June Gloom...

is not upon us! Yippee! It's beautiful here with a slight breeze.

News? There's good news... Stacy finally got a 2.0 (barely) and Rey got a 3.o. Both girls lettered in swimming (Varsity) and made it to League Finals. And get this one... their room is REALLY clean. It's been clean for 3 weeks now.

Marissa is finally in panties (she's been potty-trained for a while and just refused to wear them). She also will finally go in a pool and paddles around with her life vest on. (I'm working on getting her in a class, just have to come up with the cash first.)

I've been working some weekends officialing for swimming (one weekend a month), which helps put food on the table.

Juan is stressed, as with most union workers, contract negotiation time is stressful... and it's coming up soon (October, to be exact). He did a wonderful job designing a new grill for my bbq, made out of cast iron and said to last forever...

So much has happened. Mother's day forgot me. Oh well. I did get a card from my nephews (Jake and Max).

Father's Day has passed... I hope my dad had a happy one... I mailed a card. Juan got a nice dinner the night before.

Bad news? Sad news... my uncle passed a couple of weeks ago. I remember him from when I was little. It's sad how it happened. A total accident, but it happened.

Also, my mom's hubby's sister... her suffering should be over. So sad.

I sure hope things don't come in 3's. For real. This is enough.

I learned a new technique for crafting, so you'll have to check that blog in a couple of hours... or tomorrow.

The weight loss is at a standstill. I just don't have the drive, and it's downright depressing. I'm sure most of you can relate.

So let's get back to the good news... my brother and his wife have the cutest baby... my friend had one, too. And everyone I know (at least 5 other people) are preggers again. I won't be drinking their water if I go to visit.

I'm trying to get Marissa into preshcool for the fall. Wish me luck! Maybe will be co-oping it, but hey... a little better than just at home.

That's all I can think of for now... Toodles for now! lisa

Did Ya Miss The Grueling Tales?

I have just been staying away from being on the computer so much. But I will post again at least twice a week.

Life has been busy. Between the girls swimming (yes... Stacy finally made grades), Marissa still wearing diapers (potty-trained but still wanting to wear them - pick your battles...), Juan and everything else, time is precious.

We've gone camping two times since the last post. Unfortunately I like to write in private, and others get up just as early as me on these trips. Bummer. But... on a good note, at least we found a nice place in San Diego to camp. Beautiful and like a mini resort. Not too far from the beach either.

My brother and his wife finally welcomed a new son to the fold. I had my other nephew (almost 3 years old) while the labor session was going. It was a good time for us to bond. After a restless night and not much sleep (mostly crying and dirty looks - it was rather funny), and clinging to me, he woke up with a smile and said, "Good morning, Auntie!" Definitely not expected, but it was nice.

Mother's Day weekend I was officiating, so I was on my feet and in the sun for two days. Hopefully, I lost a couple pounds or inches... whichever. How was yours? Toodles for now! lisa

Agua Caliente - Day Four

Friday, March 27, 2009

Yesterday was a doozy.

Normal day... pool (I didn't go in - a little too sunburned), catch, lunch, breakfast (not necessarily in that order). Breakfast was my specialty (chorizo and eggs). Lunch was another... carne asada quesadillas. Yum!

The baby did better walking and playing... Thank goodness! She was all over the place - movies, blowing bubbles, catching bugs. She loves the bug catchers with the magnifying glass in it. We caught lots of moths last night.

Mom and the girls went to a more receptive for cell phones to get ahold of my sister - to see if she was coming or not, plus talk to Jr and hear his status and get the details. He was supposed to leave my sister directions... by my mom left voicemail directions, as she couldn't get ahold of her whywho. And Jr says he left/gave them to her (can't tell which it is!).

OK... so time passes. I realize NONE of the texts the girls sent to my sister went through. The phone was in "off." So more time goes... my mom and I finally go to call/text her and see where she is.

You don't wanna know! She was about 2 hrs off! She had just left at 7:37. She was supposed to leave around 2pm. Didn't happen. Go figure. So we figured her for around 7:30'ish. And I got all of the texts to go through.

More time... 7:30'ish... I go alone to see how she's progressing. I should've known. She is infamous for getting lost. She definitely does not have a GPS system built in (or purchased!).

She was another 2 hrs off! She had turned the wrong way at Julian! Between calls, I was looking at maps and trying to figure out just where the heck she was, when she called me again and said they were going home. They were at the entrance to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. Way out of the way. Yikes! So, I went back to deliver my news.

My mom disagrees and said she gave the right information/directions, regardless of what my sister said. But from what my sister tells me, it sounds like what they thought/said. It really is a semi-confusing deal, if you don't know and if you don't have a map.

Anyway, we ate dinner. I went to bed... and I heard a car pull up. They had gotten almost all the way home when she decide to come back the way I'd told her and bring my mom's cake for her birthday. How sweet. Literally, she made a full circle. That was one long round trip.

Agua Caliente - Day Three

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Yesterday was fun! We had Jr & Renee follow us out (so they wouldn't get lost) to Julian, where we were going to visit.

Jr had to take down one tent and air mattress though, 'cause we made him. He ended up taking down one of the girls' tents, because they were moving into the larger tent, which he was using.

We were on a slant, so our pancakes were on a slant, too. They were slightly burnt, but good. Then we were on our way...

Julian is a quaint town of a whole 427 people. It is beautiful and the daffodils grow wild. According to the locals, the town is known for its lilacs and the branches are beginning to boo,, but we didn't see them...

Julian is also known for apples, and no one, but the Witch Creek Winery, from around there makes hard cider. Yep. I went to a wine tasting and west through robust tart to sweet. Yummy. I bought a bottle of the hard cider. And we bought a pie.

Lots of the shops have cute country stuff, including Gooseberry Patch cookbooks and anecdotes. Most also have Coca-Cola stuff, so they got me! My mom bought me a diner-style salt and pepper shaker set. I purchased myself a perpetual calendar that I'd never seen. Needless to say... I could've easily spent another couple hundred in there. The girls weren't into much except candy, so I didn't get them anything. My mom bought them the candy.

The markets didn't have much, so we got what we could on our lists. Luckily, Juan had found my bandaid stash in a diaper bag, so those weren't needed.

The museums were closed,l and we didn't venture out of town to the caves or the haunted stage. Maybe Friday on our way out of town we'll hit them.

It got kind of windy once we got back. Dinner was my simple meatball grill packets (meatballs, onions, corn-on-the-cob, and potatoes topped with honey & bbq sauce). Everyone loved them. So dishes were almost nothing.

We had pie and a bottle of hard cider (my Strawberry Arbor Mist died while we were gone...)... and sat by the fire for a bit. I went to bed early and took a pill.

The other day... when we were "poolin'", I had gotten a little burnt. I was starting to feel it when I turned in.

Thank goodness everything was either tied down or staked down when I went to bed. Even thought I'd taken a pill, the wind howled and blew the tent walls in and out. It whistled and gusted throughout the night, making it hard to get a good night's rest. The tent walls shuddered and blew up like a child filling its cheeks with air then blowing out, the cheeks going in.

Maybe today the girls will fly kites.

The baby kept scooting over, nearly pushing me off the ed. It's hard to sleep with a toddler, but I knew that anyway from home. By the time I got up, I was on the edge of my side, a familiar place for me, and about to go over. So I have up and got up.

Today, though, I'd like to try some trails. Wish me luck!

If i forgot to mention it, the baby complained all day about her "hurting feet." She claimed her feet still hurt and wanted to be carried around. They are scraped pretty well.

Agua Caliente Trip - Day Two

And here is a continuation of our trip. If it bores you... move on... lol!

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

And yes, I forgot to bring some things (don't we all!)... the baby's bathing suit was a big one (Don't worry. I told her that babies have to wear "shorts" bathing suits; it's one of the "rules."), a corkscrew (had to bring my wine - Thank God one of them was a screw top!), a can opener (so we didn't have baked beans or tomato sauce - for the rice, etc.) Oh well... can't remember everything.

Tuesday wasn't bad at all, if you don't need a cell phone, texting, a computer and your friends... I don't! A few days away is a great thing. But there are those that just constantly complain. Juan's kids (Jr & Renee) did just that.

As a matter of fact, they are cutting the trip short and leaving today for those very reasons. Poor Juan... Jr also forgot his deodorant, toothbrush and "flavor" (tobacco) for his Hooka (He insists this is not smoking!). Great...

Renee just super misses texting.

My cell phone just sits in my car... no worries, no pain, no wistfulness of days gone by or phone calls not received or made...

Back to yesterday...

I got the baby to go into the wading pool. Turns out - she didn't want to go Monday because she saw this "lady making kids count" and she didn't want to have to count. She loved it. I can't get her into a pool at home, but this is a wading pool, and she can touch the bottom and have a lot hang out, still. Yippee!

The kids came from the big pool, saying it was way too cold. That's what all the other campers say, too. The wading pool is about 90. They are both supposed to be 90.

I went to the "therapy" pool (jacuzzi to me) for a little bit... NICE...

Ugh. You'd think I could get my own coffee right... too much sugar! (Drinking coffee right now...)

By the time I got back to the wading pool, the baby's toes were scraped on the bottom (the pool is very roughly finished). So she complained all day. Oh! And I forgot more - bandaids and Tylenol.

Everyone but Jr had a good time in the pools. Jr didn't go in at all.

We played games (Bullshit, Solitaire, Yatzee). We played frisbee. The girls caught softballs.

Rey fell from the hammock that Juan had bought... the manufactured knots came out. It was hilarious! Thump! Right on her back. No, she wasn't hurt and didn't play it up either.

Then the hammock got fixed. We found a place the baby could fall asleep in! Yeah!

We rode bikes around the campground (the hills are tiring... I'm SO out of shape...).

Burgers were for dinner. Since Mom forgot the potato salad and salsa, we just had chips with it.

The baby was watching movies in the car. The battery went dead. That's ok. We used Jr's car to charge it up... So the baby watched movies in the tent. Until bedtime. (She didn't want to walk with her toes like that.) After the fire and s'mores, she went right to sleep with me.

The hammock was a big attraction for all the kids and Juan. I'll pass, but it was nice watching each of them in it. They'd swing, kick back, sleep and, overall, have a good time.

Jr was originally supposed to leave Thursday and Renee stay, but they've been sort of (very much) complaining a lot. Of course it irks me. Juan bought extra stuff just for them when they said they were coming. The complaining also get to me, but of course, they've made excuses as to why they have to leave.

Our Trip to Agua Caliente - Day One

So I haven't written in a while, but if you would like to follow my vacation that we took last week (we went camping at Agua Caliente), then please read. I will try to post a different day, in sequence, throughout the week.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

So the first day was...

not so bad, but very shocking for all of us. Maybe the name was an omen - "Agua Caliente", meaning hot water in Spanish. And as we came, I felt like we were getting in hotter water than I had ever imagined. Let's just go back to "it wasn't what we expected..."

First of all, we had originally expected 80 degree weather, but the everchanging forecast told us 60 degree weather with nights of 39. (Yuck!)

We set off anyway... Jr & Renee came, too... much to all of our surprise. They don't usually do much with us (although they are part of the family - my stepkids), let alone going away for a week.

The way was an hour more than I had thought, and much more south-east, too. This was definitely not Palm Springs, nor the surrounding area.

So we drove and drove, down past Fallbrook. Oops! We missed our exit. My fault... I was getting the baby (4 years old) another movie in the dvd player (aren't we spoiled?!?) and taking her toys, like she asked. So we drove to the next exit, got off and drove and drove... until my husband, Juan, found a decent spot to pull over. (We had a trailer and two more car loads were with us - following, of course.)

We discussed our new mapping and followed my mom - I asked not to be the lead anymore. And so we drove back, got our exit, and followed a gorgeous country road (thank God it was paved!!!) through a myriad of curves, winds, and various Indian reservations, all the while surrounded by lush oak trees, California poppies in full bloom, and daffodils growing wild (those lucky ducks! I have to plant my own bulbs...).

The baby had to go "potty." So as soon as we could, which wasn't that soon, we found a restroom,after pulling over another time to "discuss" (me thinks everyone keeps forgetting we have a trailer!). We found that open restroom next to a Sheriff's station. This was attached to Poncho Villa's Tacos (and Pizza & Lasagna), so we decided to grab lunch there. The food was wonderful! I don't think I thought it was going to be that good! Not one person was disappointed.

My machaca burrito was messy, dripping, and oozing with flavor, just the way it should be. The beef was tender and shredded to perfection. The blend of vegetables (corn, potatoes, onion, and yellow bell peppers) was spread throughout and carmelized to a sweet goodness. And the egg! Not too much and not too little... just enough to bind it all together.

Well... we left and headed more east, more south, through more winding, winding roads, around a mountain (elevations over 3000 ft)... that lead us to a desert.

I sure hoped this was going to be an oasis (a "haven in the desert" as the description called it...), but it was beginning to seriously look doubtful...

The first market we stopped at was closed, although it stated, "OPEN", on the sign. It had wonderful antique fire trucks (real ones!). I counted seven in all, ranging through the times. There were also horse-drawn carriages with statued horses (fake!) of times gone by. Everything was glorious and stating "DO NOT TOUCH." The baby still thought they were real, although they were crumbling. She was afraid they would bite her, so she didn't get too close for a quick pic. Picture taken... moving on...

So we left there and drove further... to the market just outside of our destination. It was small, but expected. It was a little after 3pm (on Monday) and they said they'd be closing "real soon." They also informed us (when we asked what time they opened tomorrow...) that they were closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays (GREAT!).

Then we got here... not what we expected. No lushness, small sites (camping spaces), LOTS of rocks (all large gravel in one site), prickly brush... but... we changed to one other spot and made it all work. We were determined to make the best of it. Only Jr & Renee wanted to stay in the car.

The pool closed at 5pm... the were all disappointed. Oh well...

My portion of dinner (rice, beans, and tortillas) was done promptly at 7pm. Juan wasn't done with his until 7:30, so mine was part cold, part lukewarm. (You try keeping it hot in the gusty winds and chilling evening!)

It was pretty warm when we got here (warmer than expected). But the night was COLD! I was so tired, but sleep was not my friend. The baby wanted to play, don't know until what time, and I was too cold. Eventually, I finally crashed, but woke to the pitch blackness, because I had to "GO"!

I waited it out as long as I could, then gave up and braved the cold and the dark. (The baby had been playing with the flashlight, so I didn't know where it was...) I felt the pavement and let that take me to where I needed to be. Small noises spooked me, a howling here (there were coyotes around), a "caw" there... but I made it! I stayed in the warm room (attached to the hot springs' jacuzzi [therapeutic pool] room) as long as I dared, then trudged back.

Had it not been so cold, I would've stayed out longer to star gaze, but I'm a wuss. Save that for another day/night. I got back into my warm cocoon and again (eventually) fell asleep. Waking up throughout the night, I finally got through to the morning... maybe tomorrow night I'll take a pill!

BTW - the widget you see in the upper right hand corner is for my daughter. She is in Honors English, and they are planning an educational tour to Europe next June (2010). It pains me to see her go this far away from me, yet I know it will give her a better global understanding of the world today and the variety of cultures. I want my child to be aware and am allowing her to go. However, we need your support. You can donate money to the fund or send in your donations. Just click "CHIP IN" and it will send you to a site where you can pay via PayPal. PayPal will not charge you. But... it does charge us a small amount. We have a little over $4000 to earn by May 2010. Please help us help Renee to reach this goal. Thanks ahead of time! lisa