Her teacher's name is Ms. Willis. She and Laura have worked together before when Laura was there helping out.
Here are some pics of the day. I hope you enjoy. We're proud of her.
Rodney
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Kindergarten!!!
Mary Elizabeth claimed a big step toward 'big girl' status today when she walked into her Kindergarten class. She walked in like she owned it and never looked back. She took a backpack full of stuff, including the all important water bottle. She bought her lunch in the cafeteria, carried the tray and all that goes with it.
Her teacher's name is Ms. Willis. She and Laura have worked together before when Laura was there helping out.
Here are some pics of the day. I hope you enjoy. We're proud of her.
Rodney
Her teacher's name is Ms. Willis. She and Laura have worked together before when Laura was there helping out.
Here are some pics of the day. I hope you enjoy. We're proud of her.
Rodney
Monday, August 13, 2007
Pink Jeeps, Tlaquepaque, and In-N-Out
Friday and Saturday, August 3 & 4--
Friday was the final day of vacation in Sedona for us and we made the most of it. The girls had been noticing all the jeep tours through the week, particularly the Pink Jeeps. These tours took people up into the red rocks on various 4wd tours, some rough roads and other crazy rock hopping. So, we surprised them with this and a little final hoorah on Friday morning at 8. Our guide came by to pick us up. His name was Chip and he lived in Flagstaff. Chip was a very interesting guy. I was expecting some kid in flip-flops with an iPod, but we got a banker. Chip has a bachelors and masters degree in things that bankers do and has worked at 3 banks over the course of 20 years. He said he got fed up with it all and always thought that doing those tours looked like fun. He applied and got rejected. He waited a year and, through the course of 6 interviews, a driving test, and a written exam covering the ecology, geology and cultural history, he passed. Said it was the best thing he ever did. Anyway, he took us through the rocks for about 2 hours and it was the neatest thing we did all week. We stopped to look at different flowers, rocks, geologic formations, take a hike up to an overlook point and take some good pics. It was a lot of fun and the girls were thrilled.
Tlaquepaque is a fancy art gallery village in Sedona. There are nothing but generally swanky shops there with great art, sculptures, pottery and the like. I don't what else to say about Tlaquepaque, but it is worth walking through and would be better done as a date w/o kids - some of that stuff cost more than our house.
Saturday--According to Laura, one of her highlights from the trip was going to the book loft - 40% off moving sale. She and the girls went in and got some good books that they had eyed all week, but at 40% off. She hates to shop, but loves the deal. The final bright spot for the trip was going to In-N-Out in Phoenix. It is a burger restaurant that only does burgers, fries, and drinks and various combinations on that. It is a place to go if you are near one - they are only out west. Laura like a single animal style. I went for a protein, fries, and water on the way home, but got a single, fries, and choc shake when we got there a week before. The owner is a believer as the story goes and has put small font Bible verses on the cups, wrappers, and the like (John 3:16, Proverbs 3:5, Rev 3:20).
That is it for Sedona. I hope that you all have enjoyed our vacation and my recap of it.
Rodney
Friday was the final day of vacation in Sedona for us and we made the most of it. The girls had been noticing all the jeep tours through the week, particularly the Pink Jeeps. These tours took people up into the red rocks on various 4wd tours, some rough roads and other crazy rock hopping. So, we surprised them with this and a little final hoorah on Friday morning at 8. Our guide came by to pick us up. His name was Chip and he lived in Flagstaff. Chip was a very interesting guy. I was expecting some kid in flip-flops with an iPod, but we got a banker. Chip has a bachelors and masters degree in things that bankers do and has worked at 3 banks over the course of 20 years. He said he got fed up with it all and always thought that doing those tours looked like fun. He applied and got rejected. He waited a year and, through the course of 6 interviews, a driving test, and a written exam covering the ecology, geology and cultural history, he passed. Said it was the best thing he ever did. Anyway, he took us through the rocks for about 2 hours and it was the neatest thing we did all week. We stopped to look at different flowers, rocks, geologic formations, take a hike up to an overlook point and take some good pics. It was a lot of fun and the girls were thrilled.
Tlaquepaque is a fancy art gallery village in Sedona. There are nothing but generally swanky shops there with great art, sculptures, pottery and the like. I don't what else to say about Tlaquepaque, but it is worth walking through and would be better done as a date w/o kids - some of that stuff cost more than our house.
Saturday--According to Laura, one of her highlights from the trip was going to the book loft - 40% off moving sale. She and the girls went in and got some good books that they had eyed all week, but at 40% off. She hates to shop, but loves the deal. The final bright spot for the trip was going to In-N-Out in Phoenix. It is a burger restaurant that only does burgers, fries, and drinks and various combinations on that. It is a place to go if you are near one - they are only out west. Laura like a single animal style. I went for a protein, fries, and water on the way home, but got a single, fries, and choc shake when we got there a week before. The owner is a believer as the story goes and has put small font Bible verses on the cups, wrappers, and the like (John 3:16, Proverbs 3:5, Rev 3:20).
That is it for Sedona. I hope that you all have enjoyed our vacation and my recap of it.
Rodney
3rd grade!!!
Today was Emily's first day of 3rd grade. She was excited to go and went in like a pro. Here is a picture of her from today. She has her favorite teacher again, Mrs. Taylor.
Rodney & Laura
Rodney & Laura
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Omelet #37 & Snoopy...
Thursday, August 2--
As I remember today, we really didn't do much other than hang out and swim. Of course, we started the day with breakfast. There is a neat restaurant in Sedona called the Coffeepot Restaurant. It got this name b/c you can eat on the roof and see Coffeepot Rock. -Sidebar: Most of the rocks, particularly the red ones are a sandstone with lots of iron, thus the rust. Because sandstone is so soft compared to limestone and basalt in this area, it erodes quicker. This faster rate of erosion has yielded some neat shapes in the rock. There are probably a dozen or so named rocks around town... Coffee Pot Rock, Snoopy Rock, Elephant Rock, Chimney Rock... -- Anyway, this restaurant is home to 101 omelets and some other good things. I had #37 and Laura had #62. I don't remember much about hers, but mine had feta cheese, spinach, and avocados. Amazingly good! The coffee wasn't bad either.
The rest of the day we spent around the pool and the girls met some other little girls from Buffalo, New York to play with for a while. Here are a couple of pics, including Elephant Rock and one of Snoopy Rock (not the big rock, but the smaller one to the lefty - Snoopy laying on his back).
More tomorrow.
Rodney
As I remember today, we really didn't do much other than hang out and swim. Of course, we started the day with breakfast. There is a neat restaurant in Sedona called the Coffeepot Restaurant. It got this name b/c you can eat on the roof and see Coffeepot Rock. -Sidebar: Most of the rocks, particularly the red ones are a sandstone with lots of iron, thus the rust. Because sandstone is so soft compared to limestone and basalt in this area, it erodes quicker. This faster rate of erosion has yielded some neat shapes in the rock. There are probably a dozen or so named rocks around town... Coffee Pot Rock, Snoopy Rock, Elephant Rock, Chimney Rock... -- Anyway, this restaurant is home to 101 omelets and some other good things. I had #37 and Laura had #62. I don't remember much about hers, but mine had feta cheese, spinach, and avocados. Amazingly good! The coffee wasn't bad either.
The rest of the day we spent around the pool and the girls met some other little girls from Buffalo, New York to play with for a while. Here are a couple of pics, including Elephant Rock and one of Snoopy Rock (not the big rock, but the smaller one to the lefty - Snoopy laying on his back).
More tomorrow.
Rodney
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Trout, Swedish Oat Pancakes, & the Grand Canyon...
Wednesday, August 1--
Today we got up relatively early and left Sedona for Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon. The route that we took to get there is/was listed as one of the top ten scenic drives in the country. The highway was Scenic 89A and it wove about 25 miles up Oak Creek Canyon from Sedona to the top of a plateau and on into Flagstaff. If you are familiar with the drive from Gatlinburg to Cades Cove, this was similar with the twisting roads, but constantly up with steep walls on one side and large drops on the other. I think that mom about ripped a hole in the seat she was grabbing so tight.
We didn’t spend too much time in Flagstaff other than to eat breakfast at a place called Brandy’s Restaurant and Bakery. It was good, I had trout, eggs, and a Swedish oat pancake. From there, we left to go to the Grand Canyon. The drive to the canyon is nice all by itself, something like 70 miles at between 6,000 and 9,000 feet, relatively flat. The girls enjoyed it. It is a neat change of scenery, sort of high desert with absolutely no towns, just a few houses. We finally made it to the South Rim around 11AM. It was awesome to see the look on the girl’s and mom’s faces when they saw it. Same reaction that I had, total disbelief that the canyon is that big. We kicked around the rim till dark doing everything from going through visitor centers, art galleries, and just generally gawking at the beauty of it all. I have to say that it was somewhat frustrating to me having gone down 3 times to stay on the rim with all the tourists, especially the tour bus tourists. I don’t think that I have ever spent that much time on top looking down. I enjoyed using the binoculars to pick off backpackers on the way down or up and to see the Ranch and Indian Gardens. I think it made me realize how much I enjoyed it all and how proud I am at having done it. It just made me want to do it again all that much more. We all hiked down the Bright Angel Trail about 20 – 30 minutes and back up so that everyone could see what it is like to get away from the rim and all the people and all the buses. In just a few feet it was quiet, calm, and peaceful. I think that is what is so addictive. The strange thing about it all was that it was August 1 and the temp on the rim was about 65 degrees and the wind was whipping. The temp at the bottom was reported to be 100 on this cloudy day. We hung around and had dinner at the Arizona Room restaurant on the rim. It was good. We were so hungry from all the walking and hiking. Here are some pics of the day.
More tomorrow.
Rodney
Today we got up relatively early and left Sedona for Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon. The route that we took to get there is/was listed as one of the top ten scenic drives in the country. The highway was Scenic 89A and it wove about 25 miles up Oak Creek Canyon from Sedona to the top of a plateau and on into Flagstaff. If you are familiar with the drive from Gatlinburg to Cades Cove, this was similar with the twisting roads, but constantly up with steep walls on one side and large drops on the other. I think that mom about ripped a hole in the seat she was grabbing so tight.
We didn’t spend too much time in Flagstaff other than to eat breakfast at a place called Brandy’s Restaurant and Bakery. It was good, I had trout, eggs, and a Swedish oat pancake. From there, we left to go to the Grand Canyon. The drive to the canyon is nice all by itself, something like 70 miles at between 6,000 and 9,000 feet, relatively flat. The girls enjoyed it. It is a neat change of scenery, sort of high desert with absolutely no towns, just a few houses. We finally made it to the South Rim around 11AM. It was awesome to see the look on the girl’s and mom’s faces when they saw it. Same reaction that I had, total disbelief that the canyon is that big. We kicked around the rim till dark doing everything from going through visitor centers, art galleries, and just generally gawking at the beauty of it all. I have to say that it was somewhat frustrating to me having gone down 3 times to stay on the rim with all the tourists, especially the tour bus tourists. I don’t think that I have ever spent that much time on top looking down. I enjoyed using the binoculars to pick off backpackers on the way down or up and to see the Ranch and Indian Gardens. I think it made me realize how much I enjoyed it all and how proud I am at having done it. It just made me want to do it again all that much more. We all hiked down the Bright Angel Trail about 20 – 30 minutes and back up so that everyone could see what it is like to get away from the rim and all the people and all the buses. In just a few feet it was quiet, calm, and peaceful. I think that is what is so addictive. The strange thing about it all was that it was August 1 and the temp on the rim was about 65 degrees and the wind was whipping. The temp at the bottom was reported to be 100 on this cloudy day. We hung around and had dinner at the Arizona Room restaurant on the rim. It was good. We were so hungry from all the walking and hiking. Here are some pics of the day.
More tomorrow.
Rodney
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
$1 million dollars a month and the Haunted Hamburger...
Tuesday, July 31--
Today we spent the morning... swimming. It was hard not to swim in such a nice pool and the girls loved it. It also took a little edge off their energy. The water was always just about the right temperature and the air was almost always a little bit cooler. Most of the times we swam, the air temperature was 75 degrees, which seems a little bit cool for swimming, but the water more than compensated.
After lunch we met up with the photographer to get the family picture made. I found the photographer through Google. He was a nice fellow and took us out to a scenic spot that had the red rocks and mountains in the background and a juniper tree for the foreground. This was his special picture taking tree that he used in many pics. We haven't seen the results yet, but I suspect that he got something that is workable. I think he took 90 or so pics in 20 minutes using all kinds of combinations of us around that tree.
After the picture, we went to Jerome, Arizona, which was a mining boom town in the late-1800's and early-1900's. I tried to explain what mining was to the girls, but I could never communicate the concept. So, we went to the Jerome Mining Museum. It was actually a neat place to visit and I think it helped the girls understand a little more, though they were still looking for rocks they could buy with their money. The thing that I found fascinating about the museum was the scale model of the mountain they had. The mountain had the town in place on the side and then underneath it had the network of mining tunnels to scale. I think it said that were 200+ miles of mines under that mountain. It was really neat how they dug down and then sent tunnel out like spokes on a wheel from the main vertical, then went lower and did it again, and again, and again. They said at the peak of production, the companies were profiting a million dollars a month from the minerals extracted there. Eventually the town took the companies to court and sued b/c the mountain was settling (town sliding). The companies ended up paying each resident $58K as I remember. The history of the place is amazing.
After this, we wondered through the town, which is basically stores and homes along a series of switchbacks up the mountain highway - mostly hermit-like artists. Jerome is also the home of the Haunted Hamburger that Rachel Ray visited in here $40 a day show. It was truly a hole in the wall place, but it had a beautiful view of the Verde River Valley and they had awesome food.
More tomorrow.
Rodney
Today we spent the morning... swimming. It was hard not to swim in such a nice pool and the girls loved it. It also took a little edge off their energy. The water was always just about the right temperature and the air was almost always a little bit cooler. Most of the times we swam, the air temperature was 75 degrees, which seems a little bit cool for swimming, but the water more than compensated.
After lunch we met up with the photographer to get the family picture made. I found the photographer through Google. He was a nice fellow and took us out to a scenic spot that had the red rocks and mountains in the background and a juniper tree for the foreground. This was his special picture taking tree that he used in many pics. We haven't seen the results yet, but I suspect that he got something that is workable. I think he took 90 or so pics in 20 minutes using all kinds of combinations of us around that tree.
After the picture, we went to Jerome, Arizona, which was a mining boom town in the late-1800's and early-1900's. I tried to explain what mining was to the girls, but I could never communicate the concept. So, we went to the Jerome Mining Museum. It was actually a neat place to visit and I think it helped the girls understand a little more, though they were still looking for rocks they could buy with their money. The thing that I found fascinating about the museum was the scale model of the mountain they had. The mountain had the town in place on the side and then underneath it had the network of mining tunnels to scale. I think it said that were 200+ miles of mines under that mountain. It was really neat how they dug down and then sent tunnel out like spokes on a wheel from the main vertical, then went lower and did it again, and again, and again. They said at the peak of production, the companies were profiting a million dollars a month from the minerals extracted there. Eventually the town took the companies to court and sued b/c the mountain was settling (town sliding). The companies ended up paying each resident $58K as I remember. The history of the place is amazing.
After this, we wondered through the town, which is basically stores and homes along a series of switchbacks up the mountain highway - mostly hermit-like artists. Jerome is also the home of the Haunted Hamburger that Rachel Ray visited in here $40 a day show. It was truly a hole in the wall place, but it had a beautiful view of the Verde River Valley and they had awesome food.
More tomorrow.
Rodney
Monday, August 6, 2007
Shops, sculptures, and swimming...
Monday, July 30 --
We were scheduled to get a family picture taken today like the ones some folks have taken at the beach, except in the red rocks of Sedona. The monsoon season that I mentioned yesterday caused the photographer to reschedule since we were going to be out during that part of the day. So, with no other plan, we hung out around Sedona today, checking out the little shops, riding the trolley, and spending time at the pool. There are parts of Sedona, particularly the 'touristy' street that are like Gatlinburg (read this as derogatory) - little shops cashing in on tourists that don't know any better. Not to beat the town down, there are other parts of Sedona that are really neat that are basically high-end galleries with paintings, sculptures, pottery, and the like. There were some really pretty things on display, and after checking a few price tags, we decided that it would be better for us not to go in than to pay for breaking stuff. There was a sculpture for $258K, paintings were commonly ~$2K, and pottery bowls for several hundred dollars, but they were pretty. Of course all this pales in comparison to the natural scenery. ...Anyway, we rode the trolley around town to see where all it would go and then spent the rest of the day around the pool.
More tomorrow.
Rodney
We were scheduled to get a family picture taken today like the ones some folks have taken at the beach, except in the red rocks of Sedona. The monsoon season that I mentioned yesterday caused the photographer to reschedule since we were going to be out during that part of the day. So, with no other plan, we hung out around Sedona today, checking out the little shops, riding the trolley, and spending time at the pool. There are parts of Sedona, particularly the 'touristy' street that are like Gatlinburg (read this as derogatory) - little shops cashing in on tourists that don't know any better. Not to beat the town down, there are other parts of Sedona that are really neat that are basically high-end galleries with paintings, sculptures, pottery, and the like. There were some really pretty things on display, and after checking a few price tags, we decided that it would be better for us not to go in than to pay for breaking stuff. There was a sculpture for $258K, paintings were commonly ~$2K, and pottery bowls for several hundred dollars, but they were pretty. Of course all this pales in comparison to the natural scenery. ...Anyway, we rode the trolley around town to see where all it would go and then spent the rest of the day around the pool.
More tomorrow.Rodney
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Don't slop your dripper...
Sunday, July 29-
This was a busy day and we were worn out, but it was what mom wanted to do and it was one of her 'retirement' trips. More tomorrow.
This morning we wondered around the timeshare property trying to find the swimming pool and the creek. We found the creek easily, but had a hard time finding the pool for some reason. After a couple of trips around the loop we finally stumbled on the pool area. It was an indoor / outdoor pool with hot tubs inside and out. You could swim through a tunnel of sorts to go from one to the other and back. I don't know if it was the pools or the combination of the pools and the setting in the red rocks that made it so neat. Needless to say, we spent many, many hours there over the next few days.
Around 11am we left Sedona and headed to Clarksdale, Arizona for a scheduled train ride at 1pm. The train ride is called the Verde Canyon railroad and takes about 4 hours to complete. The train leaves from the depot in Clarksdale and travels up the Verde Canyon alongside the Verde River. The train has inside and outside cars and we could switch between them whenever. It was a really neat experience to ride the train up this canyon with a beautiful river in the foreground and big, high desert mountains in the background. The girls loved it. They spent a lot of time on the outside car b/c they could see better than inside. -- Sidebar: July and August are the monsoon season in Arizona. The humidity goes up (from 5% to 30 - 40%) and it storms most every afternoon. The storms are big, sometimes violent, and often have lots of lightning associated with them. -- So, when the train stopped in Perkinsville to move the engine for the trip back, we were treated to one of these awesome storms on the return trip. There was lots of lightning in the distance with dark blue clouds that made for some great views of contrasting colors. -- Sidebar: Perkinsville is a small, small community that use to be a single ranch a hundred or so years ago, just a small ranch, 20 miles wide and 30 miles long. As I understood the story, the wife sold the ranch for $1,800 using a quick claim deed while her husband was away gambling and so on. He came home to nothing, she bought a horse and a rifle and then left town.
After the train ride we went to the Blazin M Ranch for a cowboy dinner / dinner show. This was pretty neat and had the setting of a old west town, though sort of 'campy' if I may use that word, hopefully in the correct way. The dinner was good and show was a blend of humor, western swing / ballad-style music and some poetry - Rindercella. Have you ever heard this? The leader of the band recited this poem in its entirety, from memory. Read it to your family, it is funny.
This was a busy day and we were worn out, but it was what mom wanted to do and it was one of her 'retirement' trips. More tomorrow.Rodney
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Montezumas Castle...
Saturday, July 28--
Hey friends!
We are having a great time in Sedona with my family. We have done some neat things like ride the Verde Canyon railroad (4 hours), go to the Blazin' M Ranch (cowboy dinner show), get a family picture made, and go to Jerome which is an old mining town turned ghost town turned artist hideout. We ate at the Haunted Hamburger in Jerome which is one the places that Rachel Ray ate at when she did the $40 a day thing in Sedona. It was the best place we ate at since being here. Today we are off to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon.
Emily wants everyone to know that she had a great time going through Sedona and riding the trolley. Mary Elizabeth really enjoyed Montezuma's Castle, a National Monument that still has the dwellings intact in the cliff face.
Hey friends!
We are having a great time in Sedona with my family. We have done some neat things like ride the Verde Canyon railroad (4 hours), go to the Blazin' M Ranch (cowboy dinner show), get a family picture made, and go to Jerome which is an old mining town turned ghost town turned artist hideout. We ate at the Haunted Hamburger in Jerome which is one the places that Rachel Ray ate at when she did the $40 a day thing in Sedona. It was the best place we ate at since being here. Today we are off to Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon.
Emily wants everyone to know that she had a great time going through Sedona and riding the trolley. Mary Elizabeth really enjoyed Montezuma's Castle, a National Monument that still has the dwellings intact in the cliff face.
I'll fill in the gaps and add some pics when we get back - probably writing about what we did that day the week before. There are several more 'big' things left to do and I'll add then as we do them hopefully.
Rodney, Emily, & Mary Elizabeth
Rodney, Emily, & Mary Elizabeth
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