Spring Break in Moab

We had so much fun in Moab! The boys were great hikers and Justin was so glad to have a break from work stress. Arches National Park is Justin's favorite park. It was only my second time visiting. We started off with Delicate Arch and Ezra hiked all the way up the long slick rock hill by himself. Although there was the one time when he got near the top, decided to lay down on the rock, and said, "I'm dead" to everyone that passed by. But Ezra was impressed because he's still talking about Delicate Arch. While on the hike we talked a bit about minerals in rocks. At one point Nolan pointed to a cool rock and said, "That rock has a lot of criminals!"

Our friends were so kind to lend us their awesome bike carrier so that we could take our bikes on our trip. We had some great rides, especially this 10 mile bike route down the canyon into Moab. Doesn't Justin rock his new bike shorts?! Justin and I couldn't bike it at the same time since we needed a pick up person at the bottom, but the kids were lucky enough to go down twice! We even brought Nolan's new bike and we rode for a couple of miles through the heart of Moab. They had a fun musical park for kids but we didn't have our camera there.

We also visited Jewel Tibbits Arch on BLM land. It included an exciting dirt road where we even drove on slick rock. Who needs a Jeep when you've got a minivan?! The hike was fun because we really had to watch for the cairns so we didn't get lost. Nolan was our "scout" in the lead. I was a little nervous at the end because there are some scary cliffs. Justin and I had bad dreams that night about our children and cliffs. It just made me queasy so we didn't stay at the end very long. Along the way, we discovered that Ezra has a fear of moss. He tried touching it and then decided to fear it. "I don't want that moss to get me!" he would say on the way back.

We also visited Corona Arch on BLM land. I was so impressed! It was a really fun, easy hike with spectacular scenery. We saw some guys on top of the arch and at one point one of them jumped off the top and went swinging through. Justin happened to be walking up to the arch from the other direction and was quite surprised when a man went swinging just feet away from him. Afterward, Nolan said, "I want to swing through that arch when I grow up." I just don't want to be there when he does it! I have to admit, it did look fun! There was also this cool "O" formation on that hike.

The kids' favorite place was Sand Dune Arch. Talk about a perfect place for kids to play! They rolled about in the sand, dug their toes in, and ran down the hill laughing. It was lovely. Also pictured below is Nolan near some dinosaur footprints. He thought this was pretty neat since they had been talking about paleontology at preschool. And Justin and Nolan went exploring the rock "fins" around the Arches campground while I stayed with Ezra while he napped in the van.

While at Arches, Nolan completed the Junior Ranger program. He helped pick up litter, watched the movie at the visitors center, did some drawings and wrote down his favorite place. The park ranger was pretty serious in going over Nolan's work, but Nolan did a great job answering his questions. He took an oath to protect the parks and help his brother (I'm glad the ranger threw that part in!) and then he received his badge. Way to go, Junior Ranger!

We stayed at Hampton Inn and while enjoying our breakfast we met a couple speaking German. They could see that Nolan was curious about their speech so they asked if he knew what language they were speaking. He was silent so the man said, "We're speaking German." Nolan said, "Oh, German?! I thought you were speaking Swahili!" We had a good laugh about that. Then Nolan talked their ears off and I had to carry him out as he was still talking about Zelda and Minecraft (his favorite games).

We ate at yummy restaurants. Our favorite was Pasta Jay's and Peace Tree. I wish I had a bowl of "pasta pillow puffs" drowning and baked in alfredo sauce with grilled chicken. Be still my heart. I can't remember where we were, but one day Nolan said, "You know what I love better than Mommy?" Finally he said, "A CLEAN Mommy!" Several people heard him and joined in laughing. I guess I must have been a little dusty or something.

While in Moab, we biked approximately 12 miles and hiked 9 miles. Next we were off to St. George for more outdoor fun!