Weekend in Arches

When my family was here we decided to do a weekend trip to Arches. It is my favorite part of Utah and every time I go, I fall more in love with the place. The drive down was very interesting. The big kids watched movies and slept but the little boys both screamed in unison for about an hour straight as we drove through a snow storm in the mountains, that was fun! 

After we got there we checked into the Super 8 Motel. I usually wouldn't stay at a Super 8 because just the name makes me think of bed bugs and dirty towels. However, this hotel was really really great! We had a family room that had 3 beds in it, a kitchenette and a dinning area. It worked out really great for our family. However, staying in a hotel room with 4 children under 4 and trying to keep them from keeping every other guest in the rest of the hotel awake was challenging! 

We headed out to the park on Saturday morning and it was a little chilly with a light rain. The sun ended up coming out and the day was perfect. We first stopped at the visitor center to watch the video about the park and get our passports stamped. 

 

 

Our first stop was at the Windows section. This is a fun spot and has a lot of good photo opportunities. Elliott and I decided to stay in the car during this portion of the trip with a sleeping Leo. We took the chance to sneak in a few selflies. He is such a happy boy, I miss him!! 

  

 

  

    

We didn't think it was a good idea to try the 3 mile hike to Delicate Arch in the drizzle and with 4 children so we did the short hike to the viewpoint. Dave got the pleasure of carrying Elliott up the trail and Elliott was not really into it. He screamed the whole way up. I carried him back down in the Ergo and he was much more happy about that. 

 

  

Quinn photo bombing the picture here. Just like the rest of our trip, getting pictures of these two characters is always a challenge. 

   

 

The rain stopped around lunch time and we had beautiful blue skies the rest of the day. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elliott was over it. 

 

 

We went to Canyon Lands National Park for the first time this weekend. It is only about a 30 minute drive through cow pastures (literally cow pastures where the cows can roam on the road if they want) and it is a really pretty drive. I can't believe that we have been to Arches two times before and never went here! It is absolutely beautiful and we will be going back for sure. 

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

We went for breakfast on Sunday and then headed home in time to watch the Superbowl. It was a really great trip and I am glad we could show them my favorite part of Utah. 

Nature is good, life is good. 

Family Visit #1

Last week my mom, sister and nephews came to visit. It was AMAZING to have them here and I hate when they have to leave, the visits are never long enough. I wanted to share these two pictures of Elliott just because he is so stinking cute. He was such a happy baby the whole trip (except in the car, he doesn't like the car) and his smile is the sweetest. 

 

We had a great great week and kept ourselves very busy. They got in on Wednesday (Leo's birthday!!) and we had a mini little party for Leo but he wasn't feeling well and didn't act very interested. When we went to pick them up from the airport Quinn was so excited and they were the happiest cousins ever to see each other. I love how much they love each other. 

On Thursday we went and ate lunch at the Prairie Schooner restaurant. At first Quinn was crying and screaming and did not want to eat there because it was dark but then she came around. After lunch we went to the Treehouse museum and the kids had a great time. 

Elliott is a super funny kid. This picture was taken when Danielle went upstairs and he obviously did not like it. 

On Friday we went to the Air Force Museum and had lunch at Costco. Taking 4 children to Costco during nap and lunchtime is challenging to say the least but we all survived and even got a few churros to help everybody make it home. Then we left for Arches National Park that night (that will be a separate post on its own). 

On Monday the kids had their pictures taken and they seemed to turn out great, I can't wait to see them. Then we went bowling at the base bowling alley and everybody had fun. On Tuesday we took the train to the Ogden Train museum and Nolan loved that. Then on Wednesday we drove down to the Museum of Natural Curiosity. It was very warm outside and we got to enjoy the outside trails that I had not seen before. It was a very packed week but we had a great time. It is not easy to try and get a picture of 4 children looking at the camera at the same time, so keep that in mind!

The kids loved seeing each other and I loved having my family here. I hope you enjoy the pictures and will have more posts about Leo's birthday and our weekend trip to Moab. 

 

 

This was the reward the big kids got for being good during our picture taking. They even sang Happy Birthday before eating their cupcakes. 

Family is so so good, life is good