20 out of 560

We explored Arches National Park over Labor Day weekend.
I took over 500 pictures.

Here are 20 of my favorites:

#1 Devils Garden
We stayed at the Devil's Garden campground...the perfect place for us!

#2 Our Campsite
We reserved our site online. We had no idea it would be the BEST site in the whole place. It was huge, totally private, and pretty much a giant playground for the girls to explore.

#3 Cord Chopping Wood
We brought a huge stack of wood from our house. It turned into a joke. We had no idea it would be hotter than heck down there. We built one teeny tiny fire to do s'mores one night. We all sat WAY back so we didn't feel the heat.

Isn't that a cool splitting the wood action shot??

#4 Thirsty
Like I mentioned before, it was pretty hot. We drank a TON of water. We filled our 5 gallon jug several times. We took lots of drink breaks and lots of potty breaks. Natty was our "little pony" on the trail...peeing every 500 feet! :)


#5 Balanced Rock
Luckily, Cord was at balanced rock when it started to fall. He held it up for awhile before the rangers got there to fix it. Good thing he is tough...


#6 Delicate Arch
We saw the most famous arch in the world. People were there from all over. How lucky are we that we live so close? What an amazing place.


#7 and #8 Music Park
We skipped down to Moab one day to escape some hurricane speed winds that were going on at camp. We found this neat park that had tons of trees, two playgrounds, and this really sweet music area. The big boys had the most fun beating on all the instruments.



#9 Family Time
I think the best part about vacations, is spending 24 hours a day with my family. It is so nice to have that quality time together to relax and enjoy being together.


#10 Photography and Nature
We took a lot of pictures. It was so fun to document the beautiful scenery. Cord was pretty proud of this photo he took. Arches is such a unique place. There is nothing else like it in the world.


#11 and #12 Hiking
Cord and I figured we took these little people on over 10 miles of trails. That is a lot of hiking for such small legs. They were such good troopers. Sometimes the trail was just too much and we had to help them along.



#13 and #14 Shopping for Souvenirs
I am a kid at heart. I love getting a souvenir almost as much as the girls do. We walked around the streets of Moab looking for treasures to take home with us. Natalie picked out a "tiny dog" stuffed animal, and Libby and I got matching flip flops! Cord got jipped and didn't get anything. :)


The girls found some outdoor misters to cool off in. They had a blast running through them. Can you tell?


#15 Gage
He gets his own category because he was such a great little traveler. Seriously, can a baby get any easier? He didn't cry once in the car...and we did a lot of driving. He slept through the night even though on the last morning it actually got cold and he was a frozen Popsicle when I got him out of bed. We love him so much!

#16 The Condo
My parents came down for a few days and stayed in a condo. It was a beautiful place and very appreciated by us dirty and hot campers.

While Cord and Dax rode their bikes on the famous Slick Rock trail, the girls stayed behind and played in the "Meadow" area at the condo.

#17 Cooling Off
This is still the same Meadow, but because it was such a nice place it gets two posts. :)
We loved wading in the river. Once Grandma and Grandpa got back from their scary Hummer Tour and Raft Ride, we all went swimming in the pool too. It was so refreshing.

#18 Relaxing
Isn't that what vacations are all about?


#19 Motivation

These little rock stacks were miracle workers. Not only did they keep us on the right path as we hiked all over the park, but they were such a fun thing for the girls to find. It kept them moving on the trails. They couldn't wait to find the next rock stack. I was so grateful for the distraction. That simple game saved us much whining...

#20 Fun
So, we have reached the end--The final picture. I love this one, because the expressions on the girl's faces display it all. Pure joy. What a fun trip we had.

They say that children who camp have happier memories of childhood than those who don't. Seriously. They have done that study. :) I am sure it's true. These little people had a blast.

So did I...