Climbing BIG Rocks!!

 While we were in Twenty-Nine Palms, CA., we were blessed to meet the Davis Family!  They are a military family; Mr. Davis has served 17 years in the Marines, and is close to retirement!  I am SO grateful for his commitment and service to our country, protecting our freedom.

He is also a talented rock climber, and took us out to Joshua Tree National Park for some lessons.  :)
In fact, we were going to leave this day, however, we decided to stay an extra day so we could visit with them, and the kids could play more.  Little did we know, that this day would hold a 'once in a lifetime' experience for my family.  :)

This is Hannah literally climbing at least 50 feet so far!  She is secured by a rope system that Mr. Davis was controlling down at the bottom!

 When she made it to the top, she was surprised how high up she was!

Coming down is ANYTHING but natural!  You have to totally trust the rope.  You climb backwards, with your feet straight in front, as if you are sitting on the ground!  UG!

 Hannah did awesome, and loved every minute of it!  She absolutely LOVES a challenge.


Now, here is six-year-old Emily!  She climbed this wall of rock with out skipping a beat!

Until, she saw how high up she was.........

After a lot of encouraging and coaxing, she was just terrified to come down.  She is usually just as brave, if not more than Hannah, but this one showed her a new fear that she was not prepared for.

 Jeremiah was just wonderful.  He climbed to where Emily was, and guided her down the wall.  She was still scared, but he helped her overcome that fear and faced it WITH her.  It was precious.

Then, it was Zach's turn!  As the sun was going down, we thought we might stop, and boy was he bummed to think that he would not get a chance.  However, Jeremiah reassured us that there was enough time, so up he went!  :)

At one point, he was really struggling to get a foothold, and then his foot got stuck!  He let a loud yell, and set his foot free.  It was so funny, because then he realized what he did, and then apologized to everyone.  :)  Too funny!

 Lastly, Tanner got his turn after he patiently let everyone go before him.  He was chomping at the bit!

 He loved the challenge, and could not wait to do it again!  :)

Early the next morning, Jeremiah, Tanner, Clayton, Todd and Zach went back to climb some more and had an awesome experience!

Thank you Davis Family for such a special time.  Not only were you SO encouraging and very hospitable, but we are grateful for your fellowship.  We sure hope to see you again soon!  (maybe on the road!)  :)

Blessings,
Steph