Ruidoso

The whole family was looking forward to Spring Break this year.  We wanted to go somewhere different and the whole goal was to just relax and look at beautiful scenery.  I suggested Ruidoso, NM to Craig months ago and after his initial shock, he was on board.

Craig grew up in New Mexico and would spend lots of time in his parents cabin outside of Ruidoso.  Growing up in El Paso, we would frequently visit different spots in New Mexico.  There's not a whole lot we miss about that area of the country except for the beautiful mountains.  I desperately wanted to escape our hectic lives and busy schedules and get some rest.

Monday
It's a 9-10 hour drive to Ruidoso from our house.  Thankfully, we were prepared with lots of electronics.
It was an interesting drive, going through lots of small cities,

and even smaller towns.  The kids loved seeing the giant wind chargers scattered throughout the farms.

The best part of the drive was seeing a mountain in the distance.

I really miss seeing mountains everyday.  Kaitlyn and Preston were very excited to see a snow covered mountain, which is something they have never seen before.

It's easy to take those little things for granted.

We booked 4 nights at the Inn of the Mountain Gods resort, located in the mountains of Mescalero, NM.  The view of the Apache Indian statues with a snow covered mountain backdrop was a pleasant welcome.

We unloaded our car to head to our room.  Do you think we brought enough?

Since we didn't have any set plans, we brought lots of things to do, including a bag full of board games.

We booked a suite so we'd have more room to lounge around.  The price was very reasonable and the room was so spacious.

Our living area with balcony facing the lake

The bedroom

The jacuzzi tub adjacent from the shower in the master bathroom

Fresh towels were nicely folded and waiting for us each day

Double sinks in the master bathroom with a built in TV

Another balcony off the bedroom with a lake view

The mini bar which we did not use since the prices were outrageous!!

Separate half bath

We unpacked our belongings then headed to Casa Blanca for some delicious Mexican food.

Tuesday
We decided to hit the main drag and do some shopping.  It was full of cute little stores.  The street was lined with lots of carved statues.  Preston wanted to pose with every single one!!!

We stopped at Hall of Flame burgers for the green chile cheeseburgers that they're known for.  We were not disappointed!!!

We headed back to the room and decided to spend the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying our views.  We even ordered pizza for dinner to enjoy at our dining table.

Wednesday
After eating at Wendell's restaurant located in the resort,

we decided to check out Hubbard Museum of the American West.  It's a small little museum full of lots of history and great artifacts.

Outside the museum was a pretty walking trail,

lots of horse statues,

and, of course, beautiful scenery.

There were some pretty interesting pieces of history inside.

Craig and I had some fun with the cutouts.

I love this picture of Preston making a sad face by an old hearse.

We stopped for lunch at Cornerstone Cafe & Bakery since it was Free Pie Wednesday.  Once again the food was delicious!!!

Since the weather was in the 60's, we went for a walk around the lake.  The kids were eager for Craig to show them how to skip rocks across Mescalero Lake.  Kaitlyn got the hang of it, but poor Preston couldn't figure it out.

We walked along the golf course and loved the scenery.  We even saw some sticks formed like teepees.

Thursday
One thing most people do in Ruidoso is ski.  Since we are not a family that skis, we thought we'd head up the mountain and check out Ski Apache anyways.  Even though it's only 12 miles to the top of the mountain, the winding road seemed never ending.  I am so glad nobody got car sick.

There wasn't a whole lot of snow on the mountain but it was fun watching everyone trying to ski anyways.  Maybe someday our family will try it too.

Preston loved picking up the little bit of snow from the ground.

We grabbed a quick lunch  then took the kids to ride go carts and play miniature golf.  Preston and Kaitlyn had never been on go carts before and were excited to ride with us.  Kaitlyn had such a good time riding in the car with me, even though Craig and Preston almost lapped us.

We played miniature golf and had a great time.

We decided to have one last big meal at K-Bob's Steakhouse.  K-Bob's had a restaurant in El Paso where we'd frequent and also in Socorro, NM, where Craig and I lived for a year.  The food was just like we remembered and it was a nice indulgence.

Scenery
We absolutely loved the scenery.  The sunrises and sunsets were gorgeous.  Watching the sun set behind the mountains with its reflection in the lake was breathtaking.  I wish I got to see that every single day.

We were hoping the kids would get to see some deer or elk during our trip.  We saw deer every single day! Our drive from the heart of the town to the resort was only a couple miles, but we kept our eyes open for any deer on the side of the road.  Preston was the first one to spot the deer as we were driving.  Craig immediately turned around so we could get some good pictures.  Such beautiful creatures!!!  The same thing happened each day.  So glad the Kaitlyn and Preston could have this experience.

Friday
Time to load up and head home.  Sigh.  We were sad to leave.  Since we drove through Abilene, we decided to stop and see my family for dinner.  We went to a Hibachi restaurant which was another new experience for us.  The food was delicious and filled our tummies for our last leg of the trip.

We got home late that evening, tired, with lots of laundry to do.  We had a great time, saw lots of cool things, and got to relax, which was our goal.

We cherished our time together.

So thankful for all the wonderful memories that were made.

Note:  Reviews of some of the restaurants are posted on my inspiration blog, Cars and Ribbons.  Bon Appetit!!

Derby 2013

It's Derby time!!!  My kids look forward to this every year.  They get so excited trying to decide how they want their car designed.  Kaitlyn chose a moustache and wrote "One Direction" on the sides (one of her favorite bands).  Preston picked the Chewbacca Angry Bird but didn't want the belt drawn on it.

The trophy table looks very appealing.

Craig is making final adjustments.

 All the cars are lined up.

The track is in place.

And they're off!!!  Craig and I also raced cars from previous years.  Our cars mostly came in 3rd place.

Preston loved watching the races.

Kaitlyn is reacting to her car coming in 3rd place again for another heat.

But overall, Kaitlyn won 1st place in her division!  She also won for Best Appearance.

Preston received a participant trophy and also got a ribbon for Best Appearance.

Another fun year and the kids are already thinking about next year's designs!

A Toy Adventure

It has been an adventure at our house and I have been wanting to blog about this for awhile.  It all started when I was walking up the stairs one day and saw this.  It's a Spiderman squinkie.  Just sitting there.  Staring at me.

A couple days later, I saw this on Preston's desk.  Star Wars squinkies.  Just sitting there.  Staring at me.

Then, I saw this sitting on the laptop.  It's a Cars squinkie.  Just sitting there.  Staring at me.

I think we all see where this is going.  Preston has always loved playing with his toys all over the house.  He doesn't like to stay confined in one area.  He seemed to get even more particular with how he positions his toys.  

Then, I saw this.  It was a car full of squinkies that looked like they were trying to make a getaway.  I had to start documenting his toys.  

I never really paid attention to how Preston played with his toys.  But I knew he always had a rhyme and reason to everything he did with them.  As I started watching even closer and asking him questions about his toys, the answers were hilarious!!!  

Preston only uses his cars (he has hundreds!), animals (loves to collect them), and squinkies (they are so incredibly tiny but don't hurt your foot when you step on them).  They are always on a mission.  Sometimes the toys are running from bombs, other times, they are having tornado practice.

He loves to group similar toys together.  The hippos were resting during their journey.

The frogs are out and about.

Here come some motorcyclists.

Firetrucks stick together.  So do snakes.

Their adventures include going up and down the stairs.

Or under the piano.

They are all lined up waiting for the bomb to go off upstairs.  Then they can return (see, it's hilarious!).

No animal, car, or squinkie is off limits.  This is a horse that belongs to Kaitlyn's American Girl Dolls.  It's now part of the adventures.

I have started documenting these adventures on Instagram (that's why some of the pictures have a different look to them) and Facebook.  You can follow it at #atoyadventure.  I promise, Craig and I have never influenced Preston during his playtime with his toys.  He comes up with all of it on his own and it's absolutely amazing to watch.  He can play with them for hours at a time.  That kid has such a creative mind and is so incredibly particular about certain things, that we can't wait to see what God has in store for his future.

Our house is a house that is lived in.  You walk in and know that there are kids living here, whether it's the pictures on the fridge or toys lined up on the floor.  Yes, toys have been stepped on sometimes and I even had to perform minor surgery on a giraffe leg (super glue is awesome), but we are going to let all the adventures continue.  Thank you so much to those that have given us such positive feedback and are following the adventures with us.  Along with you, we are eagerly waiting to see what adventure is next.