Sidewalk art



Elephant walking



The Big Outdoors

 We did it!  Camped with a 14 month old.  This cute guy.

And he loved it.  We had a pretty good time as well.  Except for waking up at 3:30 AM to a screaming baby.  Yes, that would be our little guy.  He was cold.  Or teething.  Or scared.  Your guess is as good as mine.  So we cut our trip from a 2 night event to one which is such a bummer after all the preparation that goes into camping. 

I mean we bought a new tent.

The Coleman TentMaster 10 sold at Costco is huge, sleeps 10 people.  We had 2 adults and a baby in a pack n play.  We were living large in the woods.  It took a while to setup for the first time and out designated tent pad was just barely big enough to fit our 10x16 tent.  But you could stand up this thing and not just in the middle.  There was a swinging door and auto roll windows.  The winds picked up some and it did just fine.  The weather was gorgeous so no rain to test how waterproof it is.  A pole was bent during setup, but we will just exchange the tent at Costco next time we are in.  Love it.

We also got an airmatress and until 3:30 AM we were sleeping like babies. 

The campsite we stayed at was called Sunset Point on Grandby Lake.  We showed up at 12:30 on a Friday afternoon and there were only 4 sites open.  We got one that overlooked the lake and had some trees to shade us from the midday sun. 

We had delicious salmon and bell peppers with couscous for dinner.  This is a very easy recipe to prepare ahead of time and then place in tin foil to put in the fire.

For breakfast we had creamed eggs on biscuits.  Again boiled the eggs at home and brought frozen Pillsbury Biscuits in the cooler.  You put 2 T Butter in a pan, add 2 T flour and then 1 cup milk.  Add the chopped hard boiled eggs.  On the other stove burner add butter to a pan and put the frozen or somewhat thawed biscuits and cover the pan with a lid.  After about 8 minutes check biscuits and flip over so then don't get burned.  This is my favorite breakfast at home and even better camping. 

The 2nd night we were going to have Penne pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms and chard.  Since we didn't stay the for the 2nd night I made it home and this is one of the best new recipes I've found.  Try it out at home and then use it camping.

Whole Wheat Penne With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Mushrooms And Chard

Makes 2 to 4 servings

1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 cup chard or spinach
1/2 pound whole wheat penne
1 cube vegetable bouillon
3 tablespoons olive oil
At home: Boil a cup of water and add the tomatoes. Let steep, covered, for 10 minutes, then drain and put into a zip-top bag. Combine the onion, garlic, mushrooms, basil and oregano in another bag. Measure out the penne, and carry the chard separately.


In camp: Bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a medium-sized pot. Add the pasta and the vegetable bouillon and cook until al dente. Remove from heat and drain if necessary, reserving some of the cooking liquid in the pot.


In another pot, heat the olive oil and add the contents of the bag with the onion, garlic, mushrooms and dried herbs. Cook a few minutes. Lower the heat and add the chard and sun-dried tomatoes, stirring vigorously to wilt the greens. Remove from heat and stir into the pot containing the penne. Add salt and pepper to taste.
 
Here's a picture of how mine turned out at home:
 
 

 
Miles loved exploring the woods and the campground.  We were able to eat our dinner while he sat in the dirt with a stick for 15 minutes entertaining himself. 
 
 

To many more adventures!

What is this Thai Basil?

Something was a little off from this round of delivered Panang chicken from Thai Basil. And this picture proves it was watered down a bit. Strike one Thai Basil, please don't disappoint me again.

I love this trailer camper!

Remember my obsession with Airstreams?  Well, I want one to renovate and tour across the country in.  I really like the Design Within Reach Airstream.  Although a little pricey at $47k.

So very modern, not your grandpa's Airstream.  Unfortunately we don't have an extra $50k laying around.  


My new want is a Teardrop trailer camper.  These camper originated in the 1950's after WWII in America.  People's love of the great outdoors and roadtripping were at an all time high.  Then in the 1960's American's motto of bigger is better took over and the fifth wheel was born.  


The teardrop camper got it's name from the shape.

So much to love about that cute little camper.   It is small and light, some light enough a motorcycle could pull one.  There is room enough for a double bed and a galley kitchen in the hitch.

You can get extras like stove built-in, sink, fridge, dvd player, etc.  I love the one pictured above from Clever Camper, a company that rents these fully outfitted campers in England.

This is how easy it is to setup a teardrop camper.


Here's a list of other teardrop campers on the market. 

Only problem, sleeps 2... not so good for families.  Or maybe let the kids sleep in tents! Ha, yeah right.


Either way, doesn't it make you want to go camping right now?

Bike ride to Dairy Queen

This was our first outing on the back bike seat. We went to DQ and Miles wasn't so sad.

life

Sorry for the absence.  No real excuse other than I like to do other things than post blogs.  Also it takes me a while to actual get a post up.  And I have been using my iPad a lot more often to surf the web which does not support Flash, making it very difficult to post from the iPad.  


So here is the run down on life.

• Miles and I have been taking swim lesson at the rec center 5 blocks from our house.  Last week, Miles was not a fan aka there was a lot of crying.  And then on Thursday they fixed the water heater at the pool and like that swimming became more enjoyable.  We have 2 more days and then we can head over there any afternoon all summer long.
• We borrowed a kiddie pool for our backyard and Miles loves to splash around in that thing.  Pictures to come soon.

• A luxury tent was bought yesterday.  Read a 10 person tent for 2 adults and 1 small child.  We should have plenty of room this weekend for our first camping trip this season.  We went last year to the Sand Dunes and camped in a 2 person backpacking tent.  That is when we decided we needed a BIGGER tent.  We got our tent at Costco.  I'll give you a review after this weekend on the Coleman WeatherMaster 10 tent.  

• We are selling a kakak plus all the gear to get started for $350.  I know you need a new hobby, please contact me.
• Speaking of hobbies, I'm trying to make outdoor pillows for our outdoor furniture and benches.  And I'm ever so slowly trying to finish a knitted hippo for Miles.  One day I'll post pictures.

Dear Miles on your 1st birthday,

My heart truly bursts because you are in my life. I could never imagine how much love I have for anyone and then you came along a year ago.

I'll be honest with you, we had a rough start out of the gate, but that's another story for you. After we got things figured out foodwise, life was better for both of us. You smiled at 5 weeks and rolled over soon after. Your giggle is music and I want to keep doing whatever prompts a laugh so I can hear it forever. I would bottle your smell and giggle if I could. And that smile, wow! You make friends just by flashing your gummy smile and I hope that continues well into the future.

If there ever was a perfect baby, you would be it. You sleep through the night not even waking for new teeth growing in. You take good naps, 3 naps and then switching to 2 naps at 9 months. You really don't get upset. And you are the best running partner I have ever had and I'm glad that we have been able to explore our neighborhood together, let's explore to the moon and back.

I thought you would army crawl forever, but you figured out how to crawl and then started walking a few days before your birthday. I hope your new found freedom enriches your curiosity, but that you will always come back to my arms with a smile.

We have been to camping in the Sand Dunes, to Indy for Dana's wedding, Kentucky to see your family, Vail, celebrated both your grandparents' 40th anniversaries this year. You have been to the mountains and hiking and downtown Denver and many of restaurants around town. Your friends have been Sammy, Noah, Dillon, Liam, Briggs, Olivia, Carenna, Addisyn, and Ava.

As I look to the future, I hope for you many more friends, (we need to work on your sharing). Don't eat dirt and NO means stop, not keep doing what you are doing at a faster pace.

In all seriousness, I pray for you daily that you become a Man of God and that you follow Him to the end of the Earths. And I pray that I can teach you to love BIG and forgive always. And that you would continue blessing people just as you have blessed me.

All my heart,

Mama