Schnei-On-The-Fly

March 1, 2021March 1, 2021

What’s the desert like…

It is brown and there really truly isn’t much grass. But it does have it’s own beauty.

The first cactus is seen pretty much everywhere and almost has metallic sheen. The middle picture is a prickly pear cactus. The “fruit” is used to make jellies, honey, nectar, drinks, that sort of a thing. And I found that last beaut on a hike, it was so pretty! It’s called a fairy duster!

When we do see grass out hiking it’s just fun since almost everyone’s yards and landscaping is made of rock and when they make it fancy… different shades of rock. When you see grass it’s usually a golf course. As you can see in the right picture there are ferns too, not a lot but there are some in the mountains. And that middle picture….it’s a cactus….and it has tiny thin spines (aka the pokey things) ….and it’s edible…and sold in local grocery stores.

So you know we had to try it!!! The top left picture is what was brought home from the store, you can see the white spines on it. Youtube told me I could boil it and then skin it and then chop it….or I could roast it over a fire….I choose the fire approach. Just went ahead and put that bad boy on our marshmallow roasters and roasted it over the open fire. You can see in the bottom left picture that the spines all charred…and fell off. Then I cut it up and added it to our tacos. In the tacos they added a little crunch and tasted fine….but none of us enjoyed them by themselves.

Now that we went down that rabbit hole….back to nature…

The first picture is of a cholla cactus, there are a few different types of cholla. They are known for “jumping” or “dropping” their segments as a means of reproduction. One of my favorite things we have found is the middle picture….desert mistletoe….it is my favorite colors…and it’s out in the wild…never seen anything else like it anywhere, its beautiful! And tiny deer….like we thought they were babies…but the didn’t have the spots like fawn do. Turns out these tiny adult deer are actually Coues Deer and as the internet puts it… an “elfin deer standing 32-34 inches.”

There are so many different types, shapes and sizes of cacti! It’s crazy. Short and wide, tall and skinny, singleton and tons of arms, sooooo many! We still have so much to learn!

We are thankful and grateful to be in a new spot learning and seeing a bit more of this ginormous world God is letting us live in.

February 26, 2021

Work These Days

Work in AZ looks a little different than it did in NC. In NC I led activities and Chase helped with those some but primarily did mostly guest services…picked up trash, mowed, took care of the pool that sort of stuff. Here we are both only helping with activities. Sometimes we go together and the kids join, and sometimes it is just one of us. We have a boss that comes up with the schedule, the activities, makes the plans and then we help execute the event. She takes our ideas and input and is great to work with.

There are pluses and minuses to both doing the same thing but I think we would both prefer to be doing different things, just to add a little variety to each day.

Another big difference is the population that we are working with. In NC it was families with kiddos that were staying there for the week. Here it’s either 65+ couples that are here for 6 months or families with kiddos that are here for 1-3 months. So unlike the almost set schedule and same weekly events we did in NC here we are always trying to help come up with new ideas; some for kids some for adults and some for families. There are a few that are consistent ie: bingo and trivia….and you better not change those (especially bingo).

Pancakes and sausage every Sunday morning!

February 20, 2021February 20, 2021

The Olive Tree

On one side of our camper is a lemon tree, we walk out the door and see it. On the other side there is an olive tree. Inside the camper most our windows hold a view of this olive tree. When you are standing at the kitchen sink you see the olive tree. When you are at the dinning room table you can see the olive tree. It’s really been on my heart lately that Noah sent out the dove and it came back with an olive branch 🕊.

I’ve read the passage a few times lately in Gen. 7 & 8 and a few things really struck me. Noah and his family were on an ark, it was not a quick and easy type of thing. They had been on the same ark for over a year. A year stuck on a large boat filled with animals. A year stuck on a boat without electricity, plumbing or grocery delivery. They had not been off, out, or without the ark this entire time. Life smelled like they had been on a boat for weeks and weeks and weeks….. filled with animals. There was still water outside, water everywhere outside.

But Noah sent out a dove and finding no place to rest it came back to Noah. Noah again sent a dove out and this time it brought back an olive branch. Oh the joy this must have brought!

Before the promise of the rainbow, there was the hope from the olive branch. The hope that things were changing. No matter the season, no matter the ark you feel shut up in, no matter how bad life stinks…. open the window and send out the dove. There is always hope!

Romans 5:5 “And this HOPE will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

(The wreath pictured above is made from branches of our olive tree a reminder of where our Hope comes from).

February 14, 2021

What’s it like to be with family ALL the time?!?

Honestly it is absolutely wonderful! Right now in this stage of parenting we give the discipline and then give hugs and cuddles afterward. We are still the hero and the people they want to be around more than anything and this is something I do not take lightly. I know there will be a day coming when friends will be cooler and they will want to be anywhere but near us and when we discipline, it is not going to be followed up with cuddles. So this mama is soaking up every minute of this life.

We get to go to work together. Our kiddos know what it means to clock in and out. They see us meet strangers every single day and how to have conversations with them. They know how to introduce themselves and ask a person’s name and how they are.

We are not sending them to school and practices and here and there and having to correct whatever they’ve seen or heard from the world. Right now we get to be the filter of what goes in. And again it will not be like this forever so this is a season and opportunity I’m not taking lightly. We see and hear everything that’s going on around them. So when we do see the kid at the playground being a terrible big brother we are able to chat about us and our actions and why we do what we do. We get to talk about being a Schneider and what that means and looks like.

Our kids are still kids so of course we have to parent. Right now there are a few things we say all the time, such as, “just because someone else makes a bad choice does not mean we have to” and to the little one it’s more about using your words and not just fussing and hitting. We go through this mantra….do dogs talk…. no….. do trees talk…. no….. can you talk….yes….God made so many things but you are the only one that can talk….so use your words.

We have not escaped being parents but we have escaped a lot of the other stressors that make parenting and balancing all the things so tough. This season of being together all the time has been a true blessing and one I am so so so thankful we have gotten to experience.

February 10, 2021February 14, 2021

New Mexico

It was a three day two night drive from Tribune to Tucson, or that’s at least how we broke up the 856 mile trek.

We drove county (as in NARROW 2 lane roads) from Tribune all the way into Texas where we were finally able to get on a 4 lane highway and it seemed like we had hit gold. We also got to see this giant cowboy when we got on said road… a huge (literally) hit with the boys. It was on this road driving into New Mexico for the night that we saw our first road runner! To anyone who has never seen a road runner they do not have emu like legs as seen on Looney Tunes. They in fact stand on much shorter legs and scuttle around here and there. We’ve seen quite a few at the camp ground now, very fun to bird to watch!

That first night we stayed in Tucumcari (two-come-carry) New Mexico right off historic Route 66. We were only there one night but the Blaze-in-Sadle RV park had everything we needed with an added bonus: a field of cattle to watch during breakfast! We de-winterized here aka put water back into the camper. We had blown air through our lines so they wouldn’t burst/crack while the camper was stored during our holiday times staying with family and friends.

After Tucumcari we set sail to Las Cruses, New Mexico where we stayed for another night. This is where Chase found the gash in our tire that we got fixed the next morning before going to Tucson.

And one last fun factoid… if you are ever driving along in a desert and think to yourself…did I just see an orchard… can there be orchards in the desert… what kind of on orchard could that have been…. most likely it was a pistachio orchard!

Campground Review:

Blaze-in-Saddle RV Park

Tucumcari, NM

$30

Details: full hook ups, no play ground, horse corrals if you need those 😜

Hacienda RV Resort

Las Cruses, NM

$61

Full hook ups, exercise facility, so many amenities that we just didn’t use. But it did allow children…. a pretty key must have for us. Many parks down south like this are for seniors and do not allow kids to stay😬

January 31, 2021February 1, 2021

Farm to Table

Okay so maybe it’s more like campsite to table…but you get the picture!!

At this campground there is a citrus tree or olive tree at every site!! We were a little too late on the olive harvest but we got here just in time for the citrus harvest! Lemons, oranges and grapefruit galore!!!

Please take note….when you see a lemon tree and your five year old becomes obsessed with wanting to pick lemons, squeeze lemons and do all the lemon things….do NOT I repeat DO NOT pick him up and shove him into said lemon tree to pick a lemon….they have THORNS! Like legit big thorns….”mom mom put me down it has like real pokies on it” 🙈🙈 yes yes son it does. Glad we could learn that one together.

Soooo when you want to pick the lemons, oranges, or grapefruit one should go check out a fruit picker from the front office. This will allow you to pick fresh fruit without sustaining any bodily injuries.

We decided that we should really embrace this, you know when in Rome sort of a thing. So we are going to try to use these fruits at least once a week in some new (to us) form or fashion. This week lemon bars!!

What was learned during this cook time……One lemon produces about 1/4 cup of juice. Poking holes in the baked crust helps the filling to stick to the crust. I might start baking over a towel….the clean up is sooooo easy! Baking your own lemon bars isn’t as daunting as I thought it would be and nor did I think it would be so satisfying to be say we picked those lemons, squeezed and them turned it into something delicious. When life gives you lemons….make lemon bars!

January 27, 2021January 27, 2021

Renovations

The dinner bounce pad is gone!!!! And we have not had to say sit, stop jumping, please just eat your food etc. in over a week!

I had never loved the aesthetics of the ole dinette booth but when the functionally of it became less than ideal we really started contemplating a little renovation, we pulled the trigger and I’m happy to announce it is finally done!

I painted the slide out…aka the living room and dining room walls “spinach white.” It took two coats but went on easy and seems to be holding up just fine. Didn’t prep the walls with anything, just started painting away! The white brick on the bottom portion of the walls is a peel and stick. Pretty easy to stick on and if you want to get super into functionality it should help with our insulation or lack thereof in the camper walls.

Drag the arrow to see our before and after!

The couch has a new slipcover on it that we got for Christmas. The couch was made from fake leather and was cracking and peeling like crazy…and we don’t even have animals! We had thrown a blanket over the back and an old shower curtain over the cushions to make it a little less of an eye sore. But the slip cover has done wonders!!! Now the blankets do not slip off and it looks wayyyyyy better!

We took out the booth (and sold it on Facebook for $20….it would have cost us $20 to take it to the dump so we feel like that was a $40 swing to the positive for us)! We found this little table and chair set on Amazon. It took a minute to piece it together but I love how it turned out.

Went to Hobby Lobby for the first time in 7 months and got these little white baskets…they are actually napkin holders from the party section….but I find them highly functional this way too! Small, light weight. And able to hold these little trees from Target’s $3 section!

As we sit at the table we now get to look out the window and I love that view way more than looking at the fridge and island. One of my favorite parts is that the little suction hummingbird feeder is right there on the window and we get to sit and watch them as we eat. A sweet little gift God has given us reminding us he takes care of the birds and He most certainly takes care of us! We get to see a multitude of hummingbirds and then two days ago this other little guy showed up! It was a verdin a cute little bird only found in hot desert regions.

Our renovation cost:

Paint- $33

Brick- $50

Table- $165

Decor- $15

Total- $263 (minus $20/$40) depending on how you look at it!

Totally worth our time and money to make this little camper feel less like it just came off the production line and more like us!

January 21, 2021January 28, 2021

We made it!

We got here last Friday after three days of travel from western Kansas.

We were thankful to get tire pressure monitoring equipment for the camper for Christmas. It was while Chase was inspecting those he found a gash in a tire. We were able to get it replaced the next morning with zero trouble (and for anyone keeping track… yes it’s the front passenger side that we had the blow out on… so thankful we didn’t do that again!).

We started work today. We all walked there and helped with the “Breakfast Social” (Little M… well I guess he gave out smiles) Big M loved using tongs and giving out bagels. Soon we’ll get in a groove of what work looks like here but right now it seems like it’ll be just fine!

Yes that is the face you’ll see on Little M in most pictures…..its only a phase right!

Mount Lemon is about an hour away. The terrain to get there was like none we had ever experienced. Up to about 4,000 ft giant tall cactus were everywhere. Then suddenly around a curve they were gone and it was big rock formations and juniper bushes. Then at 6,000 ft we were in evergreens and there were patches of snow in the shade. An absolutely bizarre and amazing trek. We have so much to take in and are looking forward to all of it! If you have any must sees or must dos in the area please send them our way!

January 11, 2021January 11, 2021

Numbers

3 the number of times we filled up with gas while in North Carolina for 11 weeks.

23 the number of times we have filled up with gas while adventuring around the last 8 weeks.

6.7 our worst miles per gallon on a trip….from Basehor, KS to Tribune, KS…..who ever says Kansas is flat is lying….its a huge long hill up to the Rockies!

16 the number of states we’ve been through so far.

$11.25 how much we each got paid an hour while working in North Carolina.

$161.08 how much was deducted out of our paycheck every month for our- site, water, electricity, sewer, trash and internet.

1 the number of times we have woken up with no running water because the pipes froze.

19 degrees the coldest it ever got at night while we were in the camper…(the night the pipes froze).

52 the temperature inside the camper in the morning the night we ran out of propane.

93 roughly how many hours we have spent on the road.

4,027 miles we’ve hauled a camper around the US.

0 how many movies the kids watched while driving on trips- they play with toys, books, color etc. We also listen to audio books all together that have been a real hit.

4 the number of Little House on Prairie books we have listened to.

111 the number of nights we’ve spent in our camper since we headed out.

30 the number of nights we’ve spent with family the last few weeks!

5 the number of haircuts we did on the road….one of them being the “first haircut!”

We will be going through two more states and starting “work” next week at our new spot in Tucson, Arizona!

January 3, 2021

Arkansas

We stayed in Hot Springs, Arkansas for 8 nights. This was the first place we felt like we were vacationing so to speak. Not moving on the next day, we could really see and experience things Hot Springs and learn about all it had to offer.

Hot Springs National Park is a park composed of two mountains with a city in the middle. It has grown with time and oozed out of the space between the two mountains but its a very unique National Park experience. The east mountain is the mountain with the hot springs that flow down and at base of this mountain is where “bathhouse” row is located. Bathhouse row is what it sounds like…there are eight bathhouses where back in the day people would go and take “baths”. This is comparable to going to the gym or using a sauna nowadays….they did not go to get cleaned but went to better their ailing bodies. Now days a few of these are still functioning as a bathhouse, one a restaurant, one a hotel, one a gift shop/ museum. We each had our own afternoon at the bathhouse and would highly recommend the unique experience!!

Quaffing the elixir aka….drinking the water….yes you can drink the water that comes out of these springs. There is a site to fill a bottle or a jug or if you’re a local a week’s worth of jugs. It was odd to us that this is commonplace but there were ALWAYS people filling up water jugs. It does taste different but we couldn’t tell the difference in hydration/healing that came with it 🤪

Hiking. We walked around in the woods for 2-3 hours 2 days in a row with our crew. Very doable for the littles. There was one piece of the trek on the West Mountain that had a pretty steep grade but we conquered it! We packed a backpack lunch of sandwiches both days and would hike until we needed lunch, eat and rest and keep on going.

Hot Springs. Literally hot steaming water coming out of a hole in the mountain. It was very unreal. The water is roughly 130 degrees. This water is heated by cracks under the earth’s surface that are hot….because the magma is closer to the Earth’s surface due to the crack…so when the water gets near there it is warmed and then comes out….hot!

Trejo’s Mexican Restaurant. If you’ve only had Mexican restaurant food once since August. And even if it’s Tuesday and kids eat free. And even if its lunch time and so you’ll get the best bang for you buck. And even if it’s the closest Mexican restaurant to the campground. And even if there is a review that says on a cross country trip they drove three hours out of their way to eat there…..DO NOT GO. Learn from us. The salsa was alright but everything else less than average and just a pure disappointment.

Cedar Glades. If you’re in the area we would highly recommend taking the 20 minute drive to Cedar Glades park. It has soooo much to offer. Our highlight was the tree house. It had a tone of thing… bike trails everywhere, trick riding areas for bikes, rock wall climbing, play ground, disc golf, hiking trails etc. And if you go on a misty weekday morning you might be lucky enough to find yourselves to be the only ones there like we did!

Campground Review:

Treasure Isle RV Park

Site- we spent a little money and upgraded to the lakeside site. Normal site was $36/ night. Ours was $48/night. If you stay 6 nights you get the 7th free so our average nightly cost was $42/night.

Details: laundry facility, playground. The lake was down due to the off-season (this allows people a chance to fix their docks etc). We had a dock right outside our site. The boys practiced their casting daily and loved waking up and getting to look at the ducks and geese. 20 mins west of downtown.

Would also check out Gulpha Gorge Campground…right in the park with a creek that runs alongside it. Full hook ups $30/night.