30 Days of Gratitude: Day Fifteen

I am grateful for vacations...

...and even sometimes STAYcations.   I love taking road trips to visit family, heading to the beach, or camping, or flying to a new destination, or even driving up to the cabin for a long weekend.  While seeing new things and visiting new places can be exciting, I also enjoy little mini-vacations/staycations of "nothing"... just me chilling out and sleeping in as late as I want, and staying in my pj's all day, should I so desire.

This year we are not going out of town for Thanksgiving.  I already have the day planned out (a 90 minute intense boot-camp workout that morning, then heading to friends), but the rest of the weekend is open, so to speak.  Initially, I thought it would be a great weekend for some deep cleaning.  But truth be told, I have felt so exhausted lately, that I am now starting to think I need to just relax and do NOTHING; my body is telling me I need some major rest.  So, that is my new plan.

I am sooo looking forward to next weekend.  I am grateful for vacations!

Summer Fun

I am not a fan of being overly warm. That being said, I still love summer! Summer is usually filled with fun things to do and fun places to go and fun people to see and this summer is no exception!

We kicked our summer off by going to Nevada to visit my parents over Memorial Day weekend. Unfortunately, it was a freakishly cold weekend -- too cold for the pool or a visit to Lake Tahoe.

This past weekend was a mini-reunion with friends I knew from back home that for one reason or another migrated out here to the West. Good times and lots of food.

This coming weekend I am {hopefully} going on a day trip down to Manti to watch the pageant with a bunch of other singles MY age... lol.

Then the following weekend is an excursion to lovely Northwest and then the weekend after that is the 4th of July.

For the 4th I plan to take the kidlets camping at the beach. We've never done it before but for $16 a night, I figured it is worth checking it out!

And then finally, we plan to wrap it all up with our family reunion trip back to the Midwest in August.

It is a lot going on, and in the mix of all of that my daughter had space camp and my boys have scout camp and my oldest has youth conference for church.

It is going to be a busy summer but exciting nonetheless. My goal is to stay on top of my school work so I don't get stressed on vacation!

What about you? What are your plans?

Are We There Yet?

Remember in the good old days when we'd take road trips...?

Like the fictional Griswolds in the National Lampoon movies, our family often took road trips complete with singing songs, playing travel games, and stopping along the scenic route to look at some hole-in-the-ground landmark that some travel book named a "point if interest".

And like the Griswolds we had the fighting, the are-we-there-yets, and the overly exhausted parents reaching their breaking point with threats of pulling the car over. You remember the look...

Yeah -- I call it "the scary face". I think I may have even pulled it a time or two with my own kids. There is nothing more aggravating than when the kids are out of reach, in the back arguing and you're at the wheel trying to concentrate. There really isn't anything you can do short of pulling the car over. I don't know about your parents, but as a kid I knew that if the car got pulled over, someone was getting a spanking.

Of course modern technology has helped make road trips a much more pleasurable experience these days...

However, kids are still kids, and being in tight quarters for hours on end is still not as enjoyable as being in the comfort of home. And guess what? Kids still fight. And guess what else? Parents still threaten...

Personally, any time I take a road trip longer than 3 or 4 hours with the kidlets, I prefer to leave in the wee hours of the morning, or even in the middle of the night. If my kids can sleep at least half-way then I find that I am much more calm myself. I have enough anxiety if there is bad weather or road construction. The last thing I need is the unsettling atmosphere of fighting and bickering.

I decided that for this long holiday weekend I wanted to take a road trip to visit my parents. The good thing about trading my van for a newer car is that I felt confident in the reliability of the vehicle on such a trip. The only thing I really worried about is the fighting. They were not used to being couped up driving long distances, even if the Altima is fairly roomy.

So, Friday morning, I got the kidlets up just after 3 in the morning. We packed the car and got everything ready to go. (I would have done it the night before, but my oldest was in a school play that night and I needed a "nap" before hitting the road.) Well, no one at my house is a "morning" person. So, while I felt the stress of trying to get everything packed, everyone else was sort of grouchy at each other. I only had to snap a smidge at them and tell them to knock it off. We were finally on the road by about 5:30am and within the hour they were asleep...

ahhhh......

In fact, I have since decided that one of my favorite sounds is the sound of unconscious children, haha.

So for the next several hours, it was pretty much me, the open road and my favorite playlist. I love driving under those circumstances. In fact, I find it very therapeutic. Not only do I have the chance to ponder and think about a lot of things, but I give the best in-car concerts you've never seen before. Haha.

We made it safe and sound and despite the potty-breaks nearly every 2 hours (I have a small bladder and was on a constant drip of Diet Coke) we still made it in exceptionally good time. 8 1/2 hours.

So far we've done all the fun things one does on vacations. We shopped a little. We visited with family. We played games. We rested. We ate... and ate and ate again. Then, we even ate some more. We plan to leave tomorrow evening, after we eat. I hope the kids will once again sleep most of the way. I know some people think it's crazy that I drive at odd hours, since I am a single parent and the only driver... (not that my oldest can't drive, just that I wouldn't be able to sleep with him driving!) But for me, it makes sense for my sanity.

Here's to road trips and the open road! Be safe everyone! Happy Memorial Day!

Who Knew Laundry Could Be So Entertaining?

The Scene just before Labor Day Weekend:

Me - trying to wash a mountain of laundry, getting ready for road trip.

Teenage boy - calling me from study group wanting to stay and hang with friends.

Middle son - complaining and NOT wanting to go on road trip.

Daughter - keeping Granddad entertained :)

Granddad - laughing and marveling at the "chaos".

I told FunnyMan he had to pack before he went to hang out with friends. He rushed home to "hurry and pack" and he brought a GIRL with him! Well, not just ANY girl. He brought THE girl. The Girl he had asked to Homecoming. The Girl that he is sort of having a little fling with. The Girl that has been occupying much of his time away from home lately. Yeah, THAT girl.

I was a bit mortified at first. He did not WARN me he was bringing anyone home with him. Here I was, feeling a bit like a sweaty pig from the loads of laundry I had been washing and folding all day, just dying for a shower, the front room looking like we're moving or getting ready for a garage sale or something and he brings someone over? My hair was a complete mess and I am pretty sure I wasn't even wearing a BRA!

But how could I be upset? She is so danged cute with her giggles and smiles. So, she sat while I continued to fold and pack and FunnyMan proceeded to run around gathering his things for the trip. I give him orders to take his clean laundry piles down to his room and put them away and the next thing I know he is pulling the underpants from his BROTHER'S piles.

"Those aren't yours," I say.

"I like these ones better," he argues.

"Let me see those," I reply, snatching them to get a better look at the waistband. "These aren't yours," I say again. "Yours are medium. These are large. These are LittleDucklings."

Now, at this point The Girl starts to giggle and FunnyMan does a little nervous laugh. "But I like these ones," he retorts. "They're... roomier." To which The Girl laughs again.

"Exactly," I reply. "That's why they are your brother's. You're smaller than him."

Now -- when I said that, it's because his younger brother is built differently. They probably weigh about the same, although I think LittleDuckling might weigh a little more. He is just a little heftier, while FunnyMan is a scrawny thing. I said it meaning WAIST size.

Nevertheless, that isn't the connotation it held once I said it. And of course we all had a good laugh at that. I think he may have even turned a little red.

Serves him right, though. He's the one who brought The Girl over without Warning. :)

Who knew folding laundry could be so entertaining?

Family Vacation: The End

Day 4 of our vacation was mainly the day we packed up and left for home. We slept in till about 9am, did the breakfast thing at the hotel, and I was able to get everything packed up and loaded neatly in the van by 10:40. We checked out and then said our goodbyes to Cedar City.


The night before I visited the RedBox and checked out a handful of DVDs for our trip back. My car stereo has an auxilliary input where I can use an AV chord to plug in my iPod or phone or laptop and get hands free surround sound. It's way cool. So, we hook up my laptop (which is postioned between the 2 front seats, on top of cooler #1) and we are set for movies with surround sound! Oh, and I also have a power cord adapter with 3 input areas, so I can charge my laptop, iPod and phone all at once too. Again, waaay cool!


My oldest got to drive about 30 minutes (on a stretch that I was comfortable with!) from one rest stop to the next, so he thought that was cool.


After a brief pull-the-car-over-and-have-a-discussion moment with the 2 youngers, they all behaved extremely well the rest of the way home.


I have to say that I really enjoyed our visit, and I would recommend it to anyone. As far as the shows at the Shakespeare Festival, those were fun. I was glad I researched the shows ahead of time and picked the ones I thought my kids would enjoy. I was also glad I bought the matinee tickets and not tickets for the evening performances. They were a little cheaper, which means I could afford the seats I wanted. Although, my kids noticed there were a lot more "blue hairs" at the afternoon shows, than what the lines revealed for the evening shows. I told them that was because they had to be done in time to eat dinner at the 4:30pm early bird special! lol!


I would also have to say that I'd recommend the Abbey Inn of Cedar City to anyone.


Normally, I despise staying in "motels". Many times in Motels, even though they tell you it's a non-smoking room, you can smell the smoke in the walls and carpets. The blankets are thin, the mattresses lumpy, and they scrimp on the number of pillows they give you (I always pack a few extra). Once I stayed in a motel for a quickie passing-thru-town-and-need-a-place-to-crash night. The "continental breakfast" the next morning consisted of Little Debbie Honey Buns and coffee. The pool, if they have one sort of looks like a cess pool and there just doesn't seem to be enough bleach to kill what's floating in there. Also, once housekeeping stole a digital camera I had LOCKED in the room "safe". So, yes. I really, really, really hate staying in Motels. I much prefer HOTELS to MOTELS. Or better yet a bed and breakfast or really nice cabin!


However, like I said, I would recommend the Abbey Inn to ANYONE. It is newly remodeled and just feels luxorious. Classy looking rooms with fine linens (850 threadcount Egyptian Cotton sheets), brand new pillowtop matresses, 4 feather pillows per bed (good for my knees and hips!), granite countertops, Bath & Body complimentary products in the bathroom, an indoor pool and hottub, a cute little "Breakfast House" with a full service breakfast where you can get waffles, biscuits & gravy, eggs, sausage, oatmeal, muffins, bagels, toast, fresh fruit, or cereal. My kids loved the 42" Flat screen TVs too and they brought their xBox so we could play games and watch DVDs at night. The management staff and housekeeping were clean and friendly and ALL of them spoke English (a plus!). Also, ALL of the rooms are smoke-free. I never caught a whif of cigs and I never so much as even heard the guests on either side of our room. Oh, and they also had free Wi-Fi, so it was really easy to upload my pics each night and keep up with blogging! =D


I did happen to walk past the Honeymoon suite while they were cleaning it one morning. It looks verrrrry nice and would make a cute anniversary getaway too! Oh, and they also have a 4 bedroom house just north of the Inn that they rent out too, for larger families or groups.


So, all in all we had a lot of fun playing and relaxing and eating! Thanks for coming along with us on our virtual journey with us!!!

Family Vacation: Shakespeare & Maggie Moo's

Day Three of our vacation was even more relaxing than Day Two, if that is even possible. I sent the kids to breakfast before it closed at 10, and then we sort of lounged around before going to lunch at The Pizza Factory, which by the way always "gets" me with their divine BreadTwists and fabulous Salad Bar. We have one in Salt Lake and are even more excited they are building one in our town!

Anyway, after lunch we went to see Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing". We had third row seats on the side, which was really nice. The kids enjoyed being that close to the stage and the actors did such a fabulous job bringing out the characters that in spite of the "language" they really understood what was going on, especially the boys. I had to explain a few things to my daughter, but even she enjoyed it. It was lively and super funny. My middle one, who is the quiet solemn one even said to me yesterday, "Thanks mom. Both of the shows were good." The fact that he even SPOKE about them means he enjoyed them.

After the show we walked a little around the campus and took a peek in the "Shakespearian Theatre". (our shows were in other theaters) There was a rehearsal going on, so we couldn't take pictures, but it was cool to see the outdoor theater and the architectural design. We took a few pics of the campus, and I may have just sold my son on the idea of coming here for college in a few years.

Of course we came back to the hotel and relaxed and swam and ate dinner and then watched movies until we fell asleep. It was a good day! Here are a few pics!

Family Vacation: Ninjas, 39 Steps and a Lighthouse!

For day two of our vacation we ate lunch at a place called Ninja's Japanese Steakhouse. The kids were sad they don't fire up their tables until dinner, but with my budget, we are doing sit down restaurants for lunches, not dinners. It was still fun. We watched the Sushi chefs at the sushi bar and we got our fill of good food too. We especially enjoyed their Tempura Roll, Beef Negimaki, and Chicken Yakitori.

Following the Ninja Steakhouse we went to see the Providence Lighthouse. It is a landlocked REAL lighthouse here in Cedar City. The developers of the new shopping center plaza were asked to create a "buzz" and make this shopping plaza unique. They had a lighthouse disassembled in Europe, shipped over here and reassembled. It is the "Providence Lighthouse" and "lights the way" to the shopping. You can see it from the freeway too, so I am sure it definitely created a buzz!

That afternoon we went over to our matinee performance of Alfred Hitchcock's "The 39 Steps". It was totally hilarious as 4 actors played roughly 150 different characters. The scene changes were uber quick as were the costume changes. This is, hands down, one of the best plays I have ever seen. The kids absolutely loved it and we all laughed and laughed. We had front row seats to this performance, which was even better!

Afterwards we took a quick peek around SUU campus and then headed back to the Abbey Inn for dinner and swimming. It was a nice day and very relaxing! Here are a few pics!

Family Vacation: Swimming!

Well we got to Cedar City Sunday afternoon around a quarter to five. We checked into the Abbey Inn, found our rooms and rested for a bit before eating dinner and then, swimming! Since many people have tickets for the evening shows, the pool was cleared out at dinner time and we were able to have it all to ourselves for a good hour. I sat in the hot tub and let it do its magic on my sore muscles from the 4 hour drive. It was really relaxing. Then, we went back up to our room and played games until bedtime...

Family Vacation, First Stop: Cove Fort

We were supposed to leave in Friday. But then we found out that my oldest son's "Pioneer Trek" adventure wouldn't be over in time. And they wanted the parents to come and pick up their youth in Wyoming Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately our tickets for the shows are nonrefundable, non-changeable. Luckily, the shows weren't scheduled until Monday and Tuesday of this coming week. That meant, we'd have to leave Sunday. It wasn't my first or best option, but I really felt that Pioneer Trek would be a chance of a lifetime and wanted my oldest to go. So, we left this morning.

Well today since we'd be on the road, we'd miss church. I felt like we still needed inspiration and some sort of "faith" building experience, so after we read our scriptures this morning we headed out, listening to what I refer to as "Sunday Sounds" on the ipod (Good, uplifting music).

We were making excellent time, and about halfway there, I realized that we'd arrive at our hotel before we'd be allowed to check in. I remembered that Cove Fort was on the way, and decided we'd stop and spend about an hour there.

The president of the Mormon Church, at the time the pioneers settled in Utah was Brigham Young. As more and more Saints traveled to Utah, Brigham Young would send them to various parts of the state to settle and build towns. Many ventured to the Southern part of the state to St. George. As many people would travel to and from the Salt Lake Valley, they would camp along the way. A common spot was where Cove Fort stands today. During that period of time, there was an Indian War going on. Brigham Young had asked Ira Hinckley, of Coalville, UT to build Cove Fort. This would be a resting place for travelers passing through. Here they would get a hot meal, a good night's rest and of course refuge from the Indians. Interestingly enough however, the Indians and the Hinckleys of Cove Fort never had any contention. In fact, in spite of the war going on, Ira Hinckley did many trades with the Indians, and the Indians respected him for they way he treated them just as he would any other human being. The cost was $.35 per meal or 3 for $1. The stagecoach from the North and the stagecoach from the South would also make regular stops here and the passers-by would usually spend the night. Cove Fort has hosted many ministers from several faiths, missionaries, government officials, and the "average" traveler.

Here are some pics of our visit.



It was a nice breezy day and the weather was perfect. We got to learn a little more about the history of some of our early church members and settlers. I thought it was a perfect Sunday activity!

But First...

And I'm off! But first... 30 more minutes in bed. Besides, I can pack fast :)

That's Why

Why would I drive two hours to the middle of nowhere, Wyoming? To spend the weekend laughing and hanging out with one of my BFFs, that's why.