Slide Rock State Park

One of our favorite vacation days was spent at Slide Rock State Park in Sedona.


It is on the site of a homestead and apple orchard planted in 1912 and is such a pretty little place.

The canyon and river are gorgeous!

Isaac couldn't wait to get to the top and try out the water slides.

We hadn't planned on how SLICK the river bed was. Jeremy took one step in and fell hard. Here he is with Jacob trying to plan best how to approach the water slides.

Noah did the best of all of us balancing on the slick rocks but he fell plenty of times, too!

We all laughed ourselves silly at our inability to stand up!

This is an enormously popular vacation spot in the summertime. I've heard you have to arrive and get in line before it opens in order to get in before the limit is reached.

I just couldn't get over the beauty of the red rock (and the handsome of my boys!).

The water was colder than we anticipated and once Isaac realized that he wasn't happy about getting in.

Spencer wouldn't go near the water. Stinker.

What a fun family day!

Spencer got this neat shot of all of us drying off before we left.

MOVIES:

This one is Jeremy and Jacob sliding down the chute!

Noah's turn!

Unhappy Isaac.

Jeremy "cliff" diving. It felt higher than it looks!

Fun, fun, fun! Noah slipping and sliding all over!

Dead Horse Ranch

For the next two nights we camped in a cute little cabin at Dead Horse Ranch State Park. It had bunk beds, a table, and a dresser inside, and even electricity! And it was only a short walk to the restrooms and showers. Nice.

Notice, again, Jeremy doing the cooking. Loved it!


We had encounters with a few creepy-crawlies while we were there. This walking stick was right on the porch. He was fun to watch. What was not so fun was the canning-lid-sized spiders we saw in the cabin and in the restrooms. I have never in my life seen such big spiders. All of us were freaked out a little (a lot) but somehow we made it through.

Look closely and you can see Noah's little friend.

Yes, Spencer has been taught knife and ax safety before. He just chooses to do it his own way.

At least it kept him busy and away from the ipod for a couple of hours. And we had plenty 0f firewood. Good Spencer.

Verde Canyon Railroad

On day three of our Fall Break vacation, we took the boys on the Verde Canyon Railroad.

On the website it said the Verde Canyon is one of the nesting grounds for migratory Bald Eagles and we were excited to see them! Unfortunately it wasn't nesting season and so we just got a picture of one of the nests. Some of the passengers saw an eagle but I was trying to get the camera out and missed it.

The round-trip took four hours so we had lots of time to just relax and enjoy the scenery, the train, and each other.

Jacob tried his hand as photographer and took this great shot!

Jacob also took this picture of the Verde River. It wasn't too verde (green) because of the big rainstorms a week or two earlier but it was still beautiful.

Isaac loved to be outside and watch the world go by.

There was a guide on the viewing deck and we learned some fun and interesting tidbits from him as we went along.

He pointed out the Indian dwellings nestled into the walls of the canyon and told us all about the native plants and animals.

After some cat naps on the return trip, the boys were looking forward to browsing the gift shop (they are so funny; the gift shop of any tourist attraction is the best part of the day for them!).

Isaac and Jeremy doing their best totem-pole impression.

When I saw this, I knew my mom would love it! She is always telling the boys to "Soar High" like an eagle instead of acting like a turkey.

So all the boys wanted to show Granny their wingspans.

Of course, Spencer is the family's first "real" Eagle, having just completed his Eagle Board of Review.

Isaac can soar high, too, with dad's help!

Canyon Motel

After touring Bearizona, we checked into our "room" at the Canyon Motel.

The owners have turned old railcars into motel rooms and we chose the "haunted caboose."

We laughed and laughed at the sign above the queen bed (it is an old railroading term that is explained in detail)!

It was a gorgeous evening in Williams.

The kids played football and then went on the swings while Spencer took a bunch of neat photos.

And I got a cute one of him!

It was fun to cook our own food and not have to eat out too much on this trip (at least for me...notice Jeremy is the one doing the grilling!).

The motel has a giant gas campfire and we had fun making s'mores.

After I took this picture of Spencer by the campfire, I said, "Oh no. There was smoke between us when I took the picture." Spencer said, "That's OK. It will just look like I'm smokin' hot!"

Sweet Jacob. Notice he's not smiling with his teeth lately. He has become self-conscious about his silver teeth. Maybe he'll lay off the candy.

The next morning we ate breakfast out on the deck and were ready for our next adventure!

Bearizona

The second day of our family vacation we went to Bearizona in Williams, AZ.

It felt like a cross between Yellowstone and Jurassic Park.

Imagine driving through the different cages and habitats at Jurassic Park but without deadly dinosaurs chasing you!

It was a tiny bit unnerving to be so close to the white bison...

But they were just so sweet and plodded along the road right beside our car.

After the bighorn sheep enclosure, a park guide met us to be sure we kept our windows rolled up and our doors locked while we drove through the black bear exhibit.

Awww, so deceptively cute! This guy crossed our path several times and we tried to keep our distance.

And this bear isn't nearly as dangerous. Isaac is trying to get him to share his honey.

We saw the most adorable white bobcat twins! They played with each other and then snoozed in the sunlight together.

Bearizona just opened last year and they have big plans for expansion. We loved it here and wouldn't mind coming back when there is even more to see!