San Diego- Day 6- October 13th

This morning it was time to leave Campland and San Diego.  It was a little difficult getting out of our spot as we were scraping the yellow post and almost hit the water spicket.  The kind campers came out in droves to help but there was no use, we were in a weird spot so Tim had to disconnect everything and rehook up.  Then it was smooth sailing getting out...the whole row of our campground was cheering!  We also got a flat tire on the trailer in Yuma, Tim quickly changed it out and we were on our way again.  These delays turned it into an 8 hour drive but we finally made it home! It was a great vacation in San Diego! 

San Diego Day 5- October 12th

This is our last full day in San Diego.  Tim and I started off early with a run around the bay, the other way this time...it was chilly and drizzling rain after a lot of rain much earlier in the morning.  Then I actually made a disgusting breakfast.  Somehow, the french toast I made had a "soapy" taste so breakfast was ruined.  I think it was bad eggs but not sure.  After that it was off to Sea World.  Grandma Judy joined us for a fun day of seeing animals and riding fun rides.  Again, we started out at the rides.  We went right to the Journey to Atlantis, which is the water ride.  Grandma actually did it and had fun!  I screamed more than she did!  Next, we went to the new roller coaster called the Manta Ray.  Grandma bowed out on that one but the rest of us did it.  Leah started crying again in line and when it was time to get in the seat, Tim had to forcefully put her in and even when she was strapped in, she was kicking her feet and having a royal tantrum!  But, the ride turned out to be a blast and right when it was over, Leah said "can I go again?"  Then we caught the Shamu show, where the kids and Grandma got very wet!  We of course saw the dolphin show and all of the other animal encounters.  It was just a fun and full day but we got to do and see pretty much everything.  Tim is a great theme park tour guide...leave the National Parks to me, he can take the lead at the theme parks!  The kids ended the day on the Manta Ray roller coaster again.  Then it was back to camp where we said goodbye to Grandma Judy.  We had a fabulous time with her!  Then it was time for campfire, smores, and hot tub...one last time!  We will miss Campland but have promised to come back every fall break from now on.  I finally fell in love with San Diego and everything there is to do here.  We look forward to creating a lot of family memories here, year after year...

San Diego Day 4, October 11th

With no kids this morning, it was a lot more quiet in the RV!  We had planned beach today at Pacific Beach near my mom's condo but we woke up to rain here and there.  Tim and I took in a bike ride between the rain showers.  Tim promised a flat ride around the bay on the path.  Well, the path ran out when we got to Sea World and we ended up on the road going up 2 rather large hills.  So much for the easy bay ride.  It was fun though.  I am falling in love with San Diego more and more each day!  After that we packed up some lunch to take to my mom's condo and that is where we headed.  We met up with the kids and heard all about their fun with Grandma.  Then we had to wait out the rain before heading to the beach.  Eventually the sun came out and we headed to the beach about 1pm.  Megan had been talking about boogie boarding forever so she was excited.  And literally, for 4 hours she and Leah boogie boarded in the ocean non-stop....not one break!  They had a blast in the water with the waves.  Noah and Grandma took a walk to Crystal Pier and it was just overall, a relaxing, fun day on the beach.  We then left the beach and went back to camp for dinner and back to the pool and hot tub.  Then it was bed time!

San Diego- Day 3, October 10th

Today was bay day!  Tim and I started off the morning early with a run along Mission Bay, through Mission Bay Park, which was just beautiful! Then it was a quick breakfast and then we went on the bay on our kayaks to explore.  The bay was beautiful and not crowded at all.  We stopped at the shore for the kids to find some seashells and for Tim and I to rest on the Kayaks.  It is a lot of work!  Then it was back to camp for lunch.  Then, we were joined by Grandma Judy!  She was able to get a condo on Pacific Beach last minute so she was able to come and have some fun.  She watched the kids for us while Tim and I went on a bike ride around the bay.  We actually ended up riding to Pacific Beach to take a quick peek at my Mom's condo and it was really nice!  Then it was back to camp and we all had a great dinner of Chicken Satay.  Then, my mom took all of the kids for a night at her condo!  Tim and I were left alone at Campland so we decided to go relax our sore muscles in the hot tub.  Then it was an early bed... it was an active day and we were tired! 

San Diego= Day 2, October 9th

Today was all about Universal Studios!  We left our camp at 7am for the 2 hour drive to Hollywood and arrived just in time for the opening of Universal Studios.  We started out at the lower lot doing all of the "rides".  We started with the Jurassic Park ride which was a lot of fun but got us really wet!  Then we went on our favorite ride which was Transformers 3D.  It was so much fun and the graphics were amazing!  You felt like you were right in the middle of the movie!  Really, it was the funnest ride we have ever been on.  Next was the scariest.  It was the Mummy Returns ride.  None of us knew what we were getting into on this ride but had a good indication when we saw a preteen girl crying in the line.  I took pause for a moment but Tim pressed us on.  Then Leah started crying and I thought about how stupid I was to know nothing about what I was about to do but probably would not have done it if I knew.  This ride is a dark ride with a roller coaster that goes 45mph...first forward, then backwards with scary, mummy images throughout the ride.  I'm telling you, it was so scary, I started crying and hyperventilating.  Thankfully it was quick and ended quick before I totally lost my mind!  I broke my glasses on the ride and then was so disoriented after I walked around with only 1 lens in my glasses, not even realizing it!  Tim had a huge laugh on that one.  After that it was to the upper loft for a couple of shows including Water World, Special Effects show and the Back lot Studio tour.  Noah, my movie lover, really enjoyed the behind the scenes look at the movie sets.  Universal does everything excellent and this park was really a blast, probably the best theme park experience we have had!  We spent the whole day there and didn't get back to camp until 9pm...a long, fun day!

San Diego- Day 1- October 8th, 2012

Well, today we took off for our Fall Break trip to San Diego.  We are staying at Campland on Mission Bay.  Been there once before 2 years ago.  We have a full week packed with fun!  The drive was uneventful and quite easy.  We actually saw a guy on the border being arrested and watched them take the drugs out of his car.  That was kind of neat!  Other than that, it was an easy 6 hour drive.  We arrived around 2pm and quickly unloaded.  Even before that, the girls were in the bay swimming around and having fun.  The weather was gorgeous at a cool 72 degrees.  We were hoping for a bay view but unfortunately, the people in the spot in front pulled up at the same time so there went our perfect view.  Campland was all we remembered...safe, fun for the kids, and great access to the bay.  We spent a couple of hours on the bay and then had dinner followed up by a campfire and smores.  Then it was an early bedtime...we were tired!  Tomorrow we have a long day ahead of us...

Favorites!

Four Corners National Monument

We made it home safely!  No truck break downs although there was a lot of radiator fluid leaking out and Tim will take it in the shop but at least we made it home!  We stopped by four corners on the way home which was neat.  Here is a list of our favorites:

Daddy:  Favorite Campground: Wahweap at Lake Powell or Mancos State Park in Colorado  Favorite Hike:  Mesa Verde Balcony House hike  Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab, Kayaking at Lake Powell and cliff jumping with the kids Favorite Memory: Train with Donna and Nelson, Leah climbing the ladder at Mesa Verde and climbing through the tunnel, seeing the inside of the dam at Lake Powell Favorite National Park: Mesa Verde National Park
Mommy:  Favorite Campground: Mancos State Park in Colorado Favorite Hike: Delicate Arch at Arches National Park Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab, mountain biking in Moab Favorite Memory: Spending time with Donna and Nelson on train, deer watching every night at Mancos State Park Favorite National Park: Arches National Park
Noah: Favorite Campground: Mancos State Park in Colorado Favorite Hike: Mesa Verde Balcony House hike Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab Favorite Memory: Staying the night with Donna and Nelson and having a great breakfast!, watching Daddy squeeze through small tunnel at Mesa Verde Favorite National Park: Arches National Park
Megan: Favorite Campground: Wahweap at Lake Powell or Mancos State Park Favorite Hike: Mesa Verde Balcony house and Delicate Arch at Arches Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab Favorite Memory: Staying at the hotel with Donna and Nelson, going through the tunnel and ladder at Mesa Verde, seeing all of the deer in Colorado Favorite National Park: Mesa Verde National Park
Leah: Favorite Campground: Mancos State Park Favorite Hike: Mesa Verde Balcony House hike Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab Favorite Memory: Staying at hotel with Donna and Nelson, climbing ladder at Mesa Verde with ranger, seeing deer every night at campground in Colorado, making houses in the forest at our campground in Colorado Favorite National Park: Mesa Verde National Park

Colorado Day 5 7-18-12

 Leah climbing the 30 foot ladder with the ranger into Balcony house

 Inside Balcony House at Mesa Verde National Park

 The small tunnell we all had to fit through- even Daddy!

Spruce Tree House

Today was our last full day as we visited our last National Park. It is called Mesa Verde National Park and has hundreds of dwellings from the Pueblos that are 800 years old. We decided to start off by doing a ranger guided tour at a place called Balcony House. I was a little nervous as it required a climb up a 30 foot ladder just to get to the site and going through a couple of tunnels to get from room to room. Leah was picked as the first one to go up the ladder with the ranger which was really cool. There were about 40 of us in the group and that ladder was scary. The drop below would have you falling off a cliff but it was the only way into the huge alcove that had the dwelling. When we got in there it was really amazing to see the site…it had a lot of rooms and several kivas. The ranger gave us a lot of interesting facts and then we had to climb through this little tunnel to exit and up 2 more ladders to get out. The kids just loved it and thought it was so fun. We then went to a self-guided dwelling called Spruce house which was similar. The kids got to climb into a kiva this time which was fun. We then stopped in the museum where the kids got their Jr. Ranger badges and we looked at a lot of the exhibits. This is a really neat park with a lot of interesting historical facts…it is wild to imagine how people lived in these canyons and alcoves and how different life has changed. After the park it was back to camp to start packing up. We played games outside including horseshoes and UNO and had our traditional celebration feast of steaks, fish and mashed potatoes. Time to go back home to reality…we all feel like we have been gone forever and miss our family, friends, dog, and much larger home! I will miss the sleeping in, simplicity, being active outdoors, intimate time with the 4 I love, and marveling at God's creation. It has been an amazing vacation!

Colorado Day 4 7/17/12

 Finally saw the Colorado Columbine- the states flower.

 Leah bungee jumbing at Mountain Village in Telluride

Our hike along the river in Telluride

Today we ventured to Telluride. We took a gorgeous drive along the scenic byway of highway 145…truly one of the most spectacular drives I have been on. It was so scenic with the mountains, trees, meadows and rivers. We steadily climbed in elevation until we reached Telluride. We started off on a trail along the river at the base of the mountain. We then went into town and walked around a bit. Telluride is a really beautiful town, with mountains on all sides and green everywhere. Everyone is walking with their dog or on a bike. She shops are very quaint and every shop is a boutique. We stopped for lunch at Brown Dog Pizza and had some great pizza and salad. We then headed to the free gondola that goes over to Mountain Village. It was a very scenic ride up the mountain. When you dismount, it feels like you are in the Swiss Alps! The architecture is very European and there are villages everywhere with hotels and limited shopping. Leah saw the bungee trampoline and just had to do that. We walked around a little more and then headed back down to Telluride. More shopping and peeking in stores. Then it was back on our river trail to our car and the beautiful drive to camp. We rested for a while, had dinner and then took a family hike around the lake until the sun set. Then it was bed time! Lovely day and I am so glad we got to experience Telluride. Next time we will definitely spend more time in Telluride hiking and biking…it is the thing to do there in the summer!

Colorado Day 3 7-16-12

Today is about our little gem of a park and campground. We slept in and had a lazy morning and big breakfast and enjoyed the cool weather and the wind whirring through the pine trees. The girls met a friend this morning who was a precocious little 9 year old girl who was adorable. We then took the kayaks out onto Jackson Lake which is right at our campground. It was a great time as it was only us and 1 other sail boat on the lake. We explored the beautiful lake which was totally different from Lake Powell. It is obviously a lot smaller but has the pine trees to the shoreline and it is just so green and lush beyond the lake. We stopped on the shore and had a picnic and Noah took a lot of time to fish from shore and the lake but didn't catch anything. While the boys were fishing the girls were admiring the Great Blue Herons on the lake and a momma duck with her 2 babies. We saw some ominous clouds coming in so decided to pack up. The rest of the afternoon we spent around the campground relaxing with some short strolls here and there. Tim and I later did a trail around the lake on our bikes which was just gorgeous! Tons of wildflowers, meadows, the lake and pine trees. Then it was dinner time and after that we headed back to the lake for Noah to try fishing from the shore. It is incredible to have this whole lake to ourselves! It is so peaceful and quiet and we just stayed on the shore for hours. The kids were fishing and I was laying on the dock listening to music…it was heavenly! We watched the sun go down and then headed back to camp. On our way back we saw a herd of 7 deer. It was a beautiful day here in the San Juan valley!

 Kayaking at Jackson Lake at Mancos State Park

 The girls on the dock

Noahs trying his best fishing!

Colorado Day 2- 7/15/12

 The train going over a pass

 Donna, Nelson, and the kids in front of the train

Here we go on the train!

Today was all about the train ride with Auntie Donna and Uncle Nelson. Tim and I got ready with peace and quiet since the kids stayed the night with Donna and Nelson. We arrived at the train station to meet up. The kids were so happy to see us and they were well fed, rested and clean! We got the first peek at our train. The Durango Silverton Railroad has been in existence since the late 1800's and is one of the last coal fired steam operated engines around. We had an open air gondola and to our surprise, Tim was on the train with us! When I booked, they were short 1 seat so he agreed to go in a different car, just on the way there but they must have had a cancellation and put us all together. The ride up is beautiful! First of all, the whistle is so loud and you are spattered with coal and steam throughout the entire ride. It is also very bumpy and precarious at times as you are hugging the edge of the mountain and literally feel like you are going to tumble down the river below. The train climbs 3000 feet in elevation and stops in this cute little old mining town called Silverton. One of the highlights on the way up was watching a glider plane go by and then a couple of minutes later it landed right in front of us! But overall, the sweeping views of the mountain, trees, and river were just amazing. We arrived in Silverton just in time for the rain to come pouring down! We had a good lunch at the Brown Bear Café and walked around town a bit. Then it was back on the train. We had a couple of delays on the way back but it was nice to have time to catch up with family and just hang out on the train. The train ride is over 3 hours each way so it was a full day! We then went back to our camp and hung out listening to some Casting Crowns and relaxed. Then it was bed time. A great day with family…we will miss Donna and Nelson! 11, 23, 24

Colorado day 1- 7/14/12

We arrived in Colorado! Ahhh the cooler weather and pine trees are wonderful! We have a great campground at Mancos state park which is on a small lake. I think it will be a perfect base for all we have to do. We unpacked quickly and headed off to meet up with Donna and Nelson. We met at their hotel in Durango and it was so great to see them. We headed off on a trollie to downtown for dinner where they treated us to a great diner at a Mexican food restaurant. This is so my auntie Donna...she brought her own avacado to the restaurant! Love her! Feeling sorry for her though as her foot is in a lot of pain. It was great to catch up and spend time together. The kids will be spending the night there while Tim and I get some peace and quiet back at the campground. Tomorrow we meet up to ride the Durango silverton train. It was a great day!

Moab Day 4- 7/13/12 (Friday the 13th!)

 We made it to Delicate Arch!

 That's us in the arch!

Landscape Arch

Our day started off at midnight…yes, midnight with Megan yelling "I need help!" Tim of course sprang into action and discovered Megan had thrown up all in her bed. So, we were all up helping Megan and cleaning…not a good start to our day! We did it quickly and went back to bed. We have no idea what happened as she is not sick at all, she just woke up getting sick. Not fun when camping and no water hookups. Thankfully today is laundry day. We started early in the morning heading to Arches National Park. We did a quick stop at the visitor's center and asked about the hike I have been debating about doing for months called Delicate Arch. I have never wanted to do a hike so bad but had so many things pointing to not do it. The hike is labeled strenuous even though it is only 3 miles. It goes to Delicate Arch which is the symbol of Utah; it is on their license plates. Anyhow, everything pointed to a no…on the river we heard a man died on that trail last week from dehydration, Megan was up sick, it was Friday the 13^th, it is really strenuous, Leah hates hiking and it is supposed to be 95 degrees today, on and on… If it was up to me, I would have honestly given up that dream but Tim pushed us forward and was convinced we could do it and for me to get over stupid superstitions. So we did! And it was so amazing, I will never regret doing that hike and I am so proud of my kids for doing it. Delicate arch is a huge arch with an amphitheater of slickrock surrounding it…it is awe inspiring! Yes, the hike was difficult, uphill all the way but the payoff was worth it. After that we did a picnic lunch at Devils Garden and then headed off on the Devils Garden trailhead. I would NEVER do a hike in Arizona in 95 degree weather, let alone 2 hikes but we just plugged along and there were tons of people right along with us! On this trail we saw Landscape Arch which is one of the longest natural arches in the world at 306 feet. Arches is full of tall spires, beautiful red canyons and just all kinds of rock shapes and sizes to delight your imagination. It is a really special park. A lot of the really great arches and rocks you can see from the roadway so we enjoyed those on our drive back to the visitor's center where the kids again got Jr. Ranger badges. Then it was laundry time for me at the Moab Laundromat while Tim and the kids got ice cream and shopped in downtown Moab. Tonight we will be packing up and getting ready to head to Durango Colorado tomorrow morning. Can't wait to see my Auntie Donna tomorrow! Moab has been great; we saw all of our destinations and enjoyed God's handiwork!

Moab Day 3- 7/12/12

 Mesa Arch at Canyonlands National Park

 Grandview Point at Canyonlands

Upheaval Dome

This day we ventured to Canyonlands National Park which is only a few miles from our campground. We started off at the visitor's center and decided what to do for the day. Canyonlands is a mini version of the Grand Canyon…half as wide and half as deep. Much more remote and rugged with a lot of it unexplored and some of the most rugged parts of the western US. We first took in a Ranger program about Bighorn sheep. Then it was off to our first hike which was to Mesa Arch. The arch is really pretty but the canyon background is magnificent. Next it was a stop at Grand View lookout which had a great view of the canyon and the rivers below. We stopped for lunch and then did a short hike to Upheavel Dome. The scenery is great but boy is it hot! We ended our time back at the visitor's center for Jr. Ranger badges. Then we were back to camp for the rest of the day to relax and hang out. We made a quick jaunt to our parks visitors' center for ice cream and Jr. Ranger badges there as well. We had a nice dinner and the kids played outside for a long time playing hide and seek and having fun. I know we are in the Wild West because the girls have been playing cowboys and Indians a lot and that has been fun to see. Then it was our usual game of UNO and bedtime. We need to get an early start tomorrow to avoid the heat at Arches. 6, 15, 24

Moab Day 2- 7/11/12

 Deer on the trail at Dead Horse Visitors Center

 A break on our mountain bike ride at Dead Horse

First time mountain biking- fun!

What had a super fun day doing some of the "must do's" of Moab. We started off going to the visitor's center of our park. We saw our first big wildlife sighting with a mule deer on the nature trail and Leah was loving that. Then we went to downtown Moab and did a little shopping. Tim knew one of the owners of a gift shop there so we stopped in and said hello and bought some t-shirts. After that it was off to spend our day on the Colorado River. We went with a tour company called Moab Adventure Center and they were fabulous. We did a whitewater trip that was 4 ½ hours and included lunch. The bus ride up was beautiful as we meandered through the red canyons next to the river. Then it was off on our trip! Our guide was Patton who is a high school English teacher in Vermont but comes to Moab every summer to lead rafting tours. He was so funny and interesting and we called him "General". There was a great family on our boat from Florida so we had so much fun talking and sharing with them. The river was tame with only a few class 1 rapids so most of the time was spent with water wars with the 4 other boats and families on them. Each boat had one of those 5 gallon buckets and the goal was to steal the buckets from the other boats and constantly declare war by filling the bucket with water and dumping it on the other passengers in the other boats. The kids had a blast with this…they also spent a ton of time in the water swimming and trying to steal those buckets off the boats. Oh, another interesting fact was that we passed on the bus and then floated by a big movie set. Johnny Depp was there filming The Lone Ranger that comes out next summer. It was really neat to see all of the trailers and the production that went on. General said Will Smith just finished filming a movie with his son called After Earth due out next summer as well. My movie lover Noah just thought that was the coolest thing ever! Another highlight was lunch which was at a winery on the river. We just floated to the shore and had a fabulous meal of BBQ, great fresh sides and cookies. It was delicious! It was really a fun time and the kids were just in heaven. When we came back to our campground…Tim and I decided to try the mountain biking trail at our campground. So off we went and that was a lot of fun. It was a 4 mile trail called the Intrepid trail that had a lot of dirt, slick rock and some sand. I was more afraid doing that than white water rafting but it turned out to be a lot of fun. We had beautiful scenery as we stopped and looked down into the canyon. Then it was back to camp for dinner and then an evening walk around the campground. We saw a fox! That was a first. We also saw another deer. It was a great day! Tomorrow we will be heading into the canyon that we keep looking at from our campground. It is at Canyonlands National Park. 44, 45, 47

Moab Day 1- 7/10/12

Our hike to Dead Horse Point

View from Dead Horse Point- this is the canyon at Canyonlands

We arrived in Moab, Utah safely! Wow, what a difference a day makes. We went from swimsuits all day and frolicking in the water to hiking shoes and Camelback backpacks right away. First of all…Moab is really beautiful. It is full of red rocks towering above the side of the freeway and you just know there is so much more to see on the other side of those rocks. We drove by Arches National Park on the way to our campground which is at Dead horse Pointe State Park. I must admit, it is a little more secluded and remote than I thought it would be. It is only 3 miles from the entrance to Canyonlands National Park but it feels far from everything else. Also, all of the scenic overlooks and canyons that I thought would be right at our campground are actually miles away. The campground is small though with only 20 sites. The visitors center was closed so we just set up camp quickly, ate dinner and then noticed the sun was about to go down. Even though it was 8:00 at night, we were determined to see Dead Horse Pointe, the namesake of our campground so off we went on our hike. The map made it seem like it was only 1 1/5 miles away but when we got going, the signs said 2 miles…then we felt like we were lost because the trail was not marked and we kind of meandered for a while. I think around here, the trails are marked with cairns (stacks of rocks) instead of signs. And of course it wouldn't be a hike without Leah crying over something…this time it was her shoes hurting her. But the views were very rewarding! We are 2000 feet above the canyons of Canyonlands and the Colorado River is below. It is similar to the Grand Canyon but not nearly as deep. Unfortunately, I have no pictures because by the time we got there, it was 9:00 at night and it was too dark for the photos. We then walked back and decided to stay off the trail and just walk on the road…in the dark…with Leah wearing no shoes. We must have looked crazy! Tim did have compassion on her and put her on his shoulders the last mile or so…what a great dad! Finally we were back at 9:45 at night. The latest hike we have ever done! After that it was a quick game of UNO and bed. Tomorrow we head into Moab for some white water rafting on the Colorado River. 4, 7

Lake Powell Day 4- 7/9/12

 Our stop at the Coves

 Mommy and the kids at Lone Rock

Daddy and the kids at Lone Rock...gorgeous water and white sand!

Today is our last full day at Lake Powell.  We decided to kayak again.  We left from the same beach near our campground and off we went.  We went a lot farther this time as we wanted to visit Lone Rock which is a huge rock formation that just sits in the middle of the lake.  It also is a place to dry camp on the beach so we wanted to check that out.  It was a great day of kayaking and stopping at some amazing little spots to swim and eat.  First we stopped at the coves.  There were fish right there on the surface so Noah tried to fish but didn't catch anything.  Then we stopped at a little peninsula that had some beautiful red sand and we had lunch.  Next it was to Lone Rock where we stopped at a white sand beach that had crystal blue water.  Then back we went...pretty much a full day of kayaking.  We were all hot, burned and tired but it was a lot of fun exploring.  We spent the rest of the day swimming at the beach and then guess where?  The pool.  The night will be spent packing up!  We had a great time at Lake Powell and hope to come again.  Tomorrow we are off to Moab, Utah to visit Arches and Canyonlands National Park.