We are not wealthy by any standard. We work hard, budget like crazy, (seriously, you should SEE Hubby's spreadsheets!) and plan our outings to squeeze the most out of every minute possible. A long time ago we made the decision to buy the outdoor equipment that would supply the girls with wonderful childhood memories. It helps that Hubby is amazing when it comes to engines and maintenance so I knew our toys would always have the best of care. He takes care of the equipment and I take care of the emotions and overall well-being of our tribe of girls. It works.
Last year when we went to Moab, it was all about how much four-wheeling we could do while we were there. But the weather had other plans for us. It was so cold and windy that we escaped to sightseeing in the state and national parks just so we could be warm in the vehicle. In spite of the nasty weather, we did get in some wonderful rides, which is what convinced us that we wanted to come back to Moab to explore even more trails. With all of the rock formations and vast areas to explore, Moab is a wonderland for four-wheeler enthusiasts!
I cannot describe how excited we were when Mom told us they wanted to come to Moab with us this year. I hadn't been camping with my parents for many years and I hoped they wouldn't be so miserable that they'd never want to go anywhere with us again. We knew we would be scaling back our riding plans, but that was perfectly fine because spending time with family is much more important! As the vacation days passed one by one, I hoped that Mom was enjoying a break from camp cooking and that she didn't think our campfire antics were too bizarre. The girls had done some riding on Sand Flats road, but never more than a mile or two away from our camp. On Day 4 we decided it would be okay to part ways with Mom and Dad for 3-4 hours to go on a distant trail ride that Hubby had researched in his trail guide book.
I cleaned up the breakfast dishes as Hubby checked the fuel and tires of the 'wheelers. He had the opportunity to use his super-neato Christmas gift from his equally super-neato wife when one of the 'wheelers had a flat tire. Oooh! You need a portable air compressor? Let me go grab that for you.. because I CAN! (Yes, I'm being obnoxious on purpose, but that's only because Hubby wrinkled his nose and yawned when he opened that gift on Christmas morning.. his ho-hum reaction to my wonderfully thoughtful and genius gift bummed me out!) This bad-boy of camping equipment not only has an air compressor, it can jump start cars, has power outlets and an inverter, and it has a radio! Like I said, neato!
Unfortunately, our poor Ashley woke up with a tummy ache that morning. She was feeling so crummy that she actually asked for Pepto Bismol. Around my house, I am the only person who will even touch that pink stuff! Even after choking down some medicine, Ash was not feeling well so she opted out of the ride. Luckily for us, Mom and Dad said she could hang out with them while we were gone. If there hadn't been other adults to provide another option for Ashley that day, we would not have gone on our ride. Does that mean they were our camp babysitters? (I hope not because I don't want to be that person.. you know, the one who dumps her kids on the grandma any ol' time without a care or concern? That's not me!) Mom assured Ashley that they would have a quiet afternoon of shopping along Moab's main street. I saw two additional sets of ears perk up when shopping was mentioned.
What?? There's shooopping??? Suddenly I had not one, but three kiddos that had opted out of our epic ride. Truthfully, I was not concerned about losing three of our six girlies to an afternoon with their grandma. How often do they get her all to themselves anyway? Plus, we picked up an extra rider when Ella proclaimed that she would rather ride than shop. Plans were set and now we just needed an hour to move the groups from point A to point B. Big group takes time to maneuver, remember?
The drive to the trail-head was really neat! We took the road that ran parallel to The Green River, and we saw cliff dwelling type houses that people were constructing, a ranger with a group of little kids at a tiny park with Indian petroglyphs carved into the mountain face, and some very interesting homeless-looking people hitchhiking to nowhere. Shaweet! Mom and Dad followed us to the parking lot where we parked the trailer and we bid them farewell. It was nice that there was someone that knew where we were headed, especially since we were very close to the area where
Aaron Ralston became trapped and had to hack off his own arm to save himself. (sorry if that was a bit graphic! If you haven't seen it, you should check out the movie about his ordeal. It is called "127 Hours")
I digress.
So there we were, all geared up and ready to go! We sort of had an idea what we would see on that ride, but I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the cliffs and the lush valley protectively nestled between the red mesas. As we traveled the dirt roads we were surrounded by unspoiled, picturesque landscapes. I could easily imagine ancient Indian tribes dwelling among the red cliffs and meandering streams. We stood eye level with some of the most amazing petroglyphs I had ever seen when we stopped at "The Birthing Rock" to take some pictures and I tried to picture the tribes that left the markings behind. I couldn't help but wonder what legacy we are leaving for those that will come centuries after us... certainly nothing so grand as those stories carved in stone.
I wasn't completely lost in thought during that ride, but I'd say it was pretty close to that. I found my thoughts turning inward and I was filled with pure gratitude for all the wonderful things in my life. How could I not be appreciative in a setting like that? There were points during the ride that became difficult to navigate but the girls were brave and, most importantly, they were very careful. I was so proud of them for having the courage to try this new adventure ... but mostly, I was just thinking of how proud I am of all of my girls. I will admit there were a few times when my eyes got teary behind my dusty goggles as I contemplated the threshold my family is standing on these days. Carley and Madi are weeks away from graduating and this may have been our last family trip where we were all together. *sniff*
After riding through beautiful canyons for 4 hours, we headed back to camp to wash the red dust from our pores and to see how the rest of our family had fared during the day. When we got there, Mom told us that they had just barely returned to camp themselves. Really? I cannot imagine shopping for 4 hours! (actually, I can barely survive one hour of shopping.. just ask my girls!) It didn't take Mom long to confess that they had also gone out to lunch at a little diner called "Smitty's Golden Steak Restaurant" that apparently had a gold miner motif. That was so generous of her to take three of my girls out to lunch! They had also done some souvenir shopping with my credit card, along with an understanding that the girls had a $25 limit each. Unfortunately, Ashley was still feeling ooky and Emily was now feeling less than skippy herself. Not good.
After the grim experience earlier in the morning with Pepto Bismol, Ash wasn't exactly eager to try that tummy ache remedy again. Mom had told her that she had Alka-seltzer and at that point Ashley was willing to try almost anything. While Emily chose to sleep off the ick, Ashley prepared herself for some plop plop fizz fizz. She had no idea what she was in for! What happened next created some of the funniest pictures I have ever seen! Kudos to Carley for capturing the moment so perfectly! Hubby doesn't even have to look at these pictures to laugh..just the thought of the hilarious face Ashley pulled is enough to start him giggling uncontrollably!
Mom and I got to work on the famous Dutch Oven dinner that my family insists on having every time we go camping, while Hubby decided to take his four-wheeler, Rosie, up Fins N Things. He had been nagging me for days to let him take the shiny new Jeep up the rock trail, and when I finally relented he admitted that he didn't really want to. He sheepishly told me that the only reason he kept nagging was because he knew I would tell him no. Scoundrel!
As I prepared the Dutch Oven components, I looked up and saw Dad across the road, flying a kite. How cute is that! The dark clouds had rolled in earlier that afternoon while we were riding and the wind had definitely picked up. We were worried about getting rained on, but aside from a few sprinkles while we were trail riding, the rain stayed away.. thank goodness! The only bummer was that the 75 degree weather from the previous day had been replaced by an icy wind that cut our campfire time very short that evening.
BUT.....
You know what they say about clouds and silver linings? The clouds that rolled in with the cold wind proved to be the perfect canvas for the evening sunset. We snapped picture after picture of the stunning colors that draped the evening sky.
We crawled into our comfy beds that night, after bundling up in many layers for extra warmth, and reflected on the amazing sights we had seen that day. I am truly grateful for the opportunities we have had to spend time out in the beautiful wilderness as a family. I hope one day that my girls will share these experiences and memories with their own families.. and maybe, just maybe... they will ask us to go camping with them!
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| I did not take this picture. I googled it. This pic shows the stars, Milky Way, airplanes and lights of Moab |
Day 5 is bittersweet... I will tell you about how we were sad at the thought of packing up camp, but thrilled at the thought of a hot shower!
