And here we are…the third and final leg of our family’s westward journey this summer (after leg 1 and leg 2).  This final week was a particularly special time at a particularly special place, and so (as fair warning) this post is going to be a bit of a doozy.

But read on, my dear friend, if ye be foolhardy, idle, or, better yet, impelled by feelings of great interest or affection…

After a 2-day journey across a blazing desert and through rambling pineywood mountains, we re-joined this ragtag crew at the place of so many of our favorite childhood memories and adventures…

Sprucedale Guest Ranch

Located in the White Mountains of Arizona – Big Sky Country.

We were able to gather our whole family together one more time this summer thanks entirely to these two crazy cats, Ma and Pa Plax, whose generosity (and persistence) knows no bounds.

After being stuck in the car for hours, the Littles hit the ground running and in no time were immersed in the bounty of feline companions at the Ranch.

They were in HEAVEN.

(Though their kitty companions may have been less so.)

And that wasn’t all!  Oh no!  There were bunnies and piggies and goats and chickens and ponies and more kitties, oh my!

I even got in on a little of the (meowing) action.

As if all that were not enough, there were COUSINS to play with!

And when they ran out of critters to harass or cousins to cavort with, there were puddles!  So.Many.Puddles.

Of course the highlight of the activities, for the Little Miss especially, was riding horses.

The boys got in on some of the equine goodness too,

But they seemed to prefer a steed of the more mechanical variety.

And when the adults weren’t careening through the mountainside on 4-wheelers or leading Littles on marches through the creek in search of crawdads, we got to horse around a bit as well.

When the rides were over and the horses put back out to pasture, there were hay rides,

Porch parties,

Rodeo competitions (with prizes!),

(Type in “wright” to watch)

Skits and dancing,

And all sorts of other mischief and merriment!

And of course, so so much love.

(Bacon-wrapped in silliness, of course.  Because that’s how we roll.)

And so with that I come to the end.

<Deep, nostalgic breaths>

I must give a very special shout out to our dear family friend, (The Honorable) Karen Crawford, who with her son put up with our crazy (loud) family on this adventure and took many of the photos you saw today.  She’s one Kick-Butt Lady.

To Martha Berg and Jeff Kraus, the Little Missy’s Godparents, who drove all the way to Phoenix for a few hours of catching-up in our hotel before we flew back east.

To my Mom…Nena…Miss Boss Lady Extraordinaire.  For planning and coordinating and and child-corralling and wine-purchasing.

And of course to my Dad…Pops…Mr. Bob.  For hinting and nudging and nagging and begging the family all these years so that this Plaxico reunion at the Ranch (his Happy Place), could finally become a reality.

Well done, Dad.

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Ranch Videos!  

Just type in “wright” to watch.