10 Marshmellow Day

I woke up this morning longing for the wild open spaces I grew up near. I searched the web for pictures of Albuquerque, NM. This picture taken near the Elleno Gallegos trail head instantly brought me back to one of my favorite memories.

When I was six we lived in Albuquerque, NM. Often on Saturday afternoons we would drive to this trail head and hike. My dad would carry my younger brother in a back pack for part of the trip. Our little dog McDuff would wander leash free and we three older ones would run down the trail and climb on rocks jetting up from the desert.

Mom always packed a cooler in the back of the van. When the hike was complete we would roast hot dogs, drink non-name brand orange soda and watch the mountains turn watermelon pink in the sunset. The moon would rise and a tiny blink of light would identify the tram travelling up and down the mountain.

We would finish off with roasted marshmallows. I would always catch mine on fire because I enjoyed the sugary blackened crunch. There was never a limit on how many marshmallows you could have. I'm not sure if my parents were just too exhausted to police one more thing or if they knew that eating 10 marshmallows in one night was childhood magic.

I hope your weekend is a 10 marshmallow weekend. I hope it is simple, magical and punctuated with sugary blackened crunch.