Day 49

It's always easier to pack up when we only stay in one tent and helps with the cold weather too.  If the kids could cool their attitudes during pack up and set up I'm positive it could be even easier!

We were packed up and parking at Rebel Donuts in Albuquerque for a couple birthday donuts each before 9. Having a birthday on the road and away from friends is hard so I thought this might hit the spot! Brayden picked triple chocolate and chocolate mint, Ryan picked chocolate mint and caramel green apple, Laney picked Boston cream and raised yeast, and I picked maple cream and blueberry pineapple pancakes flavors. My pineapple was one of the best donuts I've ever had! The chocolate mint bite Brayden shared was surprisingly great too.

This is what 15 looks like!

We made it to Santa Fe more than an hour early than expected so we went ahead and did a Walmart resupply for birthday meals and few other things we needed. We ate our lunch in the car on the way to Meow Wolf.  Dave found this spot in his research for when he was with us but the timing didn't work out for him to be with us. Meow Wolf is an interactive art installation in a 22,000 foot space. There was supposed to be a mystery to solve but we were there just to explore and have fun.

Everything about this place was amazing! The art was fun and very interesting to look at and try to figure out. We were able to climb into tree houses, walk into a refrigerator, climb in and slide down a clothes dryer. We climbed inside an ice machine and walked through a fireplace to take us to some surprising paths. There was even a cleverly disguised bookcase that opened into another room like Scooby Doo. We were able to interact with the art in surprising ways. We were even able to chill out on some of the most comfortable furniture, take it all in, and have fun talking. We had a blast! It's no City Museum, but it was super fun!


After all that excitement we stopped by the art center also in the building and took a few minutes to create something. It's always hard to bring creations home on a summer trip but with only a few days back I was hoping they would last!


We had more than a 4 hour drive left so the kids watched movies and I cranked up the music to help it be a little more enjoyable. It always helps to break up the drives with a little fun and smiles on a birthday are always the best. Brayden requested veggie tacos for his birthday dinner but by the time we would get to the campground it would be getting late.  I don't like cooking and cleaning in the dark and I definitely don't like cooking in the heat! He'd been wanting to try the new Impossible Burger at Burger King so we stopped there instead to grab dinner and keep going. They were messy but delicious!

It was 103 when we arrived at Palo Duro Canyon. The view was like a small grand canyon with colorful rock formations and deep slices in the rocks. As we drove down into the canyon I would have normally stopped about 5 times for pictures but tonight I was grumpy.

When we picked up the map Laney noticed there was a posting about no fires of any kind in the canyon. Brayden was disappointed because he'd picked a dutch oven dump cake for his birthday dessert. The best I could do was a couple of marshmallows out of the bag and a birthday song. This birthday was going to be memorable for sure!

Once we got to our site the kids were fussing at each other when we set up the tent so we all took a 10-minute mental break from away. This was day 49 of constant interactions and we were all miserably hot so it was definitely time for a break.

Brayden picked a few card games for us to play and we enjoyed the warm night back together. Once it was dark and all the weird Texas bugs were swarming the lanterns and dropping on us from the trees above we slipped into the tent for the night.

The girls and I opted not to bring in our sleeping bags but Brayden wanted a quilt to sleep with. I thought he was crazy with how hot the night was. I grabbed our Frog Togg cooling towels in hopes it would help us get to sleep.  It was supposed to be in the 60s overnight but I wasn't sure that was going to happen!

Day 32

About 3am I woke up to some solid lightning and thunder so I scrambled out of the tent for a bathroom break before the storm. Using my Poltergeist weather predictions I decided the storm was about 10 miles away so I closed up the tent and waited. After about 15 minutes with still no rain and the thunder seeming to be on the other side of us, I counted again and determined it was 17 miles away. I was thrilled we'd missed another storm especially right before we pack up!

We all got up pretty early this morning as we were anxious to leave this campground behind. We were careful not to jinx the next one though! Dave jumped into the car to drive to our next spot - SO nice! We headed toward our next spot - Mt Pisgah. We had to stop at an overlook because of the cool clouds over the mountains this morning. We are getting so spoiled with these beautiful views on our drives!

But up first was the Folk Art Center on the parkway. There were some very unique crafts and beautiful art. Nothing like seeing some amazing work to make you feel like an kindergarten artist at best! There was a man doing a demonstration on the making of kaliedescopes which was fascinating. He told the kids to search for Pringle can kaliedescopes and make one themselves at home. Dave was excited about eating 3 cans of Pringles!

It's Laney's camera day so she spotted quite a few flowers to capture just outside the building. She's getting better with every shot!

Dave was hoping to support the park and buy a long sleeve t-shirt so we made sure to stop at the Blue Ridge Visitor's Center next. There was a giant map of the parkway on the wall and the kids loved finding all the spots we'd stayed over the last month.

There were a couple activities for the kids they enjoyed. Ryan built an arch but she was pretty grumpy so I had to assist with her smile. Brayden and Laney built views of the things they would like to see. Of course Brayden's involved food and a town in the background!

Laney played with the camera for a little while taking shots of all the flowers planted around the center. And this was happening in the parking lot while we were waiting. It's like having an annoying older big sister around with Emily sometimes!

Our next stop was laundry so we could make it through the end of the trip. The kids were especially unhelpful as there were two adorable mascot dogs to play with. While we were there I investigated our next spot only to find out there were showers at our next spot. Hot showers. All the adults were doing a happy dance while the kids gave us mad faces and rolled their eyes. I reeled in my excitement though in order to not be disappointed. There were levels of showers at campground and I was just hoping this was going to be one of the higher ones.

I also took a minute to search for the best ice cream in Asheville. According to The Google, Ultimate Ice Cream was the best so we jumped in the car to find it. Luckily it was directly on our route back to the parkway so we took that as we were meant to go there for sure. They had a nice blend of regular and unique flavors. I tried an IPA flavor but didn't think I could eat a whole scoop so I opted for the Manna Banana to support the local Manna Food Bank. Emily opted for the Bing Cherry Goat Cheese that I almost picked. The others stayed safe with Dreamscicle and Cookie Dough.

We arrived at our last site to a mostly full campground with nicely secluded spots. We'd gotten exactly what we'd wished for - a site close to water, close to CLEAN bathrooms, with nice HOT showers. There weren't bugs to annoy us constantly either! What a way to end a trip!

The kids were most excited about our next outing so we made the executive decision to ignore the dark clouds around us and go to Sliding Rock. This stop had been on my list every time we'd gone near Asheville and we were finally actually really going!

I can only say we had an absolute blast. The water was freezing but all of us slid down many times with screams each time we hit the pool. We tried all the different paths down and recommended the best to each other after catch our breath. The lifeguards left and we stayed for another 30 minutes before finally deciding to head back for dinner. If we had time this was definitely going to be a stop again before we left!

Dave and I made dinner while the kids explored all the paths around our campground. They were back in training to be wild children. We could hear whistling all around us as they communicated new paths and wildlife. They were having a blast!

We bought some firewood but had to have a funeral before the fire. In one of the bear boxes a little weasel was dead so Emily doned some gloves and pulled him out. He was so small and cute now I want one for my birthday.

I made a nice fire for the kids to finish off the marshmallows and Dave and I to relax with a beer. We were enjoying our new spot but realizing we were missing the quiet of our empty campgrounds. It reminds me of the difference of going to Disney during Spring Break versus during September - a completely different experience!