Nevada!! State #16!!!

Last week, we made it to Las Vegas, NV.  When we weren't covering our eyes, we actually had a great time.  :)  Unfortunately, this place is NOT the most 'family-friendly' or pure place to visit, but we did find several fun and clean things to do here.  It was also a great teachable moment for us to take advantage and teach the kids about gambling addiction, as well as a host of other problems that can cause us to sin.

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is praiseworthy- think about such things. "
Philippians 4:8

I wanted the kids to see the beautiful architecture surrounding Vegas Boulevard.  It is unlike any other place in America, and I wanted them to see it for themselves, so when they are older, they can honestly say, "Been there.  Done that."  :)  Even Tanner made a comment to me that Vegas wasn't that big a deal to him, and he really doesn't have a desire go back.  :)

 Our first stop was the M&M shop!!  WHOO HOO!!

 This place has literally, every color imaginable!  It is 4 stories of M&M yumminess!!  :)

 Todd loved this race car display.

 Tanner really wanted this cool chess board......just a little out of our league! $$$$

 They also had an awesome 4-D, FREE movie that was one of the best I've ever seen!


After our fun time at the M&M shop, we traveled just a few steps to the Coca-Cola Store.  :)  Coke is my favorite soda to choose from, so this was a MUST see!

 We decided to try their "Coke Around the World" taste test.  :)  For only 7 dollars, you get 16 different cups of Coke made in 16 countries.  Some were so good, however, some made us want to puke!  HA!

 Ya know, I try to be a good mom.

 I don't buy soda very often at all.

I try to keep sugar at a minimum.......



but, here, we just let them enjoy, and it was so fun!  :)

 It was so funny to stare at each other to see if they liked the certain country's Coke or not.  ;)

 Parker was in HEAVEN.  ;)

 We headed out of the store, and noticed these fun 'recycled' purses made of Coke tabs!  :)

This day was fun-filled, and we enjoyed a couple more later in the week, too!

Blessings,
Steph

Zach's Corner!!!

Iron Man's Newest Contraption!!!

Blessings,
Steph

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

Joshua Tree National Park!!

 When we left Aguanga, CA., we came upon this sight driving through southern California.  How UGLY can it get?!  I mean really.  If the pioneers could see this, it would make them cry!  All in the name of 'natural' energy.....

 Acres and acres of these windmills......

But, then we arrived in Twenty-nine Palms, CA., and met up with a family we had NEVER met before!  :)  The Davis family are great friends with the Hennessey family that we met up in Moscow, Idaho, and 'heard' about our family and our travels, and offered to let us stay at their property when we decided to visit Joshua Tree.  God is SO amazing.  I love how he is putting brothers and sisters in Christ all along our path, guiding us and blessing us along the way.  It is just amazing!  Again, we had never met, however, we felt like we knew each other for years!  LOVE it!

These funny trees are Joshua trees, and we visited the National Park with the Davis' one afternoon.

There is a small museum in the visitor's center, but it was the hiking and climbing that was the most fun!

Leslee and I enjoyed talking and sharing while the kids explored filling out their Jr. Ranger books.

Another badge for the Golden Gang!  Way to go!!

Then we decided to take the kids to Jumbo Rocks in the National Park.  Too Cool!!!

I felt like we were visiting the Flintstones!  I just knew I could hear Fred yelling, "Wilma!!"  :)

We found 'Skull Rock' that was creepy and exciting.  ;)
And the kids absolutely LOVED climbing all over the place.

A little daunting for this mama, but the kids loved it!

Yes, this is Tanner trying to 'pick' Skull Rock's nose.  Nice.....

The kids climbed higher than they ever had a chance to in their lives,  and found lots of caves and cracks to explore!

We had such an awesome time with the Davis family, and had an even better experience with them the next day when their oldest son, Clayton, and Mr. Davis returned home from a trip to Alaska!

We went rock climbing!  (but that will be another post!)  :)

Blessings,

Steph

Zach's Corner!!!

Yoda's Delta 7 !!!

Blessings,
Steph

Glorious Time in Aguanga, CA. (an Escapees Park)

We are members of the Escapees RV association, and I just have to say that I am SO glad we decided to own one.  It has been a GREAT investment in our travels, and has absolutely paid for itself many times over.  Not only do they have an excellent mail-forwarding system, but they have beautiful campgrounds at amazing prices for their members.  A couple of weeks ago we stayed at the Coarsegold location, Park Sierra for half price and for the past 10 days, we have enjoyed our stay here in Aguanga at Jojoba Hills RV Park.  FOR $90!!!!  What a deal!!!  :)
Now, I know you might be thinking that old saying, "You get what you pay for."  Right?
Uh. Uh.  No way.
 This place is just gorgeous, with wonderful amenities and scheduled activities throughout the week!

 Here is a picture of our site.  It is the size of TWO!  We actually have the extra space for our van, and lots of room for the kids to play.

This is the pool and one of the hot tubs available.  The kids swam every single day!  Look at the view of the mountains in the background.  :)

 They also have a game room with 3 pool tables, a huge library with thousands of books and movies, putt-putt golf and a couple of saunas!

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday they have an icecream social.  Whoo Hoo!!!  Rootbeer Floats!!!

One afternoon, Tanner decided to try and eat a habanero pepper that they grew in the garden.......

 At first, it was a piece of cake!  :)

 And then.......the burn hit like a ton of bricks!

 It was like his mouth was on FIRE!

 It was funny.......sort of........

 Yeah.  It was painfully, funny!  He survived, but learned a valuable lesson!!  HA!


On the grounds, in the RV Park, is also an apple tree, and the kids were able to pick off a lot of fresh apples!  That is a first!  It was SO cool eating an apple you just picked.  :)


The scenery here is just beautiful.  We are on top of a hill, surrounded by mountains, so the valley is just below, and the sky is just enormous.   Gorgeous.

 The kids were SOOO excited to see this HUGE rainbow one morning.  :)

An awesome sunset that we are appreciating every evening.
The Lord is showing HIS creation to us in so many ways.  There is so much to be thankful for!  :)


Blessings,
Steph