Yuma

Feb 10th

It was very warm today, but the wind has picked up. We took the kayak down to the lake again. By the evening, the wind was blowing very hard. We had a family movie night in the trailer with the Canadians. We watched Encanto, and Sequoia had a sleep over with Mia.

Feb 11th

I was awakened several times in the night, by the braying of a donkey. At 5:30am the braying was very nearby. When I looked out the window, Margie was waving for us to come out. There was a wild donkey right down the road from us. We all got up to see it. After breakfast, we parted ways with Margie, Shannon and Sequoia for a few days. We are staying at the RV park where my parents live, in Yuma, AZ. for three nights. Las Quintas RV Resort, has a pool, miniature golf, pickleball courts and more. We had dinner at my parent’s house, and my Uncle Mike and Aunt Jenny joined us too. One of the big activities at this park is darts. There are tournaments every week, and a lot of the residents have their own dart boards to practice. My parents have an electronic board, and Mia Grandpa and I played. We each won a game.

Feb 12th

Last night, we made plans with my parents, to go into Mexico today. They picked us up at 9am, and we drove to the border crossing at Los Algodones. Instead of driving through, we parked and walked across the border. We didn’t have to show any ID to cross. They just let us walk on into Mexico. Just like other places we’ve been to in Mexico, we were immediately surrounded by people trying to get us to buy things. However, the vast majority of the sales pitches were for dental offices, optometrists, and pharmacists. We walked through the local markets, and then my parents led us to an outdoor restaurant that they liked. We had to wear masks to enter, and they took our temperatures at the door. We ate lunch and drank huge margaritas while vendors tried to sell us their wares. We had given Mia a crash course on haggling before we entered Mexico. She found a leather backpack that she wanted, and the negotiations were on. Mia played it well, telling him it was too expensive, handing the item back, and trying to walk away. The price started at $75 and she ended up paying $20. Getting back into the US was not as easy as getting out. We had to wait in a line that stretched down the block. Our wait was about 30 minutes, and we did have to show our passports to get back. We were back at our trailer by 1pm, and we invited Margie, Shannon and Sequoia to the RV park to use the pool.

Feb 13th

The three of us played two rounds of miniature golf this morning while Grandma and Grandpa kept score. Kathy and I each won one. We went to my parent’s house to watch the Superbowl and have dinner. The game was better than the commercials this year.

Feb 14th

Happy Birthday Kathleen! We said goodbye to my uncle, aunt and parents, and drove back out the BLM land at Senator Wash Reservoir. When we arrived at the reservoir, we found that Margie and Shannon had saved us a spot right on the lake. We are nestled right in some trees along the shore. We couldn’t ask for a better spot. It was over 80 degrees and we spent the afternoon swimming and kayaking. I made turkey fettucine for Kathy’s birthday dinner, and our Canadian friends made a blueberry cheesecake for dessert. We had a campfire after dinner and we all got to try roasting chocolate stuffed marshmallows. Not bad.

Feb 15th

We met Paul, a friend of Margie and Shannons, and he took us on a hike through some slot canyons. It was a beautiful hike that took us through some narrow canyons. In one of the canyons people had made rock gardens. This afternoon the wind got pretty intense, but where we are camped, we are sheltered from it. You could see the dust clouds moving across the top of the canyon walls.