Same place, new experience

We've been going to the Desert for years. We have mixed it up a time or five but for the most part we go to Ocotillo. We prefer to camp off of Pole Line Rd but we have gone everywhere out there. It's funny to me just how many times we can camp in the same general vicinity, the same time of year, usually even with the same people and the experience can be different every time. We even go to the same destinations while we are there. It's fun to go visit other people we know who happen to be camping out there the same weekend we are.

When we first started going to Ocotillo, we thought it was amazing that Ed, our soon to be brother in law, knew how to get from one place to another and back again. As the years have passed, we are now the same way. We can tell that just over that hill, or just pass that bump in the trail, we can navigate our way to where we might be going. We even have traditions that my kids look forward to. The one they like the best is the Twizzler tradition. Every time we go camping, I buy a HUGE bag of Twizzlers and pack it up with me so the minute we hit the dirt, I can start passing them out. We also break the trip up into "pieces" for the kids. Instead of asking "are we there yet?" our kids ask which piece of the trip we are on. We break it up into ten pieces and will tell them what portion we are on. Might be lame, but it works for us. Trust me, we don't have the luck to have the kids all fall asleep on the road anymore. There is usually someone wondering just how much farther we have to travel to get there.

I This trip we camped with the Adens. Erin, Jeremy, and their two adorable boys Jared and Andrew. We even had a day visit from our friends Michele and Glenn, their boys Jack & Brady, and roomy Amanda. Glenn just had the same surgery Matt had a few months ago. He is doing well and it was good to have him well enough to be out in the dirt with us. Neither of the guys are riding like they used to but it's still nice to be out there.

Megan never has been too into getting messy. Like the eewww look?

I would love to take all the pictures I have taken over the years in this very spot and compare them. We love being out there mid week, when we have no one else out there with us. Kinda fun, and kinda scary if you think of having any mechanical issues.

I want to put more pics on this post but I'm afraid it will take ma another week to finish and post.

OK, so to get 'er done...I'm done. More to come later. I hope to scrap something in the next few days and I'll show you what I get done.

See y'all later.

Lauren :O)))

Dear Blog,

My promise to you dear blog, I haven't forgotten you. I must say I was a little mad. Yes, a bit sour. I HATE it when I spend all kinds of my precious time working on a beautiful post, only to have the actual post look way different and not nearly as pleasing to the eye than my post in "preview" mode. I think I am done being mad. I will give you another chance. I must say there is competition for my thoughts, my words, most importantly my photos. My new LOVE, yes, my Facebook, has treated me kind. I will take our history and our time under consideration and give you another chance.....so don't piss me off.

Lauren :O))

A recap to get caught up. Whew, is it 2009 already??

So I've been meaning to post. At first I was was waiting for time, then for pictures, then for time, and then, well facebook sucked me in. Now I am here, sitting in front of my computer ready to give my bloggie blog some luvin! In order to catch up I'm going to post some random catch up pictures in no particular order. Did you notice my new photo on the top? It was from a trip up to Big Bear. What a great time. Well, here's a photog of the last little while.

Fun time in Big Bear to play in the snow and Chillax!

We are so proud of the girls. Alyssa received the Gold Honor Roll Award at school and in the same week, Megan received student of the month for her class. The girls were very happy to be recognized for their hard work.

We baked cookies. We decorated cookies. We ate cookies. Yum, that's the best part!

The kids celebrated the annual kids x-mas party at the Fire Dept.

The Fire Dept X-Mas Party for the grown ups.

We celebrated Christmas. Santa brought each of the kids a special treat. SMFD brought us a treat too, Daddy home for the first time in seven years for Christmas day! We enjoyed not rushing for once. Alyssa woke up on Christmas eve right as the Nordic Santa tracker reported Santa was in San Diego! She was so excited she came in our room and slept with us so she wouldn't be awake. She heard him from our bed and could barely sleep but she managed to sleep long enough for the big guy to come and leave stocking stuffed with goodies and treats.

We even got to spend a nice time with Matt's family at his sister's house. The kids had a great time with their Aunt Pooh, like always.

I even got to take my new Cricut bag out for a test run and scrapbook the day after Christmas to celebrate my friend Randi's b-day.












We rang in the new year quietly at home with a few good friends. We also celebrated Erin's birthday as she is a New Year's Eve baby. Can you believe she's only 26? I'm trying to keep myself young by hanging out with young peeps! Not really but they are a lot of fun. Glenn and Michele joined us as well. Everyone was pooped and barely made it to midnight. Of course, not me....I'm just getting my second wind at that time.






















OK, well that should catch me up a little bit. So sorry for taking so long to give you a little love. Posting on a more regular basis is on my list of To Do's for 2009. I will show that list soon so I have some accountability for the list. Speaking of lists, my friend Ally has an inspiring list on her blog. Check it out here. LOVES IT! I think you'll see my list looks very similar!

Love to all for the new year.

Lauren :O)))