Caitlyns Winter Dance Recital

Caitlyn had her second dance recital a couple of weeks ago at the Queen Creek Recreation Center. This one wasn't quite as exciting as her first in that they weren't up on the stage and whole group didn't seem to interested in performing. But they were eager to get their sticker at the end.

Caitlyns Winter Dance Recital Pictures

Heber Trip

Last week a friend of mine, Justin, invited Caitlyn and I to join him and his daughter, Alexis, up at their cabin in Heber. Due to all the recent storms there was lots of snow on the ground to play in. We built snowman, went sledding, and threw snowballs.

Heber Pictures

Christmas 09

This year we had a great but very busy Christmas. We started the month off with a trip to Zoo lights and followed it up with a trip up to Williams Arizona to take a ride on the Polar express and play in the snow. We also added a new tradition of going around the valley and visiting backyard train displays. This year was the first year since the kids have been around that I have been on call for Christmas but thankfully was never used so I was able to spend the day with the family at the house celebrating.

Christmas Pictures

Halloween

This Halloween Caitlyn was Supergirl. She originally wanted to be Mickey Mouse but I think once she saw the cape she changed her mind. She enjoyed putting on the costume and showing us how fast she could run and how much she could lift. Carter was a dinosaur (he really didn't have much say in the matter). Unfortunately I was called out on a trip before trick-or-treating so I'm not sure how that went but there seemed to be lots of candy when I got home so it must of went pretty well.

Halloween Pictures

Disneyland

This October we decided to take Caitlyn to Disneyland for her first visit. At first she wasn't sure if she wanted to go or not so I told her why she should be so excited to go. Unfortunately this was in August and we had to go the next two months with her constantly begging to go immediately. Fortunately the trip was great. The park wasn't too busy so we didn't have to wait too long in lines and the weather was great. We stayed at the Paradise Pier hotel which is on the property so we could walk in or take the monorail into the park each day.

Disneyland Pictures

Zion National Park

Last weekend a couple of long time friends from college and I decided to take a trip and do some serious hiking. Originally we had planned on visiting some slot canyons in NE Arizona but discovered a guide was required. Then we had planned Havasupai falls but there were no spots available for the days we wanted to hike down. So we turned to Utah and decided to hike around Zion National Park. On the first and last days we did a number of easy hikes along the main corridor that runs through the park. The middle day we went on a 14.5 mile trip to visit the Kolob Arch. It was nice to get out of the more crowded areas of the park and back into areas not easily seen.

Zion National Park Pictures

Durango Colorado Trip

Last week we set off on our annual fishing / camping trip with some long time friends. Each year we pick a different spot alternating between in state and out of state. This year was out of state and we chose a location about 15 miles north of Durango Colorado. It was my first visit to this area and we will definitely be going back. We had excellent weather and did lots of fishing, biking, and kayaking. Caitlyn reeled in her first fish which was exciting but not nearly as exciting as throwing pine cones in the lake.

Colorado Trip Pictures