Hoorah to the Mighty Buccs!

Today I just had that feeling of being a super proud Air Force Wife!  Mason has been preparing for this flight for a week or two, and was lucky enough to be picked to drop weapons for this challenge.  All of the different groups (at least from Barksdale) were in videos put together by the base.  Yes, they're slightly cheesy, but I'm so proud of Mason's hard work!

Go Buccs!  

The Adventures of Fearless and Wimpy

Looking up the river from the little bridge

 (I’ve been wanting to blog about this adventure for over a year now-grab a beer, it’s a long one). 

My family used to joke that Mason and I went on adventures and should be called Fearless and Wimpy (any guesses on who was who).  Last Spring (Easter weekend, 2011) Mason and I decided that we wanted to take a mini-vacation to enjoy some “us” time before he deployed and before Baby Kehs arrived.  The year before we had taken our big couple trip to Japan, and made the voyage home to Chicago for Winter Break.  We did not have much time to take a long vacation because of our work schedules but decided that we could probably get away in the local area for a weekend without it making too much of an impact on work schedules and grad school homework.  We debated and debated back and forth about a vacation West to Fort Worth where we could enjoy food that we can’t get in Shreveport, and enjoy a nice hotel, or go North somewhere in Arkansas to enjoy nature.  We tried going over the map again and again to see if we could feasible combine big city with nature without driving for a whole day and decided that we would go on the nature vacation since that would be less feasible with an infant. 

My resting sport for the day

We started looking into different state parks in Arkansas.  Most of the ones in Louisiana and Texas are either bayous or lacking trees.  Arkansas has some pretty nice state parks according to their state park website.  We had been talking about white-water rafting ever since we went a few years ago in Tennessee with Mason’s Dad and cousin and but the timing of water levels and our schedules never seemed to work out.  Mason and I started looking into cabins near water, or campsites near rivers.  Arkansas is big on RV camping, and it was sort of difficult to find campsites for tent camping.  Mason started checking on river water levels for some of the areas we were looking into and fortunately at the end of April when we took this trip there had been a lot of rain, and so the Cossatot River was our destination.  The next tricky part was the fact that the Cossatot River was listed as one of the best and dangerous white-water rafting rivers but they didn’t rent kayaks or have any outfitters along the river.  They are famous for the “skull-crusher” falls… 

Mason adding my location in the GPS

We made a quick decision that we were going to head up to the river, kayak the next day, and drive back at the end of the day because my parents were coming to visit for a few days the day after that.  We went to Outdoor Recreation on base and rented two kayaks, paddles, and lifejackets, loaded the car with snacks and water gear and hit the road north.  We didn’t have much of a plan, but figured we would find a hotel in the area near the river and work out the logistics when we got to the river.  The biggest concern was how we would get back to the car or kayaks once we floated down the river.  After driving about 3 hours north we found a ghetto hotel and decided to crash for the night. 

Bye Mason!

After studying the map, river levels, and white-water levels we decided that we were going to put the kayaks in the river pretty far North so that we could float on the class I and II rapids and then assess the river on the class III falls and determine if that was a good choice since I was pregnant and we didn’t want to shock the baby at all.  We also decided that Mason would drop me off with the kayaks where we wanted to put them in the river, and he would drive the car back to where we wanted to end-up, after the class III rapids.  On the way from the hotel to where we were going to put the kayaks in we crossed the river and stopped to check out the levels.  The water level was high and the river was fast flowing, so we were pretty excited to get on our way.

Looking down the river from the little bridge

We took a series of winding roads, and using our GPS and Mason’s map reading skills we headed through some back roads and through what seemed to be a farmer’s fields, we finally found the river spot where we wanted to put in.  The area was pretty desolate and woodsy, and there was no cell phone service.  The river had a steady flow and was pretty high.  There was a low bridge crossing the river where we unloaded and there was a small clearing where I’d stay put.  Mason unloaded pregnant me, the two kayaks, paddles, life jackets, a gallon of water, our PB&J sandwiches, and I think I book I grabbed that I wasn’t that thrilled about- but was in a hurry to grab.  I was slightly disappointed there was little cell service so I couldn’t play games on my phone… Mason would have to drive about 45minutes-1 hour back to the area where we were planning to finish our water trip and then he was going to hike back along the river to meet me (an estimated 4-5 mile hike).  His journey was supposed to be about 4-5 hours. 

What a fun adventure ahead!

So at 9:30am, Mason drove away and left me, somewhat nervous by the side of a river, at a location I was pretty unfamiliar with.  Friends of ours from Arkansas had joked with me before we left that we should watch out for the snakes, because of all the recent rainfall.  This made me quite on edge for the first part of my time by the river, because I was convinced that every little noise was a snake creeping near me (this fear had been increased by the fact Mason and I had started coming across snakes on our hikes on the East Side of the base).  I think I finally said out loud, “Ellen, you can’t be afraid of every little noise, just relax.”  So, I spent some time staring at the water enjoying the peace, quiet, reflection.  I thought about school and my masters classes, and the baby.  I read a few pages here and there, walked around a little on the bridge, and then went back to sitting on my lifejacket. 

A few families on ATV’s and 4-wheelers passed by, which frightened me a few times because they drove up rather quickly and of course gave me this weird look since I was just sitting by myself near the river—I thought it might have even been their private property.  Between 4-wheeler noise in the distance and the fear of snakes, and just boredom, I was getting restless after not too long.  The morning had been very grey but around 11am, the sun had come out, and I had to use my hat and towel to shade myself so I wouldn’t just roast all day; fortunately it wasn’t too hot out yet.  I finally calmed myself and eased back into reading my book, and enjoying the quiet of nature.  The noises didn’t get to me as much, but something told me to turn around—

I turned around and there was a HERD OF COWS standing right.next.to.me.  I panicked!  So here I am, screaming expletives, practically peeing on myself, and bolting across the little bridge after practically brushing against a cow.  I got on the other side of the bridge, and thought that the cows wouldn’t cross it.  Sure enough the cows came to drink at the water, and sniffed around our kayaks, and sandwiches.  I thought they were going to eat our food, and some of them went to the bathroom quite close to our spot.  One or two of the cows began heading across the bridge, and I took off along the other river bank.  It was pretty forested, and I could see a barbed wire fence.  It then dawned on me that perhaps I was inside the cows’ area.  The Mooing echoed so loudly down the river, I thought they were stampeding behind me.  I ran for about 10 straight minutes through the trees and finally found a spot to stop, catch my breath, (and pee) along the river.  I decided that I was just going to walk along the river until I met up with Mason, but after a few minutes more of walking, I determined that I was either going to end up in the water, or in a predicament because the river bank was hard to walk along.  I decided I’d wait it out until the cows (hopefully left).  After about 45 minutes, I slowly headed back to the little bridge and I saw that the cows were gone.  The only problem was that I didn’t know if they had crossed the river, or turned around.    

Note the blue life jacket- that's where I was sitting when the cows approached. 

 In my mind, I thought that surely cows wouldn’t have crossed the water, so they must have turned around.  I went back to the area with our stuff, and found that they hadn’t eaten our sandwiches, and most of our things were undisturbed.  I decided though, that I needed to be more prepared in case they returned.  I spent the next 20 minutes, tying the kayaks together, loading our gear in them, and pushing them halfway into the water, so if need be I could just jump right in and paddle away.  There was a sandy area just in the middle of the river where I thought I could get to and be safe, and Mason would still be able to see me.  As you can imagine this did nothing to help my jumpiness.  I decided that I would sit on the bridge so I could see in all directions and be on cow lookout.  It was about 1:30pm at this point, so I felt like Mason might actually be coming shortly if he had made good timing.

Are you f'in kidding me!!!  Cows!!!

After a while I went back to sitting by the river and grabbed my sandwich to eat, and then I heard it.  The mooing was back.  It was so loud and echoing.  I quickly ran to the bridge to see where the sound was coming from, and lo and behold the herd of cows was about a quarter of a mile up the river crossing the river.  There went my theory of being safe that the cows wouldn’t dare cross the water (I guess I haven’t played Oregon Trail in a long time).  I think I literally stood there with my mouth gaping open in shock that they were crossing the river.  At least I felt like I knew where they were at this point and if they came back to my area, I’d see them coming from my front side. 

Are they gone?

Wait, they can cross water?

Then, 2:00 rolled around, then 3:00.  I knew that 1-2pm was an early to on time estimate for Mason to reach me, so I wasn’t totally panicked when he hadn’t arrived by 3:00, since I thought he might have stopped to eat his sandwich.  I called his name loudly down the river a few times and heard nothing.  I tried to remain calm and read/play games/talk to the baby…then 4:00 rolled around, and then 4:30…by this time I was pretty worried about where Mason might be, since he should have already arrived.  I was nervous that something might have happened to him and I was just sitting there waiting-but of course our phones didn’t have service.  I knew that if he didn’t show up soon, I was going to be in the dark, because sunset was between 7:00-8:00.  I thought about floating down the river with the kayaks, because I would see him and could meet him, but I was a little nervous about the rapids by myself.  I debated what to do and decided I would wait until 5:00 and then head down the river.  I walked up the road a little bit to see if I could see him coming (maybe he had to drive back).  I also was sort of looking for a house, thinking that I didn’t want to go down the river, but I sure as hell wasn’t staying in the dark with a wild herd of cows! 

Forging the river.

I prayed about what to do, and asked for signs about what to do.  5:00 came and I just couldn’t do anything.  I kept pacing, and called up and down the river again.  Maaaaaaasssooooooonnnnn.  Nothing.  I think I had also cried by this point.  My foot was literally in a kayak at about 5:20 when I gave one last look around me. 

Baby cows swimming across the river.

Mason!  There he was, coming up the road, across the bridge, in his orange shirt.  I think I cried even more.  We “ran” to each other as much as two exhausted people could at this point and we just held each other before Mason completely collapsed on the ground and just laid there so tired.  He could barely talk. He chugged some of my water, and just said, “We better get going, it will be dark soon.  I’m so glad you were here.”  So we untied the kayaks and headed off…

Tied up and ready to escape.

The river was perfect!  The class I and II rapids were lots of fun, and we moved at a pretty decent pace down the river.  Mason paddles first and navigated the rocks and I followed his lead.  He’d always look back for me to make sure I make it through the rapids okay.  We were paddling along and there were some nice Level 2 rapids.  Mason went through and then I went through.  Before I knew it-plunk!  I was in the water and my kayak was g-o-n-e!  Fortunately I held onto my paddle and Mason looked back to see what had happened.  He was able to “stop” and grab my kayak and pull over to the side of the river.  (The rivers’ edge changed a lot from being sandy, too forested, to steep cliffs)  There was a small cove he pulled over into.  I however couldn’t see him because I was being pulled in the rapids down the river.  I consider myself a really good swimmer, and I’m glad I had a life jacket on.  The water was too deep and the ground was too slippery to stop on, so you couldn’t just stand up.  I tried getting to the side across the current, but it was too strong.  I banged into a few rocks and swallowed a bit of water, and finally got slammed into a rock and was able to grab some footing, and then pretty much crawled in the weeds along the bank until I got to Mason. 

We sat there for a few minutes regaining our breath and just taking a moment.  At this point I was pretty panicked (in my mind) about the baby.  I mean, I had body slammed pretty hard into several rocks- and it was too early in the pregnancy to feel the baby kicking.  The fact that my next appointment was two weeks away stressed me.  But after a swig of water, and some hugs from Mason, we decided we needed to get going because it was going to get dark soon, and we needed to reach the car before then.  (I also determined that my towel and water jug had been lost from the kayak).  I was also a little nervous that these were the Class II rapids, and we were thinking about rafting the class III rapids and by then it was going to be pretty dark, but we’d need to get to the car. 

My hangout until I knew I was safe from the cows

We kept going, and the river was really pretty at this time of evening.  Up ahead we could see a really tall overpass and Mason told me that was where he had parked.  Just before the bridge we had to stop and pull over on the right hand side and that’s where we would get out.  He told me we DID NOT want to go past the bridge because that’s where the class III rapids started so we needed to get out of the river. We were going through the last rapid before we were about to make the quick exit from the river when all of a sudden-plunk!  I was in the water again, I looked up to see if Mason was ahead watching and I saw he had landed in the water as well.  We were both able to manage getting our kayaks to the left-bank with our paddles.  The water wasn’t as deep there, and we were able to get our footing-otherwise it could have been a bad situation.  There was a large rocky area, and we just both fell over and laid there for a minute staring up at the sky.  I looked in my kayak and realized that it was empty.  My book and the rest of the food had gone down the river.  I then gave Mason a panicked look, and said, “you have the car key in your pocket right?”  (His suit has a special place for where you can attach a key).  I was nervous that the black backpack with our GPS, phones, and camera was at the bottom of the river as well.  Fortunately the backpack was still in Mason’s kayak (he only lost his towel and water) and the key was safe- as it was in the backpack. 

I'm not sure about this...where is Mason?

Mason decided that he would climb up the bridge get the car and drive to where we were.  There was fortunately a loading area, and we figured we would have enough time to load up the cars before the park closed for the evening.  It was getting dark so I tried to move what I could to the loading area.  When Mason came back we carried the kayaks up to the car.  I remember shaking, crying, and being exhausted (physically and mentally) at this point.  Mason tied up the kayaks on the car while I changed in the parking lot and just sat in the car for a minute, regaining composure and trying to shake the chills I had (you know how you can feel after you a day in the sun). 

At this point I think we were both so tempted to just head back to the crummy hotel and sleep, but we had to get back home because my parents were coming the next day. We also had no working phones or GPS at this point (water damage—even though we wrapped them in plastic and in Tupperware).  We made it into the town and stopped at a Pizza Hut and got 2 pizzas for the car drive home.  We were both a mess.  Sunburned, wet, had the chills, and fevers.  Mason had regained some of his voice, and it was then I realized that his legs were all slashed up.  It looked like a bear had attacked his legs.  He reiterated that he had been so glad that I was still waiting for him, and was hoping that if I had left, that I had at least left him a kayak (note to self…leave kayak…I totally was going to take them both).  I was a little nervous to ask what had taken him so long while I was waiting for him.  But we grabbed our pizzas and headed back home (3-4 hours).  I drove and after a few slices, Mason finally divulged his traumatic story (which I can’t tell as well, so I’ll shorten it)…            

When Mason left me at 9:30am, he was driving back towards where he was going to park the car.  He inconveniently got stuck behind a slooooooow driver who didn’t seem to mind taking his time through the wilderness.  Mason didn’t want to make him mad, which was wise, because you never know who’s a sheriff around the country. Mason followed him along two main roads, and then the road was approaching where Mason would turn off.  Unfortunately the truck turned down that road, but pulled over to let Mason pass.  Mason waved thanks and quickly took off to go to the parking spot.  Mason was driving along when he came to one of those park gates that blocks the road.  He knew at that moment that the truck he was following had pulled over and locked him in.  He quickly drove back to the road and sure enough had been locked in on the road he had been driving down. 

If you’ve ever seen those gates they are always next to trees or ditches, and they can’t just be driven around.  Using the GPS Mason was able to see there were some other roads- every road he tried was gated!  This went on for quite some time, and finally Mason headed back to one of the gates where he felt like he had the best chance at getting around.  He had to get through a huge muddy ditch and go around the gate, but he got stuck.  He just kept getting the tires in deeper and deeper.  We keep a plastic mini snow shovel in the car and he used that to attempt to get out of the ditch, but it didn’t work.  Again, he was in a place with no cell service- with no way to call for help, or to tell me he was delayed. 

We made it to the end!

He was able to get to the side of the road, where after a while he flagged down a couple who let him borrow a real shovel and he asked that they go down to the river to get a park ranger.  They came back after a while, and needed their shovel back, and they couldn’t really find anyone to help.  Mason went back to the car and had some water, and sat for a few minutes, when he saw what he believed was the park ranger drive by.  He honked and ran up to the road, but the car was gone.  He (being ever so smart) left his orange hat on a tree branch near the road and went back to rest in the car (his hands were blistered, and it was hot).  After waiting and waiting the park ranger drove past again and saw his hat.  They were able to hook up a tow cable to the car and pull Mason out.  At this point it was 2:30-3:00 (the time when Mason was supposed to be meeting me).  He had told himself that if he got out of the rut he’d call it quits and head back to pick me up-but after getting out of the ditch, he didn’t want to drive all the way home and not even get any river action. 

He headed back to the bridge where we had scoped out the river in the morning and decided he would hike from there to where I was.  It wouldn’t be as long of a hike, and we’d still get some water time-but we’d probably be skipping the Class III’s. 

Whew!

He began walking the river bank when it turned rocky.  He soon discovered that the river bank would almost cut off and he’d have to climb a cliff and then continue back down the other side to keep walking.  At one point the river split and he had to cross the river with his backpack over his head.  He traveled along the rocks, over the cliffs, and through thistles and thorny branches to finally show up at 5:20pm where I was waiting for him.  

It was a memorable experience-no doubt!  We have a great story to tell about Theo’s first white water adventure.      

P.S.  My students got a HUGE laugh at my fear of cows- especially when I showed them the video and said, "apparently, cows can swim." 

P.P.S  Mason didn't photograph any of his "adventure" because he said he never wanted to remember how horrible it was. 

Are you Bored Yet?

Some days I wish I had a personal photographer follow me around so they could capture me in moments with Theo.  I find myself always capturing moments that he is in, and therefore reliving them memory in my head of those times, but sometimes when we're reading on the couch or singing in the car, I think that it would be nice to have someone capture those moments for me.

Lately, and really all summer long Theo and I have just been having a BLAST!  Because Theo is such a great sleeper, that allows me to sleep decently (at least sleep in after staying awake half of the night) so he have a fairly consistent "routine."  By that I mean we are rarely out of bed by 9am, and usually we aren't out of the house before 9:30 or 10am.  Some days we'll go on a morning outing, usually to a play date or trip to the commissary or base library, and then home for lunch and a nap.  Theo typically naps either 1-3 or 2-4, respectively.  Sometimes he takes a longer nap other days shorter.

While I should spend this time scrubbing different areas of my house, I usually eat my own lunch without little hands in it, watch a tv show while eating lunch, and then sometimes I clean or do dishes, or laundry.  I usually spend time catching up on gmail/facebook/pinterest/blogs etc...and on those special occasions I pick up a book and R-E-A-D, in peace and quiet!  I have tried to avoid taking naps because that usually leads to my staying up waaaaay to late in the evening, but sometimes, on days like today, I took  45 minute nap-it was delightful! 

After his nap we have snack and then spend time playing inside, or outside if the temperature isn't "sizzling" (weatherman's word, not mine), we go to the pool a few times a week, or have a play date.  We usually start to make dinner around 6ish, and sometimes Theo will take a catnap between 6-7pm.  At night we usually will take a family walk- again if it's not still sizzling or play on a picnic blanket in the backyard.  Sometimes we catch up on Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy and Theo plays or watches too.  Generally he goes to bed between 9-10pm.

It's just so fun!  There's no pressure to go anywhere or do anything we don't choose to do.  We have a blast hanging out with each other or seeing friends.  Once the cooler weather comes to town I'm sure out outdoor adventuring will begin, especially since I think Theo is only about a month or two away from walking.  I'm on the board for the Barksdale Officers' Spouses' Club and this year I am doing the newsletter and am a co-social coordinator, which means planning all of the monthly events.  That takes up a good bit of time, and I'm also trying to expand my activities and participate in more of the little spouse clubs.  Book Club will begin again soon, and I went to my first Bunco last night.  If Mason can take a few 2 hour lunches once or twice a month, I'm hoping to attend Lunch Bunch and our Gourmet Club.  Of course, then I'll have to spend more time at the gym!

I thought that this time of year would be difficult, because school is starting again.  I know for family and friends North of the Mason-Dixon line you are shocked by this, but yesterday and today were teacher work days for the parish I was working in and the students will go back to school on Monday.  I think that I would be devastated if I had to leave Theo all over again to go back to work.  On some days, I think about not seeing the students, and missing their funny antics, but then I think about how great it is to be with Theo.

 
I've had lunch with several of my former colleagues/friends and some of them ask, "Are you Bored Yet," and I just tell them- my life is never boring!  I love being a stay at home mom and getting to focus on a different chapter of my life.