Canyonlands National Park

Our last hike of the trip was in Canyonlands National Park. We hiked to Mesa Arch. I believe it was only about 1.5 miles. It was a nice and easy trail. Jared and Dan took pictures of all the plants for Weebloes. Jamie and Lexi borrowed binoculars from the visitor center. There was a park ranger on the trail who was very informative. The Arch was beautiful. It was like a hidden treasure in nature. Our family had an incredible time together and saw some beautiful scenery. There is nothing that can compare to being outside away from phones, computers, PlayStation, TV- all the things that tend to steal family time.

Salt Lake City Temple Square

It was a relaxing day when we walked through Temple Square. The kids and I were playing around with taking pictures of flowers. The flowers are beautiful there.

Park City Fun!

Park City was a fun change from our Hiking Adventures. If you ask Jamie what her favorite part of the trip was she would tell you that it was the trampoline in Park City. She just about spent all day jumping with Lexi. They stopped enough to try the alpine slide with Dan. Jamie REALLY did not have a fun trip down the slide. She was a trooper for trying it though! Jared could not get enough of the slides. We lost track of how many times he went down. He would check in with us every time he went down. I think he enjoyed the freedom of doing it on his own. Lexi and Jamie played their first ever game of miniature golf. It was a great day for our family.

We Can't Forget Our Time at Park City!

Delicate Arch

Our trip was not complete until we hiked up to Delicate Arch in Moab. When we started out, the girls were less than thrilled when we said we were going to hike one more trail before we headed home to Texas. It was a 4 mile round trip adventure. The trip to the Arch was a steady upwards climb. I have to admit there were a few tears by Jamie all the way to the top. My response to her was "Jamie it has got to be right over the next rock. It will be worth it once we get there". Lexi was OK once I brought to her attention that we were dressed the same. We both had on pink shirts and jean shorts. She did not realize that until I pointed it out to her- funny the things that work with children. We began our hike at about 7:00 at night so that we could see the sun set over the Arch. It actually turned out to be a blessing that we started so late. It was not nearly as hot.
Once we got to the top, Jamie's tears were gone after a brief rest. She got a surge of energy and started enjoying herself. It is amazing how the beauty of this earth can affect our moods. It was so majestic and peaceful. Jared was in his element. He really does have a natural love of hiking and nature. I think he found about every possible rock to climb up. Lexi is a trooper. For such a young girl she has got a ton of stamina. If there were an easy and harder route up and down each rock she would opt for the most difficult. Dan was the one who encouraged us to even hike the trail. In my mind it was late, the girls were tired, and we weren't sure about the difficulty of the trail. He was definitely the leader of the pack on this trail. He continually pushes us past what we think we can do- and we are better for it! I love that man!