Unpaid Vacation #4

For this unpaid vacation, we decided to head up to our family cabin (otherwise known as 1970s single wide trailer) in Forest Lakes, AZ. We prefer to call it a cabin rather than the beauty it is. But hey, it's an escape from the Phoenix heat and therefore we love it!

We had been back in town from Idaho for a whole 5 days and apparently that was just too long for Jeremy. So at the last minute, he devised a plan to talk me into going so that we could "build a tree fort for the kids". How can I turn down such an adventure?! So we threw together our stuff and headed up north with our lumber, nails, and hammers in tow....ok and also the rhino and quad.

On our drive up, we passed something that I can definitely say I have never seen on a highway!

My laughter only grew louder when we got close and I saw the redneck method with which it was being held together. Nothing makes you feel safer than flying in a helicopter covered in duct tape.

I noticed Jeremy was quiet. I looked over and could see him drooling with envy. No, not that we didn't own a helicopter but that someone else had thought of a use for duct tape that he hadn't! We had just been dethroned as the most redneck truck/trailer/package on the road.

We finally arrived in Forest Lakes to a balmy 60 degrees with wind chill in the 30s (by my temperature gauge!) After much contemplation, Jeremy picked the perfect location for the tree fort. There he began the construction. Here's the beginning shot:

After a couple of hours....here's the finished product!!

Oh wait, did that look just the same as the first pic?! Ya, so Jeremy is very talented but preparation and planning aren't necessarily vying for the top spot on his skills list. He didn't bring the right length of wood. (of course it wasn't his fault, it was the tree's fault for being too wide apart! lol) So I hope the kids enjoy their 2 sticks of wood nailed to the tree. I just know they'll be the envy of all the other vacationing kiddos. We'll just tell everyone, "Why YES we did mean to build a balance beam for our kids!"

Here's some other fun pics from the weekend. What an adorable pair!

And then the urge to strangle his sister won the battle.

Luckily Taylee is resilient! She absolutely loved hanging out on this corner all weekend!

Me & the kids on an relaxing quad ride. Later Jeremy made the dreadful mistake of allowing Anden to drive the quad. Geez, nobody warned me I would get bucked off the back when he pushed the throttle from o-60 mph in half a second!

Here's more enjoyment from the weekend. It really was SO cold and windy! Definitely colder than Idaho! I should remember that the elevation is in fact 7500 ft. One of these times I'll finally learn to just throw in a spare snowsuit.