This is probably going to be my longest blog ever. We had so much fun and did so many things.
It all started with the idea to go see my sister Kate in Sierra Vista, AZ. We figured for the price of just flying there we could road trip and do so many more things, so we gave it a go.
The trip has begun! (Notice the happy calm faces...)
We needed to make it to Kanab, UT for the night. So we made a few stops, our best one was in Beaver. The kids got to play for a while, and I could tell my mom and her parents that I at least stopped in Beaver. It's a sin in my family to drive past without stopping, lots of family history there.
Kanab, UT
7 hours later at 10pm we pull into an RV park where we had reserved a tent site. The kids were asleep in the car so Joe and I set up camp in the dark. Finally we were ready to move the kids to their sleeping bag beds. We were worried about the kids staying warm so Josie and Joe were sharing one bed, and Todd and I were sharing the other. Josie was a sack of potatoes and didn't move all night. Well, Todd woke up in the process of moving him and he was so excited to be in a tent, he was WIDE awake. About 2am he finally fell asleep on top of me, and Joe and I were able to sleep...until 5am. Josie woke not long after us, and Todd slept until 6am. So we had breakfast and packed up.
This RV park was a hole, but all we needed was a place to sleep.
We kept the kids distracted at the ghetto playground while we packed.
Next stop Page, AZ
Our plan was to tour Glen Canyon Dam, see Horseshoe bend, and tour the Antelope Canyons. The kids however had very different plans. The kids were miserable! I can't blame them after the bad night of sleep we got, and I'm sure Joe and I were impatient because of it too.
So we attempted the Dam tour, which was really cool but we didn't get much out of it cause of the kids. We were able to walk out on the dam and go down inside it and see all the sorts of cool things that make sense to Joe and not me. We will do it again one day.
We realized after the dam that the kids were done, and needed sleep. So even though we drove 2 hrs out of our way to go to Page, we were quickly leaving it behind.
It was a road trip and we would have to embrace flexibility, so we headed to our hotel in Phoenix to have a relaxing day.
We hopped in the pool, ordered pizza, and finally got a good nights sleep!
The next morning we all woke up refreshed and ready for more fun! So after breakfast and swimming we checked out and headed to the Phoenix Children's Museum.
The kids had so much fun here. We stayed for hours and hours.
Painting a giant rocket in the art room
Kids riding bikes through the car wash.
Josie building a fort
This was the coolest part of the museum. A giant sculpture/tree house. It was 3 stories and had all sorts of up and downs and strange dead ends.
This is Joe and Todd in the giant flying bathtub?!
Josie lost in the noodle forest
Josie loved all the role playing exhibits. Her favorite was with her dad playing cashier.
Todd playing Chef
When it was time to go Josie left kicking and screaming, and Todd was asleep before his car seat buckle was done up.
On to Sierra Vista, AZ
We made it to Kate's house! We stayed 4 nights with Kate and her family and had a lot of fun doing all sorts of things.
We enjoyed her pool almost everyday
The kids and I went to the mall while Joe got some work done.
Later that night Kate watched our kids while Joe and I went to see Star Trek II.
One of my favorite places in AZ is Bisbee. In 2012 I was able to go there with Kate and I couldn't wait to take Joe. So, one day we left Todd with Kate. Joe, Josie and I headed south for a date.
Bisbee is an old mining town that is packed with history. I knew Joe would love the copper mine so that was the main thing we wanted to see.
Getting suited up with jackets, belts, hardhats, and lights.
I've done this tour twice now and loved it both times. Highly recommend! The coolest part is that the old-timers giving the tours were actually miners, some of them in this very mine. Their stories are awesome.
Here is Joe on the good old fashioned toilet :)
After the mine we window shopped and had lunch at the Copper Mine Hotel. It's been around as long as the mine and is a sight by itself. Plus its haunted.
The homes in Bisbee are built into the cliffs so there are stairs everywhere. They actually have annual stair climbing festivals.
You can't see it very well but these stairs end at a road and then keep climbing. Then they stop for a house or the next road, and keep climbing. Over and over, all the way up. I can't imagine carrying groceries into the house.
Back at Kate's for more fun!
Another day we took the kiddos out on a walk at the San Pedro River. In just 2-3 miles we saw all kinds of lizards, birds, frogs and were even attacked by a tarantula hawk. (A nasty big black and red bug that infests tarantulas with their eggs and then when the eggs hatch they eat the tarantula from the inside. - I'm sure you wanted to know that. yuck)
The tough guys
Back to Kate's to cool off.
Finally it was time to start the homeward-bound part of our trip. So we packed up, said our goodbyes and headed out.
Tucson, AZ
Our main stop in Tucson was the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Its kind of a zoo, museum, aquarium, and botanical garden all in one.
We loved it, there was so much to see.
In the hummingbird Aviary
At the wildlife show
After the museum it was drive time again. This time only so far as flagstaff. We decided to spend two nights here so we could have more time in the Grand Canyon.
Flagstaff, AZ
None of us had been to the Grand Canyon before, it was one of my favorite parts of the trip. It was an amazing view and we only got to see a small part of it.
We hiked around the rim trail for a ways before loading the kids into our packs and attempting the real trails.
We wanted to hike the 6mile roundtrip Kaibab trail but the kids just weren't up for it. So we went just 3 miles roundtrip to oo-lah-la point. Plus we had to remember that hiking the Grand Canyon is opposite of what we are used to. Here you hike down first, and then have to hike up. So it's easy for people to go down too far and not be able to make it out. With the kids on our backs, we didn't want to go too far.
You can see Joe w/Todd on the top switchback. This is the beginning of the trail. Josie was so nervous we were going to fall over the edge. (I was a little nervous too)
Thank heavens for salty snacks and lots of water! We were hiking later in the day than we had planned and it was getting hot.
Todd fell asleep on the way down.
The kids were so tuckered out after hiking, you would have thought they'd carried us!
So back to the hotel for swimming and a quiet night.
Next morning it was time to officially get HOME. After an awesome breakfast at the hotel we loaded up one last time.
Of course, for us to survive a 9hour drive we had to make stops. Eventually though, we made it!
All in all it was one heck of a week.
From my Journal entry on the drive home:
"I'm thankful we have had a safe trip and that we have had a good time as a family. I'm in awe of mother natures beauty and diversity. Seeing Arizona, this little piece of the world, makes me really want to see the rest of god's creations. It's incredible. Especially comparing it to Utah and how different the two are. I can't imagine how different Switzerland is from costa rica, from Israel, from the Baltic states or from New Zealand. Those are mine and Joe's top 5 places to visit in the world. I hope to see them one day, but for now I'm grateful I've seen Arizona, top to bottom."
