A Few Weeks Ago...

...My family and I took a little trip to Southern Utah where we spent a day and a half at Zions National Park with my brother -The Kid Whisperer, his family, and my parents.  Then we spent two days at an amazing place called Clear Creek Ranch where we had a grand family reunion in honor of my Grandpa and Grandma Burgoyne.  We could not have asked for more.  Even the weather was perfect...with cooler temperatures, loads of rain, and plenty of sunshine to keep us happy.  Nothing like a good rain, eh? 


Honestly, the kicker for me during our getaway was the good look that I got at the Milky Way.  I have always been mesmerized by the great band of light up in the night sky and each time I gaze upon its starry vastness I cannot help but feel the immenseness of God's creations.

(It is incredibly hard to find a decent picture online, but you get the idea, don't you?)

Here are some of the highlights of our trip.  Enjoy!

My Man took the boys for canoe rides on the pond at The Ranch.  They LOVED it!

T.R., the beloved uncle.

Uncle T.R. taking on his nephews in a "little" wrestling match.

And then there was a  little pandemonium with some mattresses until Cousin Alan came and broke things up.  I guess some of the grown ups didn't approve of their hoo-ha.  Nobody got hurt so it was "all good" in my opinion.

Moving on...

If you have been to Zions then you know how awesome it is.  The towering cliffs are amazing.  You could probably spend a whole week hiking the different trails.  Some are long and some are short.  Some easy and some are hard.  {Ya, I know, who would have thought?}  Since we had the kids with us we chose to stick to a couple of easier trails.  Our hikes included the Weeping Rock and the Riverside Walk.

View from Weeping Rock....can you see the rain drops coming down?  The view really was fantastic!  I just wish my camera had captured it better.

Here are five of the seven hiking kids.  My beautiful niece and handsome nephew and three of my "cherubic" children.

This is my brother, The Kid Whisperer.  He can get any kid to calm down and sit still.  A talent that I do not have.  He was hauling his cute little wee one and my Little Lou.  They were just too tired to go on.  He's a good block of cheese...good kid, good kid. 

 

For some reason the song My Country Tis of Thee just popped in my head and I am feeling slightly inspired right now.  lol.  Have a good one, everybody!  And go visit Zions!

My country,' tis of thee,

sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing;

My Parents posing at Weeping Rock.

land where my fathers died,

land of the pilgrims' pride,

from every mountainside let freedom ring!

My native country, thee,

land of the noble free, thy name I love;

I love thy rocks and rills,

thy woods and templed hills;

my heart with rapture thrills, like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,

and ring from all the trees sweet freedom's song;

let mortal tongues awake;

let all that breathe partake;

let rocks their silence break, the sound prolong.

Our fathers' God, to thee,
author of liberty, to thee we sing;
long may our land be bright
with freedom's holy light;
protect us by thy might, great God, our King.