We were just driving out of Yellowstone lamenting the lack of wildlife when we saw a group of cars off the road.  We pulled off and saw a moose and her baby!  I will post pics if wifi is ever strong enough 😜

yellowstone was a big win!  We saw tons of bison and their babies, learned  about geysers and fumaroles and learned more Yellowstone trivia than anyone really needs to know.  

   

     
It is trial by fire for my parents with the whole RV thing! We have had our 2 biggest driving days and longest days “touring” since they got here.  They are hanging tough but I’m sure they won’t be heartbroken when they get some down time!  The kids are eating it all up!  They have learned so many useless… I mean awesome facts!  We went to the bear and wolf rescue after the park today (since we didn’t see any bears 😞).  It was very informative and kids all got to hide food for the bears.  Very fun to watch!!  Burgers over the camp fire then swimming at the KOA pool.  Life is good!

We made it from Moab, UT to Thayne, WY today.   J and I both woke up at 4:30 on our own!  Odd. We stopped and got treats in Salt Lake City at Zachary’s favorite bakery (all vegan and delicious!) and picked up my parents there too!  

   
 

Jason got a well deserved break from driving after dealing with construction & pouring rain & steep grades.  

 There was a batch of escaped cows to make my dad’s first drive more exciting!  We are staying at the Wolf Den.  Seemed appropriate :). Dinner was not particularly “campy” with filets and potatoes and salad.  My parents are sure going to be let down tomorrow when it is back to reality 😜

  
My parents are entertained by mocking us with their moose glasses.  That’s cool!  We are embracing the strange RV folk life 😜 

  

  
The kids made my mom follow her around playing follow the leader to get her steps in for the day but that pic is on my camera and it is too complicated for me to upload so that will be tomorrow’s entertainment !

Right now we are in Moab, Utah.  This morning we visited Arches National Park and went on a .3 mile hike to view an arch.  It was a cool arch.  I took two shots with Dad’s camera from two different angles and then we started hiking back to the car.  After we got to the car, we stopped to see a thing that looked like gems coming out of the ground except brown.  Then we went back to the car again and went to the sand dunes.  It was really fine sand.  There were rocks that we were able to climb up and me and my brother climbed up a big one that was probably 20 feet.  I only climbed 10 feet up and my brother went like 5 feet.  There was an arch.  I thought it was almost hidden because there was a piece of it that was being blocked by another piece of rock.  After that we went back to visitor’s center to watch a short video about the national park.  Then we got sworn in for our junior ranger badge.  When you get your junior ranger badges you normally get a badge or a pin.

At 2:00 we went on a Jeep tour.  At first I was in the back and it was the bumpiest spot.  There were no windows and nothing to cover the top of you up. We stopped and he showed us a dinosaur rib bone and a meteorite that looked like a puck.  Zach said ‘they use meteorites for pucks?’  And then we saw dinosaur footprints in the rocks.  The last footprint we saw was as big as 5 or 6 of my hands.    Then we got back into the Jeep.  3 minutes after we got in, it started pouring on us.  It flooded the area.  There was a lot of rain, but it was only raining for 2 or 3 minutes.  Right after that it actually got really bumpy and I noticed it was actually the bumpiest spot.  There was nothing we could not go up – we could literally go up straight.  We went the river.  It was the Colorado River. It was so long. It goes through the Grand Canyon.  My mom didn’t let me go too far to the edge.  My mom thought one of the guides was crazy.  She thought he was going to fall off because he went to close to the edge, but there was actually a ledge and his hat almost flew off when he was so close to the edge.  It would have gone into the Colorado river.  Then there was a picnic.  I ate a few strawberries and I drank a lot of water.  After that we went back to driving and then we went up a really steep thing.  Right before it ended we went up Potato Salad Hill that went straight up!  He said there was a zero chance of flipping but I don’t think that is true, but he said there was some chance that we wouldn’t make it up… but we did!  Someone broke their wrist and cancelled their sunset tour so we said we would take it over and then it started raining so we didn’t.  Then I went kayaking in a little pond at the RV park.  Then we came back and we went over to the fishing pond and we noticed that we could feed the fish.  My mom gave us each two quarters to feed the fish.  We had a great time and then we came back to the RV and watch a show of Different Strokes.  We had a great day!

As we drove into Page it was all dark.  I felt half asleep.  We were watching some TV.  When we got there we put on pajamas and went to bed.  In the morning we could see everything.  There was a lot of beautiful things!  I also saw a prickly pear cactus and a jackrabbit.  It was really big!  I thought it was a cottontail rabbit, but I knew it was different because it didn’t have a fluffy tail and it had longer legs.  We were getting ready to go on a slot canyon tour.  I couldn’t wait!  We were kind of rushing to get there but when we got there there was a time change so instead of being almost late we were an hour early.  That gave us lots of time to get ready.  There were lots of other people there but we got split into groups and our family was in one group with no one else in it except the tour guide.  We took lots of pictures.  Sometimes it was hard to take pictures because there were so many people in one of the slot canyons.  In the second slot canyon there were lots of ladders and nobody else was in there except our family so we could take lots of pictures easily.  It was called Rattlesnake Canyon but we didn’t see any snakes. 🙂  The third canyon was called Owl Canyon and we actually saw 3 owls.  One was a baby owl.  It was really cute!  Right after the tour ended and we were in the RV it started pouring down rain.  We had lucky timing!  From the tour we went to the RV park and went to the hotel that was right near it.  We were in the RV park so they gave us a key to get into the pool.  When we were in the pool it was freezing cold!  I was so cold I wanted to get out immediately.  The first thing I did to keep me warm was I got out of the pool for a minute then jumped in and it was warmer but I knew that wouldn’t last so I swam back and forth down the pool.  Then I started doing things like handstands and pushing off the wall and trying to swim without using some of my body parts.  On our second day in Page, AZ we went on a boat ride.  On our way to the lake we go to ride in the boat when they were pulling by the jeep from our campsite.  When we got to the ramp it was really big!  When we were going down the ramp they pulled the Jeep part way into the water.  I thought that was going to wreck the car, but it didn’t.  Then the boat got unhooked and Mark drove the Jeep back up to the parking lot.  We were on the boat and having a little bit of trouble keeping it in place.  Then when Mark got there we were off.  At first we were going slow and then we went fast.  We were boating for a little while then we went to a small beach.  We ate some snacks and played in the sand for a little while.  The sand felt really soft – it was awesome!  If you tried to go in the water there was a huge drop off and it was super duper cold.  Eventually I got in.  It took me a minute to really start swimming because it was so cold.  Then I swam across to a little island and back.  Luckily I had an extra life jacket so I didn’t have to wear a freezing cold life jacket while I was on the boat.  After that we headed to lunch.  It was really good.  With some of our leftovers we got feed the carp that were outside the restaurant.  When we were about to leave, it started raining so we went back in for a few minutes.  When it stopped raining we left – we had to wipe off the seats so they weren’t all wet.  As we were leaving the restaurant we saw some REALLY BIG house boats that all had slides off of them – some even had two!  We stopped at another beach for a few minutes and played.  We reapplied sunscreen while we were playing on the beach.  Then we left and headed back to the ramp.  When we were getting the boat out, Mark would make the boat go fast to get it on the trailer.  Then we left and headed back to the RV.

By, Zach

Today we went on an extreme off roading jeep tour.  We went up slants that looked physically impossible!  So to start the day we went to arches national park.  We went to a viewpoints and we went on a hike.  It was pretty awesome!  But the best part was the jeep ride.  I loved it!  So we went to the playground( us kids )  i forgot my hiking boots.  My parents were not happy.  I had to run back but nope no keys they were with my dad “-“.  When i went back my dad had the keys in his pocket.  Then I saw the jeep it was pretty stunning!  The shocks were top of the line, the wheels were giant, and it had a cage thing to protect it if it rolled over.  We started out going up what I thought was cool but not compared to the rest.  It got pretty crazy.  I couldn’t have asked for more.  We stopped 2 times.  Then we had a picnic with brownies and strawberries and cool whip I couldn’t have any of it.  I didn’t care too much.  Then our tour guide Richard’s sunset tour got canceled so we took it.  When we got down we checked the weather and there was a 36% chance of thunder storms so we didn’t do it.  Then we are to now.

By: Zach

As we got to the jeep it was amazing.  There was a seat just for kids.   There were a lot of handles.  There Were no windows just an open area where the windows usually are. I thought that was amazing.  It was a bumpy ride I thought that was fun.  It was an off road vehicle.  We went up rock with almost no slant.  Only the front  of the jeep was covered so when it rained all of us in the back got wet, my dad was completely dry because he was In the front.  We went up a rock called potato salad rock, It was straight up hill. It was a little scary but I knew Richard (the tour guide ) would never do anything that would hurt us ( or would he dun dun dun).  We were gonna keep going but it started raining.  I never got to sit in the way back, but I don’t really care. Also in the middle we got a little picnic.

By, Zoe

What a great day!  Woke up and everyone had lovely breakfasts.  Then J and I sat out in the zero gravity chairs (thanks mom and dad!) and had coffee overlooking Lake Powell.

Kids are loving being waiters/waitress so I never had to get up for a refill :). The slot canyon your was everything we had hoped it would be! So beautiful!!  We had a great time taking pics.  Our guide, Nate, was awesome!  Only drag was sometimes he would just ask us for the camera then take the pic so it would be ideal (in his mind).

We saw owls and hummingbirds but no snakes (score!).  We also saw pretty cool jackrabbit this morning.   When we got back we stopped at the resort to see if the pool was packed.  We suspected it would be since it was raining (again!).  Turns out pool is outside and empty :). We left the rv parked in a bus loading zone (after checking with the front desk, of course) and went in. The pool may not have been super warm, but the view was great!!

    We went down to the hot tub after kids were beginning to freeze. Half of the reason we went to the pool was to use the wifi to upload pics, but the wifi is too weak!  I am already struggling to keep up with this…

We made the trip to Williams, AZ – the city where the train that is going to take us to the Grand Canyon is located.  We got there in the afternoon and my sister and mom went to check-in at the hotel while I was ‘docking’ the RV.  When Zoe and Mom came back to pick us up – they were riding in a horse carriage.  When the guy said ‘backwards step’ the horse would actually do a backwards step!  I thought that was pretty cool.  And then we went to eat at a buffet – it was surprisingly good.  After that me, my brother and my sister went swimming at the hotel room.  After that I had to go back to the RV in a wet bathing suit.  I was freezing my butt off while my brother was like ‘let’s go to the playground, let’s go to the playground’ and I said ‘I’m freezing my butt off, no’ and then Zach is like ‘Ya, that is the whole point’.  We went directly to the RV where I took a hot shower and then we watched an episode of Different Strokes.

The next morning we got up, went back to the buffet and then went to the gun show.  It was a pretty cool and fake gun show but right before it ended one of the guys fell in horse poop after being fake shot.  After that he stood back up and then fell a different way.  After that, we took Lucky to the kennel, went back to the RV and then had to sprint full speed to the train.  It was pretty fun.  We met a really nice guy who was basically our server.  We would go down from the ‘Grand View’ and then we would turn and it was like the place to get the ‘free’ food was hidden.  You could get Coke, Sprite, Diet Coke, apples, oranges, bananas and there were these cookie things.  It was a really nice day.  Me, my brother and my sister played Top Trumps.

Then we got to the Grand Canyon, we took a bus tour and then after 3 minutes I had to go to the bathroom.  There was a 5 minute line and then I went. I ran out of the bathroom and I tripped and fell and hurt my knee.  It was bleeding and it really hurt.  After that we had a really nice person take a picture of us and then we had to leave.  And then we went to another view of the Grand Canyon except just another spot.  After the tour we went to dinner at El Tovar.  They had okay food.  And then we went back to our hotel and went to sleep.

We woke up at 4 something to see the sunrise.  It was at 5:18.  It was really cool.  Before the sun was up, the Grand Canyon looked like a lake and then when the sun was up it was about 1 mile down and then hundreds of miles long.  After that we went to eat breakfast at El Tovar.  It wasn’t open yet so we played American trivia.  And then we got a seat next to the window.  It was an okay breakfast.  After we left me and my mom went to get candy while my brother and sister and dad went on a hike.  While we were walking back to get the candy me and my mom saw 5 or 8 mule dear behind our hotel.  And then we met up with my Dad, Brother and Sister then we went on a fossil hike.  There was a ranger guy named Ty and he was really nice.  We found hundreds of fossils on the hike.  It looked like there was a little tiny baby dog, but it was actually something that worms made.  Then he swore us in for our junior ranger badge.  The we hiked back down and went to a store and got badges that we could sow on to our clothing.  (I have a loose tooth).  Then it started hailing and then we went to El Tovar to eat (AGAIN).  Then we went to the train and then I spied on these two fake robbers that were on train.  And then the robber came up and said ‘give me all of your valuables’.  After the robber came we got back to the train station and went to get lucky.   He was very happy to see us.  He licked us bunches.  One of the guys who shot the guy into the horse poop gave us one of his broken, shot bullets and it was also a whistle.  Then we got on the RV and left to come to whatever this place is [Page, AZ].

On the drive to our next spot we watched the hockey game and one or two other shows.  After that, I fell asleep with my dog on the floor almost under the table.  And I don’t remember the rest of the day because I was asleep.

Yesterday we left from Mesa Verde National Park.  My mom left a little before the rest of us.  I ended up helping my dad with where to go.  We thought my mom was at Enterprise but she wasn’t there yet.  We were having a tough time getting into the parking lot.  We drove around and came back 3 times.  We called my mom once or twice to figure out what to do.  Eventually the road went empty and we crossed and parked next to the building.  It was hailing while we were driving! When we did get there my mom had a bunch of good snacks.  On our drive to Monument Valley we went back through a lot of the places we had already been through.  When we got into new land it was very beautiful.  There were a lot of rock formations that looked like real things.  When we got there we realized that we could look out the front window from our site for post card worthy pictures.  We ended up taking a sunset tour with Ernie (a very nice man!).  When we were driving I saw a dead horse on the side of the road.  No one else saw the horse except for me.  We pulled onto a dirt road that had a sign that said No Trespassing, but it was Navajo land and our tour guide was Navajo so we were allowed to go in.  A lot of dust came up when we were driving!  He hit just the right amount of bumps to make it fun.  Our first destination was the Three Sisters.  Part of The Lone Ranger was filmed there.  When we were driving we saw multiple houses and horse stables.  Apparently 15 families live inside Monument Valley!  We made up a story that a Yeti lived there and smashed everything where there are rocks on the ground, and we found several caves that looked like he could live there.  At one point we went to a place where Logan and I swam down sand dunes.  The sand was tough at some points but very soft under.  It was one of the most fun things we did there!  In the end we got to ride in the back of Ernie’s truck back to our campsite.  Then we watched an episode of Different Strokes and went to bed.  I think that may be one of the best days we will have!

– Zach