More Lake Powell

No surprises - we spent the weekend on the water. On Saturday, we went to the Chains, instead of our usual Lone Rock beach. (the bottom picture) The Chains is closer, is more sandstone than sand, and is far less crowded. We ran into some friends there and spent the time swimming and laying about. Brian brought his fishing pole, made a few casts, gave-up, and jumped into the water. On Sunday, Jyn & Chris, and their daughter Lauren, invited us out on their boat. Brian was off on a hike with the park botanist to find an endemic species, so just the kids and I went. We spent about 8 hours on the lake and could have spent even more. All three kids spent 90% of the time swimming or rafting in the water. (They only came out to eat.) They were all brave enough to go tubing behind the boat, as well. It was very relaxing. And many thanks to Jyn - she was such a sport the entire day, considering she has a lingering bout of morning sickness.

Jake on the diving board

Jacob has been taking swimming lessons this summer. One day, all the kids in his group were instructed to jump off the diving board and swim to the side. He was so proud of himself for doing it, that we came back to the pool later that afternoon and he jumped off the diving board for an hour straight. Not wanting to leave Annie out, I snapped a video of her jumping off the side of the pool. Of course, she has a Barbie-doll, clad in a stylish swimsuit, in hand.

Camping Trip at Lone Rock

Many thanks to the Kirchner Family! They invited us down to their "camping" spot on Lone Rock Beach, Lake Powell. They have a beautiful new trailer, complete with all the amenities, so it was camping in luxury. We came down and spent the night with them, boated the next day, and then headed home happy & tired. Activities included: playing in the sand, kite-flying, running around at night with glow sticks, roasting marshmallows, swimming, boating and more. Lone Rock is a fun, crowded spot to stay, as long as you don't mind sand in everything!

Tea Party

Just came in to find the kids throwing a tea party for their stuffed animals. Actually, they call it 'playing restaurant'. I just snapped a picture because I thought it was sweet. Not much else to say.

Tour of the Southwest National Parks

A picture from just outside Tonto, near Roosevelt Reservoir

The kids at Casa Grande

Annie in Saguaro , appropriately placed near a Saguaro cactus

Brian and Jacob on an overlook at Chiricahua

Gila Cliff DwellingsPetrified Forest - yes the log is made of stone

Old Town Albuquerque

White Sands where the pure white sand dunes were almost like snow covered hills

We decided to take a road-trip to some of the parks in the Southwest. We had such a great time! There is almost too much to write about, just as there are too many pictures to post. So here is a quick overview of our trip in numbers:

2026 = Number of miles driven

12 = Number of National Park Service sites visited

2 = Number of state/BLM sites visited

4 = Nights in Arizona

4= Nights in New Mexico

46 = Lowest Temperature on trip @ 12 Noon in El Mapais

97 = Highest Temperature on trip @ 3:20 in Saguaro

14 = Number of hikes (short and long)

1.9 mi = Longest hike for Jacob(480 ft elevation gain) in Chiricahua

.9 mi = Longest hike for Annie in Saguaro
7 = Number of coloring/activity books used by the kids

0 = Number of movies watched in the car

249 = Number of pictures taken

7 = Number of Mexican food restaurants for dinner

6 = Number of times we had Peanut Butter & Jelly for a picnic lunch

450 = # of times, approximate, the kids asked when we'd get there

Still Counting = # of times the kids fought, told on each other

Still Counting = # of times the kids laughed and played

The parks we saw: Tonto, Saguaro, Casa Grande, Chiricahua, Fort Bowie, Gila Cliff Dwellings, White Sands, Salinas Pueblo Missons, Petroglyph, El Mapais, El Morro, Petrified Forest. It was so impressive to see all the places. Each one was so unique, surprising in what it had to offer, and completely enjoyable. Details on any of the them can be found on http://www.nps.gov/

Cities we stopped/stayed in: Globe, AZ; Tucson, AZ; Silver City, NM; Las Cruces, NM; Alamagordo, NM; Albuquerque, NM; Flagstaff, AZ. Thanks to Kevin & Cate who kindly opened their beautiful home to us in Alamagordo! It was great to catch up with you.

Care to see all the pictures? http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLanding.action?c=f8ldrdv.4ex3rwlj&x=0&y=-rfee2n&localeid=en_US

Bring on the Summertime

This weekend really felt like summertime. We had a BBQ and a trip to Lone Rock Beach. I took a video while we were there. The kids were most intersted in being a silly as possible for the camera. They like to watch themselves being goofy. On the way home, we stopped at the Mexican Restaurant. I snapped a picture of Jacob, still in 'beach mode', before we made him sit correctly.

Weekend Trip to Flagstaff with Aunt Annie

This weekend we met Aunt Annie half-way in Flagstaff. It turned out to be a relaxing weekend with lots of outside-time, eating/drinking out on patios, frisbee throwing in the park, walking the downtown and a tad bit of everything else outdoors. It was great to see her, as always. I threw in another picture from the other weekend, which I had intended to post. It is of the kids bicycling on the golf course. I don't think we are technically allowed to do this, but they have such fun going up and down the hills. Plus, it's fairly picturesque, so it makes for a nice walk for me.