Couple Retreat

We got to head down south to Ruidoso by OURSELVES!  Clay and Laura were "Clay" and "Laura" for a few days, not "Mom" or "Dad" or anything else...just us!    We left the kids with some friends, The Yates.  The kids got some good playtime, and we got a couple retreat!  Oh my goodness, we had a great time!  We shopped, hiked, zip-lined, went on go-carts, watched movies, ate peacefully at restaurants, got our picture taken, and stayed in a wonderful cabin in the woods.    We had fun reconnecting, laughing, and just being a couple - after a few days we missed the kiddos and were ready to come back to reality and parenthood again! But that sure was fun!

 

 

 

 

 

Rustic Pines

 

Our cabin was called, "Rustic Pines".  It was a quiet cabin in the mountains, located next to a creek that ran along the road, it was a little removed from the hustle and bustle of downtown Ruidoso.  It had a HUGE family room/kitchen area, a large porch that we sat and ate breakfast on each morning enjoying the beauty and stillness of the mountains (except when our morning was interrupted by the cursing and swearing of the maintenance man…holy cow that man has a foul mouth.)  Clay had a nick name for him...but can't for the life of me remember what it was- but we were both laughing about it for hours.  That was part of the fun of the weekend, we could talk, laugh, and just be ourselves.  Laura was reminded of just how witty and funny Clay is....he was doing short little fun lines all trip long!  Oh honey, I love you!

 

 

 

 

 

The first night, Clay was trying to figure out how to lock the front door…surely there is a lock?  Well, we eventually figured out that we had a fun  and unique front door that DID indeed lock, it just wasn’t your traditional lock  - it had a stick for a lock!  The mantle was decorated with heads of all sorts of animals!  The inside of the cabin smelled like campfire was all log cabin style.  It was the perfect get-a-way cabin.   

 

 

Thrill Seekers

"Oh…what do you do in the summertime, when your kids are all away?  Do you find a quick ride?  Seek out a slide….and scream as you go by….Is that what you do?  So do I! "

We started out small and headed to the go cart track!  We went all out and did the “Pro Trak”  (Not so pro….I think our 8 year old could have handled that one…oh well..fun anyway!)   Later that evening when Clay and Laura were shopping and trying to figure out plans for the next day, they  heard the word “Zipline”  They both said “Sign me up!”  IT was so exhilarating!  We went to the zipline at Apache Ski Resort.  It is the second longest zipline in North America!  It was amazing.  Now, Clay has parasailed and skydived – so he wasn’t nervous at all..but Laura on the other hand had never done anything like this before – so she was a bit nervous!  But, as soon as she was strapped in and on her way, she was having a ball!  Poor Clay had to keep telling her to go faster – but honestly, Laura was just proud of herself for doing it and surviving!  We not only got a zipline ride, but we also got a gondola ride up the top of the mountain before sliding down…a 2 in 1 deal!  Yipee.  Going down that hill on a line was a thrill to say the least.  Holy Cow…what a rush!

 

 If you look at the guy coming down the zipline and go up the mountain, there is a small structure in the middle of the picture at the top of the mountain...(not the house) that is the platform we took off from and we are standing on the landing area at the bottom when we took the picture.  It was quite the ride!

It was a three part zipline ride.  The first was the longest, this was the second and shortest - but Laura's favorite.

 

 

Standin’ Up Western Style

When Clay and Laura passed by this photo studio that took old fashioned pictures, Laura couldn’t help herself!  This looks like great fun!  Clay was a good sport and went along with it!   The lady first picked out a bodice piece and handed it to Laura and said, “Here, take off all your upper clothes and put this on”  Laura looked at it, and thought, “WHAT? This?  And only this?  Where is the rest of the dress?”  Laura voiced her concern… “um…does this dress come with sleeves?”  “Nope…just that.”  Clay’s eyes went wide and Laura said, “I think I need a dress with some sleeves!”  It took a minute, but FINALLY she got it… and she traded the skimpy little corset thing for a more decent dress…of which Laura could put on without TAKING ANYTHING off!  Whew…that was better!  Next came the gun fighter…no problems there…Clay likes guns!  Whew.  Then came picture time…at first she wanted us to hold up bottles of whisky….um…no again. Again, they spoke up.. ”Do we have to hold the bottle in the picture?”  The answer “Yep, but only for the first few then we will get something else.”  Laura and Clay looked at each other and instantly knew what they were going to say, “No…I think we will hold something else for all of them.”  So we got a fan, bags of money, a gun, and an umbrella….that’s more like it.  The pictures turned out fun – and it was a great experience keeping our standards, even in small instances like a smalltown photoshop!   

 

Sunspot

 

On Day 2 of our camping trip, we took a drive up through Sunspot, where there are telescopes and national sun labs.  We had fun looking at all the equipment, reading and watching people work on their discoveries, and enjoying the view of the Valley below. 

The telescope on the right, is very tall, but it is twice that heighth under the ground!

 

if you notice from the floor... the whole room can rotate!