn't pass out from the stench. True the camp host could have done a little better job making sure the flush toilets flushed at all times - but I am NOT complaining.
We relaxed, we played Bingo, we made smores - Life was good; until...

I heard my cell phone ringing at about 315am on Monday morning. It was all the way across the tent, and by the time I realized what it was - it stopped. But then, an hour later it rang again "Zip a dee doo dah", Zip a dee ay" I heard; and realized it was the alarm. I got up to turn it off, and I heard something outside our tent. I was FROZEN with fear. I said "Luis, honey, there's someone outside our tent; going through our stuff." And then what I heard, astonished me, It was a loud voice, and it said "Go!" And then it said "Hey, that's ours, leave it alone!" And it took me a second to realize that those sentences had been uttered by my husband. I was shocked. Not because he said them; but because he said them in a deep, white guy voice. White guy? What happened to my "Ricky Ricardo?" I had never heard him sound like this before. I also never saw him get up so quickly before. Usually it takes an act of Congress to wake this man up. Anyway, he started looking outside the windows of our tent. I was SCARED; truly SCARED and then he said...
"It's a skunk. A BIG skunk." Whew- was I relieved. Partly because it wasn't a person rifling through our stuff; and partly because there WAS something out there; so I didn't look like a complete, raving, lunatic.

Just as I never would have thought that I would EVER put my feet into an ensemble such as the one pictured above; I never thought that I would like camping. BUT I have to say it - I LOVE IT!! I LOVE the quiet. I Love the fresh air. I LOVE being with my family; uninterrupted by the TV, or errands and I love getting back to basics with my family and friends - cooking on the fire, and playing games, making smores (Yes, I know that's the second time I've mentioned them- the smores that is - notice no weight loss reported in this blog - hahaha) For me it was heaven. I would have stayed longer if we could have. I know that this confession is a shocker to my Oldies but Goodies; and by Oldies but Goodies I mean my friends; but hey, the times they are a changing and I'm changing with them.
I wish my wonderful, Hot Pink Croc wearing, husband the happiest 38th birthday EVER

Till next time...
Queen of EVERYTHING