Friday, April 30, 2010

Friday Flashbacks - National Parks Edition

This is my family circa 1983 about to embark on the kind of adventure where you load up four kids in a motor home and spend a few weeks driving around the western United States visiting National Parks and (hopefully) you don't lose any kids and no one kills each other. We look super prepared - I hope we have some shoes packed in the motor home somewhere, and a shirt for Tim. I know I saw a lot of great sites on these annual trips, but to be honest, I don't remember much about them. I remember an appreciation for the beauty of our country. We always hit up Zion and Bryce and Yellowstone. We went to the Grand Canyon and the Petrified Forest and Glacier National Park. I remember being amazed by the Northern Lights. I remember heating up soup out of a can on the stove in the motor home.

I posted this picture instead of one of the gazillion view shots my dad took because of the memory I do have of riding in the back of that motor home with my three siblings and spending HOURS pumping our arms up and down out of the back window trying to get truckers to honk. They almost always did, I guess we were too cute for them to ignore.

Nixon and Easton (Sara in her younger days too) love to wildly pump their arm in an (often vain) attempt to get truckers to honk their horns. Are truckers less friendly today? Where did my children learn to do that? I don't ever remember showing them that. I don't remember anyone showing me that as a kid either, but I sure thought it was fun!
We're so lucky to live in Utah - this state has incredible landscapes and fantastic recreation opportunities. My poor husband grew up here and his parents exposed him to very little of it. I saw more of Utah as a child then he did, so we work hard to take advantage of as much of the outdoors as we can. I wonder if my kids will remember specific trips and happenings or just remember that we loved to be outside. Here's some photos to help them remember how much fun we have had enjoying the sights and the company!
Zion National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park
Bear Lake

Lake Powell
Moab

Provo Canyon
Unitah Mountains

3 comments:

Mama F said...

My goal is to see all those fun places with my kids too. Since your hubby and I share parents it will be my first time at most of those places. We have taken the kids to a few places, but I look forward to when they are a little older and can "DO" a more things.

Mama F said...

I said places a lot.

Gray Family said...

Man, you picture so make me want to get out of flat brown Arizona! Love the Lake Powell pic!