9.30.12

This weekend Jeff attended a MS conference in Sedona so the kids and I tagged along for the weekend. We really only had Saturday to do a few things because Sydney didn't want to miss her Primary Program she had today. So this morning we drove back home while Jeff stayed to finish up today and tomorrow or else I would've wanted to explore more. Sedona is about 2.5 hours away and looks very different than Phoenix. Now that I think about it, I didn't see one cacti in Sedona. Sedona is beautiful. Red rock, cooler weather, clouds coming and going, and great outdoor activity to enjoy. So besides going swimming in the hotel pool and jumping on the beds in the room, we did two fun things: we hiked to Devil's Bridge and visited Slide Rock State Park.

1. Devil's Bridge. I saw it on the internet when I was researching what to do here and I knew I had to do this. The only thing questionable was the kids of course. But we've learned in AK to take them with us anyway and make the most of it (i.e. hikes, camping, fishing, whatever seems like fun but could be a headache with kids). We drove Jeff's Outback and got to the spot where you stop your car and hike for miles or off road and get as close as you can. We decided to put his all-wheel vehicle to the test and off road. Luckily we didn't get stuck or get a flat tire. It was pretty rough and bumpy. Mostly Jeeps that we're off roading it, but we did see a Kia and I'd be surprised if it made it out okay. We got close enough that it was only a mile hike to the bridge. It was a decent trail too. At the end it was steep and rocky, but our kids being the crazies they are, they flew up these steep rocks. Levi took some good crashes, but took it like a tough 2 year old. The packing, hiking, kids, complaining, fighting, singing, peeing in the forest, etc was worth it. I absolutely love seeing amazing natural creations like this was. It's breathtaking and puts me in awe that something can be created like this over years and years. Here are some pictures.

 Nice shady nook get a snack and have some water.

 Gorgeous day and loved the panoramic view

 There it is, Devil's Bridge. AMAZING.

 Jeff and Levi on the bridge

 "Am I gonna go across that???"

 Me and the girls. I urged them to hold my hand and they fought against it. I have a strong grip though.

 As we came back across the bridge we saw a couple and actually got some family shots. Gotta take advantage of that!

 Hiking can take the life outta us kids. 

#2: Slide Rock State Park. After Devils Bridge we got some lunch and headed to this state park. All of us were tired, but we knew if we went back to the hotel we weren't gonna see anything else. We headed up the road about 7 miles to this State Park I saw online. Another thing I thought looked like a ton of fun and thought the kids would enjoy. There lots of walking around here but we went right to the natural "water slides"as we called it and spent a few hours cooling off. When I say cool I mean it. The water was freezing or so I heard. I didn't go in. I would've but I'll explain why in a little bit. Another natural creation, a slippery, 30 ft long sandstone chute (a.k.a waterslide) hollowed out by icy waters of Oak Creek. 

 A picture inside the park.

 All three of them

 Jordyn by herself

 Petting the river snake. By the way, that Jeff isn't holding that snake. Just in case you thought he got tatted up ;)

 Jordyn even went more even though she was freezing. She blew me away that day. Usually the apprehensive one but today she was a stud.