Spring Break at Sand Hollow State Park

Spring Break is a great time to get out and have some fun!  Cord and I were hoping to go to the City of Rocks in Idaho with our kids for Spring Break, but as the dates got closer we realized it was going to be way too cold to venture North, so we headed South instead!  Ryan mentioned that they were interested in going to Sand Hollow State Park.  It is a few miles north of St. George.  I immediately checked to see if there were any campsites available.  There were two single sites open and two group sites.  I couldn't resit the pull of the group site!  It is just in my nature to make everything a big party!  I made the reservation, made a few calls, and rounded up a group to fill it up.

One week later, we were packing our bags and heading off on our Spring Break adventure.  Cord and I thought it would be fun for the kids to spend a night in a hotel.  So, we left on Wednesday afternoon and drove to a Marriott hotel in Provo.  We checked in, grabbed a bit to eat, (Nachos!  At Gage's request.  He LOVES Nachos) and then slipped into our swimming suits for a dip in the pool.  We had the place to ourselves.  It took the kids a minute to rediscover their swimming skills because of the long winter break.  But, after awhile, they got the hang of things again.  Oliver loved splashing.  He thought it was hilarious.  I enjoyed the hot tub and made Cord get in the pool with the kids.  Good thing he is such a good sport.

   

Getting everyone to sleep in a hotel room is always a trick.  Oliver wanted to keep the party going all night long.  But, eventually we all nestled under the covers for a few hours of shut-eye.  The morning brought several trips to the breakfast buffet, showers, cartoons, and packing up!

We got to Sand Hollow in the early afternoon.  The view from our campsite was incredible.

  

While Cord set up our camp, the kids played in the sand.  It was such fine, smooth sand.  They had a great time digging holes, burring each other, and creating sand creatures.

 

As the afternoon progressed, we gained more and more friends at our site!  The kids were so excited when their cousins arrived.  Jenn and Chad had car trouble and had to quickly switch to Plan B which was switch from camping with us to staying in town in a "casita" near my parent's.  I was glad they were flexible and decided to come even with their car breaking down!

We took a walk down to the water to check things out and it quickly progressed into Nat and Gage running and splashing and diving in the lake.  Silly kids!  They were freezing when we got back.  Good thing for hot showers and warm dry clothes.  

These girls are such good friends!

Friday we spent the morning at the lake.  The boys jumped on Ryan's new water trampoline.  Ryan and Cord went on a long paddle board ride and then we switched and Jenny and I went on a kayaking expedition!  My arms were tired when we got back.  It was a workout.  So peaceful and beautiful though.

 

We headed over the the Washington City Aquatic Center to spend the afternoon in the pool!  The kids were loving all of the fun water toys.  The children's play area was perfect for our family.  

Libby liked hanging with the 'big kids' and doing things like sliding down the huge tube slide!

Saturday morning we had a big breakfast and got ready to go on a hike!

We headed off to the Red Cliffs Recreation Area for one of the most beautiful hikes I have been on in a LONG time.  It was seriously like a hidden gem.  I didn't get any pictures, because I left my camera in the car!  WHAT??  I made Jenn take some with her camera for me, but I haven't got them yet.  Basically, it was like Zion National Park.  There were tall red cliffs with a beautiful river running through it.  We hiked to a little arch and climbed over boulders.  Luke caught lizards,  Grandpa gave the kids taffy, Ollie enjoyed every minute of his time on Cords back in the backpack, Gage and I played hide and seek while a group of crazies climbed up a tall cliff and scared the bagezies out of me.  It was simply, amazingly beautiful.  I loved every minute.

After our hike we headed back to camp to have a big lunch (we were HUNGRY!) and then we headed into St. George to my aunt Susan's house so the boys could attend Priesthood Session of General Conference.  The rest of us played at Susan's for a bit and then went to a park to get more wiggles out.  The kids love being outside!

Sheldon loved pushing Oliver on the swing.  Oliver thought it was so funny.  He kept laughing.  

After the park, we all met up at Pier 49 Pizza restaurant to have some dinner.  We slicked of 7 large pizzas in a jiffy!  It was pretty windy when we got back to camp, so we decided to skip the fire and we all snuggled up in our sleeping bags!

Sunday, was pack and leave day!  We made sure to take a few minutes to enjoy the beauful campsite before we went to work.

After all of our gear was cleaned up and packed away, we drove to the opposite side of the lake to paddle board and play for an hour or so before we hit the road.  The contrast of the red rocks against the blue sky and water is one of my favorite combinations nature has to offer.  It is so bold and beautiful.  I accidentally switched my camera setting, and all my photos are grainy.  I was so sad when I got home and noticed.  :(  Oh, well.

It was quite windy so paddle boarding was a challenge!  I got a little bit nervous out on the lake with Libby on my board with me.  She cried the whole time we paddled back to shore.  It was the first time I have really been nervous about tipping over on a paddle board.  I was happy to have my feet on solid ground.

These two cute cousins were glued together all weekend.  They are such good friends.  It makes my heart so happy to see how much they love each other. 

These three crazies swam out to this rock and jumped off into the freezing water!  I think they planned on charging Ryan $10 each for their efforts.  I am not sure if they ended up cashing in...

 

This girl is stunning.

It was such a fun way to spend our Spring Break.  I love my family.  They are always willing to go along with all my crazy plans and last minute adventures.  I especially love this little crew and all of the memories we have together as a family...