Remembering Breaking in the new Pop Ups

August 3-5, 2018

EXCITING! We got pop up trailers! Matte, Dustin and Joey bought a new Viking pop up all together, and me and Chris found the same one used on Facebook Marketplace. We were pretty excited because the family we bought it from had only used it twice and kept it in the garage the rest of the time.

We planned a camping trip for the weekend to try out our new purchases.

Unfortunately, Joe wasn't able to make the trip- we missed him, but it was still a good time. Mom and dad even came to visit us for a bit.

The first night we were there, someone tried to chop down a tree at 3:00 AM- as in THREE IN THE MORNING. I slept right through it, but Matthew, Dustin and Chris had to hear it. Finally, one weary camper had finally had enough and screamed "SHUUUUUUT UUUUUPPP!" at the top of his lungs to express his feelings on the matter.

Very early that next morning, before the sun came up, I had to get up to go to the outhouse. Chris explained to me that he had just heard coyotes and they sounded really close, and then sent me out on my own... my hero. Haha! Chanel was forced to accompany me on that restroom trip.

Matthew picked up a pretty impressive Camp Chef stove and cooked every meal! We ate tacos, shish kebabs, and we had some amazing breakfasts. We were so spoiled! We joked with Matthew that we would have eaten hot dogs for every meal if we'd have come by ourselves.

Remembering Dad's Birthday 2018

July 13-15, 2018

We borrowed Mike and Edie's pop up trailer and headed to White Spar Campground to camp with the whole family for Dad's birthday. 

Matthew and Dustin camped in their Jeep. They didn't want to get a tent, but that's about the only camping thing that they didn't buy- haha. This was Dustin's first ever camping trip- and his first time eating smores!

Ella and Bradley stayed in the pop-up with us. The four of us played Yahtzee the first night after everyone went to sleep, but we got in trouble the next morning for being too loud- oops! We played Left Right Center the second night, and tried to pipe down. Joe joined us to play for a little while too. 

The weather was pretty rainy, but it made for nice temperatures. We were so thankful that it wasn't scorching hot like we expected. When the weather was clear, Dustin, Matthew, Bradley, Levi, Joe and Chris played poker. Me, mom, dad and Ella played Apples to Apples and Balderdash. 

During one of the rainy afternoons, we all piled in cars and drove to Walmart. We were all over the store, and Matthew and Dustin managed to find more camping stuff to buy. Haha! We also enjoyed walking around the shops by the courthouse square. It was cozy to walk around with umbrellas and explore. 

We ate like royalty- there was so much food! Matthew and mom cooked up a storm. 

On the last day, we went down to Little Dealer Little Prices to look around. All of the sudden, it started to downpour! Mom had gone inside a few minutes before it started, and I thought Joe went with her. Chris and dad started heading for shelter, but I saw the kids a little further off, and thought they were alone, so I went to go get them. When I got to them, Joe was with them- phew! But then it started raining even harder! The five of us- plus Chanel and Chloe had to take cover in an RV. It didn't seem like the rain was letting up, and we couldn't stay there forever, so we decided to just make a run for it. We got SOAKED. Joe was wearing sandals and they kept almost floating away in all the puddles. It was quite the adventure, but it was a little fun.

Remembering Sedona with Buds

On June 1, 2018, me and Chris carpooled to work on Friday. I got off at 12:30 and headed to pick up Chris. From there, we hit the road to Sedona.

Mike and Edie had booked the weekend at Sedona Summit Resort and invited us to join them. Our room was awesome! We had a full kitchen, dining area, living room and two master bedrooms. We also had a nice patio as well.

M & E had spent the morning out at the creek and Edie caught three trout. She didn't even have a fishing pole- I guess you could say that she's a pretty good fisher.

We went to the store and bought some GINORMOUS ribeye steaks. Grill-master Mike grilled all the meat and fish to perfection- the dude can really grill! After our delicious feast, we asked if they wanted to play Cards Against Humanity and found out that they had never played! They loved it, and we played for hours!

Chris and I had gone to Fry's for supplies and found a cart of discount alcohol. One of the workers told us we should get the bottle of Drambuie. She told us that when she wants to be fancy when she has guests, she serves them vanilla ice cream with Drambuie poured over the it, and then adds Pirouette cookies to the side. We thought that sounded pretty yummy- so we followed her directions and served it for dessert. Oh my gosh! SO GOOD! I highly recommend.

On June 2nd we woke up to breakfast made by Mike. Eggs with left over steak. Yum!

We drove Mike and Edie to Broken Arrow Trail. The boys climbed to the top of Submarine Rock. I love all the amazing views and lookout areas on that trail.

 

 

 

We stopped and had a picnic under the truck's awning and watched the Pink Jeep tours do a crazy obstacle. It was funny to watch some of their reactions.

 

 

Chris let me and Mike take turns driving on some of the last obstacles. I was scared though because Chris was spotting by standing in front of the truck. I was too nervous thinking I might run him over by standing so close. Mike did great though!

We headed to Oak Creek Brewery next. I loved my Kung Fu Kolsch and my Nut Brown Ale. Delish! We like going to the original brewery instead of the big grill. There is often live entertainment and they have Mexican food you can order and a popcorn machine. It's tucked back away from the main road- like a hidden gem.

After our tasty brews, we headed back to the resort and went to the pool. The water felt amazing! Chris, Mike and Edie got in the hot tub for a bit, but the pool felt too good to leave.

We went back to the room where I made baked ziti. Chris made us Irish car bombs, and we played Cards Against Humanity again. Edie loved that game so much, I ordered an expansion pack to take with us next time.

On June 3rd Mike and Edie headed home. Me and Chris hung out for a bit, but decided to go home and pick up the doggies and the VR and take it out to mom and dad's house. Joe and the kids were there, and Levi had called me the day prior asking if we'd come hang out. Mom and dad grilled hamburgers, and we played Beat Saber on VR until after 9pm. We were beat- but is was a great weekend.