Pyro-Mom & The Mountain Vacation

We had a lovely surprise late last week. My mom and a friend were planning a weekend getaway to Ruidoso, NM but, fortunately for us, the friend had family stuff come up and had to back out....so my mom called and invited us to go with her. (I won't complain about being at the "bottom of the list" here, it's not the first time and won't be the last AND, hey, IT IS A FREE TRIP!!)

Hubby couldn't go (he had to stay here and work) but the kids and I threw stuff into a suitcase and took off. We ate lunch in Roswell, NM, which the kids got a big kick out of....alien stuff everywhere. It was really quite entertaining. We just stopped at the McDonald's that looked like a spaceship. The kids had to go check out the play area (even though they are getting a little big for that -- this one was different and so they had to at least go in once.) By the time I got our food and met them, they were coming to me with bewildered looks on their faces & both talking at once. My son had put his brand new flipflops in the shoe area and when he came out (maybe 5 min.) his shoes were gone and another pair were there....older, worn and a little smaller! GRRRR! Curses on those aliens! It's not such a big deal (they were cheap) it is just irritating. In all our years of playland experience, this was a first. Strange, strange little town.....

I have to put in a plug here for my kids getting older. As much as I wanted to keep them little forever, there are sure advantages to their aging! Traveling with them now is really a joy. We had a lot of fun. They entertain themselves well these days : ) They "get" jokes and even make them themselves, they read signs and are interested in tidbits of information! Wow, I wasn't sure this day would ever arrive when they were little and we had to change diapers often, pick up endless pacifiers & drink cups off the floorboard, listen to miles of crying, etc. Now the conversation is delightful (for the most part) and there wasn't one crying jag or dirty diaper!! (Thank goodness!)

We got to Ruidoso and the temperature was probably 30 degrees less than here and it was rainy : ) We wound our way up the mountain while searching the car frantically for gum to help our popping ears. We were staying at my aunt's second home (we'd never been there before) and it was BEAUTIFUL! We unpacked and looked around. It was then that I noticed an area out beside the house with chairs and a swing around an outdoor fireplace and I got excited. I'm picturing a nice cool evening around the fire -- you know, roasting marshmallows, maybe even singing a song, etc. I told the kids we could even make smores. They were so excited!

We made a winding trip back to town to pick up some supplies. After dinner, I got the kids to help me start gathering wood and getting ready for our campfire. At first, the fire didn't really want to catch (things were still a little wet from the shower earlier and it was still sprinkling on & off) but we finally got a good fire going. I think back now and I was practically doing a "fire dance" out there. I was so excited that I was able to get it going. I was just about to go into the house and get the stuff for smores when a lady appeared at the back door of the house that backed up to "our" house. She yelled out at me "Hey, it's illegal to have an outdoor fire!" I stopped in my tracks and I'm sure my face registered the shock I felt -- I was speechless. She continued, "It's VERY DANGEROUS!" (She just wasn't very friendly!) I finally found my voice and told her I'd put it out immediately. The kids and I ran and got water and doused it. I felt like a 5 year old who had just been scolded. I was appalled and a little scared that I had tried to burn down the mountain! We settled for microwave smores....not quite the same kind of fun!

The next day was our only full day there and we had a great time sight seeing, wading in the river, going on walks, and just being lazy. (It was much warmer that day and so a lot of hiking, etc. was out of the question.) While in town, I saw the fire ban signs and they were even fining people $500 for smoking outside! It's a wonder Smokey the Bear didn't come carry me away to the pokey!

It was a very nice vacation and lots of memories were made. Thank you, mom! We did miss hubby/daddy and were excited to get back home to him. He needed the vacation more than any of us : (

When I asked my son if he wanted to write something in the guest book at the house, he said, "Yes, Do Not Build A Fire Outside.....just a little tip!" That summed it up for him, I guess. As a homeschooling mom, I'm glad this was an educational vacation! Ha Ha! Smores anyone???