The last week of March our family drove to Arizona to spend some time in my parents home in Mesa. I wasn't sure how we would survive it since the kids dread the drive just to Pocatello. But they did amazingly well. We took Grandma Terry with us and she was a great traveling partner for Karlee in the back seat. They worked on homework and she and the kids watched movies on the DVD. This and lots of stops along the way made it endurable.
The first and last hour of our trip was the worst for weather. We had to stop in Blackfoot because it was snowing so bad we had to clear our wipers. Also, I was trying to be thrifty and has packed a bunch of food in containers strapped to the top. The wind was blowing so bad that they made a terrible noise that was driving us all crazy. So we had to stop and readjust those. Then when we got to Arizona I realized that half of the Oreos and Pringles had blown out. Good thing I got them for such a good deal.
We finally got some good weather in southern Utah. We stopped in Orderville and bought some rocks for Grandpa Terry to cut and polish. At about 3pm we decided to see what we could of Zions national park before it got dark. We got out and climbed a few rocks and took a few pictures. We were all in awe of the beauty of the rock formations and how colorful they were. We stayed the first night in Kanab at a little motel. It was very clean but very small. The pool was outdoors and hadn't been opened yet. The kids were kind of disappointed in that. So we just ate dinner that night and then set out for an early morning.
The next morning we stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam and took a tour. Everyone was impressed at the size. But we were disappointed that the elevator was being repaired so we didn't get to go all the way to the bottom to see the turbans. Next we set out to see the Grand Canyon. By this time everyone was tired and ready to be done driving. We all looked and took a few pictures. Layne and Zak even ventured out onto a overhanging rock. But the kids were really anxious to go swimming. So we only stayed at the Grand Canyon for about an hour and then continued on with Karlee asking every hour or so, "When will we get to go swimming?"
When we finally arrived in Mesa that evening it was past swimming hours. So we went out to dinner at the Chinese Buffet and bought some groceries for the week.
For the rest of the week the kids swam four hours a day. They would have swam more but those were the allotted swimming hours for kids. Karlee couldn't get enough of it. And she always seems to make a friend at the pool.
Grandma Terry had a rough first day. I took her on a bike ride. After being in the car for two days she was kind of weak and she heard a car coming up behind her so she tried to get up on the sidewalk. But the bike bucked her right off and she hit her head really hard on the asphalt. She had quite a bump on her head and hurt her elbow too. It has taken her over a month to recover from a pounding headache. She finally went and had an MRI to discover she did have a concussion. We sure are glad she is okay, and feel bad it put a downer on her trip.
The boys had fun at the driving range and went several different times while we were there. We spent one afternoon at the swap meet and saw lots of things but got out of there with just Karlee finally spending the dollar Grandma gave her on a slinky. Layne and I took our traditional bike ride around the lakes and evening walk around the golf course. It is just a beautiful place to be and a perfect time of year to be there. We took Grandma to see the Mesa Temple and walked around the beautiful temple grounds.
Everyone chipped in the get the fruit trees picked and pruned. We went and bought a huge storage bag to put all the fruit in and strapped it on top of the van. We had quite a load. But Dad was thrilled to see all the grapefruit we brought home. And we distributed it all out to my siblings.
We started home on Saturday, even though no one was ready to leave the beautiful Mesa weather. It had been a perfect week, no rain, not too hot, not too cold. And we had missed a bad week of weather at home. So that really made the trip worth it. We spent the night in Kanab again and this time stayed at the Holiday Inn where the kids could have one more chance to swim. The next day we had terribly strong winds all day and by the time we got to Rexburg we were in a white out. We had to pull over and clean off the wipers in freezing blowing snow and wind. "Welcome home!"
The first and last hour of our trip was the worst for weather. We had to stop in Blackfoot because it was snowing so bad we had to clear our wipers. Also, I was trying to be thrifty and has packed a bunch of food in containers strapped to the top. The wind was blowing so bad that they made a terrible noise that was driving us all crazy. So we had to stop and readjust those. Then when we got to Arizona I realized that half of the Oreos and Pringles had blown out. Good thing I got them for such a good deal.
We finally got some good weather in southern Utah. We stopped in Orderville and bought some rocks for Grandpa Terry to cut and polish. At about 3pm we decided to see what we could of Zions national park before it got dark. We got out and climbed a few rocks and took a few pictures. We were all in awe of the beauty of the rock formations and how colorful they were. We stayed the first night in Kanab at a little motel. It was very clean but very small. The pool was outdoors and hadn't been opened yet. The kids were kind of disappointed in that. So we just ate dinner that night and then set out for an early morning.
The next morning we stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam and took a tour. Everyone was impressed at the size. But we were disappointed that the elevator was being repaired so we didn't get to go all the way to the bottom to see the turbans. Next we set out to see the Grand Canyon. By this time everyone was tired and ready to be done driving. We all looked and took a few pictures. Layne and Zak even ventured out onto a overhanging rock. But the kids were really anxious to go swimming. So we only stayed at the Grand Canyon for about an hour and then continued on with Karlee asking every hour or so, "When will we get to go swimming?"
When we finally arrived in Mesa that evening it was past swimming hours. So we went out to dinner at the Chinese Buffet and bought some groceries for the week.
For the rest of the week the kids swam four hours a day. They would have swam more but those were the allotted swimming hours for kids. Karlee couldn't get enough of it. And she always seems to make a friend at the pool.
Grandma Terry had a rough first day. I took her on a bike ride. After being in the car for two days she was kind of weak and she heard a car coming up behind her so she tried to get up on the sidewalk. But the bike bucked her right off and she hit her head really hard on the asphalt. She had quite a bump on her head and hurt her elbow too. It has taken her over a month to recover from a pounding headache. She finally went and had an MRI to discover she did have a concussion. We sure are glad she is okay, and feel bad it put a downer on her trip.
The boys had fun at the driving range and went several different times while we were there. We spent one afternoon at the swap meet and saw lots of things but got out of there with just Karlee finally spending the dollar Grandma gave her on a slinky. Layne and I took our traditional bike ride around the lakes and evening walk around the golf course. It is just a beautiful place to be and a perfect time of year to be there. We took Grandma to see the Mesa Temple and walked around the beautiful temple grounds.
Everyone chipped in the get the fruit trees picked and pruned. We went and bought a huge storage bag to put all the fruit in and strapped it on top of the van. We had quite a load. But Dad was thrilled to see all the grapefruit we brought home. And we distributed it all out to my siblings.
We started home on Saturday, even though no one was ready to leave the beautiful Mesa weather. It had been a perfect week, no rain, not too hot, not too cold. And we had missed a bad week of weather at home. So that really made the trip worth it. We spent the night in Kanab again and this time stayed at the Holiday Inn where the kids could have one more chance to swim. The next day we had terribly strong winds all day and by the time we got to Rexburg we were in a white out. We had to pull over and clean off the wipers in freezing blowing snow and wind. "Welcome home!"
It sounds like your trip was so nice. I hope we can take a trip with you sometime too! Love ya tons.
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