Sunday, November 23, 2008

The Chains





It was a beautiful and warm afternoon, so we decided to go down to "the Chains" for a little adventure. We spent over 2 hours hiking the rock formations, looking at lizards, and throwing stones into Lake Powell. It is something how throwing rocks into the water can entertain kids so thoroughly. There were streaks of sediment throughout the rocks, and the kids found a nearly parallel set of sediment lines in the stone. They proclaimed them train tracks and followed them until they diverged from each other. Their imaginations were in full swing, which helped pass the pleasant afternoon. Though I'll have to remark on little Annie. She insisted on wearing a skirt with tights and carrying a purse with her on this nature hike. She was persuaded to give up the purse, only after about an hour of carrying it around.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Pics from the weekend





Maria has shared some great pictures from the night in Flagstaff. The first two are from the Polar Express ride. The third picture, which I think is great, are of Ben and the kids. What a good sport he is!

Sunday, November 9, 2008




Landon invited Jacob & Annie to go on the "polar express" with him, so we all headed down to Flagstaff. The train ride was actually out of Williams, AZ and it was on the Grand Canyon Express. Brian accompanied the kids, and they all reported having a great time. I forgot my camera, so I'll post some pictures after I get copies from Maria. On the way home the next morning, we decided to take a 27 mile lunch-detour to the Watchtower of the Grand Canyon (South Rim). The weather here is turning colder, as to be expected, but is still generally comfortable during the day.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Sedona


On Saturday, we headed down to Sedona for a wedding. It was the kids' first wedding, and they were very well behaved. It didn't hurt that it was an outdoor wedding, in a beautiful location on a ranch in Sedona, that the weather was perfect, and the ceremony lasted about 15 minutes. Annie kept asking when she could dance. Along the way, we drove the scenic 89A route through Oak Creek Canyon and we also stopped at another National Park. This one is located near Flagstaff, and it is called Walnut Canyon. It had been closed (well, the main attraction) due to some large boulders falling on the hiking trail. This happened in December 2007 and they opened up the trail in mid-October 2008. I remember thinking, "how could a boulder or two take that long to remove?". But after visiting the park, it is easy to see how it would be a difficult task. It was a nice hike with the kids with good scenery and interesting cliff dwellings.