Friday - Day 152 - A Zion Hike

We hiked Zion National Park today.  It was just enough to give us a little taste of what was to come. 

 Enthusiastic teenagers ;)

We hiked about two miles with only a few complaints from the teenagers.  It was pretty and well worth the huffing and puffing at the end.  

I didn't develop any revelations about hiking or being one with nature, but it felt good and after being on vacation for a week overeating, I embraced the much needed exercise. 

My sister, hiking with joy!

  

We found ourselves sitting on the grass near the Zion Lodge, resting, snacking letting the littlest boy burn off some energy.  He was offered a French fry from other visitors sitting near us, they laughed and smiled at his cute little antics.  He took that French fry with vigor and ran away grinning.  

It was a poignant day filled with harmony and happiness. The family, cousins reunited, growing older.  Time together is often limited and far apart. 

We ate dinner at home, all together, at the long dinning room table in our beautiful, temporary Zion home.

Thursday - Day 151 - A Zion Home

It was time to move on this morning, our vacation only half way completed.  Our next state destination was Utah, but a detour to Hoover Dam would be our first stop.

Hoover Dam was immense.  The history behind the construction, how hard and long the men worked was intriguing.  How could they work in the dessert heat with only two days off a year?  If anyone complained or called in sick due to illness they would be fired.  The men were strong, tough and rugged.  

Hoover Dam

The sweat and tears of our ancestors created something society would use for many future years to come.  It is a legacy. I wonder how much their pain and labor is taken for granted.

We began our journey into Utah from Nevada and were astounded by the views and scenery changes.  It compared to landing on a different planet.  

 

We divided and conquered a grocery trip, the best place to shop ninety minutes from our vacation home.  We needed food for four days, five teenagers, three adults and two little boys.  We would be meeting my sister and two nieces that evening for the remaining of our vacation. 

We spotted a Bighorn sheep on our journey.  Our first of many.  The kids were excited.  

Bighorn Sheep

When we entered Zion National Park, which bordered our resort, all of us were in awe of the beauty surrounding us.  We made a great decision to meet my sister in one of America's oasis.  The next week would have many new experiences.  

 

Our house was perfect for feeding our large crew and everyone was comfortable in the four bedroom home overlooking a magnificent view.  We were home for the next four days.  

Wednesday - Day 150 - Vegas Views

Walking in 100 degree weather to sight see in Vegas was probably the most incredible, vacation conquest we experienced.  It was hot, sticky and fabulous.  We took it all in, made memories and will forget how hot we were.

Caesars Palace 

We checked out as many hotels as we could walk to and were happy to find air conditioning once we arrived at each of them.  There were lots of families and people in general doing the same thing as we were.  Each hotel was nicer than the last as we made our way down the Vegas strip.  

 Paris Las Vegas

The Bellagio

Later that day we managed a couple of hours at the pool, while John and Ty took a cat nap.  Even at the pool, the heat was unbearable, but in the pool we forgot the heat and enjoyed the refreshing cool water.

Marcella and I did a little people watching.  The greatest part about being in Vegas are lots of people from all over the world and all spectrums of life, couples, families, and groups of singles.  James made friends with brothers from Kuwait, (only in Vegas.)

Before we knew it, we were ready for dinner and to see a show.  We saw Mystere, a classic Cirque Du Soleil production.  The kids watched with eye wide amazement.  To say they loved it would be an understatement.  

We decided to check out The Venetian and Wynn hotels afterwards.  Both were gorgeous, The Wynn was my favorite as it is the newest hotel on the strip.  We spontaneously sat down for dessert, gelato and pastries at The Wynn.  It was the perfect cool ending, to our hot Vegas day.  

 The Wynn

 At The Wynn

Tuesday - Day 149 - Conquering Fears

We left Santa Cruz this morning and headed to Las Vegas, an eight and half hour drive, with five kids there was lots to see and talk about to fill the time.  We are a funny bunch, all so different in our life perspectives, yet we seem to find a groove together as a family even in unusual circumstances.  

We stopped to get lunch at a Carl's Jr.  somewhere in California.  This was a good stop for the kids.  They were able to interact with people from the opposite coast.  I think they were pleasantly surprised that as individuals we may not all look the same on the outside, but we are very much the same at heart.  

The girls shared a moment with a young woman in the bathroom, they all bonded over two toilets and only one door.  No one wanted the toilet with no door.  They all laughed about their predicament.  

John had an entirely different experience in the men's room.  James was taking his time to poop in the only stall while John waited on him.  Two strange men were also waiting.  John joked the men could have been gang members based on their rough exterior.  They both were fully engaged in John's conversation with James about his poop progress, and found it extremely amusing.  I secretly  would call this a "Pulp Fiction" moment. 

Meanwhile the girls spoke Spanish with a woman and her child while we waited on our food, her English was limited, yet they were able to communicate.  

We are an interactive family, it truly makes no difference where we are or who we meet. 

My entire family agreed, once we were back in car, every person we came in contact with was extremely polite, and patient, especially while I ordered carefully for seven us, (including our picky burger eaters.)

I started to wonder if we simply stood out, maybe we looked out of place, all our children, blond and brown parading inside.  John's bathroom buddies certainly understood and noticed he had five mouths to feed.  For me, I subtly took note of people's kind manners, but I was personally unphased by our surroundings until I collaborated their stories.  I felt an interesting vibe, an awareness which became significant at this moment for my children's personal growth.  I smiled inside as we continued our drive.  

We finally made it to our hotel in Vegas later that night hungry and tried.  We stayed at The Luxor, it is shaped like a pyramid.  The kids were wide eyed in the Casino. Vegas was certainly like no place else they have ever been.  

 The Luxor

 On the 25th floor......

    

 It's a loooong way down. 

    

We checked out Pawn Stars shop, an important Jack moment.  Jack loves the show.  

 Pawn Stars 

Then grabbed a quick meal and climbed the Stratosphere.  Haley, Marcella and I all rode extreme rides at the top of Stratosphere.  It was super exciting and Marcella conquered her fear of heights.  This was a significant moment in Marcella's life. 

The day was filled with fascination and first experiences; what better way to fill our childrens' minds then to allow them to experience life one moment at a time, conquering fears one at a time.  

 Stratosphere

   

Monday - Day 148 - Ironic Life Mysteries

We had another day filled with fun activities.  From a frantic, rich old woman to beautiful cold beaches, to large agile animals.  It was a day filled with irony.  

Winchester Mystery House was our first stop for the day.  Owned by Sarah Winchester, a wealthy heiress of Winchester Rifles.  Although she was financially set for life, she lived in fear of evil spirits who were killed by the famous "Gun that won the West" rifle.  

A medium told Sarah, she would be protected from these spirits if she never stopped building on her home.  Beginning in 1884, she had a team of carpenters and craftsman build onto her home 24 hours a day for 38 years.      

Winchester Mystery House

The Victorian mansion still stands at over 24,000 square feet has 160 rooms, 13 bathrooms, 476 doors, 40 staircases, 47 elevators and 3 elevators.  The oddities of the home, such as staircases and doorways to nowhere, would confuse the evil entities and allow her to have eternal life.  

The home was self sustaining with modern heating and sewer and gas for it's time and gas lighting throughout the home. 

We needed hard hats in the basement,
 for the 'behind the scenes' tour

Sarah never entertained, yet she was in the middle of expanding her already immense ballroom when she died at 82 in 1922. 

She left behind a fortune, a maze of a house, beautiful stain glass windows and some of the most beautiful Parquet floors I have ever seen in my life.  Part of her legacy are the mysteries around her home.  

We moved on to see the Santa Cruz, CA beaches and the boardwalk. We found ourselves comparing them to New Smyrna Beach, FL beaches.  In contrast ours are warm with a lot less seaweed.  

Santa Cruz Beach -
that's seaweed on his arms, compliments of Jack

We were surprised how cool it was, yet the beaches were filled with people sunning themselves and fully clothed.  Only a select few ventured into the water, the small kids and those learning to surf.   

We took it all in and found time to reflect and appreciate everything around us.  

Reflection....

After dinner on the boardwalk, we took time to be fascinated by the Sea Lions underneath us.  They were funny, large, loud creatures who found ways to jump onto the beams holding up the boardwalk. How do they get up there and make it look so easy? 

One of our Sea Lion Friends

James was our little Sea Lion barking all the way to our hotel.  A day to be savored. 

Sunday - Day 147 - Patience to Bang Snaps

When things do not go as planned on vacation, it would be extremely easy to get upset and let it ruin the entire day.  Another option is to look at the problem as a minor inconvenience and have confidence the day may unfold differently, but by no means will it be dictated by the issue at hand.  

 
We needed to pick up our crazy cool mini van today to haul all our kids through four United States, however the car rental place was not cooperating.

We had a long line to wait in and was told, by the very apologetic gentleman, our car was not on site and it would be an hour until it was ready.  An hour turned into over three hours of waiting and returning to the care rental office two more times.

John, our fearless, fatherly leader, set the best example for our kids.  He did not get upset and was not angry, he was polite and cordial, and we made a conscious decision to make the best of the unexpected turn in our day.  We took time to go window shopping and stopped at a coffee shop.  Ty threw a water bottle, knocking over John's coffee which spilled onto Marcella's leg.  Her only pair of pants were now wet and stinky.  Marcella was having quite the day.

Even with the tiny bit of chaos, we enjoyed our time together.  Ty ran around the car rental place, the kids waited with patience and did not once complain while James played with the free brochures.

We were compensated generously for our inconvenience, our little silver lining on our minor delay.  We went on to hike a couple of miles in Muir Woods National Park.  It was totally worth the wait.  And although parking was a beast, so late in the day, it became a game of who would we chase down for their parking spot.  And we poked fun at how long people took to change shoes and finally pull out of their parking space, "TODAY People!"

The hike was beautiful and we spontaneously took a family photo by one of the trees.  We would always remember the happiness we felt that day and how close we were as a family, chatting and being silly on our hike together.  It was a good day and when we thought the day could not get any better it did.

 In Muir Woods

We rode down Lombard Street, the crookedest road in the world.  There was an enormous amount of traffic and John became a true New York style driver, aggressively staking his claim to his place in line.  It was entertaining to watch, especially in our fierce mini van.  

Driving down Lombard street was totally worth wild.  We were in many home videos as Ty waved from his car seat, yelling "Hi!" to everyone on the street walking down.

We took the kids to Chinatown for dinner and they ate like starving children, not one morsel of food went to waste.  The lazy susan in the middle of the table proved a successful addition to our family of seven's eating ritual.

We window shopped a bit, grabbed a little chinese dessert and a few boxes of bang snaps, (poppers) for our walk back to the crazy car.  I'm not sure who liked those little snappy things more, James or Ty.  Ty cracked up with each snap.  James was throwing them on everything and anything he could find. The older kids enjoyed the novelty just as much, especially Jack.  There is nothing like a few bang snaps to entertain our children of all ages.  

Our day may have started rocky, but upon reflection it unfolded exactly as it should have.  My fortune cookie said it beautifully, "Patience will remedy any problem."

Saturday - 146 - Prison Phacts

Our first day in San Francisco started extremely early, at least for me and the boys. They didn't get the new time zone memo, but they were happy and full of energy.  I caught up once the Starbucks at the hotel opened up, ninety minutes after they had awoke.

We all got ready and headed out to tour Alcatraz and see the famous Fisherman's Wharf.  We made a breakfast pitstop at a trendy little place, called The Grove.  Everyone loved the tasty dishes they ordered and we all tasted each others food.  The French toast was a huge hit with everyone!  

Together at Breakfast
@http://www.thegrovesf.com/

The biggest shock to our system was how cool the weather was compared to where we live.  July in San Francisco, a big surprise that pants and jackets were a must.  The girls including myself were disappointed our cute clothing was not to be worn on the trip just yet. 

We rode a cable car to Fisherman's Wharf.  It was a long wait, but totally worth it.  Lots of tourists were on the same plan as us waiting while street singers serenaded us.  The ride was cozy, but we survived and got a great view of the top of Lombard street, the crookedest street in the world.

Waiting for our cable car

After walking a few blocks in Fisherman's Wharf, John grabbed a pound of round sour dough bread, just incase we were hungry on the ferry ride to Alcatraz.  Bread and water to feed his family of five in prison, was his little joke for the day.  We played along well.  

 Sour dough bread anyone?

Alcatraz was definitely a worthwhile experience.  We all enjoyed the self guided audio tour, even James kept his headset on and followed all the directions. 

 James listening to the tour guide

The great escape was my favorite, I love how three men used spoons to dig holes to freedom in their cells and escaped during the night.  It took them an entire year of digging, but they achieved their goal and were never found.  There is speculation they may have settled in South America never to turn back or reveal their true identities.  I wondered if they survived after all that planning and anticipation only to jump to their deaths in the treacherous San Francisco Bay waters.  

I took for granted how close the prison was to the mainland.  The prisoners could see all they were missing each and everyday.  Especially, when they played baseball out in the windy prison yard. 

Alcatraz 

Jack was the most revealing today as we all learned his video game, Call of Duty, Black Ops II, takes place in Alcatraz.  Jack knew the entire layout of Alcatraz before we got there.  On the ferry ride home Jack impressed a high schooler from Canada on his high YouTube stats relating to the game.  We had a good laugh with the boys family about both the boys' fascination with Alcatraz because they both played the same video game. 

A little bread bowl of clam chowder would top our day off.  We were all exhausted and excited about our first day of vacation, packed with goodness.  We took a trolley bus back home to the hotel.  Still smiling! 

Riding the crowded Trolley Bus back to the hotel

Friday - Day 145 - Coast to Coast

Considering we were leaving for our family vacation today and taking our five children, of various ages, a feat within itself, we were extremely relaxed.  We were headed across the country to San Francisco.

John had a typical work day of things to do and he still had to pack.  James only wanted to find more frogs and play outside.  I had a few little things to do, apply to a few jobs, post a blog, pay a bill, schedule long term airport parking, confirm a vegas show reservation.  Nothing was of dire importance, yet it all got done.

We did not need to leave until 1:30 to get the kids.  John and I simultaneously buttoned up the camper, emptied trash, turned power outlets off, shut water, turned the hot water heater off, raised the AC and cleaned the last bit that needed to be cleaned inside the camper.  James' bike was stored underneath the camper, and a few other items were brought inside.  It all felt effortless.

The last little thing I thought to check was James bucket of frogs, did he set them free?  I checked and of course he had not done what he was told to do.  There were four sweet little frogs in the bucket.  I let them go and planned to have a talk with my son.

James with no concern whatsoever told me he had let the frogs free.  I threatened to go check and he came clean, with a few leading questions he finally admitted he left the frogs in the bucket.  My sonthe self  proclaimed frog killer.  He loves those little jumpers and I'm not sure he understood the true fate of his friends by leaving them in the bucket for ten days with no food or water.  

We continued on our journey, a long plane ride a crazy cab ride and five sleepy children later we crashed in our hotel in downtown San Francisco.  The adventure was ready to begin, but only after a good nights sleep.  Dreams of frogs and campers and unusual neighbors were far behind us, to make room for new dreamswhich  were on the horizon.  

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Thursday - Day 144 - Resident Mouser

I am an official Florida resident today.  I had my old Florida licensed reissued with my current address, at the campground.   All I needed was two proofs of paper with the campground address.

I used my recept for July's payment and I used a mailing label from a packaged I'd received the day before.  I had no idea it would be that easy.  I also had my passport and my social security card, but those were easy to find.

The drivers license office was right near James' school and it was small.  I was the first one to be helped and the first one finished.  No lines to wait on, no fuss and I left with a shiny new license.  I should have done it sooner. 

Later that day, I had a few e-mails from my in laws.  They are pet sitting for us this month.  The animals have settled in extremely well based on the photos I just received.  Rabbit and Elmo are very well loved at their new home.  

Elmo is so happy he caught and killed a mouse and left it for my in-laws to find.  
Elmo is a good little kitty and it's nice to know our killer kitty hasn't lost his touch. 

Thank you Karen and Bob for taking care of our hairy children.  We love you.