Grand Canyon Trip

No picture can quite compare to our first glimpse of the Grand Canyon. We arrived just in time for sunset where we stayed right next to the canyon rim.

This is a great view of the Painted Desert where we also drove through the Petrified Forest.

These petroglyphs were carved on the rocks thousands of years ago.

We visited the Arizona Cardinal's Stadium in Phoenix.

Dylan walked on the "field" where the grass will be rolled in on game day.

We went to the movies, shopped and ate at the California Pizza Kitchen (twice) at this great outdoor mall in Tempe.

Dylan loved practicing on the putting green at our hotel. He ranked this activity the same as seeing the Grand Canyon!

We saw hundreds of different kinds of cactus at this Botanical Garden.

There was a butterfly exhibit that held hundreds of Monarch butterflies.

It was fun to walk along the edge of the water and climb through the stream at Slide Rock.

Dylan shows his daring side. The water was SO COLD!

There was a gorgeous full moon over the mountains. This was one of mom's favorite scenes.

We all took turns in "The Four Corners" of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.

We were "Taking it Easy" on the corner of Winslow, Arizona! We will also never forget eating at the Brown Mug cafe.

Even a giant hole in the ground became interesting as we visited Meteor Crater.

This is the biggest piece found of the meteor that hit Earth.

We explored "Cliff Palace", a Pueblo cliff dwelling.

Dylan had the chance to be "Junior Ranger" to Senior Ranger, John Bruce.

Monument Valley was really neat too! Some of the most famous rock formations we saw were "The Mittens", "Elephant Butte", and "The Three Sisters".

We even got to get out and explore the valley and climb the rocks.

We huddled close as a family when we stayed at the "Anasazi Inn". The accomodations here were less than stellar and for obvious reasons, no one had a shower that day.

We "walked" from Nevada to Arizona while crossing over Hoover Dam. This bridge in the background isn't completed yet, but will be the next time we go there.

We ate at the "Roadkill Cafe" while driving on historic Route 66.

We spent the night in Las Vegas and saw the show "Cirque du Soliel".

We stayed at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. This is by far the nicest hotel we have ever stayed in! We also "explored" next door at Caeser's Palace!

The hotel lobby was creatively decorated for fall. This tree changed expressions and moved his eyes.

Here is our view of the famous Bellagio fountain from our room. It was really neat!

Here's me and mom dressed like homeless people. Did I mention it was COLD?

We had the amazing experience of flying in helicopters over the beautiful canyon!

One of Dylan's favorite experiences was seeing this 12 point buck on our hotel lawn!

Mom and I got up early and hiked to this spot to watch the sunrise. It was like no other sunrise I have ever seen and to have that experience with my mom was UNFORGETTABLE!

What an unbelievable trip I went on with my mom and Dylan. We saw so many amazing things that we will never forget!