Denver, Colorado August 2012

A few months ago I found out that the Wal-Mart managers meeting would be held in Denver this year instead of Dallas.  Immediately I knew I needed fly in early to spend some time in the backcountry.  I thought to myself.....who on earth would meet me?  I knew Jason couldn't go because we would be leaving for AK 1.5 weeks later.  Immediately I thought of my good friend Trish in Memphis.  So I emailed her and was so excited when she emailed back telling me yes, she would do it.  So the planning began.  We chatted often going through trails to pick out the best one.  After settling on the Five Lakes Loop (Note: we did not do the loop, only a portion of it) in Rocky Mountain National Park.  I called the backcountry permit office and obtained our permit for our campsites.

Finally the trip arrived.  It's been several years since I've seen Trish so I was super excited to see her and catch up on those years.  We keep in touch all the time but having face time is always 10 times better.  I picked her up at a friends house and we headed out.  We chatted up a storm about life, her kiddos, what they have been doing, what Jay and I have been doing, etc.  We stopped in Estes Park and had lunch again just chatting up a storm.  Finally we arrived at the park to pickup our permit.  The officer asked if we had our bear bin...yes....he ran over the maps with us.  Finally he said "You guys are getting a pretty late start today".  I immediatly got nervous because I am the worlds slowest hiker.  He advised with altitude and such it would take time to make it to our camp.

We finally arrived at the trail head and spent some time making sure that we had everything. Tent....check, sleeping bags....check, food....check, SPOT.....check (or Jay would kill me).  We finally hit the trail.  The trail begins at Bear Lake which is at 9,475.  I have never attempted to hike at this altitude before.  I had issues breathing.  I felt out of shape and exhausted.  To beat any form of altitude sickness I drank tons of water while hiking and stopped several times to rest.  The trail was amazing.  So beautiful!  I found a creature along the trail that I fell in love with as well.  It's called a Pika.  Looks like a big eared hamster.  I totally wanted to bring one home with me.  2.65 miles later we reached our first nights campsite called Sourdough.  This site was at 10,585ft and was a very nice campsite in the trees with no one around.  The highlight of this campsite though was the toilet.  Coolest toilet ever.  It was a hole in the ground (obviously) with a actual toilet seat.  It was open air so you could do your business while you watched birds fly overhead.  We set up camp, had dinner and went straight to bed.  It had been a long day already for the both of us.  That night I woke up to a rock slide.  This was pretty scary as rocks were all around.  I mean they don't call it the Rocky Mountains for nothing.  HE HE.  I quickly got over my fear though and went back to sleep.

The next morning I woke up at 7am.  I went outside to use the awesome bathroom and then decided I was going to go back to sleep.  Normally on our backcountry excursions we're up very early in the morning and attempt to hit the trail at 7am.  So going back to sleep was very unusual for me.  Trish and I slept until 10am.  CRAZY!  We finally decided that we needed to get up and get moving because the backcountry officer had advised that we needed to be past a certain section of the trail before the afternoon storms.  So we had breakfast and set out.  The rocky mountains were beautiful and still had snow.  Our next stop was Odessa Lake for lunch.  By far the prettiest lake we saw on the trail.  We sat and watched fly fishermen, relaxed a little (like we hadn't already relaxed enough...he he), had lunch, and just enjoyed the amazing scenery God had created for us.  After lunch we packed up and headed to our next campsite called Fern Lake.  Fern lake is at 9,545 and there are 4 campsites in the same area.  These sites are still secluded though, which was nice.  We arrived early in the day so we headed down to the lake and we both laid down and read.  I'm not a huge reader so I spent more time watching the squirrel that kept running around me.  Obviously people feed this thing.  That night I slept like a baby.  We both went to bed earlier since we couldn't sleep in the next morning.  I had to check in to our hotel in Denver and pickup a co-worker at the airport.

 The next morning we started early.  The trail was all downhill from there.  We came across a waterfall we both didn't expect.  There was actually a nice pool as well where people could swim.  It was a easy hike out.  After we arrived back at our car we headed toward Denver.  We headed for our hotel which was called The Brown Palace.  You have to look this place up as it's amazing.  When we walked in the looks on peoples faces was priceless.  Imagine two dirty/stinky girls walking in with backpacks into this 5 star hotel.  Sure made me laugh.

 This trip was amazing and it's something we totally need to do every year!  Trish thank you so much for joining me!  Your friendship means so much and I loved every minute of our trip!!!!!

Trail Information:  http://www.protrails.com/trails/view/341/rocky_mountain_national_park/5_lake_loop_bear_helene_odessa_fern_cub
The Brown Palace:  http://www.brownpalace.com/

Alaska 2012 

 Every time I sit down and start a new post I realize how much fun it is to keep track of our journeys and lives. I really need to get back into this so here goes. Jason and I have been talking about going to Alaska since we got married thirteen years ago. This year we decided to make it happen. We used sky miles, hotel points and advanced RV rental payment to make the trip affordable. So, here is a collection of my thoughts and experiences. Saturday, Sept 1st - Left our house at 3pm to catch a 6pm flight out of Philadelphia and landed in Anchorage on Sept 2nd at 12:30am local time. There's a four hour time difference between the Eastern and Alaska Daylight Time zones, so total travel time was a little over 13 hours. Boy was I tired. We caught a ride to the Hilton Garden Inn (I'm a Hilton snob) and slept for a few hours before our adventure began. Sunday, Sept 2nd - After picking up bear pepper spray and camping fuel at REI we set out for ABC Motorhomes to pick up our 30-foot Coachmen RV. The folks at the agency were very nice, their prices were affordable, and they rented nice, well-maintained RV's. Our first destination was Seward - a nice little harbor town on the Kenai Peninsula. We walked around the shops, took photos, and had dinner at Ray's Waterfront Diner. I figured since I was in Alaska I needed to develop a taste for seafood so I ordered Halibut fish and chips. Didn't really care for it so I ate a few and had Jason finish it off. I told him that if I tried to order seafood again he needed to stop me. After dinner we headed to the fish cleaning station. Several people were cleaning out all sorts of different types of fish. It was super cool to watch them clean and gut them. We then headed to Miller's Landing campground for the night. We found it to be crowded and a little neglected. They also forgot to write down our reservation. Regardless, they let us have an ocean view and were very nice about the ordeal.

Monday, Sept 3rd - Woke up early to start our journey to Portage. Along the way we decided to stop by Exit Glacier. When we arrived the glacier was covered in fog but as the day progressed the fog lifted and the ice was exposed. So cool to see. Later that night after we arrived at our campground I spoke to Jim, our kayak guide from the Alaska Kayak Academy (http://kayakcenterak.com), who advised us that a big storm was headed for the PWS so our kayaking trip was cancelled. :-( He offered us a chance to go packrafting though so we took him up on his offer. It was something I have always wanted to try anyway. We camped that night at Williwaw campground at a very nice site next to a salmon stream. It was so weird seeing salmon carcasses everywhere and bear poo too. We remained very "bear aware" as we walked around the grounds and close to the stream and armed ourselves with bear mace, RAR!

 Tuesday, Sept 4th - We met up with Jim in the morning and headed for the Kenai River in Cooper Landing. It is a beautiful river with amazing blue water. This was our first time in packrafts and it was truly a experience. To those who do not know anything about packrafts they are small 5lb inflatable personal rafts that you blow up using what looks like a giant pastry bag. You screw one end into the raft and use the big end to catch wind and squeeze the air into boat. Someone skilled could have the boat blown up in a matter of minutes, it took me a while. HA HA! Jim gave us some great instruction on catching eddy's and doing ferry's. It was so awesome going through rapids with salmon swimming beside our boats. If I wanted to I could reach out and touch them. Saw a bald eagle as well, which was cool. It never gets old seeing them in the wild. After paddling we took Jim out to dinner. Jim nicknamed me Tigger since I am always bouncing around. That made me laugh.

Wednesday, Sept 5th - Headed to Homer for the day and we mainly just visited Homer Spit. We left a dollar hanging at the Salty Dawg Saloon and walked up and down the boardwalk and the beach. Nice town.

Thursday, Sept 6th - We chartered a wildlife tour with Epic Charters out of Whittier (http://www.epicchartersalaska.com/). Our captain, Brooke, was very knowledgeable in marine wildlife since his major was in marine biology. It was so interesting hearing him explain things about the different animals. We saw a humpback whale, stellar sea lions, oystercatchers (bird), bears, bald eagles, sea otters and seals. We saw several glaciers but mainly visited the Surprise Glacier. It was so blue and beautiful. So cool to see up close. Brooke also dropped us off at a few islands to hike around and enjoy the varied geology of Prince William Sound. On the ride back to Whittier we saw several waterfalls and even a huge rainbow. So beautiful. That night we headed toward the Matanuska Glacier outside of Sutton.

Friday, Sept 7th - Visited the Matanuska glacier. The Mat is 27 miles long and 4 miles wide. The photos just do not do it justice. Stopped for lunch in Glenallen and Jay bought a nice Alaska-made hunting knife. We then headed toward the Denali Highway which is 138 miles long and mostly gravel. Only 20 something miles of the highway is paved but we took it slow in the RV to avoid damage and soak up the amazing scenery. It was hunting season so it was very cool to see all the different hunting vehicles Alaskans use to get out in the tundra. One guy actually had 2 tanks. Crazy. We drove 27 miles of the highway today and we had an amazing campsite right next to a a nice lake and some small mountains.

 Saturday, Sept 8th - We drove another sixty or seventy miles of the highway and stopped at a little hunting lodge and camp for lunch. Inside we met some really nice guys who loaned us two of their four-wheelers to use for about an hour while they took an afternoon nap before they set out for a hunt. Alaskans are so friendly! On the second night we stayed by a smaller lake with mountain views again. Jason and I was able to packraft on the lake which was nice.  Late that night I looked out onto the lake and saw a tree branch floating across the lake. This may seem normal but the current was flowing north to south and the tree was floating east to west. WEIRD! So I got my video camera out and spotted that it was actually a beaver moving a tree to it's house. HA HA! I spent the rest of the night and the next morning watching it cut down trees and move trees/branches, etc across the lake. Too funny!

Sunday, Sept 9th - We finished the rest of the Denali Highway and then headed toward Chena Hot Springs, which is an hour northeast of Fairbanks. Chena was a very cool place. Not only does it have a hot spring but it also has a ice museum and a hydroponic greenhouse. We toured all three. HA HA! The following day we headed into Fairbanks to meet up with some friends at the Army base. They are very close friends to my little sister so I had to meet them. Very sweet sweet couple and I'm so happy that my sister has such awesome friends.

 Monday, Sept 10th - We rented a car and drove from Fairbanks to the Arctic Circle on the Dalton Highway, so it was cool to drive the same route that the Ice Road Truckers use. When you drive down the highway you really appreciate the truckers who risk their lives in the winter and drive when they are covered in a sheet of ice. Very hilly and it's amazing those trucks even make it up some of those hills. It was so cool to see the landscape change from heavily wooded to barren and rocky. We stopped at the Yukon River camp for lunch after our visit to the Arctic Circle. Very cool camp.

Tuesday, Sept 11th - Headed back to Chena for a second try at catching a glimpse of the Aurora Borealis. That night the Aurora forecast was moderate so it was supposed to be awesome. We stayed up until 3am with no aurora sighting as the clouds moved in. Stupid clouds.

Wednesday, Sept 12th - Went to the North Pole, or rather, North Pole, Alaska. I laugh every time I mention visiting North Pole. We even visited Santa Clause's house. The town has to get annoyed with the Christmas decorations being up year round. I feel so sorry for them. There was even Christmas decor up in the Wendy's we stopped at.

 Thursday, Sept 13th - We headed toward Denali National Park. Passenger vehicles are only allowed into the park for the first 15 miles so we figured we would give it a go. Very beautiful landscape and I hope to visit again and actually do some hiking/packrafting or whatever!

Friday, Sept 13th - Finally we began our journey back toward Anchorage. It was a sad, sad day when we had to turn in our RV.

Saturday, Sept 14th - Reluctantly got out of bet at 4:15am and took the bittersweet ride to the airport for the return flight. Normally we are ready to get back home after a vacation, but this time was different. We were actually homesick for the people and places we met and and experienced there. Jason and I would absolutely love to live in Alaska someday; we loved it that much. Until then, we've already begun talking about a return visit June or July of next year. So excited!

Easter Adventure 2011

Every Easter Jason and I try to get out and enjoy the backcountry. This year we decided to venture to the Adirondacks. We have been out west a few times and seen beautiful mountains, but the ADK's hold a special place in our hearts. It is actually the place we started dating but that's another story. Friday morning we woke up at 4:45 and was out the door by 5am. Of course we had to make a few stops before we actually hit the road. We did a donut run at Dalo's and the ran to Sheetz to fill up on gas and get Jason some coffee. We finally set out on our 6 hour drive. Once in the High Peaks of the Adirondack Park we had to stop by our favorite store in Keene Valley, The Mountaineer http://mountaineer.com/. I seemed to have lost 1 glove so I had to pickup a pair. We also stopped for lunch at a place we had never visited before, ADK Cafe and Deli. We walked in and the lady said "Happy Earth Day". Didn't know it was earth day. HA HA! Jay got a grilled cheese and I got a BLT. YUM! We also sat and listened to these 2 guys talk about genomes???? We finished our drive to the ADK LOJ where we rented snowshoes. They are required this time of year, even though we never used them. I kept my microspikes on and didn't have any issues. At about 3pm we finally hit the trail.

It was a 3 mile hike to our lean to. Since it was late in the day we planned to spend some time at Marcy Dam.

On Saturday we planned on summiting Mt Colden http://www.summitpost.org/mount-colden/150556. The ranger recommended avoiding Avalanche Pass and summitting up the back of the mountain. So, that was our plan. We set up camp in the lean to, cooked dinner,

carved our initials

and then headed to bed around 7pm. Since I do not know the exact time I would guess the wind started around 9pm. It was so strong and sounded like a jet engine. At times I also thought I heard a avalanche on one of the nearby slides but I don't know. All I know is it was very loud. I do not sleep well when I camp in general. I have really good hearing and every crack and snap in the woods I think it's a bear coming to eat me. HA! I normally take IB Profin PM so I can try to get a few hours of sleep but I forgot it in the car. So I was up all night, literally. I had to listen not only to the wind and the cracks and snaps in the forest but I also had to listen to Jason and Kenzie snoring. NO FAIR! Also, since I am a nervous camper I have to go the bathroom like every hour. My guess is fear driven? It's stupid I know. Again, if I would have had my drugs I would have been fine. So, I stayed up listening to everything and fearing a tree was going to fall or a bear was going to attack us. Around 2:30am I felt some moisture coming into the tent. We had the rain fly off and our bags are down so I woke Jason up and asked that he help me put the rain fly on. When I stepped out of the tent I was shocked to see snow. It wasn't a lot of snow, just a dusting, but Jason and I wasn't expecting it. The forecast had only called for rain. Around 6am the wind was still not letting up. I told Jason that we should attempt to hike back to the car. The trail was covered in snow and the wind was snapping branches everywhere but we decided to pack up and give it a try. We knew if all else failed we would come back to the lean to and just stay another night. We had a 3 mile hike back in the wind, snow and sleet (yes it started sleeting too).

The trail was very easy to navigate and luckily we have good gear to keep us warm. It took us 1.5 hours to hike back. That included several stops to take photos and video so we made it back pretty quickly. Once we returned our snowshoes, threw Kenzies poop out (HA HA, we made her carry it!) & changed clothes we started our long journey home.

I have been telling Jason for a long time that I wanted to try winter backpacking. Even though I was fearful the entire time due to the wind it was probably one of the best backpacking trips I have ever been on. Now that we are back home I miss it already. I can't wait to go back.

Marcy Dam Before the storm

Marcy Dam during the storm. Photo taken in same direction as above. The big mountain disappeared.

Trail Name this trip: Frodo (Tonya), Sam (Jason)

Fact you probably didn't know about the DAKS: The park is the largest publicly protected area in the contiguous US, greater in size than Yellowstone, Everglades, Glacier & Grand Canyon National Park combined.

It sure has been a long time. November of last year???? Really???? Anyway, this is my attempt to get into blogging again. I shall begin with a blog about our most recent NFCT (Northern Forest Canoe Trail) trip. I kept a journal through the trip so I wouldn't forget anything. So, here goes.....

Tuesday Sept 14th

Jason woke me up this morning because Ed was snoring. Of course he thought it was me. (Note to everyone...I do not snore). So I didn't sleep well at all. The B & B was awesome. Sandy was so nice and he makes a mean breakfast. We didn't get on the water until 11:00am. By that time the water was rough (little did we know what was to come). It was coming up over my boat. I couldn't take that much video because of the waves. I didn't want to risk ruining my camera. The carry was easy and we stopped at a store for lunch. Jay and I ordered steam bombs. It was basically a philly cheesesteak Maine style. It sure was yummy. Mooselookmeguntic was huge. We had problems with the waves again. They were so big that they splash over my boat and again I could not video that much. Luckily we arrived at camp around 6:30 and set up. The island we stayed on had a outhouse, luckily, but it stunk. I almost threw up a few times. HA HA! On the other side of the island someone had built a shrine. I promise it was the scariest thing I have ever seen. It looks like a gremlin when you walk up to it. So, during the middle of the night my kayaking light turned on. For the longest time I just thought someone was shining their headlamp so I tried to ignore it. About an hour later the light was still on. I peaked outside my tent and about freaked out. How in the world did my light turn on? You have to twist it to activate it. Anyway, so I had stupid thoughts....did the gremlin come over and turn it on? Was someone else on the island that we didn't know about? Stupid thoughts I know, especially the gremlin one. HA HA!
Rangeley Lakes B & B

Rangeley Lake (above & below)

Scary Shrine

Loon

Wednesday Sept 15th

Today before we began paddling I prayed that we would see a bull moose. It's amazing how God answers the smallest of prayers. Jay and I were paddling ahead of everyone, just cruising along. I spotted something moving about a mile away. I zoomed in using my camera and noticed it was a bull. So Jay and I took off. We wanted some photos and video before everyone caught up and scared it away. Before we could get any closer Loud Mouth yelled at it and scared him off. No sooner did the moose run off into the woods the waves and wind began to pick up. SCARY! I'm not joking when I say that we fought 3 - 4ft waves. I have never seen anything like it. I started screaming obscenities at it. It was fun but HARD WORK! After Mooselook we had a very small portage to the Richardson Lakes. Again the wind was really strong but luckily it was moving in our favor. Jay and Ed both believe the Richardson Lake waves were bigger than Mooselook but we didn't notice them that much because they were pushing us instead of us having to paddle into them. We paddled both lakes. Our original plan was to stop at the end of Lower Richardson and stay the night. We had plenty of daylight left so we decided to throw in the carry to Umbagogg. I am so glad we pushed forward because the carry to Umbagogg was a rough one. At the end of the portage you are suppose to carry down to the Rapid River but the trail was unwheelable and a ankle twister. Jay and Ed decided to continue down the main trail to try to find another place to put in and camp. They found another non-wheelable trail but it was a lot easier on the ankles. We could not locate the campsites that were listed on the map so we decided to camp in the road. We set up our kayaks in front of our tents just in case a car came down the road. It would hit the kayaks before us. That night I went to bed freezing and sick. I woke up in the middle of the night with a temperature. I was shaking uncontrollably yet I was warm in my sleeping bag.Mooselookmeguntic Lake (above & below)

Waves on Richardson Lake

Thursday Sept 16th

Due to my fever I woke up early today not feeling very well. Everyone woke up at 6am and we started moving around 7am. I thought to myself, I am tired of carrys in the woods. This carry was about 1 mile. The guys carried my boat down while I video taped. It's nice being a female sometimes. :-) We carried through a mud bog. I accidentally stepped in the wrong place and ended up knee deep in the mud. I have no idea what was in it but it sure did stink. We paddled through a beautiful area of Umbagogg. Ed caught a small mouth. His only catch for the week. The paddle across Umbagogg was uneventful. It was a little windy but not bad at all. Once we entered the Androscoggin River we saw a few bald eagles. I have seen so many of them but it never gets old. They are so beautiful. We finished Section 8 around noon. HURRAY! We portaged 1 mile into Errol to the general store to stop for lunch. Steak bombs again. UMMM!!!!! Then we all worked up the guts to try the class 3 rapids under the Errol bridge. Of course when I got home I noticed they were probably only class 2 even though the map said class 3. Oh well. The rapids were scary but easy, surprisingly. The Androscoggin is a beautiful river. The continuous rapids, scary. I got hung up on a rock and was for sure I was going to flip over. I panicked. After a few seconds I decided to give it a go. I put my knees under my thigh braces and hopped off. I was happy when it worked. We had about 8 sections of rapids to paddle through. I was ready for them to be over. I noticed that the guys had stopped at a campsite. When I pulled up I noticed that Jason was not with them. He had paddled ahead of everyone and didn't pay attention. I was so scared. He had a tent and some food but I was still worried. So I went walking on the road. After a little bit I decided to turn around. I went back to the campsite and really thought I would have to spend the night without him. I decided to walk the road one more time. I had a set point where I was going to turn around. Once I arrived at that spot I decided to walk a little further. I was so glad I did because there was Jason. YAY! He was at the campsite we were suppose to be. So we walked back, loaded up our boats, and paddled the 1/2 mile to the site he was at. YAY! I don't have to sleep with Ed.
Umbagogg Lake (my favorite)

The group after completing Section 8 of the NFCT

Parking outside the Errol General Store. The comments we rec'd. Funny

Riding the rapids on the Androscoggin

Friday Sept 17th

Woke up early and finished paddling the Angroscoggin to the Pontook Reservoir. We decided to skip the 2 miles of continuous class 1 - 3 rapids and just hike on the road. This would add to our additional portage we had to do to West Milan. It ended up being 5.8 miles. We had about 3 - 4 hills to hike up. Pulling a 100lb boat up hills sure is a challenge. Luckly most of the portage was either on flat ground or downhill. We arrived at West Milan around 5. We planned to paddle about 1 mile of the Ammonoosuc River but the outfitter said that the river was really low with a lot of dragging. We all decided to end the trip 22 miles short. We found a guy headed toward Groveton and asked if he would drive Ed to pickup the vehicle. In the meantime we ordered pizza for dinner. That night we drove until 9 and stopped in Mass at a Hampton Inn. Oh a hot shower was fantastic.
Portaging

Our big meal for the trip home. Best pizza I have had in a LONG time.

I cannot believe May was my last post. I really need to get back into blogging. It was a great way to keep a journal. So, here goes. I'm going to catch everyone up.

June, July, & August

I'm sure we paddled almost every weekend. We didn't do anything else.

September & October

We went to Maine for vacation. We had planned on floating Section 8 of the NFCT however the weather prevented this. The fall colors were spectacular. Words and photos really couldn't catch the true color of the trees.

We also did something I had not planned on doing for a while. We purchased a new vehicle. We got a 2010 Subaru Forrester. We LOVE it. The sunroof is huge and it has heated seats. Also a CD player. Yippee. Jason's Jeep was on it's last leg and we needed to try to get as much out of it as possible.

When we returned from Maine the following weekend we had DOCNA Nationals. Chase and Tay both finished 1st in Standard on the East Coast. They did not place in Jumpers and the NAC. Maybe next year.

November

Jason and I have decided to get a couple of guns. One for him and one for me. Mainly because I don't like to share when it comes to having to take turns. I believe we have both decided to purchase a 22 rifle. Since we are planning on doing targets it's the ammo is cheaper. We are planning on purchasing them by the end of the year. That will be exciting. We will be able to walk down to the rifle range as much as we want for shooting.

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've blogged. I'm a very bad blogger. A lot has been going on lately so here goes (In no particular order)

1. We went to a friends house down near Harrisburg for our 10yr family photo. We spent about an hour as the sun was setting. It was so nice to see her again. It's been a little over a year or so. She took some really great photos, which made it very hard to choose. I'm hoping to purchase the file from her so I can use the picture and post it places.

2. We went to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia over our 10yr anniversary. We drove down on a Friday and came home on Saturday. It started pouring so I was glad we left the park before the rain hit. Overall we saw hundreds of deer (and I"m not kidding), 2 turkeys, a bobcat dragging a baby deer across the road, and 3 bear families. The scenery was amazing. This is our park #7, I think, out of 56.

3. We sold our camper. We have been talking about it for over a year now. Some friends of ours were in the market for one and asked if we wanted to sell it. After one night of discussion and prayer we decided it was the best thing to do. To replace our camper we purchased a 13' x 10' tent. We have never had a tent this large before so it was different for us. IT'S HUGE! We can fit 2 cots, 2 chairs, a table & 4 dog crates inside. It's literally the size of our bedroom.

4. Jason and I are on a mission to become debt free. This is everything, except our house. We paid off the credit card & camper. Jason's Jeep will be paid off next month, which leaves us with my Jeep and the house. Next I'm going to put all our money toward paying off my Jeep. Our house should be the only debt we have left by the end of the year. YIPPEE!

5. For a few years we have been researching canoe's & kayaks. When our canoe got a hole in it down in MS we tried our hardest to patch the darn thing. Nothing worked. So, after extensive research I am happy to announce that we have picked our boat. The funny thing is, we both want the same one (weird, that never happens). We're getting a sit-on-top kayak. We chose the sit-on-tops because of several reasons: cannot swamp if flipped, easy entry & exit, a dog can go with us & you can use it on the ocean. We placed the order today and should get them in 3 weeks, I believe. We're very excited about getting back on the water.