Capitol Reef National Park

Last year my grandma did something really special: she gave her entire family a trip for our Christmas present. Two nights in a fun log cabin hotel and a fancy dinner was included! Yes, this is the same Grandma that took her entire family to celebrate her and my Grandpa's 50th anniversary. We love this lady so much.

After my Grandma's stroke we decided to move back our spring trip to Capitol Reef to October because it gave my Grandma more time to heal and get better at walking and such. Well last weekend was the weekend we've all been looking forward to since December!

E took Friday off and we got out of the house fairly early. The drive down was wonderful. James slept for a portion, and when he was awake, he was happy and cheerful. Once we arrived in Torrey (the small town right outside the National Park) we checked into our room and met up with my family. Everyone was so thrilled to be there, it was amazing.

We decided to take a hike that very afternoon and picked a family favorite, Cohab Canyon. James loves hiking so much these days, and the weather was GLORIOUS! Perfect low 70s, clear, blue skies and deep red rocks.

I love Southern Utah. Love it.

Hasn't Baby Man changed since his first National Park way back in March?

Oh, and I didn't tell you? My aunt Laura is hosting TWO international exchange students this year, as if her life isn't busy enough being my Grandma's primary caretaker. So here is my cousin Kendra, Patricia (from Spain), Chuck, and Rubina (from Switzerland).


I love this little family picture. Again, lots has changed since Zions seven months ago.
Capitol Reef National Park has a ghost town right in the middle of it. Fruita was a Mormon town about a hundred years ago and still some structures exist.
After our very fun hike we returned to the hotel to find my Grandma (who isn't yet up for bigger hikes) in the middle of making a fantastic dinner of French dips.

That night was... let's say... interesting. Dinner was fantastic but James would not go down for bed. He cried, he fussed, and acted not like his perfect sleeping self. Then around 10:00 pm he woke up screaming. Not crying, screaming. Like he was in so much pain. My mind flashed back to the night at the ER only a week before. E and I ran in and snuggled him. I tried to breastfeed him. He would not calm down (and to make it worse, we were sharing a cabin with my sister and my mom and Chuck...). Anyway, after a walk outside and about an hour more of snuggles/and cries, he finally fell asleep.

Until 5:00 am when he woke up again screaming. E and I were at a loss. Was he in pain? Was his elbow messed up again? What the heck was happening? He never cries like this.

Anyway, after a very early morning drive, he finally settled down and fell asleep in his car seat for an hour. Not an experience I want to repeat.

E and I were in charge of breakfast that morning, and surprisingly James seemed totally back to his normal self. E and I kept wondering if we should go home or stick it out. We stuck it out and we are so glad we did.

My Grandma was thrilled James stopped walking for a half a second to read a book with her.
E is the breakfast master. Pancakes are served.
That day (after letting the baby take a nice long morning nap) we hiked the Grand Wash. This hike is fantastic because the wash gets more and more narrow the higher you go up. So amazingly beautiful. And again the weather was AMAZING! On the way back to Torrey we stopped at the visitor center to get our passports stamped.

Some of our group (my Grandma, Chuck, my mom and Kathleen are missing from this photo).


Eating lunch along the wash.
During lunchtime we had some very hungry visitors.
Remember this shot from Zion? Things change too quickly.
James stamping his passport just like last time. (Gah, he's grown!)
After the hike (and another great long baby nap) it was time to go to our special dinner that was part of the Christmas present! My Grandma had chosen Cafe Diablo, a special (and pricey) Southwestern restaurant in the town of Torrey. We all arrived at 6:30 and all 16 of us were seated together. We enjoyed tapas and salads and the most amazing special dinner. James was fantastic through the entire dinner and E and I were both thrilled with what we ordered. I sounded like everyone else also thought it was fantastic.

At dinner! So fun!
This was my dinner. It looks as awesome as it tasted.
That night was much better than the last, but James again woke up at 5:00 am. At least he wasn't screaming. A few snuggles and a car ride with Daddy (while E let me go back to sleep!) did the trick.

We ate another fantastic breakfast, put the baby down for a morning nap, packed up, and said goodbye to my wonderful family. Once James was awake E and I drove back into the park and went on a little walk along a boardwalk at the base of the red cliffs. James walked the entire time and was loving it.

Then, to say goodbye to a park we love so much, we decided to have a little picnic lunch. We enjoyed sandwiches, chips and apples under beautiful golden cottonwood trees while we looked up at the red cliffs. Finally we took a little walk in an orchard and said goodbye to the national park and drove the long ride home.

It was fantastic.

Love these shots we got along the boardwalk under the yellow cottonwood trees.



Our little impromptu picnic.
James was reaching for my apple during lunch. I gave it to him and he loved it. He could shave off tiny little pieces with his two toofies, and was content for quite some time.



This might be my favorite shot from the entire trip. Love it.
E took this as well. Isn't he amazing?

Well I've been working on this post for almost two hours and now I'm tired. Goodnight.