The LONG Drive
For a family vacation this year we decided to go to California to visit Grandpa Tsukamoto. Erin was just a baby four years ago when we last saw him and didn't remember him at all, and Dallin needed to meet him. It took a lot of work to pack for 6 people for 10 days! April tried unsuccessfully to get everyone to start packing a week early. We ended up cramming everything into the last couple of days before leaving, but we eventually got out of the house with a shred of sanity still intact.
This was the scene in the car while still in Logan.
We stopped in SLC to see Grandpa Young and tell him Happy Birthday. We gave him some homemade chocolate-covered dried cherries that Kevin picked, April processed, and everyone loved. We also took a tour of the basement to see the damage done by a broken pipe, but that's a story for another day. Ian found a hat there which he calls his "straw fedora."
Here is a picture on their nice new porch swing.
Here is a picture on their nice new porch swing.
We continued our long drive and somehow made it to St. George around midnight after many stops, where everyone collapsed in our motel room. The following morning we visited one of Kevin's and April's high school friends, Nancy W. The children had no idea who she was, but they had a good time playing with her 4 boys before buckling up for the remainder of the long drive.
Our rest stops consisted of pulling off for "ranch exits" or other non-populated areas where the children could stretch their legs running around catching critters.
Attempting to catch lizards at one of our rest stops
Dallin was a MUCH better traveler than Erin was at his age. He was happy for most of the drive, though he needed lots of attention. He had a good time being out of his car seat at the rest stops. He can't be trusted with a sippy cup, though--his clothes got wet very quickly.
We enjoyed this cool barrel cactus in bloom. Besides these, there were a lot of prickly little cacti that were hard to avoid, but they were not flowering.
April was very pleased when Megan found the first horned lizard scat and Erin found the second. Must be the top-notch training they've received! No one found any horned lizards though.
Multitasking Father: Balancing Child C on head while holding Child D in arms
Artsy Photo Attempt
About an hour away from Yuma, we stopped to look for scorpions with our black light (which we have for just such occasions). But by this time Megan and Erin were asleep, so Kevin and Ian looked while Dallin and April gazed at the stars.
We arrived at our friends' house in Yuma around 11:00 p.m. and settled down for the night. We had to get our sleep before venturing out early for our much-anticipated horned lizard hunt.
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