Off Roading in Sedona

I think it's mandatory if you go to Sedona, you HAVE to go off roading. It was one of the top things on our list. However, our van is not equipped for such treacherous driving and 4 of the 6 people in our family are minors. I was a little worried we were not going to find a way to make this happen. Thankfully we found a place that rents out these bad boys and we were ALL set.

The kids thought it was awesome!

So did Tyler.

Once we were prepped and geared up we headed off to see the sites.

The trails took us to some Indian Ruins.Chase was so cozy in his seat and slept most of the time despite the less than smooth ride.

Andy and Ashlyn both fell asleep and slept through the steepest, rockiest, Mom screaming part of the trail. Yes I was screaming like an old lady as the family chanted. I also needed a chiropractor after but Andy and Ashlyn slept soundly.

More Sedona

Another one of our drives in Sedona took us to a fish hatchery. For $.25 you can get fish food and feed these crazy things. They were jumping out of the water when the kids started throwing food and there were so many!

We hiked by the river to a little sitting area.....
and enjoyed the view.

Sedona Part 2: Ghost Town

Our 2nd day in Sedona we decide to check out the old mining town of Jerome. It is a cute town built right on the side of the mountain. We followed the signs to the Ghost Town.

Once there we were a little confused about what this place was. Basically looked like a dumping site (although somewhat organized) for old stuff/crap, with a few animals running about.There were more old cars than can be found at a car dealership.

I'm sure the look on my face was priceless because I really was confused.

Tyler asked how much the cars were selling for and the lady responded with something about not even for a millions dollars. (I was kind of relieved at her answer bc for the right price, I'm sure we would have acquired one. If you have driven by my house lately, you know why I would be worried/relieved)So we continued our walk through the "Ghost Town...

And stumbled across these cars.....hmmmmmm.....more questions raised.

And then the owner of place who had been following us around the whole time telling us about all the old stuff commented how he just took the yellow car out on same famous race track and gave it a spin. What? So we concluded that this super nice old guy who looked like he stepped out of the 1800's is actually quite wealthy. He leases this land and just buys and collects all the old stuff he can. I totally can see my step dad doing the same thing and just like this old man loving every second of it.

Off Track Fun Part 2: Sedona Part 1

For a long time I have wanted to go to Sedona and apparently not many people want to go there in November (a high temp of 50 degress could have something to do with that) so our Timeshare was available once again. Score! So 3 days after our Palm Springs trip (whew!) off to AZ we went. It was amazing.

We did lots of little hikes. Our kids LOVE being outside, exploring, and wandering around. We had a paper with maps of different drives you could do depending on how much time you had. We would pick one, start driving, stop along the road somewhere and hike around. We found some amazing places.

One of our 1st discoveries on Day 1 was this river. I fell in love with it and immediately knew we were going to love Sedona. The kids always needed a walking stick when they hiked. They are also not fans of trails that are paved. Apparently that is not true hiking, they want to be in the dirt, climbing rocks and trees.
I love my outdoorsy kids!

More Sedona pictures coming soon.....

Off Track Fun Part 1: Palm Springs

We love Year Round School.

We love being off track.

This year Taylor's 1st break for was for 5 weeks!!! Awesome!

So we called the timeshare and took advantage of availability in Palm Springs.

1st week of November and it was 90+ degrees....perfect for swimming, kind of too hot for a walk around The Living Dessert but we braved the heat anyways to try something new.

We were super happy that just a couple days earlier they had opened a new air conditioned children's museum within the park. We took advantage of that place and the kids loved being free to run around and play.

Andy is trying to make wind.

The Butterfly exhibit was amazing. I want my backyard to be like that place with so many flowers, plants, and water fountains, and amazing butterflies flying around.

The next 3 pictures make me laugh. It was hot, bright, and we were ready to jump in the pool but the kids insisted on taking these pictures.

Fight On!

It's no secret that we are USC fans. It's no secret that Tyler's wardrobe has been replaced with all things crimson and gold. It's no secret that Tyler LOVES being a student again in the EMBA program. It is a perfect fit. His fellow classmates are a perfect fit and he actually looks forward to going to class. I couldn't be happier. It is fun to be part of the USC family. Go Trojans!

We were able to attend the Homecoming game in October. It was a blast! The Marshall School has its own catered Tailgate party.Chase was a hit with classmates and fellow trojan fans.

This change in our life is just another great blessing that has happened this year. Fight On!