Philmont Day 2

We woke up pretty early the next morning for a yummy breakfast in the Hotel and went back to our rooms to get ready for swimming. We didn't need to be at Philmont till 2:00 pm to check in so we had time to play.

Alex loved pushing Evan in the water.

He thought it was "funny!"

Matt and Evan jumping in the water at the same time.

Evan jumping in the water with the other kids.

We all had a lot of fun and did it for a few hours before we needed to check out. Before our drive we stopped at Wal-Mart for last minute items and Orlando's New Mexican Cafe for some lunch.

 I was really excited and hoping for real Mexican food because I haven't had it in a while. Being a San Diegan, it has to be real. Luckily it was. Matt and I got the beef chimichangas and they were amazing! Alex ate a lot of mine and Evan ate most of his food even though they both filled up on salsa and chips before our food came. We love it when our boys eat!
The drive to Cimmaron was beautiful!

We made it!

Brother Beck and Sister Esplin greeted us as we drove in to welcome us. We parked and registered. We got all our name tags, schedules and our sleeping arrangements. The only thing left to do was to unpack and get settled for the week. Boy did those tents get hot, even with the flaps open!

Our home sweet home for the week

Evan got to share his tent with another boy named Justin. Him and his parents are from Beaver Utah. They became great friends.

We were lucky and got to share this row of tents with our Stake. It made it nice to be able to hang out with them and stay close when the boys were in bed so we can make sure Evan didn't sneak out, which he did a few times. He actually got away once and hid in the Dinning Hall for a snack. The only good thing that came of it is that we learned they keep the cereal out and leave the ice and water machine on :).

When we first arrived we were curious if we will find anyone that we knew. After checking in our tent city I found my cousin Denmark and his family going to their tent. It was so nice to see him! They were also missing a family reunion so we basically had a mini family reunion at Philmont :).

We got to do whatever till dinner. I didn't have to make a single meal for 7 days! Made for one happy momma :)!! Even though it was cafeteria food it wasn't that bad but any food is great that you don't have to cook. It's set up like the MTC so there was always a salad bar and cereal. We never went in for seconds but I'm sure they would give us anything if we asked. It felt like we were always eating so we were well fed.

After dinner we had an Opening Program. We got to sing campfire songs and were introduced to all the Staff Members of Philmont.

We put the boys to bed right after. Anyone who knows Alex, knows he has the loudest scream ever! We put him down like we normally do and of course that envolves screaming. I guess he was so loud that someone came over to see if everything was all right. I was in the restroom getting ready for the night so I wasn't there but I could hear him through the solid wall and door. I couldn't hear any other children crying till I walked out. Thankfully he did fall asleep ten minutes later.

Philmont Day 1

With Matt's new calling in the High Council, over Young Men's, he was extended the invite to attend Philmont with the Stake Presidency. I had no idea what this place was but I could see that Matt was really excited. We learned that this trip would be the same week as our reunion with the Thompson Family so I wasn't excited at all. I didn't want to go but learned over the next few days that this is what the Lord wanted us to do as a family. He blessed and prepared us in so many ways for this to happen. I was getting excited about it but still sad I was missing one of our favorite summer highlights. Now that we're back, I don't regret a minute of it and we both found ourselves sad that it was over. Our week at the Philmont Training Center was amazing! We grew so much in Testimony about the Scouting and Duty to God programs. I don't know if writing about it will do it justice because it was that great. So much went on and we have a lot of pictures so I'm going to break it up into days.

We left Friday June 29. We caravaned with four other families. We made a lot of stops because of it but it was a lot of fun and better yet, both boys were great travelers. During one of our stops we visited the Monticello Utah Temple.

One our drive we drove through Colorado and got to see one of the many wild fires that were burning. We were surprised they didn't have the road closed because it was really close to the high way.

We also tried to stop in a small town where Pre. Jaramillo's ancestors are from to see the cemetary where they're barried but the road leading up to it was dirt and very thick. Their 12 passanger van got stuck.

We drove about 10 hours and stopped for the night in Taos New Mexico. It was another hour and forty five minutes to Cimmaron where the Training Center is. We got to stay in a very nice hotel called Hotel Don Fernando De Taos.