Day 13 - February 13. It was a pretty "easy" Saturday. We went to Bales Hay Supply and bought 5 more bales of alfalfa. These bales should last us the rest of our trip (along with the grass hay we brought from home). Montana drove the truck and was all smiles! When we got back, the girls rode the mares, I made some crockpot chicken and bacon for lunch and dinner, and then we took a little break. In the afternoon, we went to Tractor Supply to fill up the propane tank (we have two). One tank lasts about one week. Our water heater, stove, and heater run off of propane. It's been pretty windy lately, and a little cooler than the past few days.  

We then went to Hole in the Rock in Phoenix to meet our friends the Maiers who are here for a soccer tournament. It was a neat rock formation with a few short trails and was next to the Zoo and Botanical Gardens. When they were little, Peyton, Montana, Matalyn, and Addy were the "Zebra Spur Grils" and ran 4-in-a-line together. On our way home, the truck dinged with the message "Service DEF System - See Dealer".  The DEF system was one concern when we brought the truck as we had heard honor stories or endless issues. But, I did not receive the "countdown to limp mode", so I'm hopeful the message will be gone when we start the truck tomorrow. If not, I've scouted out a dealership just north of here. 

Funny story - we know the smoke alarm in the trailer works! Matalyn burnt a bagel in the toaster and it went off - it was challenging to get it to stop beeping!

Another funny story - On our way to Phoenix, we were sitting at a stoplight and three couples pulled up next to us in the other turn lane on their Harleys. One of the men revved his motorcycle and yelled at me "do you want to race"? I passed - I know the odds when I'm in a 1-ton dually and he's driving a Harley!   

Day 14 - February 14. We started the day by having no "Service DEF System" code - which is great news! We drove up to Dunns in Litchfield Park to see one of my closest high school friends Sheila. Sheila and her daughter, Grace, were doing time onlys before the race. We grabbed lunch (another delicious homemade chicken burrito) with them and then drove over to Vulture City near Wickenburg. Vulture City is an abandoned gold and silver mine and ghost town. It was $15 per person to enter and see some of the restored buildings. The drive there was desolate with cattle guards and only a few vehicles. We thought this was a great time for Matalyn (who has her permit) to drive for her second time. She now has more minutes driving in Arizona than she does in Minnesota! Of course, she loved driving the dually! We did see our first "free-range" steer along the side of the road. Here, the cattle have the "right away" and if you hit one, you need to reimburse the rancher.  

We stopped and fueled up, grabbed a few groceries,  turned the mares out, topped off their water, and gave them a flake of hay (knowing we'd be home late). We then drove to Chandler to watch one of my closest college friend's (Heather) daughter play soccer. Her daughter's (Lauren) team won 5-0 against a Colorado team. We then went out for dinner at a local brewery and had great burgers for Valentine's Day! We got back home, took care of the mares, and crashed!

Funny story - it's weird to have your "daily driver" be a 1-ton dually. It's such a big truck to be driving around! But, everyone here seems to have a big truck because there are so many RVs and horse trailers. When we first arrived in Buckeye, a family a few spots down pulled their horse trailer with a semi. The dad then showed up with a second semi pulling a grain trailer (they were from Idaho). They both unhooked and the semis were their "daily drivers" - so I guess it could be worse - LOL!   

Day 15 - February 15. Today we had made plans with my friend Sheila to spend the day riding at Buckeye. She and her daughter drove the 2.5 hours down from Payson to ride with us. Unfortunately, when she got here, she got a call that her new colt was colicking at home (he's going to be ok). So, she unloaded the horses for 30 minutes and then had to head back home to care for the colt. Such is life with horses. We do plan to see her next weekend. After she left, the girls and I rode the mares on a trail ride to "Hidden Lake" near the Equestrian Center, but it was gated off and appears to be private property - we thought it was public. In fact, most things around here are surrounded by gates, fences, and brick walls. The girls then rode in the arena and did some drills.  

We grilled some burgers for lunch and then I went to the laundromat. I'm getting better at the laundromat - I can be home within 90 minutes and I've cut the cost down to $13.50! I think I'll only need to make one more laundry stop during our time here. I then had some work to do and got ready for a speaking engagement for Rutgers University. It was delivered via Zoom as I sat outside my trailer in my UMN Extension polo (I had to get a sweater on as we now get cold when it hits 60). After the Zoom, we joined the fire at Bruce's trailer with the rest of the Minnesota horse people. Its always fun to visit with them.

Funny story - The girls have really wanted to use their hammocks, but there are no trees here - just cactus!  So, Matalyn tried rigging up her hammock at the trailer - it was a major fail - LOL!