The Grand canyon is very GRAND!!

We got back from Germany June 27th and Blake got back the 1st of July just before Sydney's birthday party. The following week we took a much needed (sarcasm) vacation down to the south of Utah where we got to experience the fun of the Zion national park, the Grand Canyon, and then Bryce canyon! In that order....it was completely MAGNIFICENT!!! Our first stop was Zion National Park. It took us a mere 5hrs to travel there, so when we got there we stretched our legs then set up camp. After camp was all set up we took a little adventurous hike up to the top of a mountain that overlooked the campground, also said to have had a indian house on top of the hill. Much to our disappointment, there was just dirt and a historical marker saying that once there was a house. And then we took the kids swimming in the creek that flowed through the canyon which is what gave the beautiful canyon is greenery and life that would otherwise not exist. Here are some cute photos to show just how much fun we had!!!

At the river floating down, no Blake and I did not get in...it was cold, and we didn't know when we would get our next shower....we're getting too old!

The kids were finding lizards all over the place, it was the highlight of the hike. That night the kids said the heard coyotes, but Blake and I never heard a thing.

The next day we hiked the Emerald pools trail, and we were pleased with our choice. The kids did really well for a 3 mile hike. Once we got to the top there were tadpoles in the pools and the kids had fun watching them.

Well there you have Zion National Park!!! Wonderful place to visit...the shopping looked really fun too!!

Off we went to the Grand Canyon (north rim) which was only 2hrs away, and we got to drive through Colorado City....nice place to live...if you're a Polygamist. I was intrigued!
We camped out 2 nights just outside the gates to the North Rim. And here are some more pictures of this beautiful place.

Anybody got a hose...cause this girl needs a bath!!! But then again...camping will do that to you. It is going to be hard for me to get back to actually bathing my kids and making them look presentable after this summer of none stop camping.

Hot dog's and s'mores is on the menu...the staples to camping!

Such a happy little camper!!

I have always had a fear of taking our kids to the Grand Canyon, and this kid made me realize just exactly why. He was just crawling on all the rocks, and going nuts near the edge, about gave me a heart attack.

Working on their Jr. Park ranger badges!

Best buds!

Beautiful ending to a really great day!!

Our last trip was up to Bryce Canyon. We stayed 2 nights there and finally got a shower! It was FABULOUS!!! The first night we hiked about 3 miles with the kids down into the canyon and the kids did sooo amazingly good! Sydney walked the whole time, talking mostly about bears! Never knew a kid could say so much about bears. We also while we were there met a few ppl to make the time more fun! The kids had really fun with their kids, so much fun that when it was time to leave all the girls were in tears when they said good bye. It was actually humorous to me how fast kids can make that good of friends in such a short period of time.

Our hike down to the canyon.

Our reward for climbing to the top (aside from the obvious)!

The kids also got their Jr. park ranger badges here as well. The parks have a program where they learn about the wild life and such things in the park. In the Grand Canyon they learned about rocks, and in Bryce Canyon they got learned about indians, which the kids were really interested in. The lady that taught the class brought a lot of indian made things like a teepee , bow and arrows, a rice grinder. Most of the stuff was very hands on.

Our last night before we headed home the girls (Olivia, her friends and Sydney) put on a show.

Our drive home was very pretty. We drove through Escalante and north for a bit. Very Scenic.

It was the perfect trip to come back to the states to. Very memorable and fun for our family! Definitely grateful for the opportunities that have been presented to our family!