august in review: vacation to national parks & vegas

It seems that I'm always running about 2 weeks behind on this blog/online journal. Life is just crazy hectic sometimes, but never as crazy as the first weeks of school--especially since we homeschool and especially this year since we were on vacation up until the day before! So I'm playing catch up, and this post is about our vacation, with my hubby's side of the family, to the national parks in Southern Utah and Las Vegas.


Warning: my attitude about this vacation was/is not the best, because a) it's insane, in my opinion, to tour Southern Utah in mid-August and 100+ degree heat, and b) Morgan was sick from the first day to the next-to-last day of the entire trip with a 100+ degree temperature. Fun time. Not.

Our first stop was Goblin Valley. It makes for some neat pictures, but quite frankly, I could care less to ever go back. This is Sarah posing on a "goblin".

Here's Emma (flushed from heat) posing between two goblins.

Sarah with cousins Deanna, Megan & Alex. Some of these pics are stolen from my nieces, since I was tending to Morgan most of the time.

Morgan in the van, obviously feeling like crap (here she had a temp of 102) and I was seriously contemplating just bailing and heading home, but instead we headed to Escalante (aka: no man's land).

While I sat in the motel room with Morgan, Google-ing fevers and giving her Children's Tylenol every 4 hours, the rest of the family hiked to Calf Creek Falls. It really is pretty, I would've liked to have seen it in person. (Megan, Alex and Nathan playing)

Gene, Emma and Sarah playing in the sand at Calf Creek.

Nathan, Sarah, Megan & Amanda sliding down the rock at Calf Creek.

That evening we all got together for dinner at a local diner for some sub-par food...

...and fun political conversation and commentary on the decor of the restaurant.

(Dave and Kathleen)

Emma, Lydia and Sarah sitting at the soda-fountain bar

Driving through Bryce Canyon on our way to Las Vegas was really beautiful, and right then Gene and I decided that vacationing in Cedar City during the Shakespeare festival and hiking and fishing in Bryce would be a really fine vacation in and of itself.

Sarah and Emma in front of scenery at Bryce Canyon that reminded us of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ride at Disneyland. Morgan, at this point, had a fever of 104 and was hardly eating anything.

The view from our room at the Monte Carlo Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas.

Our view as the lights were coming on. When it got dark & cool we headed out onto the street with Morgan in the stroller or we'd take turns watching her in the room. I did try taking her to an Instacare in Vegas, but the service was atrocious and we never got in!

Gene, Emma & Sarah in front of the fountain at the Paris Hotel Casino...

...and in front of the M&M Candy factory. That night Morgan broke out in a rash.

Next we drove to St. George (finally I got Morgan into an Instacare and turned out she had Rosiola, or so they think). We hiked the narrows at Zion Nat'l park. I really did enjoy that part!

Gene (with the goggles) with Sarah and Emma at Sand Hollow Lake (I stayed in the hotel with Morgan again while she slept), apparently it got really windy and so the water was choppy.

After pizza with the whole fam, we all stopped by the St. George temple to tour the grounds. Here's Gene with Morgan and Lorraine with her daughter, Gianna. It was the first time all week that Morgan actually smiled and started feeling better.

All of us on the steps of the St. George temple. It was gorgeous at night!! The next day we headed home.

Saying goodbye to cousin Lydia (who spent a good portion of her time rooming with Sarah & Emma) the night before she had to head back to New Jersey.