Beautiful Sedona!

We're back!!! We had a FABULOUS time in Sedona, Arizona with my family! The time flew!!! Sedona is absolutely gorgeous. Think of St. George, in high def. The reds and greens are so intense. It is like nowhere else I have ever been. It is a desert, yet there are so many green trees! It is a funny little place. Some people believe there are mystical places in Sedona, where a spiritual energy flows, these special places are called "vortexes." There are tours and maps showing how to find them. It is pretty interesting. Downtown is full of so much art!!! There are so many statues and art galleries. It was so fun to walk up and down the street. If you have the chance to visit, you definitely should!What is a vacation without eating WAY too much yummy food?!

Kaitlyn was fascinated by all the statues. She wanted to touch them all...

...except maybe the bear. I think she gets that from me :) These interesting things are called "Javalinas" They are native to the area. They are like little wart hogs. We did a little bike riding while we were there, but we could never quite get up early enough to beat the heat. Monte was good to us and shuttled us around to the best trails. One of our many pit stops along the way.

The GRAND Canyon

..........Wow. This wasn't the first time I have been to the Grand Canyon, yet it was as breathtaking as the first time.

I think we do the tourist thing pretty well!

......Kaity enjoying a little squirrel along the path.Everyone accounted for. We did a headcount at the car to make sure no one had fallen in ;)

The RUINS

We spent a day checking out the ruins of the past. I love this stuff!! These ruins are believed to be built by the Sinagua Tribe in 1100AD. So totally fascinating. It is called "Montezuma's Castle"- giving false credit, but the name stuck. It looks like a caste indeed.

Look how crazy high that thing is!! And I complain about hauling my groceries up a few dumb stairs!

Jake looks mean in this picture, but he's really not.

Here is a little family pic. You will not find Kaity smiling in any of these pictures. Apparently she was not at all captivated like the rest of us. She had a full blown melt down in the visitor's center. It did not make me want to have any more children. Oh Mom, I am glad we don't have to live in a cliff dwelling.
Try keeping a 20 month old out of a restricted area. It was like it had some magical power, pulling her towards it. What gives?!

Markham being the awesome Daddy that he is, spending some quality time on the side lines with the bean sprout.

SLiDe RoCk!!

"Slide Rock" was a total blast. It is a natural slide that takes you for a FRIGID ride. You feel like a freezer pop when you are done. The boys went several times. I went down once, screaming bloody murder the entire way. Afterwards I was too busy trying to restore the blood flow to my limbs to think of much else! It was a popular place, there were people sliding down all day! If you are ever in Sedona, we highly recommend it!

sEE YoU ON the FliP SiDe!!

In the morning I will be crossing state lines with my fam damily. We are having a family reunion of sorts. It will not be complete without Dylan, Ash and Parks. Our thoughts are with them in Kentucky. We love you guys, your absense will be felt! We will be back on the 22nd! I will hopefully have some fun pics to throw up on the good ol' blog! :)

SWEET FREEDOM!!

I am so happy to report that Markham has taken all 4 sections of the CPA!!!! Yipeeeeee!! It is almost weird; we have all this free time now and we are like "What the heck do we do?" For 6 months, it has been study mania every free moment. So this is so ultimately refreshing!! We are getting back in the swing of life again. On Friday night, we went to Benihana's with friends, so so fun!! Kaitlyn was with a sitter!!! It was so so great! I actually got to enjoy my meal, while it was still hot!!! And I didn't have to share any of it :) Love that!! On Saturday, we relaxed, had a delicious breakfast, strolled down to the tennis courts and hit some balls around while Kaity ran around and gathered them up for us. It was pretty cute. Markham got to indulge in reading a book that was strictly for enjoyment! Wow!! Tomorrow we are going to have dinner, dessert and games with friends! What a life! The Carrolls are.......Back!!!

New Shoes!!

I couldn't resist these cute lil' pink shoes. When I saw them , I just had to get Kaitlyn a pair. I am not the only one in the house who loves shoes! Kaity was dancing all over the place.