Sunday, May 6th, 2012

• Drive about 6 hours to Hot Springs, Arkansas
• Still looking/deciding what to do in Hot Springs – recommendations welcome!
• Spend the night at Hampton Inn, Hot Springs
• Breakfast: At home
• Lunch: Probably sandwiches in the car
• Dinner: Microwave dinner option at hotel

Monday, May 7th

• Teach 3 diabetes classes (for work) in Glenwood, Arkansas (about 30 miles from Hot Springs)
• Spend the night at Hampton Inn, Hot Springs
• Breakfast: At hotel
• Lunch: Sandwich between classes
• Dinner: Microwave dinner option at hotel

Tuesday, May 8th

• Drive about 7 hours to Watonga, Oklahoma to Roman Nose State Park
• Hike – the park has about 9 miles of hiking trail options
• Spend the night in a tee-pee (we are super excited about this one!)
• Breakfast: At hotel
• Lunch: Sandwich in the car
• Dinner: Skillet dinner option on campstove at teepee

Wednesday, May 9th

• Drive about 9 hours to Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Evening activity: downtown Colorado Springs (maybe for a little ice cream treat or something similar!)
• Spend the night using hotel points at Super 8
• Breakfast: Either oatmeal on campstove at teepee or purchase at state park lodge restaurant
• Lunch: Sandwich in the car
• Dinner: Microwave dinner option at hotel

May 10th

• Morning/Early Afternoon Activity Options: Seven Falls, Garden of the Gods, US Olympic Training Center Tour, Manitou Cliff Dwellings, Pikes Peak (would greatly appreciate recommendations here!)
• Afternoon Activities: Drive to Estes Park (either take shortest route through Boulder or scenic route via Peak to Peak Byway, depending on length of morning excursions), Visit Beaver Meadow’s Visitor Center (if we arrive in time), short hike
• Spend the night in the Ponderosa Cabin at Hermitt Park – a camper cabin with propane lighting/heat and an outhouse
• Breakfast: At hotel
• Lunch: Sandwich picnic at our chosen outing
• Dinner: Skillet dinner option in cabin

May 11th

• Spend the day exploring the Rocky Mountain National Park
• Hiking Options: Lily Mountain (3-3.5 miles), Dream Lake (2.2 miles), Alberta Falls (1.2 miles), Sprague Lake (0.5 mile), Alluvial Fan (1 mile) – we will probably start with the Lily Mountain hike and then go from there (would appreciate recommendations!)
• Spend a second night in Ponderosa Cabin at Hermitt Park
• Breakfast: Oatmeal at cabin
• Lunch: On the trail – summer sausage, cheese, crackers, granola bars, nabs, etc
• Dinner: Dinner in town of Estes Park or Skillet meal in cabin

May 12th

• Hike any trails we want to from our options we didn’t complete yesterday
• Drive open areas of Trail Ridge Road or other scenic byways (I’ve heard many of these are closed this time of year so we will wait and see on this one)
• Drive to Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Complete any options from Colorado Springs we didn’t complete on May 10th that we want to do
• Spend the night on points at the Doubletree in Colorado Springs
• Breakfast: Pancakes, bacon, and grits in the cabin
• Lunch: Sandwiches in the car/on the trail
• Dinner: Microwave meal option in the hotel or eat out in Colorado Springs

May 13th

• Drive about 5 hours to the Black Mesa State Park in Kenton, Oklahoma – explore the park
• Drive about 2 1/2 more hours to Dumas Texas
• Stay on points at the Hampton Inn in Dumas, Texas
• Breakfast: At the hotel
• Lunch: Sandwiches on the road
• Dinner: Microwave meal at the hotel

May 14th

• Drive about 4 1/2 hours to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge – Explore the refuge
• Drive about 1 hour to Burkburnett, Texas and spend the night on points at the Hampton Inn there
• Breakfast: At the hotel
• Lunch: Before going to the refuge, drive a couple of miles from the refuge to Meers, Oklahoma where we will have a famous Meer’s Burger for lunch
• Dinner: Microwave meal option at hotel

May 15th

• Drive about 7 hours to Fordyce Arkansas
• Spend the night at Day’s Inn, Fordyce, Arkansas
• Breakfast: At the hotel
• Lunch: Sandwiches on the road
• Dinner: Microwave meal option at hotel

May 16th

• Teach 2 diabetes classes (for work) in Fordyce, Arkansas
• Drive about 1 hour to Monticello, Arkansas
• Spend the night at Hampton Inn, Monticello, Arkansas
• Breakfast: At the hotel
• Lunch: Sandwiches between classes
• Dinner: Microwave meal option in the hotel

May 17th

• Drive about 1 1/2 hours to Eudora, Arkansas
• Teach a diabetes class (for work) in Eudora, Arkansas
• Drive about 3 1/2 hours to home
• Breakfast: At the hotel
• Lunch: Sandwiches on the road after class
• Dinner: At home (if there’s any good food in our house after 12 days away!)

Meals:

Of course, we are flexible when it comes to meals. When on a trip there’s a balance between saving money and eating at a reasonable hour/schedule. I feel sure we’ll splurge on a pizza or treat here and there but overall I’m prepared to feed us for most every meal of the trip. Taking our meals leaves room for a couple of cool restaurants during the trip while staying on our budget. On the same token, I honestly hate the idea of dealing with a huge ice chest in and out of hotels every night, filling ice buckets, etc! My goal is 1 medium-sized ice chest to hold drinks for the day, sandwich meat and cheese, mayo, and not much else. That means everything else is shelf-stable. I’m so proud of myself. Here’s what it looks like thus far:

Beverages – tub 1

• Coffee with our collapsible drip coffee makers, truvia packets (for Ryan), shelf-stable International Delight creamer pods (for me, of course!)
• Diet Coke, Coke, and Dr. Pepper 10 Cans
• 2-3 cases of water bottles
• About 10 gallons of water (to fill camel backs, nalgene bottles, etc) – we will have to buy more or re-fill our bottles along the way
• Tea bags for hot tea
• Hot cocoa packets

Breakfast – tub 2

• Most breakfasts are FREE at the hotels – we have to take breakfast for 3 mornings
• Oatmeal (pre-mixed with powdered milk, brown sugar, and cinnamon) – for 2 mornings
• Pancake mix (in these cute little jugs that you just add water to, pour out for your pancakes, and throw away!), Shelf-stable pre-cooked bacon, and Grits – for 1 morning

Snacks & Desserts – tub 3

• Cheese/Crackers, Nekot Cookies/PB nabs packs – found these on sale at Dollar General
• Serving-size tubs of peanut butter for carrot sticks, bread, crackers
• Little Debbies
• S’mores ingredients – can’t leave home without ‘em!
• Microwaveable dessert bowls
• Cookies and JUNK – per Ryan’s request

Lunches – tub 4 and ice chest

• Nice bread (as opposed to the $1 per loaf bread I tend to buy) – this is our splurge for taking our own lunches!
• Chipotle Sandwich Shoppe Mayo (leftover from a cooking demo!)
• Cheese slices
• Sandwich Meat
• Peanut Butter & Honey
• Small bags of chips

Dinners – tub 5

• Zatarains Red Beans & Rice, Gumbo, etc with cans of chicken (microwave or skillet options)
• Velveeta Cheesy Skillet with can of chicken
• Chili – dry mix, just add water (skillet/pot meal)
• Microwavable soup containers
• Chicken Helper with can of chicken
• Shelf-Stable micro meals
• Velveeta mac & cheese cups with a packet of salmon
• Small cans of asparagus and green beans
• Cheese and Garlic Biscuit mix for stovetop biscuits
• I’ll probably grab a couple of bagged salad kits for token veggies
• Long story short – alot of sodium, packaged products, easy stuff!)

So, if this isn’t a long enough description of our plans, enjoy the pics below to photographically show our plans! A picture is worth a thousand words – I can’t wait ’til we have seen it and can write the thousand words about it all ourselves!

For one more cool treat, check out this web review and amazing video of the Lily Mountain hike, one of the trails Ryan and I are anxious to hike!

Places we want to travel:

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So, with the setting aside of one website I thought I could, with more infrequency than a weekly post, begin to update Ryan and my website with what’s going on occasionally. I’ll post pics and such as I can and we’ll just see how it goes (more comments from people might inspire me to post more – hint, hint!)! I might even “back-post” some stuff from our trips and events over the past few months!

April 2012 Update:

• Ryan is about to finish up his spring semester – right now we are 10 days away!
• We are looking forward to a trip to the Rocky Mountains next month!
• We had a wonderful Easter, celebrating with both our families and the Didlake family (see pics!)
• Ryan found out that he won a scholarship from the College of Business and the School of Accountancy for this fall – I’m so proud of my man!
• My friend, Holly Houston, came to visit for a weekend – we had a blast! (see pic!)
• My sister, Sarah, had her voice recital – she did awesome!
• I planted a container garden out on our patio – I have lettuce, tomatoes, bell peppers, mint, oregano, basil, parsley, lavender, and flowers, plus a few more!
• Ryan is starring (and I have a supporting role) in a short film with our friend, Nolan Hicks, to be debuted on May 17th at the Mississippi Home Educators Association Film Festival. He did an epic job!
• A very quick weekend trip earlier in the month allowed me to see my adorable new nephew! My sister, Amanda, and my nephew, Jonathan, are actually here for a visit this week!

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This month, I’ve had fun pulling out a pattern I had from last year for pillowcase dresses. I’ve made a maroon one, a yellow one, and an “Americana” one. The maroon one was out of material I had. The yellow one was made from the 2/3 of a pillowcase that I had left after making a cover for my new body pillow (I had to use 1 1/3 king-size pillowcases to make a case for the body pillow). The Americana one was made out of a red, white, and blue pillowcase I had. These dresses are so easy and are adorable. I love a stocked “gift closet” as well!

Also, in a similar mode, I made my very own homemade mozzarella cheese this month! Now, this method is frankly too much trouble for a daily cheese making but for special occasions it was a blast! I had so much fun and was so proud of my big block of cheese!

Ryan found out this month that he won a scholarship from the MSU College of Business! I’m so proud of him! He’s doing so well in school! Only 9 months left!

Also, this month we went camping with some friends to Dismal’s Canyon in Alabama – but I bet you’ve seen my post on that trip already!

Ryan and I have always loved walking on campus. When we were dating, campus was our favorite place to go for a walk. Once we got married we lived right there on campus and went for walks around campus most nights of the week. Now, we have to drive there to walk but we still love it – so peaceful, scenic, and romantic. We got engaged on campus – We love MSU!

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March 2012 brought us an amazing camping trip to Dismal’s Canyon in Alabama. We went with our friends, the Didlakes, and had a blast camping with them and their kiddos. We traveled to Dismals on Friday after work. I took soup for us to have for supper and we got all set up. Our first night, we took a guided tour of part of the canyon where we saw the Dismalites – glow in the dark bugs! Of course, the kids (and adults) had a blast! We took glow sticks made into necklaces or bracelets with us and sported our rave fashion with style! We put the kids down and then had an adult “S’mores Bar,” complete with graham crackers and chips ahoy cookies, marshmallows, Hershey’s bars, Twix, Milky Way, etc! You have no idea how good a s’more is made with a chocolate chip cookie and candy bar and a marshmallow cooked over the campfire!

The second day, we went hiking. Dismal’s canyon has a 1 1/2 mile hiking trail through the canyon that provides some amazing scenery, waterfalls, Indian sites, foliage, etc. I was truly impressed by the number of picturesque views and spots along this rather short trail. We stopped for lots of pics and sites and grabbed a lunch of crackers, cheese, summer sausage, and trail mix at the half-way point. When we finished our hike and got back to the tent, I made a craft project with the kids. Each child got their own sheet of contact paper and made a placemat with items they collected on the trail and near the campsite throughout the day – flowers, grass, bark, and even a little dirt got into our creations! For supper, Natalie Didlake brought some delicious chicken and steak which she was going to put on the grill. But, our campsite didn’t have a grill! So, in proper fashion the husbands, Ryan and Aaron, got to work making a grill. They sectioned off a part of the fire pit with rocks and set up the charcoal in the sectioned off area. Their home-made grill worked perfect to cook the meat and the vegetable skewers! Our meal was delicious!

Sunday morning, we got up, ate some breakfast, and packed ourselves up. We made a stop through a couple of the other campsites in the campground on our way out – I’m scoping the place out for a potential extended family camp-out!

On our way home, we all rigged up a surprise birthday party for Aaron Didlake! We stopped by Smackers in Columbus and were joined by our friends Aaron, Chris, and Elliana Smith as we surprised Aaron for his 30th birthday!

Overall, a great weekend, great fellowship, great friends! I love camping!

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Also this month I enjoyed an afternoon/evening on campus hanging out with the Didlake kids (who are so special they could almost be called my nieces and nephew! ). The weather is so beautiful this time of year for bikes and wagons!

We babysat the Didlake kids while Aaron and Natalie (a.k.a. mom and dad) enjoyed a Valentines evening out. Since Ryan’s birthday is the day before Valentines day and I was planning him a party we made cards, invitations, party hats, and special gifts for Ryan’s birthday!

Ryan’s birthday is shared with baby Jonathan so I was actually gone on the day of his birthday. I came home on February 14th to sweet gifts and a nice dinner!

Ryan and my new favorite mid-day break is that occasionally he calls me and says, “get in the car and meet me at the bakery for coffee!” I work from home so have some flexibility on when I take lunch. Sometimes, it gets pretty quiet and Ryan knows when I need to take a mid-morning break! Most of the time we only have about 15 or 20 minutes between his classes but it’s so special and a nice time together. I’ve also taken to just staying and working at the bakery or coffee shop sometimes to get out of the house on days I’m working here all day. It’s so special!

My friend, Natalie, turned 30 last month! So, two other friends, Joeann and Alison, and I surprised her with a birthday bash one Saturday morning! Natalie was completely surprised! Joeann wrote little poems that led her around the downtown Book Mart as she found each of us in sections of the store that represented our personalities or interests. Then, we had coffee and muffins, played a couple of games, and then went out to lunch at The Grill in Starkville. What was going to be an early morning party to lunch was so much fun we looked at our watches and it was well past 3pm! We had a blast!

The night of Natalie’s party I threw a birthday bash for Ryan and invited some of our best buddies! We played the game Bang and had a great time celebrating. I ordered pizza and went with a Jeep theme since I got Ryan Jeep-related goodies for his presents this year. He took the kids around the block for a Jeep ride and then came back to a Jeep-themed cake (with surprise re-lighting candles which was a hoot), balloons everywhere, and fun times!

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To give you the Reader’s Digest version, we (my dad, mom, sister Sarah, brother Adam, Amanda’s in-laws, and myself) got to Huntsville on Sunday evening. My sister-in-law, Taylor, had spent the entire week before with Amanda, patiently waiting on Jonathan to decide his own arrival time (but he has his own thoughts about time, obviously!). Right after we got to their house, Amanda and Jody went to the hospital and checked in while they gave her something to help get her ready for labor. That night, excited and waiting on phone calls, we made a decoration for Amanda’s door at the hospital (because it is my personal belief that all the hospital staff will be more cheerful if they see a cute decoration before they enter your room) before going to bed.

The next morning, we all headed to the hospital. We waited, and waited, and waited… We got to visit with each other and Amanda throughout the day. Finally, just before 10pm, Jonathan made his arrival into the world! What an exciting event! You should have seen the crowd outside the door of the delivery room when we texted the guys to tell them Jonathan had arrived!

We went back to Jody and Amanda’s house that night to spend the night. The next morning, Taylor and I rushed up to the hospital to be the first visitors before each heading home. Holding my new nephew was so exciting! We got a few special minutes before the rest of the family arrived and we had to share him with grandparents, aunt Sarah, and uncle Adam.

Jonathan is so loved and so adored! Hope you enjoy the pics below!

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Emily was born this morning and Ryan and I got to visit this afternoon!

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So, our friends, Daniel & Laura, went with us to the bowl game. I was able to find two hotel rooms on points as well, making this a very budget-friendly trip!

We drove to Nashville, checked in our hotel, and went to the game. It was cold, but not too bad! MSU won, making my birthday even better! We enjoyed some yummy food and great fellowship and even ran into some more friends while we were there!

Overall, it was a great birthday and one that will be remembered with a win!

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We put up our tree the week before Thanksgiving (I know, a little early – but we knew we’d be traveling and wanted to truly enjoy it!). Last year, after Christmas, we went to Lowe’s and got a tree half off so this was our first year to have a big tree. I was so proud of how it turned out – so big and beautiful! I had to purchase some extra balls and ornaments for it but it was worth it! I even made the topper since we didn’t have one! Yay for Dirt Cheap Christmas decor!

We spent the days before Christmas finishing up our shopping, gift wrapping, and just enjoying time together – it truly was a wonderful break from school, even though I had to work most days.

Christmas Eve was enjoyed with my family where we got together to do our yearly tradition of opening all the gifts from the children, all the gifts from mom and dad to each other, and all the gifts for the adult children who wouldn’t be coming back the next day (Christmas morning, the kiddos still at home open all their gifts from mom and dad). Our menu was, as always, delicious and incredible finger foods, dips, and appetizer-like items.

Christmas day we went to church in the morning and then to Ryan’s parent’s for a delicious Christmas supper where we exchanged gifts with his family.

Enjoy the pics from our Christmas celebrations! Hint: the big one is our new TV we bought for ourselves!

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The Lord has done wonderful things for us this year and we are filled with joy!

Spring 2011 held a great semester for Ryan at school. He is in Accounting full time and should graduate next December (2012) so we are counting down the days now! His class schedule last year brought a full schedule as he took classes through the summer as well as both semesters!

May 2011 we went on a lovely trip to the Ozark National Scenic Riverways and had a blast together. This was one of our most fun camping trips yet. We canoed, toured a cave, hiked, and just loved spending time together. We also found that 3 nights in a tent was just perfect for us as a couple – not too long to be sore from sleeping on the ground but long enough to make it well worth our while to set everything up! Furthermore, we made the decision that we can buy no more camping equipment, no matter how cool, until we get a bigger car! May is also when I passed my exam to become a Certified Diabetes Educator.

July of this year brought mixed emotions as my job as a diabetes educator at IQH came to a close. Our grant of 22 months ended and for a little over a month we sought the Lord over what to do next. With few “classic” dietitian jobs available in the area, we began to look at options different from what I have previously done and the Lord led me to a wonderful company located in Charleston, MS called The Diabetic Shoppe. We sell strips, shoes, cPAP machines, insulin pumps, etc – and now I am the Diabetic Education Coordinator, creating a new diabetes education program for Arkansas, Mississippi, and beyond. I absolutely love my job and love the fact that I can work from home, even though I travel a good bit. Ryan and I are so spoiled with us both being home a good portion of many days together! We are so thankful for our school/work situation right now.

The fall brought another semester with Ryan both being admitted to the University Honors Program and receiving his first academic scholarship – great honors and privileges for us – and the completion of his time as a junior at MSU. The fall held lots of travel for me as I traveled to meet the sales reps for my company all over the states of Mississippi, Arkansas, and even some into Tennessee. I love my job and have found the joys of traveling, such as hilton honors points {5 free nights already} and trying cool cuisines in other towns!

December was a joyous time! We completed Ryan’s toughest semester yet {now, he’s officially a senior!}, I completed the increased amount of traveling I was doing, and we had the opportunity to visit the most magical place on earth, Disney World! Ryan had never been before and I had been but it’s been a few years. We had a blast! We agreed it is the best vacation we have ever had! I’m posting pictures on facebook, so be sure to check those out. December also brought the Music City Bowl {we got to go!} on my birthday which was a wonderful gift! Ryan also spent December creating his new website – www.maroonworks.com!

In other news, we love hanging out with our friends from church and are so thankful for our relationships at Grace Covenant Baptist Church – God has truly blessed us there. January 2012, we have a niece coming on the Wallace side and February 2012 my sister is having a baby boy so you can imagine our lives have been filled with the joys of all that new babies bring! Graduation for Ryan is expected December 15, 2012 and who knows where the Lord will take us after that!

Thanks for being special friends to us and I pray you have a wonderful 2012! Please stay in touch… our home is always open…

Love,

Ellen & Ryan Wallace