The hardest part of leaving Bend, Oregon 6 months ago was saying goodbye to all our wonderful friends. We had a great group of friends there and still do. Lucky for us, most of them love adventure. And they are all looking for ways to meet us on the road and experience a little bit of Chinchen roadtripping.
Chris and Amy have been friends of ours since Kaleb was a baby. They've watched our family grow and now we're excited for their little one that will be here in a few more months. Chris, Amy and "Obie" flew down to Phoenix to go on a little camping trip with us. They have a friend, Amy, who lives in Phoenix. We kidnapped her and took her on a 3 day trip into the Arizona wilderness. She became our navigator and GPS unit, we've nicknamed her Amy3K.

After an exciting reunion and hot breakfast it was time to hit the road. Jason and Chris are old skateboarding buddies. Our first stop was at the Tempe skatepark where the guys "played" while the ladies made the weekend menu and filled up the cupboards. After that we headed east and found an old ghost town to explore. Camp wasn't much further down the road near Apache Lake.

Sunday we wanted to find our way to Tonto National Monument. This would require a 15 mile trip down a crazy one lane dirt road with hairpin turns and cliffs on one side. Jason worked through the pressure of getting his family and friends down safely. Perhaps we should have researched our route a little better before heading out, but then again then we would've missed out a lots of laughs and funny memories.
After making it safely down the mountain we stopped for a lake front lunch and some rock throwin. A quick stop at Theodore Roosevelt Dam and we were on our way to Tonto National Monument and more cliff dwellings. These shallow caves are nearly 700 years old and lived in by the Salado people. Unlike the other ruins we've visited, we were able to explore the inside of the dwellings. Rock tools still littered the land and the kids had fun pretending to hunt and gather food.


When out in the wilderness with 5 adults, 3 kids and a dog, some fun memories are sure to be made. Our favorite....deciding to pull off onto a dirt road and find some camping deep in the Arizona desert wilderness. Enter the Cholla Cactus, otherwise known as The Teddy Bear Cactus. BEWARE....DO NOT TOUCH, DO NOT GO NEAR, in fact DON'T EVEN LOOK AT THE PLANT.
Cholla have tubercles, small wart like projections on the stem. These spines WILL jump at you and attach themselves into your skin requiring long BBQ tongs to pull out. Just ask Ani or the dog. They will also pop every single one of your bike tires if you happen to back into one trying to get the perfect spot. They will stick to your flip flops and poke your feet. You will be afraid. I don't think I need to say more.

We cooked a mexican feast in the cholla forest, had a girls spa night in the RV, sang and danced around the fire, and rested for our big hike the next day. Amy3K led us on a beautiful hike within the Superstition Wilderness. We hiked through canyons and Saguaro Cacti. It was a warm sunny blue sky day. We didn't make it to the top, but got far enough in to witness the amazing scenery that hides behind the city. After our hike and 3 days out camping, Chris's cousins welcomed all of us stinky folks into their home in Mesa, Arizona for a BBQ dinner. I was introduced to the game Rock Band where my alter-ego jumped out and jammed it on the guitar and microphone. Who'd a thunk I had that in me. It was a blast.
As Obama was being sworn in as our next president it was time to say goodbye to our dear friends. It was sad to see them leave. The next time we see them they will be momma and papa. We can't wait to kiss, hug and hold the baby. Amy3K welcomed us into her home for a few more days. We again took advantage of hot showers and clean clothes. Phoenix now reminds us good friends and fun. We're glad to have a place to call home if we ever go back.

Home is where you park it

Quartzsite, Arizona. How do I explain it to you.
Sleepy Saguaro desert one day, busy urban city the next.
It's absolutely crazy. RVer's from all over the country and even oversees come here every year to live on the BLM land that surrounds this tiny desert town. Flea markets are set up left and right and stretch on for miles. New folks pull in every day and stake out their plot for the winter season.
We were told what to expect, but I don't think we truly understood what really took place out here in the winter oasis.

Normally by Jan 1st the hundreds and hundreds or acres of BLM land that surround this sleepy community is practically full. With the economy in a rut we we're told it was slow, but it sure got busy for us!. There are no hook-ups or water. Just empty land waiting for you to find. After a few tries we found the spot we would call "Home" for the month. Out a bit away from the madness, the way we like it, yet close enough to town that we were able to ride our bikes to the flea markets, library and grocery stores. That's about it for the town of Quartzsite.
One word of advice...fill your cupboards before arriving!!! You may find great deals at the flea markets, but it all catches up to you when it's time to stock the fridge. Food at the local Markets is very expensive and not that great of quality...Green meat anyone? We ended up taking 2 trips to Blythe, California, just over the border. There is an Albertsons there and its worth the drive if you need more than a few items.
What did we do with our month out in the desert? We did lots and lots of reading, learned how to knit, wrote and played songs, perfected the Smore, hit golf balls into the desert, made new friends, jump roped, built forts and whittled away at some of winter.

During our time in Quartzsite we were lucky enough to have family visit not once, but TWICE. My brother drove down from Colorado to spend Christmas with us and Jason's brother and his family picked up his mom who happened to be down in Palm Springs and drove over for a fun-filled day. Familiar faces bring lots of happiness when you've been "lost on the road" for 5 months. We ate every minute up while with them all.

TheWhoFarm

I sat down tonight with the intentions of writing another blog.
I was catching up on blogs I read by others when I came across this....


TheWhoFarm

Did you sign the petition?????

Petrified Forest National Park

So here I sit in Southern California in the snow. Yes, that's right, I "wrote" snow. We just can't seem to hid from winter. We've had our share of warm sunny days over the last month so I shouldn't complain but really, enough is enough. I giggle when we turn on the news and hear nothing but talk of "the big storm". That means it's been raining for 4 days straight now. I know places are flooding from this but I come from Oregon. It rains/snows/sleets/hails/slushes and shines the sun daily. And I mean all of that in one day. I joke that it's sometimes exhausting watching the weather.
The point of all this babble is that because I can't go outside I've found time and ran out of excuses not to update our blog. I love blogging but I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed when I look back and realize the last time I truly did was when we were stuck in "the big storm" of Durango, Colorado back in early December.
So we've made it to California. It's been a fun journey along the way.
We escaped Colorado and spent a day in northern Arizona in Petrified Forest National Park. The place is littered with petrified logs. Not tiny bits of pieces here and there, actual LOGS. It's amazing!
To my surprise we've stumbles upon many archeological sites in the southwest. I wasn't aware on the amount of Native American history here. We've seen cliff dwelling after cliff dwelling. Found pottery on the ground and irrigation ditches built to water the crops. Petrified Forest was another happy history lesson. Over 650 sites have been found within the park. Old Route 66 also passes through. It was fun to cross paths again with the old road as we spent some time on it while in Flagstaff.
After a hike filled day we continued to head south. Again, we hit snow. Are you surprised by this yet? Feet and feet of white powder sat along the side of the road. Snowmen built by Phoenix city folk waved at us as we drove by. I am still shocked at how far south the snow really flies. I had no idea Arizona even got snow. I've learned now and I'll never doubt Old Man Winter again.
Our plan was to spend the night in Payson, AZ, and hour north of Phoenix. We arrived late in the afternoon and played in the sun for a bit. As soon as the sun set, I was reminded that yes, it was December. It was so cold out that we decided we had enough and drove late into the night south to Phoenix. From here we would drive east to Quartzsite, AZ. We spent an entire month there. I will continue on tomorrow with stories from our winer in the sun, finally.
Right now it's time for dinner. And being at families house, I get to cook it on a real stove, eat it on real dinnerware with the heater on while the snow flies outside.

Prepare yourselves!!!

Beware......I've decided that enough is enough and I've told myself that tomorrow I am sitting down and catching up on blog writing.
If I slack I need you all to harass me. Give me til the evening please, then...game on.

Til then.........

a hint of comfort in the air

you all know that smell. the smell of homemade bread.
it's a comfort to us all. makes our guards drop and our mouths water as we await the first bite.

i've been a loyal fan to the publication Mother Earth News. I've been buying it on the road, even though it will be sometime before i build my passive solar home with my organic garden out on my acreage of wilderness i will one day own.
but that doesn't stop me. the latest issue as an article about easy homemade bread. now if i can accomplish this in an RV, surely you'll all have no problem.

you'll need:::
3 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 tbsp yeast (1 1/2 packages)
1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt or sea salt
6 1/2 cups white flour

in a big bowl, mix water and yeast. add remaining ingrediants. stir with wooden spoon until moist (not long). let rise 2 hours. but in fridge.
now this will last for up to 2 weeks. the longer it sits, the more sourdough-y.

when you want some fresh bread, sprinkle the top of your dough w/ flour, grab out a handful (grapefruit size)and place on cookie sheet. preheat oven to 450. let sit for 30 min and then bake. put a small bowl of water on bottem of oven. that's it! with this recipe you should get 4 balls of bread. like i said, you can use it 4 days in a row or use it over a 2 week time. when it's all gone, don't wash the bowl, just make the dough over again. this will speed up the sourdough flavor.

ENJOY!

HELLO friends and family! It's been awhile since we've updated. Thought I'd sneak into the local library and give you all a quick update. Sorry, no pictures this time, but believe me, we've got lots to share.
We escaped winter once again. We loved Durango but in the dead of winter in a motor home, it wasn't a long stay. The sky opened up and the sun showed her face...it was time to make a run for it.
We drove over to Petrified Forest National Park in northern Arizona. What an amazing place. Logs, and I mean BIG logs of petrified wood laid scattered about. Kaleb was in absolute heaven, drooling with all the rocks surrounding him. The warning of picking up rocks and possible time spent in jail hung over him like a black cloud. Hard to forget when you see cameras all over the place. (A weird sight in a National Park.)
Winter was still a threat so we quickly made our way over to Quartsite, Az. We've been here about 3 weeks now. It's been nice to "stay put". The kids got their groove on with schoolwork and have been busy building forts out in the desert and knitting hats galore. My brother drove down to spend the holiday with us and Nan-Nan and Uncle Justin and his family drove over for a day visit Jan 1st.
We will be here another week before we make the trek back to Phoenix to spend some time with some friends of ours from Bend, OR that are flying in to see us. We can't wait to kick it by a campfire with them for a few nights. Then over to Cali and Joshua Tree and the Salton Sea. After that we will visit Aunty Leah and park it a bit in Uncle Justin's driveway near Riverside, CA. Then it looks like a roadtrip back north with possible settlement in the Portland, OR area. We've had fun exploring the SW but realize we are true NorthWesters.
In Feb. will be camping for a weekend near L.A with other "Families on the Road". I have a link to the website over to the left. We joined this website when we first left Bend and have become friends with a few other families, following and learning from them on their journey. This will be a great get together and we are looking forward to finally meeting and playing with them.
I must get going now, the librarian is shooting me funny faces, guess my time is up.
We hope you all had a enjoyable holiday and a safe and happy New Year. Hopefully we'll be crossing paths with many of you soon!
Love to all!!!