A to Zion

Who wants a boring travel log? For our weekend trip to St. George I thought I'd try something different to record all the fun happenings. I know it's a lot of pictures, but this is so much faster than scrapbooking!

A - An Amazing Time

What can I say? It was such a fun weekend and I'm so glad we made time to go!

B - Bus

My kids love riding the bus (maybe because they don't ride it to school and they don't have to wear seat belts). The buses in the National Parks are so convenient and clean. It really made our trip enjoyable to hop on the bus and go to the next stop.

C - Cedar Breaks National Monument

Our trips to St. George are usually in the winter and Cedar Breaks is closed during those months. We made a special trip out there this trip because we knew it would be open. It is a beautiful place, so quite and peaceful. It was cooler (hovering around 73 degrees) and windy. After complaining all weekend of the heat, Enoch was shivering and whining about it being too cold. We only stayed for a bit because we had a long drive ahead, but I'm glad we stopped.

D - Dad's Favorites

Greg's favorites during this trip include the Sinawava hike and visiting Cedar Breaks.

E - Enoch's Favorites

Enoch's favorite thing was sleeping over at the condo. He shared a room with Gavin and was so exhausted each night he fell asleep right away and slept through the night.

F - Flyte

In the car, we watched movies (Happy Feet, Wallace & Grommit, Star Trek), but we also listened to a book on CD, Flyte. It's a great book and we all enjoyed it. In January, when we drove to St. George we listened to the first book in that series, Magyk. It seemed appropriate to continue the series.

G - Gavin's Favorites

Gavin was a joy most of this trip (except when he had too much sugar and morphed into Superhyper Gavin). He was very helpful with Enoch and Kate (especially in the car) and didn't argue with Mom and Dad too much. He enjoyed swimming, hiking and watching SpongeBob SquarePants and Survivor Man. His absolute favorites were Sand Hollow State Park and Marshmallow Mateys for breakfast. (These are self pictures taken at the Temple.)

H - Hot

Have I mentioned that it was hot. So hot. We chose this weekend to go because it was Free National Park weekend. We knew it would be warm, but we were still surprised at how hot it was. Enoch kept saying, "Mom, I'm just so hot!". The heat wore us out every night and the pool was a welcome after dinner tradition.

I - Itch, Swimmer's

I know, it sounds disgusting. When we entered Sand Hollow, they told us that swimmer's itch had been reported, but that only 7% of the population get it. It is caused by tiny parasites that live in the water and then burrow under your skin. It looks and acts like mosquito bites. It only lasts for a few days and then goes away and it not contagious from person to person. We figured if only 7% of people got it, we'd take our chances. Guess how many of us got it? Two - Kate and Mom. We only got one bite each and it wasn't really so bad. But seriously, what are the chances. With us, pretty good.

J - Journey, There and Back

We left for St. George on Thursday (July 16) at 10am. I can't believe how much stuff we crammed into the back of our van and we packed light! We stopped for lunch at Five Buck Pizza in Filmore. After eating, we let the kids play at the park and run off their excessive energy. We got to the condo about 3:30pm.
We left on Sunday (July 19). We finished cleaning the condo, had lunch and left St. George at 1pm. We visited Cedar Breaks, then drove and drove and drove. The kids were so tired of the car and their car seats. To say that Kate yelled the entire way home would only be exaggerating a bit. She was so sick of her car seat by Sunday evening. We tried to entertain and feed her, but she would have none of it. Gavin was great to help as much as he could, but in the end we just had to let her scream. We did watch some movies and ate snacks. We didn't get home until 8:30pm.

K - Kate's Favorites

Kate loved swimming more than anything else. There is a baby pool at the condo that is only 1 1/2 feet deep. She would walk around, splash and play with Dad. She also enjoyed sitting on the small step in the baby pool. She also loved all dirt and rocks she could find. She loved cuddling with Aunt Michelle. And she loved the squirrels.

L - Licorice

Our favorite car snack was a Costco tub of Red Vines licorice. The boys loved it, but Kate wouldn't touch it.

M - Mom's Favorites

I loved being with my family.

N - Naps

Unfortunately, Kate's naps were mostly in the car. She did get one in her pack-n-play at the condo. She held up pretty well and always slept deeply at night. I think there was too much to do and see to get to cranky.

O - One hundred and twelve degrees

Have I mentioned it was hot? When we would step out of the condo or car, it was like a heat wave directly hitting you. I know it could have been worse, but it was the first intense heat we have experienced this summer. Saturday was the hottest day of the year reaching temperatures of 112 degrees. Of course, this was the day we were at Zion. We stayed relatively cool by keeping close to the river and drinking lots of water. Shade was our best friend. We constantly refilled our water bottles and reminded each other to keep drinking. The heat sapped our energy and by bedtime we were all exhausted, Kate especially.

P - Pool

We spent every night at the pool. It would cool down to mid 90's by 8pm and we would hop in the pool to cool off. The kids loved it. Greg and I loved it. It was so nice. The pool water still felt like a bath tub, but it was better than being out in the heat.

Q - sQurriels

Okay, I'm cheating on the letter 'Q', but we have to remember the squirrels. I've never seen so many in my life. They were everywhere at Zion's. And so friendly. Or course, Enoch loved them. He would get so excited when one would come right up to his shoes. If he spotted one, he would run down the trail and tell everyone that a squirrel was there and to be quiet. He had a fairly long conversation with a women from Germany about how squirrels make nests and eat nuts. Kate also loved looking at the squirrels. When she would see one, she would dance back and forth and squeal. If one got too close to her, she would walk sideways and reach up for me. She would chase them and giggle. Everyone on the trail thought she was so cute.

R - Rock, Weeping

Actually the hike is called Weeping Rock, but work with me on this. What a fantastic, short hike. And so refreshing, as Enoch told me. This was the first hike we went on and it was great. Between two layers of rock (shale and sandstone, I think), water seeps through and rains down on the trail. It was so nice to have a little shower. The trail was lined with greenery and the hike was easy. Enoch ran the entire way up and most of the way down. Afterward, the boys walked down some stone steps to the river and played for awhile.

S - Sand Hollow State Park

This was our first visit to Sand Hollow. It is a man-made lake with red sand beaches. The water was warm and the sand was hot and silky fine. We all enjoyed wading in the shallow water. Gavin and Enoch went out as far as they could. Kate stayed close to the shore and laughed and clapped when the waves came up to her knees. The sun was very hot and there was no shade so we didn't stay too long; just long enough to know we want to visit again.

T - Temple

Sunday morning we again piled into the van and headed to the Temple. I love the St. George Temple. Appartenlty Enoch does too. The entire trip he kept asking when we could go to the Temple. Of course, once we got there he was a complete pill and kept running away from the family. But, we did go. We walked around the Visitor Center, spoke to the missionaries and took some pictures outsdie the Temple. It was a beautiful morning and I'm glad we made time to visit the Temple.

U - Uber Cool Kellys

My sister, Michelle, and her husband, Dave, joined us in St. George on Friday. We had so much fun with them. They were such a big help with the kids and the kids loved having them there. They were very understanding and tolerant of our quirky kids and we are so happy they joined us!

V - Virgin River Hike

Actually the hike is called the Temple of Sinawava, but the entire hike follows the Virgin River and 'V' is a hard letter. This hike was fabulous! It was cool by the river and almost the entire hike was shaded (a major plus when it is 112). We shared the trail with an amazing amount of German tourists and squirrels. The trail was paved and we could walk at a leisursly pace. It was so beautiful. We all enjoyed this hike.

W - Wildflower Festival

We didn't plan this, but we happened upon the Wildflower Festival at Cedar Breaks. The flowers were so pretty blooming in the woods. My favorites were the pink and purple, but the sunflowers were fun as well. Gavin took lots of pictures of the flowers, but this was my favorite. Cedar Breaks is full of opposties. Looking one way you see red rock cliffs and turn around and there are wooded mountains. It is stunning.

X - eXciting Memories

Lame I know, but we really did have a great time.

Y - Yikes!

On Saturday night, we ate at Don Pedro's. The food was good, but the service was so-so. We had to wait a very long time for our food. Luckily, we had many refills of chips and salsa. Enoch was trying to entertain himself by rocking onto the back legs of his big, heavy chair. We warned him many times to stop, but he kept going. In the middle of a conversation, we all heard a loud thump. The entire restaurant went silent. All we could see was Enoch's crocs peeking over the edge of his overturned chair. He hit his head pretty good and was more scared than anything. He cried for just a bit and sat on Dad's lap to recover. Hopefully, he will listen to us next time.

Z - Zion National Park

I'm trying to remember, but I think this was my first time to Zions. It is a beautiful place (much greener that I thought it would be). The kids had a great time exploring and learning about the rocks and wildlife. The park wasn't too crowded (despite it being Free National Park weekend) and it would have been perfect if the weather wasn't so miserable. Our family had a wonderful time and will have great memories of Zions.


Wow, that was long! Hope you enjoyed!