Little Bunny Foo Foo

Here is owen's latest party-trick - a performance of Little Bunny Foo Foo... not sure he has all the words correct, but you get the idea! We thought it was kina cute.

Grand Canyon - North Rim

Finally, we got to see the Grand Canyon; neither Alfredo or I had been there before, so it was a real treat for all of us to be able to see this amazing natural wonder. Having lived in Utah for nearly 5 years, I'm kinda mad at myself for not having made the effort to have gone there sooner! We had a super time. We stayed the night in the North Rim, the only campground in the actual National Park on the North side (the quieter, less touristy side of the Canyon). We arrived at the park at about 1pm on Sunday, set up the tent and headed off on the first of 4 hikes that we were able to fit in during our time in the Canyon. The Transcept Trail is a really beautiful trail that follows the rim of the canyon from the campground to the Lodge - the views are amazing! We took a short break at the Lodge where Owen was most intrigued with the bronze statue of Brighty, a donkey who lived and worked with a family in the canyon many years ago - it's said to be good luck if you rub Brighty's nose (we all had a good rub!). After a short break and a few more 'wows' for the views from the gorgeous sun-terrace at the Lodge, we hiked the short Bright Angel's Point trail. Owen fell asleep on the way back from this trail so Alfredo and I took the opportunity to enjoy the quiet time and people watch from the shaded seating area back at the Lodge, and to browse the gift shop. After hiking back to the campground we started to prepare the camp fire for dinner.... one huge crack of thunder and lightening later, we made a hasty retreat to the car to avoid the most insane hail-storm - it was crazy - late August and we were freezing cold, looking out the car windows as everything got hammered with hail. Fortunately the storm didn't last long and we were able to sleep the rest of the night in the tent without getting wet. We woke to clear beautifully sunny skies and enjoyed an early morning camp fire before tackling the first 1.5 miles of the Kaibab Trail to the Coconino Overlook. Wow wow Wow wow Wow wow!!!!!! Get my point?? lol, the steep hike down there was well worth the views.... carrying Owen the steep hike back to the parking lot..... hmmmm, let's say we won't be attempting to go further on this hike until he is able to walk himself in and out! The hike actually continues down to the canyon floor and up the South Rim to the other side.... not for the faint-hearted, but I sure would love to give it a try!! Unfortunately we had to leave Monday for me to get back to work and Owen for school but we made the most of the journey home and stopped in Zion National Park for a picnic.. the perfect end to a short break.

Parowan Gap

So we decided to take Owen on somewhat of an educational field-trip this evening to the petroglyphs at the Parowan Gap. It was the first time that any of us had visited the Gap despite it being only a 15 minute ride from home! The Gap contains lots of ancient rock-art (petroglyphs) done by the Fremont peoples/Indians approximately 1,000 years ago. The atmosphere and scenery at the Gap is amazing.. it's peaceful, awe-inspiring and magical. It just has a calm feel about it and a magic that you just can't describe. The weather was just perfect too - a nice breeze blew constantly and we stayed until the sun started to set, casting a beautiful light on the already gorgeous shades of red rock. Earlier, Owen and I had hiked up to a little cave carved into the side of one of the huge rocks and he thought this was so much fun.

Pine Valley

Saturday afternoon, we took a drive headed West - destination, the beautiful Pine Valley. We did the first 30 miles or so on normal roads but when we got to New Castle, we took a dirt road for another 25 miles and I'm so pleased that we did this instead of continuing on the pavement because it was all so beautiful. The dirt road took us clear up in to the mountains and through the range, past New Castle Reservoir to the picture-perfect little town of Pinto (one of those 'blink and you miss it' kinda places). The road continues winding through mountains and valleys, ending up in Grass Valley (very aptly named) and then Pine Valley - a place that I've been wanting to go to for several months now. We spent the afternoon at the Pine Valley Reservoir, had a picnic and went on a short hike which Owen just loved since there was lots for him to climb on and explore. Alfredo did some fishing but had no luck - the fish seemed to be jumping in all the places that he was not! For dinner, we had reservations at the very popular Brandin' Iron Steakhouse - I had heard so much about this place and was excited to eat there, and wow, we sure weren't disappointed - this place is amazing and the food is delicious, with really huge portions.... oh, and their beans..... mmmmmmm.... if you're ever in Pine Valley.. you have to go to the Brandin' Iron... the atmosphere, the food.. just everything made for a really nice Saturday dinner, and the perfect end to a lovely day.

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Ok, so for those of you that know me well will know that I'm a low-key kinda birthday gal; I don't like a big fuss and I will probably never have a huge party since I hate being the center of attention!.. but I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who made my day yesterday so special. All my friends and family in England who mailed over gifts and cards, to my co-workers who made my work-day special and to Alfredo & Owen with whom I had a lovely time tonight at the Shakespearean Festival Greenshow.. what a super evening we had sat in the cool summer evening air watching very talented actors put on an a very fun little show in the gorgeous setting of the SUU Campus - I just love our little town so much for all the really cool stuff like this that they do. My 20's was a big decade for major life stuff (baby, marriage, house etc.) but I'm determined to make my 30's even better and look forward to sharing them with you all.

Wood's Ranch & Kids Pond

After a busy morning at work and with temperatures rising in the valley, we decided to escape a little ways up the mountain to Wood's Ranch and the Kids Pond for a spot of fishing. Owen caught his first little fish within 15 mins of being there; he gets so excited when he catches a fish, it's really fun to watch him. I took the mountain bike, hoping to do a couple of miles of the Virgin River Rim trail which starts/ends at Wood's Ranch... what I didn't know was that it's all uphill from Wood's Ranch and I was exhausted and out of breath before having gone more than a half mile or so, lol.. it was so pretty though but the deeply rutted dirt road and steep grade was a little more hardcore mountain biking that I like! We fished some more but didn't catch anything; we were just happy to hang-out in the cooler temperatures, have a picnic and enjoy the gorgeous setting. Owen and I hiked round the lake a couple of times; it's a really nice, kid-friendly hike and Owen loves it.