Road Trip…..and Greyson performed on Ellen!

 

I tell ya…..this kid is going to go far and I could not be more thrilled for him. Seeing him on Ellen and listening to his excitement and charm, caused me to feel both protective Mama emotions and eager, wanting-to-hear-more feelings. I’d love to hear from his Mom, too. He speaks about her in this video and she seems like she is encouraging him to follow his dreams. Reach for the Stars, Greyson!

 

 

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I’m still trying to recuperate after the 6 hour round trip drive down to Capitan, NM and back on Monday. Normally we love long road trips and exploring, but not when we are focused on reaching a destination. My twinlings are attending a homeschool camp this week and we had to get down there to check them in before dinnertime.

The road into camp….

 

Up and over…………

We made it, and we still found time to place two letterboxes, Wind Power and Valley of Fires.

We saw many herds of Pronghorn on the way to and from Capitan.

Some of you asked me how I managed to get such good pictures of them, and if I used a huge lens on my camera.

Well, I don’t have an expensive professional camera with fancy lenses, but my Canon PowerShot does have pretty good zoom capabilities. I don’t think you need an expensive camera to take good pictures anyway. And when it comes to wildlife, patience is the key. In my situation parking my vehicle alongside the road and using it as a nature blind was helpful. There were several herds about 75 feet from the road and I found if I stayed beside my vehicle and didn’t walk towards them, they went on about their business like I wasn’t even there.

And after I dropped off Jax and Jem at camp, Jenna and I drove through the town of Carrizozo (pop. 1,200) and found two letterboxes, The Spinning Burro and The Little Tiny Burro/Burrito.

All throughout the entire town you will find painted statues of burros. They are a part of the famous Burro Serenade.

 

This photo was shot through a window, so it’s blurry. My Aunt decorates her kitchen in the grape motif. This little burro would look adorable in her breakfast nook.

Some of you may have actually ‘visited’ Carrizozo if you watched the movie, Book of Eli which was filmed in Downtown Carrizozo (great photos on this site).  

On the way home, we drove behind this load of cattle, probably on their way to slaughter or to live in a new herd.

  

My own herd of critters had to wait for me to get home to have their late dinner. It was pitch black when I walked to the paddock with my lantern. Apache met me at the gate and walked beside me up the hill, rubbing her muzzle against my arm and nickering to me, as if to say, “Where have you been? It’s about time you got home. My blood sugar was low and I was starting to feel faint. Oh goodie! You brought carrots. Nom….nom……nom”

With the lantern swinging and making wild shadows all around us, I was so feeling so glad to finally be home again.