Last night we pulled into Steamboat Springs. Again in the dark. We have got to quit doing that. We needed to stop at Safeway for provisions. It happened there. It hit me like a ton of bricks. All at one, standing in Safeway, I got really, really homesick. I had to buy the Safeway Chicken Noodle soup and a tube of Nestle toll house chocolate chip cookies to make our bus more like home. That, and per the suggestion of Nicole, I decided to watch TV. We don't have any TV in the bus, just a DVD/VHS player and we've already watched all the movies. So I streamed in Desperate Housewives and it made all the difference.
I have really enjoyed all the sweet little towns, but I know there is not one that I would consider trading with Scottsdale.
Last night, we also discovered that all four of us are bloated, gassy and perhaps even constipated. Okay, definately constipated. Holy cow, bring on the fruit. Today was the RAW diet with all the veggies and fruit I could cut, deseed and lay in front of the troops. Over shot the mark a little, I now know where 6 different bathrooms are in the 1/2 mile stretch that is down town.
Last night, in the midst of writing in their journals, the kids began trading the different gemstones they panned for in Glenwood Springs. Neither would part with their obsiden arrow heads. After closer inspection, Mack may be the one who crafted those. They are looking a little too pristine, but to a 7 year old and an 8 year old, Tonto himself was the originator. They kept coming over to me (trying Desperately to watch my Housewives with the ipod headphones on) to ask if the proposed trade if "fair" or not. I was letting all kinds of deals go through that I normally would have been more vocal about, but, Bree and Chuck were closing in on the scene I had been waiting for.
Today was, as we call it when we vacation with my mom and dad, a "kick back"day. In honor of curing the homesickness, I cleaned the bus. I did 4 loads of laundry while the kids dialed into PBS in the RV lounge. They needed some time down time with curious george. They also spent 3 hours riding bikes. To Jay, the RV park, mostly empty, but with two play grounds and an M&M machine that takes quarters, it was a maze. He rode and rode and rode and finally I was able to sneak up on him singing a song called, "just living my life". The title and lyrics are one in the same. He just repeats it over and over. Given his new habit of random meditation, it may be more of mantra than a song.
And Allie, sweet Allie, who I was behind on my bike came to screeching halt on her bike half way up a hill. "Allie, you can't stop in the middle of the hill". "Well, mom, did you want me to just run right into that butterfly?" Oh, to think like a child. I have such a better perspective of how they think. I recently realized while doing laundry why they don't want to sell me their quarters for dollar bills. I need the quarters to do laundry and thought paper money would be a treat. NOPE. They need those quarters for the M&M machine and the Hot Tomale Machine in the lobby, and all places in the known universe that give a pitance of candy for 25 cents. Allie did report tonight that the Hot Tamale machine gave her more like $1.00's worth for her $.75. It was a dream come true. Each kid now has a baggie full of their candy de jour hidden for emergencies somewhere in the bus.
As for the city of Steamboat Springs, we hopped on the free bus to town at the RV park and walked the downtown. Same touristy area. Same T-Shirts, but they say Steamboat Springs rather than Durango, Silverton or beautiful Holbrook, AZ. We did find the 8th Street Steakhouse. It was our gem. You enter, and they pretty much hand you a salad plate. You are eating one before we get to the ordering. After salads and drinks, we walk up to the counter, select our cut of meat (of for Jay Jay, hugo-mungo-shrimp) and then we are given cooking directions. Off to the grill for the 4 of us, Allie holding the timer and Jay Jay on tongs, we cooked our own dinner at this huge indoor grill. A fellow chef asked us if we are in town for the feast of the tabernacale, a religious event from the old Testament. WHAT? A biblically endorsed one week feast that I knew nothing about? You better bet I am going to google it tonight.
We rounded out the day with another trip to the down town hot springs pool completed with outdoor climbing wall that you start in the deep end and climb as the warm waterfall tries to knock you off. Jay made it higher than Allie, but that's not saying much. The water was incredible 98* despite the 47* air temp. We floated, swam and digested away 2 hours before we forced ourselves out the pool and sprinted to the dressing rooms.
Home now, eating pears and peaches and getting ready for beddy bye. Still reading Hugo Cabret to the kids. No journal tonight, I'll let them off the hook.
I have really enjoyed all the sweet little towns, but I know there is not one that I would consider trading with Scottsdale.
Last night, we also discovered that all four of us are bloated, gassy and perhaps even constipated. Okay, definately constipated. Holy cow, bring on the fruit. Today was the RAW diet with all the veggies and fruit I could cut, deseed and lay in front of the troops. Over shot the mark a little, I now know where 6 different bathrooms are in the 1/2 mile stretch that is down town.
Last night, in the midst of writing in their journals, the kids began trading the different gemstones they panned for in Glenwood Springs. Neither would part with their obsiden arrow heads. After closer inspection, Mack may be the one who crafted those. They are looking a little too pristine, but to a 7 year old and an 8 year old, Tonto himself was the originator. They kept coming over to me (trying Desperately to watch my Housewives with the ipod headphones on) to ask if the proposed trade if "fair" or not. I was letting all kinds of deals go through that I normally would have been more vocal about, but, Bree and Chuck were closing in on the scene I had been waiting for.
Today was, as we call it when we vacation with my mom and dad, a "kick back"day. In honor of curing the homesickness, I cleaned the bus. I did 4 loads of laundry while the kids dialed into PBS in the RV lounge. They needed some time down time with curious george. They also spent 3 hours riding bikes. To Jay, the RV park, mostly empty, but with two play grounds and an M&M machine that takes quarters, it was a maze. He rode and rode and rode and finally I was able to sneak up on him singing a song called, "just living my life". The title and lyrics are one in the same. He just repeats it over and over. Given his new habit of random meditation, it may be more of mantra than a song.
And Allie, sweet Allie, who I was behind on my bike came to screeching halt on her bike half way up a hill. "Allie, you can't stop in the middle of the hill". "Well, mom, did you want me to just run right into that butterfly?" Oh, to think like a child. I have such a better perspective of how they think. I recently realized while doing laundry why they don't want to sell me their quarters for dollar bills. I need the quarters to do laundry and thought paper money would be a treat. NOPE. They need those quarters for the M&M machine and the Hot Tomale Machine in the lobby, and all places in the known universe that give a pitance of candy for 25 cents. Allie did report tonight that the Hot Tamale machine gave her more like $1.00's worth for her $.75. It was a dream come true. Each kid now has a baggie full of their candy de jour hidden for emergencies somewhere in the bus.
As for the city of Steamboat Springs, we hopped on the free bus to town at the RV park and walked the downtown. Same touristy area. Same T-Shirts, but they say Steamboat Springs rather than Durango, Silverton or beautiful Holbrook, AZ. We did find the 8th Street Steakhouse. It was our gem. You enter, and they pretty much hand you a salad plate. You are eating one before we get to the ordering. After salads and drinks, we walk up to the counter, select our cut of meat (of for Jay Jay, hugo-mungo-shrimp) and then we are given cooking directions. Off to the grill for the 4 of us, Allie holding the timer and Jay Jay on tongs, we cooked our own dinner at this huge indoor grill. A fellow chef asked us if we are in town for the feast of the tabernacale, a religious event from the old Testament. WHAT? A biblically endorsed one week feast that I knew nothing about? You better bet I am going to google it tonight.
We rounded out the day with another trip to the down town hot springs pool completed with outdoor climbing wall that you start in the deep end and climb as the warm waterfall tries to knock you off. Jay made it higher than Allie, but that's not saying much. The water was incredible 98* despite the 47* air temp. We floated, swam and digested away 2 hours before we forced ourselves out the pool and sprinted to the dressing rooms.
Home now, eating pears and peaches and getting ready for beddy bye. Still reading Hugo Cabret to the kids. No journal tonight, I'll let them off the hook.
No comments:
Post a Comment