RV Trip (new lesson #4 at end)

Old people and hicks love their RV's. So we had to go and check out what it was all about. We decided to get the granddaddy of RV's, since we all had so much driving experience with large vehicles. . .it was a great learning experience. And we lived. This picture was taken from about twenty yards up hill. The timer was set by jeff, and as you can see he was just sliding into place when it went off.
The seats were huge! Like recliner huge. Made for the biggest fattest old people around. So we would often share the copilot chair. Jeff refused to let me sit with him in his. This is Shelly and Eric in the copilot chair.

So where did we go. . . we hiked delicate arch. It was really fun. We had planned to take Ez in the Bob, because bob strollers can go anywhere. Right? Well I took Ez up to the trail head in the stroller to investigate while everyone else got ready. And of course I find a nice Asian man just coming off the trail. So I stop and ask him if it is possible to take a stroller up the trail. He gives me a puzzled look. So I ask him, "Do you speak english?" He lifts his hands and pinches his fingers together and says, "Alill". Which I interpret as a little. So I point to the stroller and then to the trail and say, "Stroller Okay?" He looks back at me like I'm retarded, kinda squinted his eyes or something, I don't know it was hard to tell, crosses his pointer fingers making an X at the stroller and says, "No!" I thanked him and went up closer to the trail to investigate. When I decided he was right, I turned around to find the Asian man still standing in the road about fifty yards back, right where I had talked to him, staring in my direction shaking his head. He was quite concerned I had misunderstood him. But how do you misunderstand the finger X? So Ez went hiking in the bjorn.

It was a little hot, but it was beautiful as the sun set.

We then went through to Colorado and visited the beautiful towns there. It was a trip down memory lane for us since we went on this route when we were first dating four years ago.

The town of Ouray is one of my favorites. We took a beautiful hike there.

We took the train to Silverton. It is really a pretty train ride.

And this is the cutest picture from the trip. We went swimming in some hot springs. It was Ez's first swim. And clearly he is a fan!

Some things we learned:
1.
Not to lie if you get stopped by a local and asked if you have ever been down that road:
This is what could possibly happen. Pretend you are on a dirt road that you can't find on your gps. You are really far down the road because at ten o clock last night your husband started seeing elk everywhere so logically you just keep driving down this dirt road despite it continually narrowing. So the next morning you decide you have driven so far south that you have to be close to the town you are headed to, and you decide to go further down it instead of backtracking all the way back to the paved road. That morning as you are driving a cowgirl comes riding up to you on her horse and insists you roll down your window. You do and she says, "Have you guys ever been down this road?" and your husband lies out of fear that she is going to be mad you are driving on her possibly private road, because we don't know where the heck we are or what the road is. He says, "Ya we are just leaving our friends place". She says, "Okay I just wanted to warn you about the road" and a little too confidently your husband says, "Ya thanks" and rolls up his window.
So as we go further down this road we wonder what kind of warning she was going to give us. But it is too late. We have come too far. And then we realize what the warning would be. . .the road disappears going very steeply down hill and we can see it cutting back and forth below us, no guard rail, quite narrow and very very steep. So feeling discouraged we thought about turning around, but then, that is the beauty of a rental. And the blessing of having parents serving a mission, we are invincible. Now the turns were so narrow we had to do about five of the "stop and back up 2 feet pull forward 3 feet" maneuvers to manage our way around the dozen turns. Most of them we could just barely squeeze around. It was so steep the breaks were really smoking by about half way down. Don't worry we had made a sure proof plan for jumping out of the RV if the brakes went out.
But now we know. It was a good lesson. If someone ever wants to warn us about the road ahead. We don't need to listen.

2.
Pack your own long pants:
Just in case you park the RV in a river bottom and there are swarms of mosquitoes. And you can't just stay inside the RV because your wife wants steak and you have to get out and grill it for her. And then you have do something you never ever wanted to do before and ask your wife if you can borrow her skinny jeans. And if by chance you ever find yourself in this predicament, don't let your sister-in-law take a picture.


3.
Don't settle for a cold shower on a RV:
If the RV has a freezer, shower, ac, stove, convection oven, ceiling fans, generators, and flushing toilet, just assume it has a water heater. Suffering through freezing cold showers may not be necessary. Don't wait until the last day to ask another RV owner about where they take hot showers. They will probably look at you like you are stupid, ask to go in your RV and then they will flip the huge red switch that says water heater.

Okay I don't know how I forgot this last tip, but shelly reminded me. . .
4.
If you are ever creeped out, stick it out, it could be a good massage:
Jeff really sweetly booked Shelly and I some massages in Ouray. It was really thoughtful of him. They were at the hot springs so I figured it would be some holistic setting. I was a little off on what I was picturing. So Shelly and I walk into the really small massage room, well really only I walk in because there isn't room for Shelly, there are two people standing there. A lady somewhere around the age of 65, clearly sun baked, one big braid going down her back, and a big grin on her face turns and greets me. The other person was a 75 year old man, light blue foggy eyes, tan, with the same friendly smile. I explained to the lady who we were and she said THEY were almost ready and to just wait outside. So I went outside and discussed with Shelly what she could have meant when she said THEY. So when we were called back it was much to my shock, but also complete amusement to find out, that the THEY did yes indeed include the 75 year old man. And he was going to be giving one of us lucky ladies a massage.
So the lady introduced us and said Vern would be in the room to the left, she would be in the room to the right. Then the two of them stepped to the side and waited for Shelly and I to pick which massage room we wanted. Now Shelly and I both thought the same thing, "I'll take the guy, just in case he is a creeper". So I say, "I'll take Vern" and at the exact same time Shelly steps over to go into his room. So now it looks like we are fighting over who gets him and it gets all awkward as we try to settle who gets the possible creeper.
I win. And as my only defense during the massage I decide to keep my bottoms on for one layer of protection. Now for some people this could be too much information, but to tell the story I have to say it. I was wearing some Victoria Secret underwear- and as we all know- they have a little dog as their logo. Now back to the story. So here I am lying face down on the massage table, getting a massage from a 75 year old man, and I am wondering how I get myself into these situations, when all the sudden he asks me if I have a dog. I say, "No" I'm a little puzzled by the question, "I have a 4 month old son though" . He says, "Oh I noticed the cute little dog on your panties and I though maybe you liked dogs. My wife and I have a dog, I should get her some panties like yours." And at that moment I was speechless. . .which says a lot after experiencing the a life changing massage in Egypt.
So if you ever find yourself getting massaged by a 75 year old man, and he is commenting on how cute your panties are, don't leave. You will miss out on a fabulous massage. Because you know Garth put it best, "And I watched those hands of leather- turn to velvet in a touch" (

Newspaper Rock with Indian petroglyphs.


Shelly teaching Ez how to suck on his feet. A trick he has now mastered and also entertains himself with for much of the day.