Random thoughts on a trip...

I love lists:

1. I LOVE the Hampton Inn. The beds, the breakfast, the pillows, everything.

2. I HATE dirty gas station restrooms. I HATE the gas prices going. I LOVE the gas prices coming home. I LOVE that our new Prius will be here in 3 weeks!

3. I LOVE "chacha" If you dial c-h-a-c-h-a and text any question, it will text you back the answer-free (standard text charges apply for your plan). For instance, did you know that a "highway safety corridor" is a place where a high number of accidents have happened and therefore speeding fines are doubled? Try it-best invention..

3. I HATE it when my new Tom-Tom gets me lost. It was my BFF, but no more. It took us up a dirt road into the mountains of Oregon instead of my sister's house. It only got really scary when it told us to turn left, which would have taken us down the mountain slope. It is NOT foolproof..

4. I LOVE my family, the older I get. Here they are:



I know, they are not so normal, but who's family is?












5. I HATE the long 19 hour drive home from Oregon.

6. I LOVE Bend, Oregon. We stopped there overnight and had dinner with our old coach, Mark Mico. He is flourishing in Bend, which had bike trails everywhere, races every weekend, a river to swim in and nice people. Gee, I wouldn't mind living there myself.

7. I HATE coming home to NM, where the pollen is so intense that my eyes start watering the minute we hit the border.

8. I LOVE coming home to NM, because I can see the wide open spaces and mountains. I am home in my own bed, along with my 13 year old dog (not in the bed), who somehow survived the kennel experience once more. She freaked out a little and jumped in our backyard pond when she got home. Senior Dog moment perhaps?

9. I LOVE and HATE that my Ironman Arizona training starts on Monday. I have been a slug for 2 weeks now. I still feel pretty good and haven't gained a pound! Don't ask me why-I have been eating everything. I am sure the water skiing, ATV riding and river rafting kept me in shape!

Just one of my many adventures in Oregon..

I went on an ATV. I spent much of my time either in the parking lot, or stuck in the sand, but it was fun.

This is Lane, who trusted Grandma to take her out on this thing..

She lives to tell about it..

If you are bored and want a laugh, we made some new members of our family come up with a skit after we gave them some items that they had to use and 30 minutes to put it together. They did quite well actually:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HlhMY9FiB8

Grants Pass, Oregon

We spent the day yesterday rafting the Rogue River with 13 of our family members. There are 23 adults/teenagers total here and 2 little ones. This is Grandpa and Lane hanging out in the hotel watching cartoons:

Present in this reunion: family consisting of 4 sisters, 4 brother in laws, 13 next generation kids and 2 third generation represented here. We come from Tennessee, California, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon and New Mexico. We have family reunions every two years, alternating places with each sister.

Our oldest sister, Sara, who is no longer with us, has kids in Texas and Colorado, and we have a brother in law in ABQ, who couldn't make it this time. We miss them!
:(

H & I ventured our for a 30 min. jog yesterday. I felt pretty good! Legs and body still a bit fatigues. We are planning a bike ride this afternoon..