5-30 China Update

Hello, everyone.  I realize you all may be wondering what's going on with the adoption.  I've neglected to keep you updated during this part of the process, and I apologize for that.  We have just received our approval from the USCIS (U.S. Customs and Immigration Service) to bring sister home to the U.S.  This approval gets sent to the Consulate in China who will then issue us an appointment interview date.  Once that date is released, we can then proceed with making our travel arrangements.  Our agency is guesstimating that we will travel in mid-July.  As you can imagine, we are hoping to travel as early as possible.  While there is so much to do here on our end in preparation for the trip and bringing sister home, there's only so much loving you can give to a photo!  Her photo is permanently affixed on our dining room table and we talk to her photo as if she were actually sitting there.  I guess you could all say we're a little bit excited!  Keep your fingers crossed that the paperwork is handled efficiently and we'll get to meet her sooner rather than later!

5-29 Nikolas Striping

I felt pretty bad when I accidentally erased the video of Nikolas getting his stripe last month.  Thankfully, I remembered the camera to capture him getting his 3rd stripe for his orange belt.  Next month, with a little hard work, Nikolas will test for his next belt.  Good job, Nikolas!!  

Well....for some reason it appears that the video isn't working.

I'll see if I can figure out what the problem is...sorry!

5-25, Capulin, NM

Last year when we were coming back from picking up our trailer at mom and dad's in Texas, we passed a volcano.  Really.  You could see it as we passed by on the highway and I said, "We need to come back down here some time and go see that."  So, as we were trying to choose our Memorial Day weekend excursion, that volcano came to mind.  The beauty of driving to the northeastern corner of nowhere in New Mexico?  No Memorial Day crowds.  None.  Hardly anyone.  We weren't able to stay at a scenic state or national campground- the only thing nearby was Capulin RV  Park.  Think of staying in someone's graveled front yard and there you have it.  But I must admit, given the remoteness of this area, this rv park was quite nice.  It was clean, quiet and it had showers AND electricity.  So, you either get the beauty of nature or the comforts of home.  This trip we had the comfort of home....and a volcano.  

Day #1 - Capulin Volcano

The variety of lava rock was quite cool, and there was an abundance of cacti.

This was the 1st of 5 hikes we went on this day....
Nikolas' smile got smaller with each footstep!

Looking down into the crater of the volcano.

The trail around the rim was STEEP and the windspeed
phenomenal.  Nikolas was afraid he was going to blow
away, so at times we all held hands....and he was still
 a 'little' freaked out.

I'm not sure if this little cocoon of caterpillars is more interesting or disgusting.
They were everywhere.

Lots and lots of lava rock.

I really liked all the lava formations such as this one.

My hikers.

We did the whole day backwards- we started at the rim of the volcano and ended
with the scenic trail by the visitors center.  It worked for us, and I don't think Nikolas
would have taken another step at the end of the day if it went uphill!  

Not all of the lava rock was as brilliantly colored as this one.

Wow-- a whole lot of nothing....for miles and miles and miles.

This little guy greeted us on the side of the road as we left the volcano.
Sure makes me miss our walks down Black Lane!

This old house was just across the street from our RV Park.  I was really intrigued
by it.  I wish I would have had my camera with me that first day when we walked
by and there were horses grazing in the front yard.  We didn't venture back on foot after
that first day when the dogs from down the street chased us all the way back 'home'.
Ahhh.....the country life!

This old school grounds was just a few miles down the road in the village of
Des Moines.  Really...village....not even 'town'!

Day #2- Folsom and Sugarite

Folsom is another village on the other side of the volcano.  Wow.  I really like old, historic buildings, but I'm not quite sure what to think when people still live there.  It really seemed as if everything was stuck in the past.  I didn't see a store, only one small post office and a friendly dog that followed us around (as opposed to the unfriendly ones in Capulin).  There was a Folsom Musem that was PACKED with every antique imaginable.  It was located in what had once been the general store.  It was quite interesting.  It really made me think back to the days walking through the back of Grandpa G's auction barn.  It had the same feeling, the same smell.  Maybe everything grandpa had wasn't as old as this, but when you're a child, everything seems old.  I had to chuckle at the $1.50 entrance fee.  The whole thing was just sort of bizarre.

I was quite taken with this old cash register.
Imagine the transactions this thing has seen.

Folsom....then and now.

Hmm.....if there is such a thing as haunted hotels, I think this one would qualify.
Just look at it!  Simply captivating.

We walked around the back side of the old Folsom Hotel
and found this 'bison' sculpted out of lava rock (ok, maybe
not so much 'sculpted' as just given horns....).
Nikolas really liked it and did what any boy would do-
treated it like a jungle gym.

The side of the hotel.

Uh-oh.  We lost one....and it's not even lunchtime yet.  I don't blame him though.
This is when we were driving from Folsom to Sugarite Canyon State Park.
There were supposed to be a few ghost towns along the way, but all we saw were
private cattle fields.  I about fell asleep my self....must have been tired from all those
hikes around the volcano the day before!

I was pretty disappointed about the lack of ghost towns enroute to Sugarite.  Little did I know that Sugarite itself was
actually a booming coal camp between 1912 and 1941.  I was in historic heaven. 

Quite a different energy level than the last picture, right?! Nikolas was in heaven
when we realized that the little lake (it reminded me of Lake Como) in the state park was
partly in New Mexico and partly in Colorado.  He was so happy to be in Colorado again--
if only temporarily.  Silly boy!

We stayed in Colorado all of 3 minutes before we turned around and were
welcomed back into New Mexico.  Funny.  Notice the trees on the hillside that
were burned from a fire there last summer.

Pretty bird keeping watch.

This is the site of the old railroad tracks used
to transport the coal mined in the hillside above.

It was so neat to see how many houses made up the town of Sugarite.  It reminded
me of base housing on Fort Meade-- even the description of the lifestyle, store, school
and activities.  Families of twenty different nationalities lived here.  The rubble is all
that remains.

This is the brick oven that the women used to bake bread to sell to the bachelors.

This housed the explosives that were used to blast out the coal.

This is the first of many, "Look what I found!!
Take a picture!!" moments.

The 1/2 mile steep hike up to Coal Mine #2 revealed all that was left.....
a caved in entrance with an iron gate erected for safety.  

It's hard to believe that was once the entrance to the mine.

If you guessed, "What is Nikolas pretending to hit his thumb with a hammer?",
then you're right!  (Sorry, no prize money just a pat on the back for using your
incredible imagination since I had to ask him what he was doing.....)

Yep, more old stuff...but at least the scavenger hunt kept
him REALLY distracted from all the miles we were
walking!

The remnants of another house.

"Please, one more picture!  See, a picture frame!"

The view down the valley from the path to the mine.  If you think your commute
is bad, walk a mile in these guys' shoes.  Man do we have it easy.......

Home again, home again, jiggety jig.  Welcome to Capulin RV Park.

A wonderful memory from this trip was teaching Nikolas to play Rummy.
It reminded me of all the many camping trips we sat around Grandma O's
table playing hours of cards (usually while the wind howled outside at Dillon-
ironically, the wind was howling in Capulin, too.)  He loved the game and woke
us up at 0700 the next morning asking if we'd play with him!  (The answer was
'no' if you weren't quite sure...!)  

Day #3- Ludlow enroute home

At Sugarite, they told us about Ludlow in CO, another mining camp.  On April 20, 1914, the infamous "Ludlow Massacre" took place when striking miners were attacked by the militia.  The miners had been on strike for "better and safer working conditions, reasonable working hours and pay, and company compliance with existing state law......The brief but terrible battle left many haunting memories.  The bodies of two women and 11 children- victims of asphixiation- were found huddled within a cellar.  Five strikers, 2 other youngsters, and at least 4 of the men associated with the militia joined them in death."  (thank you, free pamphlet.....).  I don't know if this is the actual cellar or not.  We walked down the steps into the small, dark, damp space and realized what a horrible, horrible end they faced being trapped in there.  And to an end, "Despite the heavy loss of lives and property, the long and deadly strike wasn't totally in vain.  The effects of the strike, and equally the effects of what occurred at Ludlow, encouraged state and federal lawmakers to pass legislation, that in the long run, would allow workingmen and women deserved dignity and respect."

Here is where I would show you further photos from Ludlow, except driving up the mountain we were detoured by a low, narrow bridge.  Not wanting to be like the episode of King of Queens were Doug gets his IPS truck stuck in a drive-through, we opted for the road 'more traveled' and headed back to the interstate.  

All weekend long, we complained about the strong, gusty winds.  While at the trailer, we didn't cook outside, sit outside or eat outside.  It was warm, but way too windy.  (Apparently we were lucky compared to the Memorial Day campers in Montana who dealt with wind AND snow!)  Nikolas was disappointed he didn't get his campfire and s'mores.  I thought how funny it would be if we got home and it was nice enough to BBQ the burgers we'd saved for the camping trip.  Yep, wouldn't you know it, PERFECT BBQ weather.  Camping is even more enjoyable when you're just as happy to be home!

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend.  Thank you to all those who have served and sacrificed.  We owe it all to you........