angels landing

Rivers and roads and mountains and cliffs and trails and chains and death defying adventure. This are all things that describe Angel's Landing (a highly recommended hike inside ZNP unless you are afraid of heights.)

ZION

"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin." said by John Muir, Our National Parks

Speaking of kin, at ZNP, I snuggled with three cutie pie cousins in my two-man tent. kind of like a human burrito. :) 

Believe it

Who knew there were still places like this deep in the desert? CASSIDY FREAKIN JONES does. 

red rocks

wowza. a weekend spent in the wild with friends. can you think of anything nicer?

(and a photo of myself. JUST FOR YOU MA!) :)

M&M

There's a certain magic and mystery to these photos that I love. 

Yellowstone National Park

YNP: Old foggie paradise

I'm slowly coming to the realization that, wait, that's a lie. I already know that I am geriatric at heart. It explains why I went to Yellowstone in the fall with all the other retirees within a 500 mile radius. Moderate temperatures, smaller crowds, wheelchair accessible hikes and soft serve ice cream are all my little heart desires! Throw in some beautiful sunsets and bison and gee, what more could a 25 going on 75 year old girl ask for? Maybe only an afternoon nap. 

#winnieweekends #winnieinthewild #kylieneedsalife

My dearly beloved friend Ronnie just told me that my romance with Winnie the Subaru was getting a bit out of control. My immediate response was disbelief. No way!! That's pathetic! But because Ronnie was right and quick on his feet he proved me wrong. The hashtags. The road trips. The pet names. THE PHOTOS. Well Ronnie, these are the nails in the coffin. You're right. I've got an embarrassing puppy love romance with my car. 

Side Effects

My friend's mom in Farmington told me a while ago that she understood why I was so good at my job.  She explained that it MUST be because I fit in so well with 13 year olds. It was right after I told a questionable poop joke at the dinner table. (In my defense, it was at least after dinner.) Most people would have re-examined their life choices after a comment like that, but I took a different route. For the first time in my life, I took being called immature as a compliment and ran with it. Literally. I ran away for a while with my 15 person van from work and staged a photo shoot. This very van was a big part of my life at the Boys & Girls Club. I drove it every friday all over town with my kids in back, and almost everyday in the summer. One time a high school Club member even asked if it was my own personal car because she saw me driving it so much. Also, one of my favorite videos of all time involved our "grape van." (see below)

                           

Getting ready:

And by getting ready I mean cliff jumping and road tripping. Not packing. Or organizing. Or getting ready at all. Whoops. 

Getting so close:

The bittersweet feeling of leaving is something I just can't shake. I feel it all the time lately, and can't stop thinking, "Will this be the last time I see this?" "Will that be the last time I go there?"  I run my life on timelines, and a major one is getting oh so close to coming to an end. On August 7, I will have been a desert dweller for two years. I sit and think and it feels like a forever full of desert drives, hard days, and hours with my kids. A full 730 days worth. It only lasts for a bit and then my thoughts move onto roadtrips, adventures, family and the future and I realize it's meant to be.