Spring Break in Moab

Another weekend, another Moab trip.  We headed down there for one more trip this spring.  We could go back again and again, but there are so many other places we'd like to show the girls this year - Bryce's Canyon, Zion, etc, etc.  Even so, we were talking about how many times we have been there, but how much there still is to see.  We have only seen a fraction of the area.  We had a great time with Jim and Rebecca and their family.  The kids had an absolute blast with their cousins and we all had a great time riding the side-by-sides together.

After pulling into town Thursday night, we hit the sack and headed out early Friday morning to ride the Dome Plateau trail.

The trail is known for its old mining cabins, caves, and incredible views at the end.  Our first stop were these old creepy cabins, where we pulled up for lunch and the kids went exploring.

Just a short hike down the hill we also went exploring in some old mine shafts.  The girls and I skipped that part.  Too dark and scary for the little ones.

Our next step were these natural rock formations which were perfect for a little climbing and some photo opportunities.

Piper skinned her hands on the red rock climbing down and it threw her off for a good hour.  Now, two weeks later, we are still putting bandaids on her two fingers every night.

After another hour or so of riding we came to the end of the trail.  We had no idea what we were in for, but it was an amazing view of the canyon, the Colorado river, the La Sal mountains and miles and miles of red rock.  The drop off was pretty steep, so the girls stayed in their car seats and Uncle Jim almost peed his pants because of the heights.

 This is the panoramic view, which doesn't do it justice at all.

We acted like dorks and scared Jim by getting too close to the edge.  

On the way back we got a little bit lost.  Okay, a lot lost.  We probably rode for an extra two hours.  We were in front leading the way and holding Jim's GPS and we'll say it was a combination of me not understanding how the "bread crumbs" on the GPS and Josh zooming along in too much of a hurry to look at the trail markers closely.  So, when we finally pulled up to the car, the girls were DONE with the side-by-side (and we kind of were too).  It was close to dusk, we were tired, hungry and absolutely covered in red sand.  We went straight to a Mexican restaurant for dinner.  No showers, so we washed faces and hands in the bathroom.  Good times.

The next day, we headed out on another trail called Snake Creek.  This was perfect - a little more low key and you get to cross the creek about 15 times on the way up.  Just enough splashing to make the kids laugh.  

Jim and Rebecca and fam in their side-by-side.  They also have two people ride on their four-wheeler.

 The girls loaded up and ready to go.  Baby doll likes to ride on the side-by-side too.

A little more than halfway up the trail, we dropped Jim and Josh off to hide eggs for the kids.  The rest of us rode about 10 minutes up the trail, then turned around to come back.  This is an annual tradition for Jim and Rebecca's kids, but the girls were pretty shocked to find out the Easter Bunny had come to Moab and hid eggs on the trail.

 They looked for eggs in trees and bushes, behind rocks, and up on the side of a hill.  Jim told his kids to watch out for two snakes he saw earlier (liar!).

After some time splashing through the creek on the way back down, it was time to stop for lunch . We found a spot by the creek and pulled up shop.  We ate, then had fun throwing rocks into the creek.

The girls found another use for the side-by-side.

We got back in time for a real shower before dinner at Eddie McStiff's.  Then it was an early bedtime for us.

 

The next morning we woke up on Easter.  The Easter Bunny brought baskets to the Holiday Inn where we were staying.

After breakfast, we hopped in the car to head back home to SLC.  We made it back in time to have Easter dinner at my parents where the girls got more baskets and got to find a few more eggs around the house.  All-in-all, a perfect weekend.

Dreams

Every morning when I go in to get the girls, I ask Piper about her dreams.  Josie is usually too cranky so I leave her alone.  This morning she wanted to talk, so I asked her.

Here's what they said:

"Piper, what did you dream about last night?"

"I dream about a rainbow."

"Really, what was the rainbow doing?"

"She was looking for the unicorn.  And the unicorn was looking for her baby".  Note: This lost mommy/baby thing is a reoccurring theme in her dreams.  Not sure what that's all about.

"Josie, what did you dream about last night?"

"I dream about .... MUD!"

"Really?"

"And the mud had a face.  And it was looking for its mommy!".

Oooookay!

Moab - Again!

We took a weekend off, then headed back down to Moab again.  We are apparently making up for lost time because we have another trip planned at the end of the month.  Josh has decided that it's his happy place and there are some stressful things going on right now, so we will go with whatever works!

We left the side-by-side home this time because I was running the Canyonlands Half Marathon and we knew we would be short on time.  I ran this race three times in 2000, 2001, and 2002.  I loved being back.  I will be back every year, whether I'm racing, jogging, or cheering for someone else.  It's just fun.  I really wanted to run a sub-1:30, but it didn't happen.  I ended up with a 1:31 and was pretty happy with it.  I had been sick all week leading up to the race and I just didn't have a lot of pep in my step.  I ended up 10th overall female and realized that I have dropped my time on this course 35 minutes over the course of 13 years.  

The best part was getting caught up with an old friend from high school, Hailey.  We haven't seen each other in years and we got to spend the morning together riding the bus up the canyon and catching up.  Here are a couple of pictures at the finish.

Josh took the girls to the park while I was running.  The race finishes right in a big play area, so they had a blast playing in the nice 65-degree weather.

We spent the rest of the day eating good food, swimming in the hotel pool, and driving through Arches National Park.  We got some great pictures of Balancing Rock with the girls.  We tried to explain to them how the arches and rock formations are created with wind and water and somehow it got jumbled up in their minds that they were "water mountains".

 The views in Moab just never get old.

The girls kept asking when we were going to Moab.  We told them over and over that we were IN Moab.  Finally, Piper said something about our other hotel and we realized they thought Moab was actually the hotel we stayed in earlier this month.  It's confusing being a three-year-old sometimes!

The next morning we were back in Arches and we decided to hike up to Delicate Arch.   Neither of us had done that before and the sign said it was three miles round trip.  No big deal!  I thought it was just a walking path, but it turns out it was a real hike up some slick rock.  We weren't really prepared and didn't have our backpacks to pack the girls in, so we ended up carrying them 80 percent of the 3 miles.  However, it was really worth it to see.  The view up at the top is breathtaking and its a shame it took us so long to do this.  Delicate Arch is on our license plates in Utah!

 The girls were troopers.  They stopped and picked up some rocks for souvenirs and we saw some lizards and little rock chucks.

We drove home with tired, sleeping girls and made it back to SLC just in time for Conor's birthday dinner with my family.  All in all, it was a perfect weekend.  Can't wait to go back.

Moab Time

Last weekend we took our first trip down to Moab since being back here in Utah.  We bought a side-by-side to play in (sort of like a 4-wheeler, but bigger and safer) and we finally got a chance to use it.  I had some reservations when Josh told me he wanted to get one.  I admit that I sometimes get annoyed with motorized vehicles plowing around the dessert.  Plus, there is the obvious safety concerns.  But it has a full roll cage, fits two carseats perfectly in the backseat, and we can easily hop out if we need to while Josh goes up anything sketchy.

We went down with the Naisbitts, who also have one.  Josh and Brett have been dreaming about these trips for a long time.  While we were there, they were reminiscing about the first time they met in Moab in 4th or 5th grade.  They are like an old couple, always talking about the old days.

On Saturday, we rode a trail called Fins 'n things, which was near Slickrock.  The weather was perfect (more than 60!), and the girls had a great time.  It was probably an hour too long for them and they somehow fell asleep back there at the end despite all the bouncing around.  They also had fun playing with Leah and Hayden.  We stopped for a picnic for lunch and they ran around the slick rock for awhile.

All the kids ready to go.  Leah is just four days older than the girls.

 The Nasibitts.

 Josh at the wheel.  I got to drive a little bit too.  Too fun.

 Stopping to scale a little red rock.

 The girls in our side-by-side.

 Holding hands.  And of course baby doll got to come on the ride too.

We're headed down to Moab again this weekend for a half marathon and hopefully to do a little more riding.  We hope that we'll get a lot of use out of this thing over the summer.

Letters to Josie and Piper (from Ms. Jamie)

The girls absolutely love their preschool teacher this year.  Ms. Jamie can truly do no wrong.  They love their other teachers, but Ms. Jamie takes the cake.  Today she sent home a nice letter about each one of them.  When I read Josie's letter to her, she said "I want you to keep that and not sell it!".  Okay, noted!

Here is what she said.

Josie's letter from Ms. Jamie
Josie is such a sweetie.  Having her in preschool is always a joy.  I look forward to her bright smile in the morning.  Josie is a little team leader.  She is always reminding friends of the rules, and reminds the teachers not to forget things.  Josie has a great memory.

Josie has made great progress so far this year.  She knows all her basic colors and shapes.  Her counting skills are doing great and are improving each week.  Josie is great with puzzles.  I have been challenging her with more complex puzzles and she is doing well.  Some things we are working on with Josie are cutting skills, tracing and opposites.

Josie really enjoys being in class.  She loves being with her friends.  She is getting really good at taking turns and sharing.  Josie loves music time; she sings her little heart out every time.  She also enjoys instruments and experimenting with them.

Thank you for having Josie in preschool this year.  She is so much fun to have.  I look forward to a great rest of the year with her.

Sincerely
Jamie Shaw

Piper's letter from Ms. Jamie
Piper is so adorable.  I am so happy to have her in my preschool class this year.  I love to hear what she has to say to me in the morning about her baby.  Piper is the little mommy in our class; if there is another child crying she is the first to make sure they are okay and gives a hug if needed.

Piper has done a great job so far this year.  She knows all her basic colors and most of her basic shapes.  Her counting skills are doing great, she loves to find random objects and count them.  She has fun sorting and can sort by color and shape.  Some things we are working on with Piper are cutting and tracing skills, along with opposites.

Piper loves all her friends but always has to make sure Josie is in her sight.  Piper still has a hard time taking turns but is improving every day.  She loves to participate in group discussions, always eager to tell us what is on her mind.

Thank you for having Piper in preschool with us.  She is so much fun to have around.  I look forward to a great rest of the year with her.

Sincerely
Jamie Shaw

The Winter Doldrums

Winter has been rough for us around here.  Our first winter back has really slapped us in the face.  January saw mostly single digit temps, weird fog and smog, a lovely ice storm and the ever-present inversion.  February has been a bit better and every time the temps climb into the 30s we leave the house without jackets.  Woo hoo!  I have looked at the temperature in New Bern, much to my dismay, several times.  I have to remind myself that summer here is much more pleasant and it is just a trade-off we have to accept.

The best thing about winter, of course, is skiing!  The girls have been up 3-4 times.  We still have to ski behind them and hold them under their armpits, but they're getting more and more comfortable on their skis.  Last time we went up, we even ventured up the "big lift" because the kiddie hill was ridiculously crowded.  It was a loooong trip down with our backs hunched over holding under the girls' armpits and quads engaged.  Ouch.  Trust me, it was harder than it sounds.  Josie had a bit of a meltdown halfway down and I had to have a bit of a pep talk to convince her to get down the rest of the mountain.  I'm sure this will all pay off in a few years when we can all ski together.

Josh and I have also had some fun skiing together, just the two of us.  So fun to go up, up, up out of the inversion and see some sunny skies.  Definitely one of the best things about being back here.

The girls also started a little tumbling class at the Rec Center, which is a great way to keep them active and get some exercise in the winter.  I don't know how much they are learning, but they are having fun.

We are also starting swim lessons on Saturday, which will hopefully get them all ready to go before summertime. :)