Monday, June 25, 2018

An Unforgettable Vacation!

On May 29th Jonathan and I headed to Texas.
Jonathan went for his job, while I went for what turned out to be an unbelievable vacation!

The first couple days I stayed with Deborah and Daniel and this darling sweetheart. 
(a splendid intro to my incredible trip!)
Here precious Caitlyn is enjoying watermelon at the slash pad in Greenville.

The next week I stayed at Amanda and Russell's house, but I have no pictures of that.
Then we began an 8-day trip out west...
The first night we camped at Clayton Lake, in New Mexico.
It was gorgeous!

To "we southerners", the scenery became more and more unusual
the farther west we went


And the road signs also became very unusual!
Download Watch For Rattlesnakes Sign Stock Photo - Image of roadsign, scary: 49383642



Here are Amanda and Russell in New Mexico, sitting atop Capulin Volcano!
Russell was the only one feeling brave and confident as we drove up the edge of that mountain, 
but Amanda was the only vocal one! (I was having fun listening to her squeals!)

And then, finally, we arrived at our longed-for destination!
This cute little camper is Anna and Steven's "home" right now, as they travel the country.
It's not as tiny as it looks once you're inside, and we all 7 stayed here very comfortably.

We were so busy enjoying the sweet company that we didn't get many pictures, 
but here are a few...
Eva and Hudson lizard-hunting
(and such interesting lizards they found!) 

A tree just Hudson's size!

For a scorching dessert, we were surprised by how cool it got at night! 
The kids were so cold this morning that they had to move to the sunshine to eat their breakfast!

And the next morning, we all headed for the Grand Canyon!!!

Here are Steven and the kids arriving at the bus stop

We were waiting for a bus with 7 empty seats

I'm going to post a few pictures from the Canyon, but they come nowhere near showing the breath-taking splendor of it!  It was truly spectacular!  
(If you haven't been, you cannot fathom the incredible awe of God's handiwork!)

Although we regret that Steven is missing here,
he is the reason we were able to have a group photo!

Here are Anna, Steven, Eva, and Hudson,
starting off on the Bright Angel Trail!

It was AMAZING! The view was unbelievable...

...and one little person had not an ounce of fear!
"Don't step back, Hudson!"

If you look closely at the picture below, you can see the Bright Angel trail
 winding it's way down the canyon. 
The trail is like 8 miles long, but we didn't go too far

That night we camped just outside of the canyon.
This was our favorite campground of the whole trip.
(even if we did all wake up FREEZING at 3 am!  It was 40 degrees!)

The next day we spent back at the canyon


The next two pictures were taken from one of the windows near the top of this tower
As I viewed this incredible sight, the words of "How Great Thou Art"
were running through my head.  What an Awesome God we serve! 

We all went back to Anna and Steven's that night 
Adorable kiddos!
Here Eva was pointing out a "Prickly Pear" Cactus.  Isn't that face priceless???

And Hudson was demonstrating a "Dessert Broom"



In the evening, we girls and the kids took a long walk, 
enjoying the very different scenery and the quickly cooling weather.


This photo was taken on Amanda and Russell's 2nd anniversary.

The last day we were there, Anna and the kids took us to a remarkable place...
A Beautiful Oasis in the middle of the hot, dry dessert!
Running water...

...Mulberries to eat...

...and a place to cool hot feet!



When we left Anna and Steven's, our next stop was the Petrified Forrest.

Once again, you can't get the full effect of it from photos.
The tree trunks here are hard and shiny like stones,
though it doesn't look like that in the photos


By night we had made it back to New Mexico
If you can't tell from the photos, this campground was nothing but dust and dirt!
We were told that it hadn't rained there since last September, and everything was so incredibly dry!
This is the top of our tent. Sitting on dust, surrounded by dust...nothing around but dust!  
About the middle of the picture you can see "Church Rock" in the background

Back in Texas, our very last stop - "Palo Duro Canyon" 
Palo Duro is the second largest canyon in the world.
It was lovely, but didn't quite compare to the Grand Canyon! 
We actually camped at the bottom on this canyon, and we were
visited by a thunder storm for several hours during the night!  What Fun! :)

Then it was back to Amanda and Russell's place for a couple days, and then my vacation days ended... but the remarkable sights/times with family will be in my memory forever!

Ecclesiastes 3:11 
"He hath made everything beautiful in his time"

Friday, June 22, 2018

The Lewis Edition: May

Anna and Lydia spent some time at our house while their dad
was in the hospital for back surgery.
This was taken on one of our fun walks to the park!

The three of us tried out Shivers Shaved Ice,
using some coupons we were given.
It was worth the long wait in line!

I'm working on a quilt!
I'm finished with about half of the applique squares.
This quilt is special because Mama Flo cut it out years ago,
and a few years ago she gave it to me!

Ripe cherry tomatoes!
The birds got the first two, but now 
we're getting a few every day!

Russell and I stayed with sweet friends in El Dorado
while we were there for a South Arkansas Symphony Concert.

Ready for the concert!

Rehearsal for Russell's students' school concert!

We got a new (to us!) vehicle!!!
We plan to use it for travelling/camping.
We're thrilled with all the room inside,
and the smooth, quiet ride!

Outdoor Memorial Day Concert in El Dorado.

 A storm came up!
We only got rained on a little, though. :)

Our students gave their Spring Recital.
We were so pleased with their hard work
and the wonderful job they did!

Leona played "Alouette"

Tessa performed "Lightly Row"

 Russell, Kylie, Laura and Zane playing "Canon in D"

Lydia, Anna and me

Toward the end of May Rebekah came down for a visit!

I went to pick her up at Deborah and Daniel's
and spent the day.

Visiting with friends at the water park

Caitlyn is growing up so fast!
It was fun to watch her stack the shapes on this toy!