Are we Crazy??? Just Wondering.

We spent Labor Day in the Grand Canyon this year!! We arrived at 9a.m. that morning and parked at the Visitor's Center. We then walked up to the rim with our handy "Camelbacks" in stow filled with ice water and lunch!! We were ready and prepared!! We hiked to the rim and again "gasped" in awe at the beauty that was before us!! I stated to Alan, "Yep, It's still there!" We were just here in June!! Doesn't matter, we never grow tired of the beauty, and the cool air with light cool breeze as it touches your face. So exciting, after coming from 3 digit weather!!

We hiked towards the main buildings where the hotels and restarants and gift shops are. It was a couple of miles. Then Alan says to me..."Let's hike down the Bright Angel Trail". ok, I admit it looks cool, with the rock tunnels and all, but it is strait down with alot of swithbacks. But I agreed to going to the first stop, which is an outhouse with a rest area a mile and a half down the trail. ok.  I can handle a mile and half. . right??

The scenery was beautiful. It took us about an hour to make it to our destination. We ate our lunch there and enjoyed the cool weather and beautiful scenery. It was quite a steep hike down, so I was a little worried about going up. A squirrel came right behind me on a rock while we ate lunch. Alan said, "look behind you" I looked and couldn't see anything!! Alan said, "You're killing me smalls" Then he pointed to it. . . It was RIGHT behind me, standing up, begging with it's little paws rubbing together, like when spencer signs more in sign language!! lol. It blended in with the logs it was standing on, ok?!!

We headed up. It was hard!! I was breathing very heavy. Alan, not so much. He was very patient with me as we stopped at every switchback turn. It took us a 1 ½ hours to get back up. Slowly but surely. Someone was having problems and they were taken up by stretcher by the paramedics. Probably over excerted themselves, or heat exhaustion. I wasn't there when it happened to get the details. I was a little disappointed.



paramedics carrying hiker out. . . so glad it wasn't me!!



We talked to a few people that were headed up, from staying overnight in the bottom and had hiked from the North rim. They looked exhausted!!! But what an accomplishment.



We made it to the top. I was exhausted, and I hurt. We had drank all our water, we went and bought some along with an ice cream cone at the fountain shop on the rim. We sat down and ate our ice cream and drank our water and rested!! Two deer came down to the grassy area that we were sitting by. A mother and a baby.  So fun to see them come so close.

We then filled up our camelbacks with spring water provided by the park. We decided to head up the rim to Hermit’s Rest. Are we Crazy???  We made it!! Exhausted but have hiked  a total of 14 miles in one day. Alan was able to get some amazing pictures of the Grand Canyon at Sunset. It was cloudy and the sun was shining through the clouds. It really added some color to the canyon.

We headed back to the lodge. We happened to catch one of the last shuttles at Hermit’s Rest- to take us down. It was getting dark, and we were a little freaked to think if we would have been 30 minutes longer hiking, we would have missed the shuttle and would have to walk in the dark back down to the town. Scary to think about walking along the edge of the canyon in complete darkness!!! While in the shuttle, we saw some Elk crossing the road, which we had to wait for.

We shuttled our way back to our car. We headed to the Yavapai Lodge, which was close by and checked in and got our key. We went to our room and decided it was the exact room we had last time on Father’s Day. We love this room!! Alan checked it out when we got home and yep, same room. Haha.  We went and ate dinner at 8:30pm. We had pizza in the Cafeteria.  We were starving!!!

The next morning I could hardly walk!!  We walked over to the office and checked out. I walked like a penquin!! Then we bought a big breakfast at the cafeteria.

We headed up to check out the rim one last time before heading back. We walked towards the other way to look at the rim, by the amphitheater. A Condor Bird flew by us again. We attract them. The ranger said that alot of people don't get to see them. We saw one both times now - up close. They have freakishly huge claw like beaks and red/orange on their black wide spread wings. They are huge, and I have to admit, a little scary!! A ranger came by and said that it was over here protecting a dead mule that had died this week on the trail. Protecting it from the other vultures?? I really wanted to ask if someone had been riding the mule when it fell down and died!! But, I didn’t. How would you feel, if the mule you were riding up out of the canyon, just laid down and died??!!! I would be embarrased and devastated!!

We headed back to the car and decided to go see the other side of the south rim, that we have never seen.  It was so cool and fun. We stopped at some scenic stops and at the ruins and museum and then we headed to Desert View Lookout, which has a "Watchtower" there that we went up into. Very fun. We stayed there and explored and then got a soda and headed home going towards Cameron. It was about an hour longer to go this way.

                                                

We stopped one last time at a Scenic View that was a mountain wall with the Little Colorado river below it, it looked like a big hole or crack in the earth. It was very interesting. Very hard to walk out to the lookout, because we were hurting from all the hiking, but curious to look at it!!

view from the Watchtower

                                                  

We stopped in Flagstaff and ate lunch at McDonald’s. We then headed home. We arrived around 5:30pm and we were able to have Taco Tues with Jaimee and Seth.

I woke up this morning, I can't walk! I hurt so bad when I try to walk, I wrapped my legs up with ace wraps and took Ibuprofen and Tylenol. Hot baths and Muscle Rub creams. . .That is what my day has consisted of, What a Labor Day to Remember, but. . . again I ask. . . Are we Crazy???!!!

Funny Side Note. I love these pictures. We like to take pictures of ourselves. What is the common denominator in these pictures??? Alan's expression as he is taking them!!! He is soooo focused on taking the picture!! It Cracks me up, everytime. Love you Alan!! :) ok. I have the same look too!!!

Our Summer Vacation: California 2011

This July Alan and I had our first big summer vacation as Empty Nesters. We went to California. OK. So on one of the days we met up with Jaimee and Seth. . . we still have to wean ourselves away from the children. Baby steps.

After experiencing the highly stressful freeways of LA we arrived at our destination.

Our first night we spent in Marina Del Rey at a Courtyard Marriot Hotel by Venice Beach. A Very pretty and clean beach outside of LA. We stopped in by the Venice Walkways.

We rented bikes and rode up “The Strand” which is a bike path along the beach and on the beach. We rode up to Santa Monica Pier and checked it out and a little further up north towards Malibu. We rode about 14 miles. I was sore!! But it was a fun way to get some exercise and see the beach!!



Riding bikes on the beach!

The second day we went back to Venice Beach and rented bikes again. This time we rode up into the city and went on a bike path that took us around the Marina and back to the others side of the beach heading down South. We rode quite a ways, and the planes from the LAX airport were flying right over our heads!! It was a fun day. Again we rode approx. 15 miles.  We then headed to Valencia were we had reservations at the Hilton Garden Inn by Six Flags. We got there and ate dinner at the Marie Calendars next door, then we went swimming and sat in the Hot Tub. It felt so good after all that bike riding!!

Jaimee and Seth got there around 11pm. We all went to bed and got up early. We took the shuttle to Six Flags and got our Flash Pass that would allow us to be able to go right up to the front of the line. It is worth the money!  We went on the Colossus roller coaster – I felt sick, we then went on Scream. Wow. That’s all I have to say. Did I mention with the Flash pass you can hold up you arm with the yellow wristband and ride it again for a second time. I did not hold up my wrist after riding Scream. Either did Jaimee. We got off and Seth and Alan rode it one more time. I felt sick. We decided to ride the log ride and get wet and maybe that would help me to feel better. It did. The cold water and gentle ride helped. We rode that one twice!

Wet after the log ride!!

So then we went on Goliath. A roller coaster that goes up very, very, high and strait down into a hole in the ground – tunnel. It took my breath away. It scared me so bad I closed my eyes and would not open them, until the ride was over.  Jaimee and Seth said they felt like they were going to lose consciousness when it dropped that first drop!! Seth mentioned that the blood is rushing from your brain so fast – which can cause you to black-out. That can’t be good. All I know is that I was Sick.

We decided maybe if we eat that could be good. I didn’t have much on my stomach. So I ate a turkey sandwich and a diet coke. I did feel a little better.

So then we rode Batman. You are sitting off the track to the side of it, with your feet hanging down. Kind of like scream. There were a couple of loops, but I did ok, I actually thought it was fun. So we rode it twice. Big mistake. I got so sick, again.  This time we rested for awhile, trying to get my bearings.

Yes, I am the poor woman sitting on the right of Jaimee and Seth!!!
"Getting my Bearings"

 Seth says, lets go on Ninja, it’s a mild ride. So, I agreed. He failed to tell me how it twists and turns through the tree tops. No loops though, just a whole lot of turns and twisting!! I got off and ran to the bathroom and threw up. I felt so much better! Just really weak and a little like I had been in a car accident. I announced to them that I was done. No more. No more roller coasters, no more rides. Can’t do it, don’t want to do it!

They had two more rides they wanted to go on. The went on Tatsu which when I saw Jaimee after the ride, she was crying like a baby! Very scary apparently. And why wouldn’t it be, your facing the ground, going head first as you plunge towards the ground!! It’s suppose to make you feel like you’re flying, I think they meant to say; it will make you feel like you are dying!! Yea, that sounds more right.

Alan,Seth & Jaimee hanging upside down!!!

They went on the Superman ride where you go straight up and then strait down. Facing downward.  No way was I going on that.

They ended with Armeggedon roller coaster. Then we were all done!! We went and ate a late dinner at Marie Calendars. I ate soup.  And that is the end of my Six Flags experience. Never been there before, not sure I’ll ever go back. Did I have fun?? I enjoyed spending time with Jaimee and Seth and Alan. They are awesome. The rides – not so much.

                                                  A Scandalous Story
 The next morning was Sunday, Jaimee and Seth headed home and we headed down south towards San Diego. We had plans to stop at Torrey Pines Natural Reserve and hike the cliffs above the ocean coast there. I had found this place online and was really excited about it!! We got there and put on our camelbacks, hiking shoes and hats. We wore shorts and t-shirts. It was amazing. Absolutely beautiful.

 I love doing things like this on a Sunday when we are vacationing. I love the beautiful world that we live in and it makes me feel so close to my Heavenly Father. We hiked around the cliffs and to all the lookout points. We then headed down a path to the beach. It was so beautiful and hardly anyone was there.

See the cliff that comes out into the water. . .

 To our right we could see the white sand beach spread out for miles – more people were down further were there are no cliffs to hike down from. Then to our left a cliff jutted out into the ocean. We could see that if you climbed up on the rock you could shimmy yourself around to the other side. Being the curious ones that we are, we wanted to see on the other side. So we climbed and shimmied to the other side where we saw more white sand beach for miles with tall cliffs on the edge of the sand. There were only a few people there and it was so beautiful, we decided to walk down this beach which was off the preserve.

the other side of the cliff. . . pleasantly deceitful!!

 We walked about a mile down the beach, I almost stepped on a dead seal that had been washed up to shore. It looked like a rock to me. I freaked out that I almost stepped on it, and Alan had to go into detail with sound affects and visual insights on what would have happened if I would have stepped on it!! So As we were walking I was looking down, making sure I wasn’t stepping on any dead sea life. . .and Alan stops dead in his tracks and says in a whispered voice, “I think we are on a nude beach”. I look up and see a naked man laying on a rock in the water. Then another man comes and walks over to another rock pulls off his swimming suit, and sits down on that rock. And I’m thinking, Wow. That can not be very comfortable sitting on those rocks. They could get sunburned in sensitive areas too. I look back now, and think why the heck was I thinking this??!!  But Alan was thinking something else, when he says to me “Wait a minute. I don’t see any women on this beach” and I say in a very accusing tone, “Why are you looking for women?” and he says, “Because. . . if there are no women, then this is a Gay Nude Beach”!! I look over and see a whole bunch of naked men!! We looked at each other, as it dawned on us both what we had just stumbled into. We immediately turned around and booked it out of there laughing so hard for hours afterwards. We called our girls to tell them where we went instead of going to church that Sunday!! They laughed so hard. They told their inlaws who laughed so hard!

Why do these things happen to Alan and I? We just wanted to explore, see new things, get out in the world. Is this what is going to happen??

As a side note, I told my co-workers this story. They were like, oh yeah, that is Black Beach outside of LaJolla. What??!! How do they all know these things??? Do they go looking for it??! I’m sure the beach is well labeled by the road and area that you would normally come onto the beach. We were taken by surprise!! I will never forget this, those images of naked men will forever be burned into my memories. I use to associate Lajolla with the Mormon Temple, not so much anymore.

We headed to our hotel in San Diego. We stayed on Hotel Circle
and ate in Old Town at a Mexican restaurant that we ate at when my parents served a mission at the Mormon Battalion Museum in Old Town. It brought back a lot of good memories. We walked around Old town for awhile and then went back to the hotel and went to sleep.  The next morning we went to Sea World. We had so much fun. We went to all the shows. The one thing we noticed different with the Shamu Show was they do not get in the water with the whales anymore.

Shamu Show



Dolphin Show



 Our favorite show was the spoof with the sea lions and Biff, where they make fun of all the other shows in the park. We laughed so hard. We rode the Atlantis twice and got wet. Very fun ride!! Unlike Six Flags it did not make me sick.



Atlantis Ride
note: Alan always has the same look on his face when he is taking the picture of  us!!!

We ate lunch at the Mama Bellas and had pizza and breadsticks and soda. We ate ice cream in a waffle cone for dinner. We watched a worker feed penguins. One of the penguins was very picky with his food. They all got fish, and would swallow it whole, he would nibble on his fish and spit it out. This happened several times. The worker said he was very picky and it would take a while to find the perfect fish that he would eat!! Hmmm reminds me of some people I know…

Picky Penguin!!

We were there from 9a.m. 10p.m. we were so tired.

The next morning we got up and headed home. It took us 6 hours to get home. The week went by sooo fast. I can hardly wait to go again.    

Moving up in the World

My girls have been trying to get me to blog. Jaimee says it is a good way to journal and write down all the stuff that is going on in our lives. I get to share what is in my head too, which could be risky!! I dare guess my only followers will be my daughters. . .I can't imagine anyone really caring about what Alan and I are doing but them!! Although the other day at church I happened to tell a quite scandelous and unusual experience that happened to Alan and I while vacationing in California, I worried that it might be inappropriate to share this story, but couldn't help myself!! Later a friend asked if I had a blog, because he wanted to keep up on what we were doing as Empty Nesters!! Ha, So you can see what you have to look forward too??!! FUN times together, thats what. It's like in the beginning when you are married with no children, looking forward to the future. . . only we have raised our children, have been through so much together,weathered the storms together and came out stronger, have fallen even more deeply in love, and look forward to our future, our children's future, and our grandchildren's future!! It has defininely been worth the journey so far. . . So my darling daughter's I will try to take the time out of my busy schedule to clue you in on what Dad and I are up to, and this i will do out of the goodness of my heart. And. . .because I am moving up in the world. I'm a Blogger NOW!!!