BRYCE CANYON / ZION TRIP

My aunt and uncle from New Hampshire came to visit for a week. My aunt has wanted to go to Bryce Canyon National Park for awhile now, so we loaded up a rental car and drove for some beUTAHful scenery.

There was a stowaway who didn't want to be left at home.

 Our group wasn't full of amazing hikers, but lucky for us, both parks have pullouts that allow you to see amazing hoodoos without much physical effort.

 You will find beautiful red rocks, arches, trees, and fabulous canyons.

 If you "hike the hoodoos" and find medallions hidden throughout the park, you can go to the gift shop to earn a small prize.

 The next morning, we packed up and drove to Zion National Park.

 We stopped at the Thunderbird Restaurant just outside of the park for breakfast. Try the french toast!

 The rain/snow couldn't deter us from enjoying the trip.

There weren't a ton of visitors in the park since it was October. Reports said that Zion had a record number of visitors this year so they were keeping reservations through Thanksgiving. The flora is still fabulous and leaves are amazing colors right now!

The Fall colors are fabulous.

Today (11/11/15) is Veteran's Day. National Parks are free today. If you have one close by, make a stop. You won't regret it.

ROADTRIPpin

We all need to get in the car and drive once in awhile. 

The trip started out with a break in my favorite rest stop city of Beaver.

I wasn't driving so we didn't stop at the usual Chevron with the giant chair and Dairy Queen, but I was still able to take a photo with some tacky souvenirs.

We made it to Huntington Beach after getting through a few traffic jams and had to sleep in the car for a little bit until the host of the house we were staying at arrived to let us inside. At least we had a free place to sleep.

The next morning was beautiful and full of palm trees.

Three hours later, it started raining. The rain stopped Saturday....I think (that's the day after we left).

My friend Jon was in the area to create a volleyball movie. Not much footage was shot due to practices being cancelled because of the rain.

 Since volleyball practice was cancelled, we were able to find a ferry to ride to Balboa Pier.

 Lucky for us, we packed our rain jacket and poncho to protect us from the crazy weather.

 Thanks to the flooding rain, there were double the palm trees in the parking lot.
I love palm trees.

We went to Downtown Disney to buy tickets for the park for the next day. I somehow lost my driver's license on the walk to the ticket booth.
I was excited to buy a new Alex and Ani Disney Park bangle. The bangles were all sold out.
We were able to try beignets and see the inside of the Grand Disney Hotel which I had never previously experienced.

The next morning, it rained even more than the day before.
The rain brought snails and snails make me smile.

My best friend asked me to come back early and spend time with them. So we decided to call it quits and drive home. As I got home, my BFF told me they were just kidding about asking me to come back early. Luckily, they had a couple hours free before they went on with their plans for the day and I was able to drive over to spend some quality time with them possibly against their will.

 On the drive home, Jon and I decided to stop in Primm and ride a roller coaster and stop at the outlets. The one store he wanted to go to was under construction and the roller coaster was out of order that day.

I was able to catch some awesome graffiti on the bathroom stall at the outlet shopping center that made me laugh.

*

This trip seemed to be a total disaster. I write about it to tell you that bad crap can and just might happen (maybe even for 9 months straight), but it is up to us to find the little good things along the path. It's a hard thing to do. I can attest to that. Sometimes you want to just stop and cry and ask 'why me?!' But where does that get you? I'm not saying snails, palm trees, and tacky souvenirs will make your life phenomenally phenomenal....but I know a positive attitude and being able to laugh through the hard times will help make it more bearable. Be happy. Life is good.

ROAD TRIP

I took my Day-Z dog on her first road trip that was longer than the 30 minute ride to our local dog park.

She was a little nervous in the car, but nothing her bed and a blanket couldn't calm.

I don't know if seeing the sights is Dayz's idea of fun
(bored dog face)

I guess her next road trip will have to include more off-leash activities.
PS this is Utah's first state capitol in Fillmore...later changed to Salt Lake City.

ROAD TRIP - HOME

The final day of our trip was full of:

more cousin time, 

a rainy drive to Monterey and Carmel

for some delicious lunch at the Hog's Breath Inn,

(most likely the only time I'll ever order a "Dirty Hairy" Burger at a restaurant), 

a drive through the city we used to live in*

 with a peek at our old house,

 and LOTS of driving.

Thank you for the fun, California, but it's time to go back to Utah.

*Some schools have mascots that are strong and can beat up other school's mascots. My school was not one of these...panda power!

FAMILIES ARE FOREVER & OAKLAND

Last night, my mother and I could only find 1 hotel with a room for us to sleep in. Apparently, there was a big baseball game and kite festival in Berkeley that weekend.

 We left our fancy 1-star hotel

 to had lunch at Nation's Giant Hamburgers...and giant they were!

We still had a couple hours before the party for Aunt Helen today so we drove to Oakland to another one of my favorite places.

The Oakland temple

The flowers and palm trees on the grounds are gorgeous.

While it is sad that Aunt Helen passed, she did live 99 great years. She was a kind woman who had a love for travel, knowledge, service, and cats.

 During the celebration, my mother and I were able to visit with family members to look at photos and share stories.

I'm a Mormon kid. In my religion, we believe families are forever and even though some leave the earth, we will see each other again one day.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN - RENO

We were planning on going to Aunt Helen's 100th birthday party in Berkley, CA. Unfortunately, she passed 10 days before her birthday. My mother and I still hit the road to make it to a party in her memory. We drove to Reno and slept at the fabulous Circus Circus. They have rooms for $40 - incredible!

 We walked around the city in the morning and found a treat!

Raise your hand if you joined a senior citizen flash mob dance to Staying Alive this morning.

ME!

 After checking out of our room, we walked around the Midway Circus area and caught a few of the free shows they offer.

 There is a super cute show dog show

and a gravity-defying acrobat show.

After a quick stop for lunch at Jack-in-the-Box (don't judge me), we were on the road again.  

Our next stop was at the Penny Candy Store near Live Oak, CA. My parents used to take my brother's  and me here whenever we would visit my grandparents.

My mom gave me a whole dollar to spend just like the old days!

We made one final stop before going to my cousin's house to spend the night with family at the 99 cent only store. Back in the day, I bought a hair crimper here for 99 cents. Best deal ever.

Cousin time.