Wildlife (sort of)

Well, deer are wildlife - though these deer were far from wild.  They were quite tame.  Today we visited the Grand Canyon Deer Farm.   Allison and Jonathan have been so patient all week as we have visited places that were interesting but a little "over their heads".  Allison came to me a few times saying "this is BOWING"......So we thought we'd try and go somewhere a little more "kid" oriented.  What is better than an overpriced petting zoo?  It was a relaxing day with a simple outing, swimming, and tennis.  Well - I went on the simple outing and blogged while everyone else expended energy swimming and playing tennis!  Tonight I'll cap off my intense day with the hot tub :)

Birds and Botany

Tuesday our outing was to the Flagstaff Arboretum.  The kids enjoyed a guided tour around the grounds and a wild bird of prey presentation.  We saw a hawk, falcon, and 2 kinds of owls.  It is interesting for them to learn about the plants and animals at an elevation different from the desert.  

Our Creator and Astronomy

Ryan viewing Saturn 

Jonathan doing research

Madison viewing Arcturus

After such an eventful Saturday we had a lovely day of rest on Sunday worshipping together as a family with singing and reading scripture.  Grandpa Bill shared some beautiful thoughts about "leaving a legacy" and passing on the baton to the next generation of the Miller family - the children and grandchildren.  In the evening the kids shared some "talent" of various sorts - with our kids performing a hilarious skit of "Little Red" (little red riding hood).  

Monday morning we had a "Miller Family Tennis Tournament" - single elimination from the youngest up.  Ryan advanced until he met his older cousin Zack and was eliminated.  I was eliminated by my 14 year old nephew, Kevin.  I don't think I've touched a racket for over 15 years - I was plenty rusty but had a lot of fun.  I utilized the hot tub on the porch that night!

Monday evening we went to the Lowell Observatory.  It was so awesome!  It was still light when we arrived and we headed straight up to the McAllister telescope to view Arcturus - the brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere.  I think the guy said it was 18 million miles in diameter - and the earth is 8,000 miles in diameter!  Anyway we wandered around the gardens and museums until dark, praying the clouds would thin and go away.  They did a little bit, and we got to see the planet Saturn!  We could visibly see it as well as its rings!  I have to say it was so amazing!  What an amazing world our Lord has created.  

I must admit that I know next to nothing about Astronomy.....but it seems so much more interesting now that we got to experience looking through these AMAZING telescopes.  The Clark telescope there is over 120 years old.  Fun day......

Day 1 - part 2 - the ER

After lunch on Saturday, it was decided the group would visit Lava River Cave.  It is a lava tube which is formed when a portion of a river of lava cools while the interior is still hot and flowing.  Under the right conditions the outer skin will form a hard shell and the inner core will flow right on through like water going through a straw, leaving an empty tube.  The hike is completely in the dark using flashlights.  It is cold, dark, and sort of difficult to navigate so I decided to stay home with Jonathan and Allison.  

We went grocery shopping with my sister in law Sharon first.  After shopping, Sharon and I bought coffee - looking forward to sipping it on the porch while the kids rested.  Just as we were putting the last groceries away Jonathan came sprinting into the room toward the TV - excited to watch baseball.  I looked up just in time to see him trip and tumble head first into the TV stand.  Just from the sound I knew this was not good and sprinted over as he got up and ran toward me.  I could see clear through the first layer of skin over his eyebrow..... His father is quite a fan of butterfly strips to close cuts.  He has closed many a cut on our kid's faces with these things.  The moment I saw this wound I knew we were beyond butterfly strips.  

The first thought I had was - "I can't believe my husband is inside a dark cave with no cell phone reception and this is happening."  Wouldn't you know.  I yelled to Sharon - grab your keys - we need to drive over to the front desk and find out how to get to the ER.  Poor Jonathan just screamed and bled and Allie kept saying "poor Jonathan."  Merl's parents got home right when we were leaving so Allison was spared a tour of the Flagstaff hospital.  Miraculously I got ahold of Merl on his cell phone minutes before they entered the cave.  He confirmed that I should go to the ER rather than urgent care and what things to make sure were done.  Sharon drove and we were on our way........on a wild goose chase to find the hospital.  Too bad we were using the resort map which was unbelievably inaccurate!  Eventually we managed to find our way there and just as we arrived our poor patient had fallen asleep - exhausted from no nap to begin with and over 20 minutes of crying.  

Since Jonathan would not let me touch his head he had blood all over him so we attracted a lot of attention.  He was not crying and really calm so I am thankful he didn't seem to be in pain.  After while we were seen and the doctor decided he needed stitches on the inside and outside.  That process was tough but he was a real trooper despite having to be numbed with the needle and held down while being stitched up.  

Later at dinner he was his usual self - running around like nothing had happened......until he saw himself in the mirror and said, "Uh oh......eye".

I asked him to smile - but this is what I got.

Ready to call this one LONG day......

Day 1 - part 1 - Volcanoes

We really are having a GREAT time in Flagstaff - so far it has been cooler than I'd like (anything under 80 degrees) but a nice change to sizzling home.  We are "vacationing" with Merl's family.  His parents generously arrange for all the siblings and family to get together every 3 years together at a timeshare.  They carefully plan things so that we spend a lot of time sharing with one another and enjoying each other's company while also exploring the area.  We are having fun!!

Our first full day (Saturday) was spent exploring the sites of old volcanoes.  In the morning we visited Sunset Crater National Monument.  It was fascinating to see the beds of cooled lava all around us and be able to hike through it.  Unfortunately my camera (which I have been having problems with recently) took a turn for the worse and kicked the bucket.  I only have a few pictures from that morning.  Ahh, nothing like your camera breaking on vacation!!  So relaxing and enjoyable......Fortunately we bought Madison a camera for Christmas......

vacation

 This week while away in Flagstaff I have been asking myself......what is the definition of vacation?  In the dictionary it says "an extended period of recreation, especially one spent away from home or in traveling."  When I was a kid - vacation meant fun - camping, visiting cool places, or once in while on a very special occasion it included an amusement park or beach.  My perspective on vacation has changed a bit as a parent.....while vacation might include the above, I would argue that we have tended to "add" some unrealistic expectations to the long awaited "vacations".  

1)  That it will be "restful".  Don't get me wrong - vacation is not the daily grind of life at home with cooking, cleaning, going to work, phone ringing, etc.  However - when you go on "vacation" with 4 kids - there are not long periods of down time!  It seems there are more trips to the bathroom, very dirty clothes, extra hungry kids, and I am still waiting to sip my coffee on the porch in peace early one morning!  

2) Everyone gets along.  Hmmm - you know you can always hope siblings will magically decide - "let's set aside our differences and agree to get along."

3) There will be no "schedule" - free to do as you wish.  People seem to always look forward to not having a schedule to follow - but I have found that without some sort of guideline or plan a lot of time is wasted and miscommunications happen.  It seems those who don't like schedules at home don't like them on vacation - and those ahmmm like me who like schedules at home tend to be "stressed" without them on vacation!

4) Free from work.  Um I am guessing that unless you REALLY go all out and eat out and have someone else take care of your kids and do laundry.....vacations are a lot of work.  I am usually a massive ball of stress the week leading up to when we leave and the day or day before we leave my kids know to say as little as possible to me and stay OUT of the WAY!  Momma is one stressed momma then.  Once we get going I am usually feeling better - but the work is just beginning.  Being away from home does not change the fact that decisions need to be made, stomachs need to be filled economically, laundry has to be done, and things have to constantly be gathered and kept track of.  

Ahhh! Vacation!  It has such a nice ring to it!  It is a short word describing "recreation from home."  I would probably change it to a longer description......"vacation - a time away from home sometimes causing short intense periods of stress, often interrupted by spurts of fun and fellowship, followed by periods of intense needs from children and mounds of laundry and things to catch up on when you get home!"

Silver City, NM

I am so behind on my blogging ...... got back from one short trip last Sunday and now we are leaving for another week gone today so figured I'd better get these up!  We took a short weekend to Silver City, NM so Merl could speak at a New Mexico Athletic Trainer's meeting.  Some friends from his UNM days live there and it was so fun to reconnect with them after 17 years and meet their sweet family. 

The kids had a great time.  They were thrilled to stay in a hotel for the first time (they don't realize our timeshare vacations are similar).  They were going on and on to their grandma about how the TV got 99 channels and could NOT believe we were allowed to have food in our room!  They wanted to watch TV and play in the hot tub every minute we were there.  They were great sports with the sleeping arrangements.  When we walked into the room expecting to see 2 queen beds we were surprised to find one king!   We had brought 2 sleeping bags prepared for 2 on the floor already and thankfully got a rollaway from the hotel.  That left Jonathan in between Merl and I kicking me in the back all night.  (So romantic!)

We went hiking at a place called the Catwalk - it was 2.2 miles round trip.  Everyone walked the whole way like troopers!  The following pictures are all from that day.  

The hike wound through these canyons and would not have been passable except for the scaffolding built along the way.....

Lots of bridges!

and stairs!

Jonathan did not want to be still even for a photo!

Our little mountain goat #2 - insisted on climbing, walking, running, the whole way.

Look at this double decker sandwhich!