We always have 2 Christmases. Except for last year, when I hosted for the first time in 3 decades so we only had one, but it was ruined by one of my relations who shall remain nameless. You know who you are you B. ;0 Anyway, we picked up the old tradition again this year by having one Christmas with Grandpa Keeler and then heading up to NM for a couple days to spend a formal Christmas with my mom. Even though Grandpa has been in his new apartment for almost 2 years now, this was the first time we spent Christmas in it and we had a lot of fun. His place is so cozy and cute and absolutely perfect for him. The boys got some really cool stuff and we got a delicious box of dates! Yummy! Thank you for being so wonderful Grandpa! We are looking forward to a fantastic trip with you this year! Disneyworld or BUST baby! =)
Tommy had to go on an end of the year trip to FL on business. He had asked me earlier in the year if I wanted to join in him and I of course said YES! I’ve only gone with him on one other work trip and it was to Yuma when Henry was 5 months old and it was an absolute disaster! Ha! So I definitely wanted another chance to redeem the work trip opportunity. I’ve never been to FL – I mean I’ve been there for layovers when I visit Holly but never actually hung out in the state. We had such a fun and RELAXING time. I’m not normally a beach person and even though the water was too cold to swim in, I just loved walking on the shore everyday and collecting sea shells. We also got a major bonus – the hotel that we booked upgraded us for free to a tower suite. So we got a room RIGHT off the shore and we opened our door at night and listened to the ocean. It was heavenly. I’m actually trying to figure out a way for us to go back! Haha! Believe it or not, I just found out that we have good friends that live down there so we might have to hit them up! Here’s looking at you Johnnie! =)
We went back and forth about going to Bishop this year. After our Joe’s Valley trip we felt psyched to get back on the rocks, but we had so much to do to prepare for the trip and such little time to do it in, we just became overwhelmed and lost focus and motivation. Tommy’s truck suspension was on the fritz as well, so he wanted to stay home and get that fixed and I was just honestly dreading the crowds that always amass in Bishop every Thanksgiving. We actually cancelled the trip and then I felt so awful about it and convinced Tommy that we had to go. Our only stipulation was that we weren’t allowed to go anywhere that we’d already been. The repetition of going back to the same stuff was getting old and it was either new or die.
So, we set out with a list of new places and new projects and WE HAD AN ABSOLUTE BALL! And we didn’t hit any crowds! Woo hoo! I’m not anti-social or anything but the crowds are too much for me now. We’ve gotten spoiled by our woody and the solitude it provides. Tsk Tsk. What have you done to me Tommy? We also decided to make our Thanksgiving dinner using our crockpot and making instant everything else. It was delectable! After a week, our skin was trashed and we felt good leaving it all on the rocks. We left a lot of projects undone and are anxious for next year. Here’s to hoping we stay injury free this year and can crush some problems next November!
One of the things that had us overwhelmed before the trip was our pop-up trailer. It’s only getting smaller as the boys get bigger and we were desperate for more room. We debated on whether to just sell it and upgrade but unfortunately the decision wasn’t so easy. The bigger you go, the heavier you get and our 4runner can only haul a certain weight. So, with a new trailer, we’d need a new truck, and after much consideration we decided we weren’t willing to do that. We are really enjoying being debt free so we decided to try and come up with a way to add more space to the trailer. Somehow.
During our trip to Joe’s Valley, one of the main zippers on the entrance flap broke and we couldn’t close it. Our two options were to either have me fix it with my industrial machine, or buy a completely new tent cover which would have cost thousands of dollars. We chose the former and a week before our trip, we tore it off the bars and dragged it into the garage to try and fix it. I will tell you that it was one of the hardest projects I’ve ever had to do. Just the logistics made it nearly impossible. It weighed about 50 pounds and trying to maneuver the pile of vinyl into place gave us about a thousand calorie workout. It took me roughly 8 hours from start to finish and Tommy was there the whole way. I also had to enlist the help of my poor brother who had come over for a short visit. Nevertheless, we did it and even though there were a few spots that weren’t straight and some original holes that I missed filling, I was VERY happy with the result. The zippers are SUPER beefy and aluminum instead of plastic so they’ll last till the end of time.
After brainstorming a while, I threw out the idea of trying to add a bunk bed to give the boys more room and ultimately give us more storage space. This would have been much easier to conceive in a hard sided trailer but with a pop up you’re limited to a certain space when everything collapses. However, I knew that Tommy would come up with something – he always does. So a couple weeks before the trip, he went out and bought materials and started creating a bunk bed system. It was amazing and the boys absolutely loved it! We also added a big storage bin in the place of one of the benches and that was nice as well. Eventually we want to add in a permanent fridge and heater. That’s for this year though. We can’t have a trip where we aren’t scrambling to get something done. It just wouldn’t be the same! Hahaha!
*ps – if you click on the pics, you’ll see a larger version. This blog is retarded and makes everything small. Lame, I say.
Here’s a little compilation of some of the videos we took there:
This was the second year we hosted our Halloween climbing competition and let me just say…as stressful as it always turns out to be, I’m so glad we do it! Last year we had about 30 people show up. This year it was 60! I’m not sure what the heck we’re going to do next year if the number doubles again! I’m thrilled at the success of this event and how stoked people get over it, but I’m not sure our house can handle it. There were people everywhere and at midnight when everyone left, the place was trashed! Not from garbage or anything, but just dirt and grime everywhere. It took us the entire next day to clean everything up. Again…we’re not complaining. Just trying to figure out how we’re going to keep this going. Hmmmm…we just bought the acre next door to us… Maybe build a party house with parking, yeah?? Woo hoo!
Here’s a fun little video compilation of the event:
On our way down to Flagstaff to visit Keto and Dana, we stopped and visited Monument Valley. We wanted to take our Christmas picture here, but couldn’t make it back out in time. Maybe next year!