Family Skiing at Bluewood w/video

On Sunday, we all rode the big lift right up to the top of the mountain.  Heading down a green circle called Country Road, we were so excited to see that Dakota was ready to ski from top to bottom all by himself!  Dakota has worked so hard for this day.  You can see his pure pleasure as he dances down the mountain. I have to apologize for the shaky camera work.  I will get better.  But I did capture his dance! Before lunch, we all just skied together, up the lift, down County Road.  Stuart and I were giddy with joy, we had done it.  

Both Stuart and I put in a combined 9 days of working on the bunny slope with Dakota but it all paid off!  Now we can all go family skiing!  For the rest of the day, we switched out, Dakota and Mom or Dad going down Country Road while Wren went with the other parent to do some harder runs.  Super Fun Day!

Here is a link to the youtube video of our skiing adventures.  Or just click on the play button in the middle of the video image below.  I am not sure which one will work so try both.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6poJDGk1ntE

AZ to Walla Walla

Heading home after a wonderful visit in Arizona needed to be a wonderful adventure of it's own.  So planning ahead, Stuart and I had some essentials:  1. Dinosaur Footprints 2. Petroglyphs 3. Arches National Park 4. Native American Ruins

We were able to get to all 4 and still make it home in our 3 day allotment.

We started in Canyon De Chelley where the ruins add a layer of mystical quality to an amazing array of sandstone formations.  This canyon is full of over 20 ruin sites.  We arrived at lunch time and then began to explore for the afternoon.  We spent about 4 hours exploring the canyon mostly from the rim.  Only at the White House ruin are you allowed to walk down to the canyon floor and get close to the history that pulls both Stuart and I into the canyons again and again. For me this was a destination on my list because of an Ansel Adams photo of this ruin.  I was happy to have made it.  And as a proud mom, I was so please that Dakota hiked completely independently down and back up for a total of 3 miles round trip plus 1000 feet of elevation gain.

 Here it seemed as I watched the ravens that they were just playing with their shadows, riding the rising air.

 I remember this was the image that Ansel caught too.  I remember the cottonwood tree standing there in the quite light.

 As we hiked out of the canyon, the sun was setting across the sandstone creating shadows and light.

 GOOFY!

 Just as the sun set we loaded up in the vehicles and drove as far as we could to set us up for success the next day because we still had 3 goals on our list.

Bright and early we rose with snow on the ground and the cold gripping the air.  Just an hour up the road we arrived at our first destination, Indian Creek.  Here we visited some sites that Stuart and I had visited 11 years ago with some friends.  And we found again the dinosaur prints and the petroglyphs. 

Here Wren's hand sits next to the print he found.

 This is Stuart's Comparision. 

 Dakota was pleased to find his very own dinosaur print.

 And of course me too!  I just love looking for dinosaur stuff.  Maybe in my next life I will be a paleontologist.

 So the dinosaur prints were found in the bottom of the wash on some bedrock exposed by the creek.  But just up the hill, literally 50 feet up hill, is this rock wall covered with petroglyphs. 

 This one is a find it mystery photo.  1. Wren 2. Heidi 3. Two big triangle shaped petroglyphs 4. group of many other petroglyphs

Then on to Arches.  We left not nearly enough time to really explore this place.  But what we know is that we must go back!

Family with Double Arch in the background.

 Family in the further back arch of Double Arch.

 After a wonderful hike into the arches, we hit the road and drove until late.  But we made it past Salt Lake City so we knew we would make it home the next day.


Arriving home, we faced generosity from all!  We unloaded the car full of travel gear.  And then went straight to the presents.  Wow! 

The Verde Canyon Train

The day after Christmas we all relaxed by going on the train.  What a perfect way to spend the day. 
 So you arrive at the station, board the train, and then relax.  They have snacks and drinks and an amazing 3 hours of wonderful views.  Hanging with the family was just wonderful and there was always something to look at for the boys because we were on the train!

When we needed a little break, we just headed inside for some reading time.

 When the scenery was amazing, we headed out to the open air car and just soaked in the view.

 The whole family got to ride.  This made for some wonderful family time.

 Here is my sweet sister with her wonderful new husband who we were all lucky to get to hang out with over Christmas (since they will be living in Wales.)

 Smiles seemed to be the theme of the day!

 The sun was warm and felt good shining down on our faces.

 When we got tired, we could just head back inside for some rest.

 When we were passing through the canyon the red rock stood out against the blue sky giving me that sense of solitude that I feel when ever I visit the desert.

 As we turned the bends we could see the train cars up ahead.  Wild West!

A Walk out the Door: AZ

Wren, Stuart and I got a quiet walk out the door of Dad and Jeanne's House.  Up the ridge through the rocks and down into the creek bed.  (Still catching up on our AZ trip...so many good adventures.)

 Agave: they beg to be photographed.

Here is their house from the top of the ridge.

 Lichen: How does it get to be this color?

An old juniper tree.

 Stuart balancing on a cool rock pile.

 And then he invited us all up for the view.

 The ice formations were truly remarkable in and along the creek.

Sweet Family Xmas

Our Christmas time together was wonderful.  It was great for us to be with family, explore Arizona, and relax.  We went on so many great adventures while we were there.  It is hard to sum it up in one post and include enough pictures to get a good grasp.  So I will break it up into a few posts for ease of reading.

Tonto National Forest: Travertine Bridge
Full family adventure.  Wonderful hikes and just plain fun for all!

Christmas Day:

 We opened stockings first and then had a yummy breakfast of eggs, grapefruit, bacon, tea ring and special cheesy British toast with a dash of anticipation (from the boys who were excited about all of the presents). 

On to the presents....Yeah! scream the boys.   Our boys loved opening presents but the also loved being the elves and delivering all the presents to everyone. 

Here is Dakota explaining his ocean painting to Aunt Em.

The boys enjoyed goofing and giggling around with some of their presents.  Here Dakota found it quite silly how his new Lego headlamp kept pushing his hair up.

Wren had a terrible accident with a rusty nail....just kidding...part of his practical joke set. 

An afternoon walk was enjoyed by all in the warm Arizona sun.

Zion National Park to Payson, AZ

 Water shapes this land.  Everything we see in Zion is sculpted by water.

We wake early for a yummy sunrise breakfast at the only local eatery open.  Heading into the park with the sun, the canyon unfolds as we drive deeper in letting the vertical cliffs surround us.  We are tempted to spend our time down here on the canyon floor between the walls but the high country calls to us.  After a quick hike we head up and out of the canyon through an amazingly long tunnel that has windows that look out at the canyon walls.  (There are many signs that say NO STOPPING! so we drive really really really slow so we can look out at the grand views.)

When we arrive at the far end of the tunnel, we see our trail head for the Canyon Overlook.  Looking for slickrock and slot canyons we grab some water and snacks and start hiking.  The sun gives us a great shadow family photo.

 The boys really are starting to play well with each other.  And on a rare occasion, they let us capture this with our camera.  Here they really were enjoying the sand, cut from the stones and laid down as their playground.

My boys all loved this morning hike. Stuart really needed to see what it looked like over the edge...not a surprise.  Wren followed suit while Dakota and I comfortably looked from a few feet back.

From our hike to the canyon overlook, we could look down into this slot canyon.  Stuart and I both have an extreme love for slot canyons.  So when we got back to the trailhead and we saw a ranger, we had to ask about access to this slot.  The ranger was a bit skeptical about giving a pair of folks with 2 young children info about the slot but eventually relented after we promised not to go down into the technical section.  He shared that the first 50 yards or so were just sandy bottom until the first drop.  So down we went.

We found a beautifully carved canyon.  The boys loved it down here...letting us dream of our future days exploring the canyons as a family.

After our slot canyon explore, we got in the car for a long trek to the Glen Canyon Dam for lunch.  Here is Wren in the visitor's center with the bridge shadow and dam in the background.

 We crossed the Colorado River here and headed south arriving in Payson, AZ for a wonderful dinner and great family welcome!