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My Poor Neglected Blog


We just got back from our camping trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I have to say this was about the hardest camping trip I’ve ever been on, not that it wasn’t great fun – it was – but we were all sick. Sleep wasn’t great. Heads were stuffed. Ben kept waking up with a bloody nose. We got back later than I wanted and we’re exhausted. EXHAUSTED.

Still no rest for the wicked. Back to work tomorrow. Evening out tomorrow night. Tons to do before the parties on Weds & Thurs. I don’t even want to think about it. Full weekend update hopefully tomorrow. Kids had a great time even if they were sick. Cheers!

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Camping at Turquoise Lake

Our second camping foray for the season was a decided success. We left Denver around 2 on Friday and were at the site around 4:30. When we pulled up we could hardly believe our eyes. We had a giant parking-lot sized place to put our campers and then down the hill, we had a ton of picnic tables, grills, fire pits and lots and lots of woods for the kids to roam around in.  The campsite was remarkably secluded and the bathrooms were right along our site as well as drinking water taps. The woods the kids played in were hemmed in by a road but the road was up a somewhat steep embankment so not easy to wander on to. And the lake was just a half mile away. Continue reading “Camping at Turquoise Lake”

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This Crazy Life

What’s going on, you ask?

  • We are headed camping this weekend. We reserved last minute so all we could get was the “group” site which holds up to 75 people (and 15 vehicles). Three families are going so it’s not toooo ridiculous. I’m calling it The Jamboree. I can’t wait. But of course this makes lots of work … to get ready for camping … again. The kids are beyond thrilled and not just because I got them new buckets and bug catchers.
  • My darling over-achieving husband added to our workload yesterday by getting MORE bedding plants at the nursery. He was there to get tomatoes and came home with a bunch more flowers to add to the beds. I was a bit peeved because remember how I hate gardening? Still do.
  • We braised a pork shoulder in Dr. Pepper last night … oh. my. word. We were supposed to take it camping with us but we underestimated how much it would cook down. Unfortunately we were left with about a cup of insanely tasty pulled pork and that will feed … maybe the kids? Maybe me? Not all of us though. Plan B. Costco also has pulled pork.
  • Speaking of cooking, you have probably noticed that the Cookbook Challenge has fallen by the way side. I had fun with it at first but then it got to be a chore, so I chucked it. I have enough chores. I’ll share a recipe when I really really love it. The end.
  • We found a piece of land we’re very interested in. There are about 15 hurdles (big ones) we have to jump through  and very few of them come with guarantees, but we’re very seriously looking into it.
  • I have been pretty slacky on the whole being healthy thing, but I had a serious talk with myself and decided I would correct this. It is actually going pretty well and I’m pleased with myself. Of course this is only Day 3.
  • Relatedly, I am really enjoying running right now. I’ve been chilling more about mileage and just focusing on having good enjoyable runs. Matt and I did a great session at Table Mountain on Saturday. I want to get out to more trails. I love the scenery and the peace.
  • Tabby is doing a photoshoot with some friends on Friday for an outdoors gear company. They will apparently be some sort of team and may appear on a box. The important part (to Tabby) is that they get cash for their efforts. The kid is big on saving money and this thrills her to the core.
  • Ben has a nasty abrasion on his face. He tripped and fell face first this weekend while running … on the side walk. He has been wearing a bandaid over it all week. It looks pretty cute and quite rakish on him. They do feel fast though!
  • I am behind on so many things and trying to get my act together. Work is pure madness right now. I have two very big projects I’m tackling right now and things are falling through the cracks at home as my work hours go longer and it follows me home.
  • I am very much looking forward to a few minutes of peace tonight when I get my hair cut.
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The Dunes

We have made 3 trips to Great Sand Dunes in the past 5 years and man … it NEVER disappoints. The awe of a giant pile of sand in the middle of the Colorado mountains? Always breathtaking. Always incredible and always SO SO fun! This go-around we went with some great friends for our first camping trip together and had a wonderful time.

We left Thursday after work. We got going late. Our progress was slow. VERY slow. Stops, delays, whining. And then we got there finally at 2 AM and the loop we were expecting to be open, expecting to be able to camp in was CLOSED. Seriously??? So we went to another loop which was for groups only and had no pop ups or RVs allowed and it was clear that we weren’t the only ones flummoxed by the turn of events. Tons of people were camping here there and everywhere, so we joined the fun, parked the 4 Runner and the popup across a few parking spots and half-popped the camper. We didn’t unhitch it and just got it up enough to pop out one bed and stuck everyone in that one bed and passed out. Really it wasn’t half bad. The next morning we found out that it was all a mistake and our loop was supposed to be opened. Continue reading “The Dunes”

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Gone Camping

Before I say anything else, I just want to point out the amazing image on the right. I bought it from a very talented artist on Etsy and it now hangs in my powder room along with the print my mom got me on my last b’day – there’s a theme, in case you were wondering.

Anyhoo, we are heading off on our first camping trip of the year so I have been going all manic on my packing list and Matt’s been getting our pop-up ready. Our water pump is busted and we (Matt) have to replace it. The first camping trip is all about getting things ready and the last is all about putting them away. The ones in the middle are the easiest, but I will consider us lucky if we get four (five?) trips in this year so it’s a kind of labor-intensive proposition. Totally worth it though!!

Tonight we are doing the final packing (a bag per person, all the food, etc.) and then tomorrow after ballet, we are heading out. SQUEE!! We are going back to the Sand Dunes with some good friends and I cannot wait. We are hoping the little river in front of the dunes will be running. It turns the dunes into a fun beachy sort of experience. And we’re also hoping some of the back-country 4×4 trails will be open. They had a big forest fire last year and were filled with impassable ashes. But they are supposed to be amazing and scenic and I’d love to check them out.

Best of all, we found out last year that Loki is welcome at the park, so he will be joining us. That is going to be one happy dog.

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The HAPS

As usual, it’s our own version of semi-organized chaos over here. Just a sampling of what we’ve been up to:

  • We’re busily planning our summer camping trips. Sites book up FAST. We’ve already got two trips planned, one to Sand Dunes in May and one to Rocky Mountain National Park in June. Add to that our trip to FL in May, two other camping trips we want to take, weekend trips to Vail, and a possible 10th anniversary trip and I’m pretty sure we’re going to spend half of the summer away from home. So what else is new?
  • Matt took Tabby to the store with him on Saturday to pick up some groceries. She spied a coconut and wanted to try it, so he bought it for her. He used a corkscrew to drill a hole in it and then she sampled the milk through a straw. She wasn’t a huge fan. Next they will do something with the flesh. For now it’s sitting on the counter.
  • I ran a 10 mile race on Saturday. It was very hilly which is unusual for me since I run mostly on the treadmill or a few tried and true outdoor spots, and I hit it HARD. My body hurt pretty much the rest of the weekend and I had to take naps and go to bed early. Good wake up call for my half marathon in April.
  • Most of our Nashville family (Matt’s stepmom, brother, sister, brother-in-law, and niece) are arriving on Thursday. I’m super excited to meet my niece, now 3 months old!! And it will be good to see everyone else too. We have some fun plans including, of course, skiing. Continue reading “The HAPS”
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Thoughts on Camping

We’ve now been on two fairly successful camping trips with our pop-up. $$ aside, I’m very glad we bought it. The trips have been GREAT and I think it’s pretty safe to say we wouldn’t have gone camping without it. I can do without pretty well when it comes to camping … I don’t mind lack of electricity, showers, etc. but I LOVE my sleep and with the pop-up I finally can get sleep while camping. Yay!

Of course maybe the same thing could have been accomplished with a $60 cot from Bass Pro. I guess we’ll never know. Anyhow, here are some things I DO know so far about camping:

  • Not a fan of Campsuds dish soap … does not cut grease worth crap unless you have hot water. This trip we used plain ol’ Dawn and collected our drainage in a grey-water bucket, which can be used to douse the fire, so no worries there. Some say Dr. Bronners (also biodegradable) is better, might check it out later.
  • Just cooking alone makes plenty of dishes, so this trip we opted for paper plates/bowls for eating  … these can then be burned for kindling in the campfire. Saved us tons of water.
  • This last trip I pre-cooked the bacon in the oven and just re-heated it on the stove. So much more fit in the pan and it was so quick! It could keep pace with my frantic pancake-making.
  • I pre-mixed all the dry ingredients for recipes (pancakes, cornbread) and then marked them with the quantities of wet ingredients required. I also decanted the proper amounts of wet ingredients into other vessels to save space if needed.
  • We purchased a big sports cooler to fill with drinking water and that helped me out a lot – I don’t tend to like the taste of water from other places and won’t drink as much as I need. That was Matt’s idea and it’s a very good one.
  • Breakfast the last morning has been cereal with milk both times and I plan to keep it up – quick and easy while we pack up.
  • We have both an LED lantern and several LED flashlights. They rock. They are small, compact, take few batteries, last forever and produce a ton of light (we didn’t get the brightest ones and I’m so glad because the ones we have can half blind you!).
  • Planning and packing are super important. We found a packing list somewhere on the interwebs that we modified for our own use … if you’re interested, it is here in pdf and txt.

We’ve got one more trip tentatively planned for this year – hopefully the weather will hold! I’m sure we’ll continue to refine our camping as we go forward. We are collecting cool places to camp from friends and coworkers and I’m already getting excited about going next year. Many more places we want to see!

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The Dunes

 

This weekend, we went to Egypt.

No … I kid, I kid.


We went to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. It’s an incredible spot, about 4 hours from Denver. It is caused by a very rare natural phenomenon that traps the sand in this valley and creates the beautiful dunes. But I like to think of it as God’s own little practical joke: dropping tons of sand in the middle of the Rockies. Tee-hee.

Continue reading “The Dunes”

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Camping!

I won’t lie. I’m a bit stressed at the moment. Things in our house keep breaking, including our A/C and I’m supposed to be hosting Bunco on Thursday. But I won’t think about that right now … I will think about our first camping trip and how well it went.

We went to the lovely Poudre Canyon, home to the Cache la Poudre River, Continue reading “Camping!”