New Sponsor

We now have a new sponsor who I think will help us to reach new levels of sponsorship. 

Actually they are not only new, but our first sponsors.  We have not had any sponsors prior to them.  

They are a low budget film company, but we think they have great potential and you may want to find them on the stock market and invest.  If you do not see them on the stock market then just send us the money and we will make sure they get it.  (That's a joke, so please do not send any money!)

This blog is to introduce you to them and their content.  Future blogs will also include their latest trailers and highlights.  This content will only be available on our blog.

We hope you enjoy our new sponsor as much as we do.  We are in contract negotiations with other like sponsors, so hopefully will be able to offer much more content.

If you cannot see the above video link then click here to watch it on YouTube.

If you like our new sponsor, please leave a comment.

God bless!

Thanks!
 Don, Misty, and Kids...

States we have visited so far.

Carlsbad Caverns

Well it finally came time to leave Oklahoma and travel to New Mexico to see what it had to offer to our adventures and to enable us to check off another state off the map.

One of the first things we did was visit Roswell, New Mexico to try and see if we could have a close encounter of the third kind and did. 

A close encounter of the third kind in Roswell, New Mexico.

We only got to spend one day there, so did not get to see everything there was to see, but at least we can say we were there.

Once we got to our destination for the month, we started to explore our surroundings and see what New Mexico had to offer.  One of the first places we visited was Carlsbad Caverns.  We have seen many of caves in our lifetime, especially living in West Virginia, but we were very impressed with these caverns.

Don, Tia, Courtney, Avery, Ethan, Chloe, and Ian at Carlsbad Caverns.

Misty, Tia, Courtney, Avery, Ethan, Chloe, and Ian at Carlsbad Caverns.

We decided to go into the caves through the Natural Entrance rather than riding down on the elevators to the Big Room.  Some will ride the elevator down and then walk or climb out through the Natural Entrance, but we would recommend that you do it the opposite way and let the elevator bring you up the 750 feet when you are done touring the caves.

It is over a mile to walk in through the Natural Entrance to the Big Room and then 1.2 miles to walk all the way from the Big Room through the main caverns back to where the elevators are.  Coming down from the Natural Entrance will work on your leg muscles so by the time you get to the Big Room you may not feel like walking around it, but it is well worth it for the views.

Natural Entrance at Carlsbad Caverns.

Looking down into the Natural Entrance at Carlsbad Caverns.

Looking out of the Natural Entrance at Carlsbad Caverns.

The Natural Entrance path in Carlsbad Caverns.

More of the Natural Entrance at Carlsbad Caverns.

They sell drinks, sandwiches, and snacks out of a snack bar located near the elevators in the Big Room, but they are pretty expensive if you ask us.  They also have a restaurant up in the main building if you do not want to drive out of the park for food.

Just one of the many columns in the caverns.

Since the average temperature in the caverns is 56F you will probably want to bring a light jacket to keep warm.  We had ours, but ended taking them off after a while since we did get a little hot after walking for so long.

Chloe and Misty.

Avery, Ethan, Ian, Tia, and Courtney.

The pictures in the blog do not do the caverns justice or show the volume of pictures we took since it was well over two hundred.  I would have taken more, but my phone died from a low battery.

Holes that formed in a stalactite.

Soda straws that are thin hollow stalactites.

More stalactites and stalagmites.

Another column formed when a stalactite and stalagmite met.

Ribbon stalactites that formed in the caverns.

The below picture is of the three largest stalagmites in the caverns.

Three largest stalagmites in the caverns.

After touring the caverns we stuck around for the flying of the bats which was very interesting.  Unfortunately you can not take any pictures or movies since the electronics mess with the bats when they emerge from the caverns, so no pictures.

While sitting in an amphitheater located at the Natural Entrance to the caverns just before sunset, thousands and thousands of bats will start to swirl out and fly out over the country side to eat for the night.  If you sit still enough they will come within feet of you while flying over your heads.  It was well worth the wait to watch.

The amphitheater just outside of the Natural Entrance to Carlsbad Caverns where the bats come out at night.

So if you are ever near Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, it is well worth the trip to visit it.  It was well worth the six hour round trip we drove to visit it.

We will have more from New Mexico in future blogs like our visits to White Sands National Monument and more.

God bless and may He watch over you and yours!

Thanks!
Don, Misty, and Kids...
 

States we have visited so far.

Oklahoma

Finally we are back out on the road to visit new states and places to see.  We made it to Oklahoma and so far have seen quite a lot just around where we are staying, despite all of the rain and flooding.

We are staying at the Lake Elmer Thomas Recreational Area (LETRA) on Fort Sill, Oklahoma.  It is one of the nicest RV parks we have stayed on yet.  It offers a 365 acre lake with water slides, beach swimming area, boat rentals, and an archery range with bow rentals.  There is also a 18 hole mini golf coarse along with a snack bar that opens up on Memorial Day weekend, except this year it will open late due to all of the rain and flooding in the area. 

The winds blow pretty good across the plains where we are, but so far we have not been blown over, so all is good.  There are tornado watches and warnings around our area a good bit too, but luckily we have not had any tornadoes yet and hopefully will not have any while we are here.

Avery, Courtney, Chloe, Ethan, Ian, and Tia at Elmer Thomas Lake at sunset.

I'm going to have to buy my OK fishing license so that I can fish the lake which holds bass, catfish, and crappie.  I would have already bought them and fished, but the weather has just been too bad.

We have caught some wildlife while here and hope to catch some fish before we leave.

A turtle we helped across the parking lot to the lake.  It only tried to bite me a couple of times.

The kids can not wait for the park to officially open so that they can swim at the beach and play on the water slide.  They did get to play in the sand some though.

Courtney, Avery, and Ian playing in the sand.

The beach at LETRA.

Avery, Ian, and Courtney still playing in the sand.

Ethan's sand castle.  Looks like all he has done is the moat.

Avery starting on a sand castle or just digging in the sand.

Tia's idea of a castle is sticking a stick in a pile of sand.

Courtney and Ian building a wall for their sand castle.

Some of the things to see while in Lawton, OK are the Wichita Mountain Wilderness area or Wildlife Refuge which butts up against Fort Sill.  

Across from Lake Elmer Thomas is Mt. Scott which is 2264 feet in elevation and gives you a 360 degree view of the area around it.  It is well worth the drive to its summit to feel the wind in your face and to take in the view it offers.

Looking at Mt. Scott from the RV park.

Tia, Chloe, Avery, Ethan, Courtney, and Ian on top of Mt. Scott with Lake Elmer Thomas in the background.

Lake Elmer Thomas viewed from Mt. Scott.

Playing around with the Pano option on my iPhone.  The kids could not move into position quick enough.

Since we have been in Oklahoma, it has rained more than not with lots of flooding.  I guess a lot of states are suffering from the rains and floods.  Our prayers go out to everyone who has been affected by it.  

The first night we arrived here the sunset was just beautiful.  I am a sucker for a good sunset.

Sunset on Lake Elmer Thomas.

Sunset on Lake Elmer Thomas starting to show its better colors.

About every evening the storm clouds start to roll in and the wind starts to blow.  The kids go to bed scared that we are going to get hit by a tornado, which is somewhat a possibility, but we trust in the Lord to keep us save and tell the kids to say their prayers to keep us safe.

Another storm rolling in.

The lake is not immune from flooding either.  Normally the black floating dock is a good six inches below the bank or sidewalk, but as you can see it is a good two feet above it with water covering the sidewalk.

Some of the flooding here at the lake.

The water is usually a good foot or more below the sidewalk here, but today it is over it.  You can also see how far the water came up by the debris line where the milk jug came to rest.

The lake's water level rising over the sidewalk with its debris line showing how much it has went down.

The best thing about being in Oklahoma is that fact that we can mark off another state visited, which has slowed down some in the past year.  We hope to get back on schedule of only staying in a state for thirty days rather than months, but you just never know.

I'm sure once we get further out west we may stay in some areas longer like when we visit the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone.  That is the beauty of our lifestyle that we can stay in an area for as long as we want.

Once again we are blessed that we can live this way and that God watches over and guides us in our travels.  May He watch over you too and keep you safe from harm.

We would love it if you left a comment, followed our blog, and/or became friends with us on Facebook.  The links to do all of that are at the upper right of this blog.

Also if you are interested in Young Living Essential Oils or want to know how they can improve your life, please do not hesitate to ask.  We would be more than happy to do an Essential Oils 101 class for you and anyone you know on the benefits of the oils in your everyday life.

Thanks!
Don, Misty, and Kids...

States we have visited so far.

San Antonio Missions

While in San Antonio Texas we made sure to visit the missions that were so important in the development of the city itself and southern Texas by allowing the native population to be colonized.

In the early 1700's the missions were the only true defense against attacking Apaches, sickness, and drought.   All the native Indians had to do is agree to become citizens of Spain, support the king, and accept the Catholic beliefs as their religion.

Spain wanted to keep a foothold in the area especially with the French encroachments from Louisiana and missions were a way of doing that.  They were the most successful between 1745 and 1780 until increased Indian attacks, lack of sufficient military support, and disease caused their later decline.

The first mission on the San Antonio River was the Mission San Antonio de Valero or the Alamo as we know it today.  It is not part of the National Park's San Antonio Missions since it is owned by the state of Texas and managed by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas.

Tia, Courtney, Ethan, Misty, Avery, Don, Chloe, and Ian in front of the Alamo.

The next mission on the San Antonio river is the Mission Nuestra Senora de la Purisima Concepcion.  It is considered the oldest unrestored stone church in America.

Avery, Ethan, Ian, Courtney, Tia, and Chloe at Mission Concepcion.

Mission Concepcion.

The sanctuary for Mission Concepcion.

One of the surviving interior wall paintings.

Another wall painting.

Mission Concepcion also had its own rock quarry which provided stones for its buildings and for portions of Mission San Jose.

Stone quarry for Mission Concepcion and portions of Mission San Jose.

The next mission on the river is the best known of the Texas missions, San Jose y San Miguel del Aguayo  or San Jose for short.  

Not only was it the biggest of all the San Antonio Missions, but was also considered to be a "model mission organization".  It was a major social center, had a unique church architecture, and had prospering fields and pastures.  This is why it was nicknamed, "Queen of the Missions."

Mission San Jose, the "Queen of the Missions."

Mission San Jose.

The below Rosa's Window or Rose Window shows off the Spanish artisans' high level of skill when it came to fine details in their building techniques.

Another view of Mission San Jose to include the Rose Window located in the middle.

Ethan, Chloe, Avery, Courtney, Ian, and Tia in front of the Rose Window.

Mission San Jose's sanctuary.

The grist mill, that was built late in the mission period, never did grind corn, but only wheat since the mission Indians had grown so accustomed to foods made from wheat and not corn.

Grist mill at Mission San Jose.

Back side entrance to the grist mill at Mission San Jose.

San Jose also had a much larger wall which included bastions with firing ports to let it be easily defended.  This gave the defenders of the mission a better perspective when firing at any attackers.

The kids looking into a firing port at one of the bastions at Mission San Jose.

Looking out one of the firing ports on a bastion at Mission San Jose.

The next mission south on the river is Mission San Juan Capistrano which was originally named San Jose de los Nazonis when in East Texas, but was renamed when moved to the San Antonio River in 1731.

Ian, Avery, Ethan, Courtney, Chloe, and Tia at Mission San Juan.

Mission San Juan.

The sanctuary at Mission San Juan.

All of the missions, except for the Alamo, still hold Catholic services on Saturday and Sundays.  At Mission San Juan the priest still lives in one of the original buildings on the mission grounds.

Private residence for the priest at Mission San Juan.

Some of the remaining walls still standing at Mission San Juan.

Once of the entry ways into Mission San Juan.

The best attraction, according to the kids, at Mission San Juan was the cat sunning on a window ledge.  You can see Ethan's concern when the cat arched its back to stretch.  He is such a silly boy!

The kids favorite attraction at Mission San Juan.

The last of the San Antonio Missions is also the oldest one which was founded in 1690 in East Texas and then moved on to the San Antonio River in 1731.

It was originally named San Francisco de los Tejas but renamed San Francisco de la Espada.

Courtney, Ethan, Avery, Ian, Chloe, and Tia at Mission Espada.

While we were visiting this mission the kids completed their Junior Park Ranger books and earned their badges which we will use as a good example of something learned of our field trips while homeschooling.

Chloe, Tia, Courtney, Ethan, Avery, and Ian taking the Junior Park Ranger pledge.

And to the victors go the spoils or at least the Junior Park Ranger badge.

After all of that excitement we toured the mission and then walked the Riverwalk from it to Mission San Juan which is a good three miles up river.

Church at Mission Espada.

Church sanctuary at Mission Espada.

Some of the fortifications on the back side of Mission Espada.

After we explored the mission then we set out to walk to the Espada Aqueduct which is two centuries old and still works to provide water to the acequia madre (mother ditch) that farms still use to this day.  It is considered the oldest Spanish aqueduct in the United States.

Arches for the two centuries old Espada Aqueduct.

Water being held in the aqueduct.

Another view of the still working aqueduct for Mission Espada.

Even though the next picture is in the fields of Mission San Juan, you can see how an aqueduct directs water to the crops.

Gates to control the water flow to the fields.

The water outlet to one of the fields at Mission San Juan.

After looking at the aqueducts we finished our walk back up to Mission San Juan and back around to Mission Espada.  Needless to say we were a little tired and sore after walking the six plus miles.

We had a backpack with water, apples, oranges, trail mix, and Peeps left over from Easter.  We decided that we would save the Peeps for the last treat once we were about a mile out in our journey to give the kids that little extra jolt of energy to finish the hike.  We did not want to give it to them too early just to have them burn out with some distance still to walk.

The Riverwalk next to Mission Espada.

Walking on the Riverwalk on the east side of the San Antonio River.

Misty, Chloe, and Don on the Riverwalk between Mission Espada and Mission San Juan. 

A view of the San Antonio River near Mission Espada from the Riverwalk.

Another part of the Riverwalk near Mission Espada.

The kids getting some water at one of the many water fountains on this portion of the Riverwalk.

The path off of the Riverwalk to the Espada Aqueduct.

Some old mill ruins on the Riverwalk from a long lost community.

I wish I could post all of the pictures we took while touring the Missions of San Antonio and strolling along the Riverwalk, but time just does not permit it.

If you are ever in San Antonio, Texas, you have to visit the mission trail and see them all for yourself.  It is well worth the trip!

If you like our blog then please comment below and sign up to follow us.  You can also become our friends on Facebook using the links on the upper right of this blog.

We hope you enjoyed our little view of our mission tours and do hope you make it here one day to do the same.

Once again we are so blessed by God that we can see such wonderful sights as we travel across America.

God bless and Thanks!

Don, Misty, and Kids...

States we have visited so far.