Sunday, October 19, 2008

A Breath of Desert Air

I had no idea that the desert could be such a refreshing place! We are in Moab, Utah, and have spent the last five days exploring and enjoying this amazing corner of our nation. Within 24 hours of crossing the state line, we hiked to Utah's most well-known emblem, Delicate Arch, in Arches National Park. It is truly a wonder of nature, and far more massive than we had imagined.


The kids have done so well with all our hiking. Josiah has gotten a ride everywhere -- whether strapped onto my back, up high on John's back in the Kelty carrier, or on our shoulders (for the shorter trails). Lucy has been a phenomenal hiker and has really enjoyed exploring these new places with us. Here are the kids, perched on the edge of Delicate Arch:

The views have been amazing. Here, John sits inside North Window in Arches NP, with Joey on his back:

I've also enjoyed experimenting with our camera's abilities. Fun fact: I've always dreamed of being a photographer for National Geographic, just so I could make a living taking photos like this one of Turret Arch:

Josiah never complained! He is such a content kid to begin with, so it shouldn't surprise me, but it was just such a joy to see him looking around and enjoying being outdoors. He played with rocks when we let him walk, and he squealed with delight at random times and 'sang' to us. Here he is looking like he is imitating the arch behind him:

Look, ma, a rock! Aren't they cute?

And the primary reason we have for being here at this beautiful time of year was for John to run The Other Half -- a half marathon down a portion of the Colorado River canyon. When he and a friend signed up to run, we figured we'd make a long weekend of it. (Does five days count as a long weekend?) Hey, as far as I'm concerned, he can run as many of these as he wants as long as the kids and I get to tag along! It's really fun to cheer him on as he finishes his races. Here he is just as he's about to cross the finish line in 1 hr 47 min:

Tomorrow we return home to Colorado, having been refreshed in an unlikely place: the desert.

2 comments:

Bloom Where You Are Planted said...

That's AWESOME!!! Your pictures are stunning!!

So glad that ya'll had a great time too!

By the way, you've got VERY cute kids!! :)

Unknown said...

I. Love. Moab. And. Delicate. Arch. Talk about heaven on earth. We have yet to take our kids there (it's an adult-only destination for us right now) but soon we will let them tag along!