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Ameilia has already posted photos of the last camp out, AJ may post his sometime during the next decade, and Sabrina may post hers sometime during the next century, so I guess it is my turn. I thought I would try to please Ameilia by starting with scenery, her favorite (taken as we were breaking camp). OOPS! This one has people in it. Sorry, Ameilia. |
| I handed Ameilia my camera as asked her to take some photos. After complaining a bit, she proceeded to take close up face photos of everyone who was up at the time. Some of them actually turned out ok. Others, not so much... Here, without comment--for the most part--are the good ones. |
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Kylie |
| Abbie |
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AJ |
| Brittney |
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Braxton |
| Sabrina |
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Wyatt |
| Armin |
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Sabrina made biscuits, and Ameilia made deep dish pizza. AJ (along with others) helped both of them with the dutch oven cooking. He seems to be acquiring some skill in that area. |
| Barbara enjoys herself at these gatherings by bringing stuff for the grandkids. Given the fact that they mobbed her as soon as she arrived, they may have figured that out. |
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Abbie and Kylie were convinced they had discovered a vast under ground cavern, and were not the least bit perturbed that they couldn't find the opening. |
| Walking with grandma and smelling the flowers is also fun. |
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Silly grandkids. And silly adults who take the photos... |
| Face cleaning. Almost every parent will recognize this activity. It continually amazes me that children who sound like they are receiving unspeakable torture, almost always recover completely within 5 seconds of the procedure terminating. Perhaps they believe that their noise helps the dirt come off... You think? |
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Cub had been ill prior to the trip, and her normally bubbly personality was somewhat subdued on this trip. |
| Kylie was a live wire enough to make up of the "absence" of Cub. |
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I had forgotten how well some children like watermelon. When I was young, I really liked it, but I remember Daddy being fussy about his watermelon, and not being too fond of any that was less than perfect. At the time, I couldn't understand his preferences, but now the wheel had come full circle. It is rare that I encounter a melon that tastes good enough to warrant being consumed. |
| Even though it was still summer, Ameilia was wearing a coat and experiencing cold hands. What does that tell you about the weather? |
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It didn't rain this year, (at least not while I was there). They say it poured the day before Barbara and I arrived, and we drove through showers in Show Low on our way home, but good weather prevailed during our portion of the actual event. (As my old boss would say, "Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn occasionally.") |
| Perhaps Sabrina watched recent World Cup soccer matches, as she brought her own rendition of a vuvuzela. Predictably, it was a big hit with the kids, but with their parents--not so much. |
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Sabrina and Braxton brought a little cook/heating stove, and it seemed to work quite well. I suspect it will work even better when they install a chimney to help it draw. |
| Kids this age seem to enjoy camping out. How long will they remember these activities? |
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Barbara ventured into the realm of baking, and was quite proud of the results. I had to admit that they tasted good. |
| And her cinnamon rolls weren't too bad either. They were eaten before she could make frosting for them. |
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As I mentioned in my last communique, Dave procured a bike for me, that has front and rear suspension. I have known of suspension on bikes for multiple decades, but discounted it as being a non-functional frill. Now that I have one, I find I was wrong. I rode the bike over a half-mile primitive trail near my work. There are about 6 places where I normally have to dismount when riding my non-suspension mountain bike, but on the suspension bike, I only had to dismount once. For this bike to be comfortable, I need to raise the handlebars about another inch. That probably will not be technically difficult, just time consuming. |
| The tires came with the same green slime anti-leak compound that I use already in them, but they were still low. I removed 79 thorns from the rear tire and 114 from the front, then pumped them up and they have held air since. Not all those thorns penetrated the tube, but slime stopping even 25 leaks is impressive. The seat came with a row of flashing red lights, that should make Barbara happy. Of course, that makes the assumption that I don't hang over the seat the the point that these lights are obscured. |
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Do I hear someone talking about me? |