I woke up halfway off of my bed.  I was happy to remember that my mom was making breakfast sandwiches this morning!  I couldn’t wait to get to the kitchen.  I had a canadian bacon and veganese breakfast sandwich on an english muffin.  It was great!  We went on a hike to find the hidden arch.  We took one path but if we kept going we would have fallen off a cliff.  We went back a different way and there it was!  Hidden in plain sight.  Us kids hiked up and got a picture. There was another family there.  The girl was very adventurous!  She was 4 and she hiked up as high as you could go.  It was the same family that did the Balcony House tour at Mesa Verde with us.  We climbed into a little cave that Lucky jumped up 4 feet to get into. Me and my mom raced to the RV.  I went the wrong way so I lost.

By,

Zach

Yesterday we went to camping world, painted desert, and the petrified forest.  We were at camping world for like 1 hour and a half.  At first we were just getting some toilet cleaner then we ended up hearing they had free hotdogs in a hour. We ended up looking at a few RVs one had a island (a piece of counter not connected to the rest).  By the time we ended up getting in the RV we could get hotdogs so we did.  Then we left for they other places.  We got to the painted desert and wanted to go in but my mom and dad said no.  Then we went to view points.  I got to take pics with the good camera!  I am not the best in our family but i did ok.  Then we finished the junior ranger thing.  When we went out there was a double rainbow.  I said that if you put your mouth in the right spot it would look like you were spiting out a rainbow.  We got to go to the gift shop.  When we came out i was holding a piece of petrified wood.  We DIDN’T STEAL IT.

By,Zach 

Today we went horseback ridding!  At first they were just walking but then they trotted.  My mom said usually they just walk and almost never on a ride gallop.  When we began i was pretty scared to be honest.  I thought it would be dry but nope we went through a whole lot of water.  We took a break and took pictures of old houses in the rock.  I felt a lot better going back although i kept on hitting my balls so it hurt bad!  When we were going back the horses galloped!  I have rashes behind me kneecaps. When we got back we went to the RV to get apples.  Some liked them some didn’t.  I sort of wish we had a farm with horses.

J and I got up super early so we could shower in the hotel. It was nice to spread out a bit! I was hoping to upload pics with their wifi but it was not that strong.  Got kids up and moved RV to employee lot so we didn’t have to pay for 2 more nights that we won’t use.  Breakfast buffet was great too.  (I know.  It sounds like BS, but it was!). There was a cute little gun show then we went back to RV to get cameras, etc and drop Lucky at the kennel.  At that point we were sprinting to the train! Doors were shut already but they made it happen and we got on.  Phew.  That would have been a huge bummer!  Train ride was really fun.  We played top trumps, had live musicians traveling around and kids had snacks.  They were pretty thrilled about the “free” cans of pop! When we arrived at the canyon we had a short bus tour.  I quickly realized why this is not my favorite place.  No guard rails!!  Well, some, but not all over like I would prefer.  The first stop I was so stressed watching my kids near the edge that I asked Jason to cover then waited in line for the bathroom just to pass the time till the bus would leave!  Zach was sweet and kind even though I’m sure he wanted to make fun of me.
I can’t figure out how to save as draft so I’m posting now and will finish tomorrow!

Huge win!! We did a beautiful hike from the campground in Monument Valley then came to the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel.  We had to do a 2 night package so we could get into the canyon and spend the night (#1 for Jason on this trip).  There was an included dinner buffet. 😁😁. Buffets are generally not my thing and they are particularly rough for Zach.  After Zoe and I checked in at the hotel we went over to check out the buffet to see if it would be doable for us.  The chef was AWESOME!  And there was live music during dinner.  Wild.  Anyway we went to get boys from the RV and there was a horse drawn carriage waiting out front.  Zoe wanted to take it so on a whim I asked what it would cost. $5.  Seriously.  It was worth more than that just to see Logan’s face when he realized we were in the carriage!  Dinner was amazing.  Steak and baked potato for Zach plus 4 bags of Lucy’s cookies!  He was pretty happy.  They also had homemade pesto and gluten free pasta.  😃. After dinner we went to the hotel pool and kids had a great time while J and I relaxed a bit.  Plan was to all shower in hotel room but Zach was in there for so long we canned that plan and went back to RV after Zach’s.  Watched Different Strokes and called it a day.  A great day at that!

We went on tour guided hike.  It was over a canyon 600 feet tall.  The neighbors had to hike 600 feet down then 600 feet back up just to see their neighbors!  They were really high up in the mountain so they had to use foot and hand holes to get up to where they lived.  We went down 100 steps and then we went back up.  We climbed a ladder that was 32 feet and me and my 2 siblings went up faster than one girl could go up, but she was pretty darn terrified.  When the guy was talking I tripped and everyone looked at me and said “are you ok?”  I said I am fine.  I almost fell into the Kiva!  After that my mom wouldn’t let me go through a spot where she thought I would fall into the kiva so me and my siblings had to wait until my dad got to where I was.  Then we went through this tiny little tunnel then to the next room.  Then he gave a 5-8 minute speech. Then we went through an even smaller tunnel where you had to crawl 1 foot then walk for 1 foot.  We did that about 3 times.  Then we had to climb a ladder that was about 10 feet I’m guessing.  Then there was a really steep and curvy pathway to get out of the cave and off all of the path.  After everybody was out and off the paths, the guy gave me and my siblings all a sticker.  It was a really fun tour!  We went back to the RV park and got bathing suits and putters and balls.  When mom and dad were sitting in the hot tub relaxing we played putt putt.  After I did the putt putt course 1 1/4 times me and Zach got in the hot tub.  We overflowed it.  About 10 minutes after we got out and went to the RV.  Right when we got to the RV it started hailing.  We got to the RV and just the right time!

We pretty much feel like we won the lottery with Monument Valley.  The drive in was crazy beautiful.  So cool that as we got to the RV park J said if we turned around now it would already feel like a win!  Here is a pic through the windshield… 
 

It appears that part of the grand plan for this trip is to expose all of my weaknesses to my kids. 😁. Anyway, Zachary learned about Mesa Verde National Park and wanted to visit.  It was a bit of a hassle to get in because our RV exceeds the max length to go into the park.  We rented a car in Cortez and J drove the RV and I drove the car up to Mesa Verde.  The RV park was right across the highway from the Visitor center so once we were checked in I ran across with kids to get Jr. Ranger stuff and tickets to tour a cliff dwelling.  I did my homework on this one and knew that we for sure wanted to do at least one ranger led your and that tour could be any tour EXCEPT Balcony house. As you may have guessed, the ONLY tour they were running the day we were there is Balcony House. (Damnit!!) Zoe really wanted to do it.  I really didn’t.  Jason was back on the RV working so I was torn.  I told the ranger I would be back…  Did I mention that I REALLY didn’t want to do Balcony House???  A huge mob of people came in after I got out of line and I panicked that we wouldn’t get any tickets if I didn’t hustle.  I bit the bullet and bought 5 figuring I could always bail later.  We picked J up and back into the park we went.  The drive was moderately stressful because it looked like sheer cliffs off of the side and that is exactly what stresses me out!  The first place we stopped for lunch was out of just about everything so we went up to the top.  Right by a self guided tour spot that would be an easy walk!  Unable to sway the kids to just do this one, we were off to the balcony house 😁😁😁The ranger have a very clear description of the hike and the need to climb a 32 foot ladder while having the view to 600 feet below on the canyon floor.  Seriously!  I gave Zoe my jacket and got the keys from Jason (who was now driving because he knew I wasn’t loving the drive up).  My new plan was to nap in the car while they went on the tour.  I couldn’t do it!  Looking like a chicken in front of my kids is low on my list so I ran up and caught them.  It was very cool and I am glad I went on the tour.  With that said I was quite nervous the whole time.  Especially when Logan fell a few feet from ending up in a kiva!  Anyway, I survived.  And I didn’t cry (another woman was crying going up the ladder).  So I kind of win.  But my kids totally knew I was nervous 😁 When we got back we went in the hot tub while kids played putt putt.  Then they joined us for a few.  We got out just before lightning started.  Kids watched Different Strokes for a bit while we tried to plan our next day.

It rained again last night!  This whole “desert” thing is kinda a farce.  

Jason and I were up before 6 and he needed to do some work so we went into Mancos.  We blended in like oil and water… Bringing 2 laptops and a printer in here…  

What an adorable town! And they had great coffee.  And breakfast burritos.  Kids started their days on screens.  Everyone is happy. 😃  Work is done and we are on our way.  I took the car back to Cortez and stopped at Walmart and City Market.  I made one other stop, but what happens in Colorado stays in Colorado! 😜
The drive to Monument Valley was amazing!  Logan and Zoe both had turns riding shot gun and loved it!  Valley of the Gods is appropriately named.  

We got on the road a little later today thanks to an extended visit to Camping World!  We got a few necessities then went to the other side and checked out a bunch of RV’s and campers.  At that point we had been there long enough to get free hot dogs and chips for lunch (score!).  The drive from Albuquerque to The Petrified Forest was the most beautiful drive yet.  Every turn was more beautiful than the last.  It made the drive go quickly despite more rain! (Isn’t this supposed to be a desert??).  We did a brief tour of a Uranium mining museum and learned a bit about mining. *yawn*. It was a nice break from the ride but I may have enjoyed this more…

  
Upon arriving at the Petrified Forest we stopped and got Jr. Ranger books for the kids.  They were excited until they realized they had to write.  Too bad.  This is counting as school!😜 We were super impressed by the Painted Desert.  Kids really wanted to hike, but it was the first stop on a 28 mile drive so we said no.  We got tons of pictures (too many, I’m sure, but tough to limit it!).  We stopped at just about every turn out on the route and didn’t regret any!  The hike through the Blue Mesa was particularly lovely. By the end of the 28 miles we were wishing we had more, but the rain made us skip a few things at the end.  (Again… A desert?) There was a bunch of Petrified wood by the ranger station so kids had a chance to check it all out before they became Jr. Rangers.  Then we saw a rainbow.  The whole thing!  Pretty cool.