Lover’s ability to “whip up something” for each meal will never cease to amaze me. Today it was bacon, cheese and eggs, cooked on a ragtag stove in our Airbnb, with questionable tools. And they were di-vine.
The kids played well this morning – as always I am impressed by how creative they can be with just a few toys. We brought our magnatiles and they played with them for like two hours this morning! Lover and I figured out the next week or so of our trip and made our reservations. We are heading up north into Idaho next, and then over to Oregon.
I took the kids to the playground across the street, and they had a lot of fun playing for quite a while. The weather was strange, strong sun, cold wind, pleasant in the shade until the wind picked up. The kids explored the playground and then Javi walked around the little lake and then the kids all played in the runoff, and every single one of them fell into the water and got soaked!
We headed back to the condo and got everyone changed, and then I made up some sandwiches for us to bring on our hike and collected everything else we would need. It’s always a process for six people!
We got on the road around one, Lover was able to sign off early since he worked late yesterday. We drove along one of the most beautiful roads I’ve ever experienced (although I still think Berthoud Pass ranks in the #1 spot). Lover oohed and aahed, and I snuck in glances in between edits of my book. I’m rounding out the edits for my second book, and the end is so close I can taste it! I rewrote a big scene and I’m so much happier with it now.
We found our road and turned off onto it – this one doesn’t “require” 4Wd, but there were still quite a few treacherous spots. But after Canyonlands, nothing can shake us! 🙂
We unloaded, sunscreened up, and headed out on our hike. I was really excited to do this one. A lot of the slot canyon hikes are too long or too difficult for the kiddos, or too claustrophobic for me. This one was perfect, especially since the high rock walls shaded us from the afternoon sun, and there’s a creek that runs the length of the canyon – perfect for splashing in to cool down! The whole canyon was pretty deserted – there was one other car when we got there, and two when we left. We had the place to ourselves and the kids could play to their hearts’ content, climbing, echoing, splashing, etc. They had a blast and so did we! Javi went the whole way there without getting his feet wet, and Lover was very impressed. Javi also climbed super high – higher than all the other kiddos!
On our walk back, we discussed word endings and etymology. Lover would say a word (like zoology) and the kids would guess what it meant. It was a fun way to pass the time and they learned lots! At the end they climbed up a little waterfall which was super fun.
On our way home I updated Lover on the changes I made in the book, and read him a couple of the scenes I’ve rewritten this week. The kids watched a movie and we stopped at a picnic site to eat our dinner. The weather was perfect on the drive back and we once again oohed and aahed – and this time I took a few more pictures. 🙂 Route 12 & 14 take you through Cedar Bluffs, Dixie National Forest, Bryca Canyon and the Grand Staircase. It’s almost too much beauty to process! There are some cool stone arches to drive through, and so much to look at.
We got back and had a yummy dinner, and then watched part 1 of Matthew from the Bible Project. It was a great day!