Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park was amazing... We caught the afternoon sun there which highlighted the hoodoos dramaticly. Such a beautiful place...

We asked an older lady working at the gift shop where the best place to get home made food and she directed us out of the park to a place called "Bryce Canyon Pines". She told us to have pie while we were there... turns out the place was "real america"... so cute... joke books on the table, a counter with tractor seats on posts... Mike had an elk burger! but the real treat was the pies... we had both coconut cream and banana-blueberry cream pies... amazing! We would definitely recommend this place... while were were scarfin' down our dinner in comes...(que the cowboy music)... this twenty something authentic cowboy... granted, he rode his fourwheeler in and not his trusty stead, but this guy was legit... He was dusty, had the Wrangler Jeans on... big belt buckle...a ten gallon hat...AND... cowboy boots...WITH SPURS! I secretly got a picture of him with my cell phone (because my daughters were too embarrassed to take a picture with him!) for Kasey's friend Justine who has vowed to marry a cowboy... it was so funny... Justine, we found your man, at the Bryce Canyon Pines! Just remember to order PIE!

Arches National Park, Moab Utah!

Arches Natl Park was amazing! Over 2000 arches! We spent the evening in Moab after our park drive and hikes... such a cute little town... it was a great day!

Camping in the high desert is interesting!

Sand Dune Arch was my favorite...

Delicate Arch...

Balance Rock...very cool...

Thats us!

Up and Over the Rockies!

Here's the new truck... now travel with us! We were absolutely amazed at te diverse terain as we went over the Rockies. We saw Buffalo and big horned sheep... lots of black tail deer as well, but the landscapes were amazing! We drove from Colorado Springs to Moab, Utah. Here's a picture of Stephen, Moira, Mike and me just before we left the Springs. Dear friends. So glad we had some time with these sweet people and their kids, Spencer and Bo. Stephen and I met before we turned one and have been friends ever since.

I posted a few pics of the landscape change so you could see what I was talking about... also, all major rivers were at flood stage... including the Mississippi and the Misouri but I didn't take pictures of those...

Colorado Springs, Colorado!

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days but we had our first emergency. During our 14 hour drive across Kansas on Wednesday (flatland) our mpg started getting worse (down to 7 mpg) and mike started noticing the truck was shifting hard. About an hour before our destination of our friends, house the allays in Colorado Springs where we planned to stay two nights the car started skipping a gear so it was either barely running orbit like 7000 rpms. This GREATLY concerned us. Michael was able to nurse it along with the manual shift thing but it clearly was "not right". We made it to Steve and Moira's by 7:30pm but the next morning Steve and Mike left the trailer in their driveway and took the truck to the only Ford dealership in town. They confirmed the transmission trouble and were able to fix it but couldn't confirm that it would happen again which really freaked us out knowing we were spending the next two weeks in the rocky mountains! Our truck had trouble in the flatlands of America, what on earth was going to happen at 12,000 feet where there arent any dealerships? This is when I realized that though I griped about it earlier, mikes desire to get a V8 would be a much smarter option to do what we wanted to do so... Call it crazy but we traded the fixed V6 Explorer in for a V8 white crew cab pickup. It took most of the day to work out the details but we actually were able to stay on schedule, mike and Steve got to shop cars all day, the girls and I got some downtime home with Moira, Spence and Bo, clean up the trailer and do some laundry and now we're in a better vehicle with plenty of power getting about 3-4 mpg better which makes a world of difference with today's as prices (FYi...cheapest we have paid thus far is $3.35). I look at this whole "snafu" as a God thing. We were only spending 2 days on the whole trip in a major city with friends. This couldve happened in the middle of no where in 106 degree heat like we experienced in the plains. We could've been stranded in some motel while mike found a solution BUT God worked it out that we were totally well cared for at the Allabys, there was a huge dealership like 15 minutes away AND our friend Dave Dariano who owns a Ford dealership in NY was available to counsel us (and give us the inside scoop!) thru the transaction. If it was going to happen, Gods timing was perfect! It ALWAYS IS! (good lesson for when I think it doesn't!) we left the next morning ON TIME and spent the day crossing the Rockies up to 11,000 feet with no problem. It was a gorgeous day! We made it to Moab Utah in time to set up and see Arches National Park for the late afternoon. THANK YOU Lord Jesus for caring for the little and BIG concerns of our lives and being trustworthy with everything!

Day 2-3...Great Smoky Mountains (Tennessee)!

Monday morning we woke up in the Great Smoky Mountains. So beautiful! It was supposed to rain today but the Lord saw fit to give us a beautiful day! We were in the park by 8:30am and drove the 11 mile Cades Cove loop. We realized we hadn't asked the Lord to "show us His glory" yet so Krissy prayed and literally within a few minutes we saw a turnoff for a primitive baptist church and there on this little dirt road we spotted a black bear in the woods! So cool! Evidently God decided to show off a little as the cutest little baby bear came into view followin' his Mama. It was so sweet. We were the only ones on this road, and the only ones to catch this amazing sight! (see picture below). THEN, to top it off, as we pulled out onto the main road another bear darted right in front of us!

We came early enough and did our driving loop that we still had time before the crowds came to rent bikes and peddle the loop! It was awesome! It was a bit overcast by then so the heat was held off... another GOD thing! As we're pedalling we came across a pack of cars all jammed in the road. We (of course) buzzed through the vehicles to find that everyone was watching THREE more bear! One of which was a baby bear that we watched go up and down a few trees like a little monkey. It was sooo cute! SO, SIX Black bear in all... three adults, three babies! Again... I believe God was just showin' off... and we enjoyed every bit of it. So the bike ride was a GREAT workout... I loved every minute of it, though we returned a bit sweaty. Here's the sweet rest of the day... we had lunch back at the trailer, mike took a nap and the girls and I went to town, rented tubes and floated four sets of rapids... we had so much fun we did it THREE times! The river went right by the campground so we stopped at every passing for a snack and to report to "Dad". We had a GREAT time! The water was FREEZING but the rapids ROCKED! Kristin tipped over a few times but KW and I stayed afloat for the entire time! We got a little beat up... on a few dozen rocks but it was a great way to spend an afternoon after our bike ride! Mike took the below picture as we passed the campsite. After dinner the girls went swimming in the pool while I cleaned up a bit. We're making so sweet memories, that's for sure.

2011 EPIC SUMMER ADVENTURE!

We left on Saturday morning for our 2011 Summer Epic Adventure. It was a dreary morning but we were flush with anticipation at the onset of our trip. It took 5 hours to get to Gettysburg where we toured the battlefields where the Union held their ground against the Rebels. We had all just watched Jeff Daniels movie a few days prior so the details were fresh in our head. So cool. Amazing that NY was represented in every battle. GO New York!

We traveled on from there to the Staunton VA area to an awesome campground in Verona. The next morning we met our dear friends, the Jones' for breakfast! Complete with FRIED BOLOGNA (Clearly a southern thing!) It was a really sweet reunion as we haven't seen all 5 of these dear people in years.
After saying goodbye we headed to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee... we chose to stay in the Townsend area (the quieter side of the Smokies!) which was evidently a good thing. Had another GREAT campground, our site was right on a river that people tubed on... clearly we had to try that... and it was awesome! Had a rope swing right off our site... Krissy was the first to take a ride as we all did! Great time!

"He Held His Peace"

The day when Jesus stood alone
And felt the hearts of men like stone
And knew He came but to atone
That day “He held His Peace”

They witnessed falsely to His word,
They bound Him with a cruel cord,
And mockingly proclaimed Him Lord;
“But Jesus held His peace.”

They spat upon Him in the face,
They dragged Him on from place to place,
The heaped upon Him all disgrace;
“But Jesus held His peace.”

My friend, have you for far much less,
With rage which you called righteousness,
Resented slights with great distress?
Your savior “held His peace.”

From “Streams in the Desert”