Home, sweet, home!

AAA Plus Membership $100
Golden Eagle National Park Pass $65
3 nights camping in Yellowstone $36
1/2 day raft ride on Yellowstone River for 3 $85
One nights lodging Timberline Lodge $107
Spending quality family time together enjoying nature's wonders...priceless!

Dodging Tornados in Nebraska

As we were driving in Nebraska we encountered torrential rains, windy driving conditions and lots of debris on the road. A tornado had just passed us. Lucky we made a pit stop in Wyoming to grab some food and use the restroom! Welcome back to the midwest:)

We will stop at our favorite zoo, Henry Doorley Zoo in Omaha. We hope to stumble upon a Mexican Independence Day celebration in Omaha, we are craving good Mexican food.

After our stops we are headed home sweet home! We look forward to visits with friends and sleeping in a bed, our own beds:)

Hi, this is Cecilia. I am having fun. I liked climbing in the castles. They are very old. I also liked climbing in the mountains. See you soon!

Hi this is Gabriel. We are in Nebraska. We are almost home. I miss you all in Minnesota. See you soon.

Hi, this is Sabrina. Hey guys! Camping was fun but I am ready to come home. Miss you and see you soon!

Big Elk

This guy stood in the road and strutted his stuff for about 15 minutes.

Rocky Mountain National Park

Visiting this park has us ending on a high note. 12,500 feet high! The leaves are turning, the elk are rutting, winter is coming!

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Colorado's best kept secret! This national park gives the Grand Canyon a run for its money for awe-inspiring views. The Gunnison River is 1800 feet down.

Autumn in Colorado

The leaves are already changing in the Rockies. We took a beautiful drive from Durango up to Silverton and Ouray. There we stopped and soaked in the hot springs.

Mesa Verde National Park

Here we are exploring the cliff dwellings of the ancient Pueblo culture. This is a mystical and amazing place. Cecilia referred to them as castles. They were somewhat challenging and fun to reach.

Four Corners

We found a solution to family squabbling on the road... put everyone in a different state. Sabrina is in Utah, Gabriel is in Colorado, Mom is in New Mexico, and Dad and Cecilia are in Arizona.

A monumental birthday in Monument Valley

I am 10 years old now. I spent my birthday in the Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon is very big. It looks like roots out of the ground instead of in the ground. The rock of the Grand Canyon is red and tan with green on top from the bushes and trees.
We took a hike; we saw deer on the trail and hawks flying over canyon. We also saw a big blue jay and a few other colorful birds. We had ice cream.
We then traveled to Slot Canyon in Page Arizona. A guide took us into the canyon. It is big and smooth from the water that comes into the rock.
We are now at Monument Valley, Utah. We are at the border of Arizona and Utah. We had a cake and ice cream and celebrated under the stars.
Thank you for all the birthday messages.

Antelope Canyon, Navajo Reservation

This is a slot canyon formed by flash floods carving through Navajo Sandstone. A cool place to explore and take photographs. Our Navajpo guide played the flute for us and sang Happy Birthday to Sabrina in Navajo.

Grand Canyon North Rim

We were suprised to see snow on the ground when we arrived. The canyon rim received about an inch of the white stuff the day before we arrived. I guess we are being accllmated for the coming Minnesota weather.

The Narrows at Zion

Hiking up Zion Canyon you come to a spot where the trail ends and you continue trekking up in the river. Water shoes are a must. The views were stunning. This was the kids favorite hike.

Zion National Park

Our favorite park! This place is a suprisingly lush canyon in the middle of the high desert. Big thumbs up!

Badwater Basin

Here we are at the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere, 282 feet below sea level. HOT! HOT! HOT!

Death Valley

It was with some reservations but nagging curiousity that we ventured to Death Valley National Park and are we glad we did! This place has a unique beauty all its own and provides a true desert experience. We went to the sand dunes early in the morning to beat the heat (It was 105 by noon!) The kids loved diving around the dunes and sitting in the cool sand on the side of the dune that the sun had not touched yet. We also enjoyed observing all the tracks left in the sand by the nocturnal creatures.

Mono Lake, California

Mark Twain thought this lake lifeless and hideous but we found it fascinating. This lake is teeming with tiny brine shrimp that sustains 80% of California's migratory birds. This lake is very salty and alkaline. So salty that you can float on the surface with no effort and so alkaline it feels soapy. The alien looking structures are called tufa, spires of calcium carbonate percolated up from freshwater springs beneath the lake.

Yosemite National Park

Star Wars in Modesto

Greetings all, sorry to leave some of you hanging, almost like a season finale. Well, the new season is in full swing. We are headed back home.

We were too busy playing with family and friends to blog. Also, for some reason CA isn’t very IBook friendly so entries were not possible. But now we are in Nevada and it is a whole new world.

Our month of California included lots of playtime with family and friends but we still made time to explore.
We saw lots of happy California cows. We went on a tour of a cheese factory, the best was eating the happy cow cheese! We also have visited a few Gold Rush towns, no gold discovery on our part but lots of ice cream discoveries. We also visited the world’s oldest and tallest living things, the Redwood Trees. They are 323 feet high and 30 ft in diameter. The smell is sensational. We walked through a tree but our camera was out of batteries so you will have to imagine. Our family lives in the hometown of George Lucas, Star Wars fame, and we visited the exhibit and met some of the characters at an event. It was almost better than Disneyland! We watched the A’s beat the Red Sox at the A’s stadium. The kids participated in their first tail-gaiting experience. We enjoyed a few museums and our favorite is the Tech Museum in San Jose. We liked the space walk and the earthquake simulation the best.

A favorite was camping at the beach. Gabriel learned how to body surf! He is now a full-fledged DUDE! He fits in well with his long hair and tan.

Our recent explorations included Yosemite, Mono Lake and Death Valley. It is amazing how the landscape can change when driving a few miles.