Poems, Prayers and Promises

Here's some more cool Vacation Photos. Now that were back I really want to go back out, but looking at pictures is as close as I'm going to get right now lol. I'm trying to put together a little movie with some of the picture from the trip, but I've never used this video software before so it might be awhile lol. But it'll totally be worth it if it works and I'll try to link it here but I don't know how to do that either. Computers are great if you know how to use them lol.

Oh, I'm in the back of the kayak thing (they called 'em duckies lol) with some Australian dude in the front looking a little concerned, and the rest of the family is in the raft.

The Cheez-It's box speaks to Mom. Naw I'm glad she is posting trip stuff on it cause you all know how good I am at keeping up with it. 

We now interupt this action packed blog for another report from Mom:

Monday was a rest day for us. We did laundry, swam in the pool and did some shopping. Ross and Dave went to a hiking, backpacking, surplus store and bought some cool items. Ross now has an awesome backpack with a frame and lots of cool things. [Ross Edit: it's actually a external frame army surplus pack which, besides being alot cheaper than a new pack, it also had some cool features I couldn't pass up lol] We also played some tennis, on a very short court at the hotel, it was fun!

Last night we went to the Lowell Observatory (the one where Pluto was discovered in 1930) and actually were able to see Jupiter, with the colored stripes and all. Couldn’t see the giant red spot, however. That was so exciting. Really enjoyed the time there. Today we are heading South for the day to Sedona and Slide Rock State Park. Don’t really know what all we will see there but we are looking forward to another adventure the Lord has for us today!

We are praying all of you who are helping the Blankenships with the Seniors Luncheon. I know it will go well, say hello to everyone for us and sing Ps 104 D for us!!!

Beautiful Arizona sunset on our way to the Lowell Observatory 

Playing Short Court Tennis, Very short, look at the back court!!! It was a blast! 

Swimming! 

This was so encouraging to see at Hermits Rest on the far end of the South Rim.  

More from Mom:

We are back in civilization! After we finished the last few trails at Arches, we left Moab for the drive to Tropic along Highway 24 and 12, the Most Scenic Drive in America. It was amazing. We went from dessert dry to mountain tops and trees and deer, to driving across the tops of a Mountain top. That road literally has no shoulder. We drove through Dixie National Forrest, the Grand Staircase Escalante, beautiful! Stayed in a cute little cabin in Tropic, Utah.

Early in the morning we went to Bryce and saw the incredible landscape there. We had a cloudy day with sprinkles, but it was perfect for walking a trail down into the canyon. After dinner at Ruby’s Inn we headed for the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We arrive in 40 degree temps with rain, so we didn’t think we would see much, but we had a spectacular sunset with clouds and a small rainbow. Our room was a little cabin on the rim, very rustic. The walls,inside and out, were logs.

Friday, Dave and I went over to the Lodge and watched the Sunrise. Met a Christian man reading Ps. 34 out loud in the sunroom. It was incredible. No photos could ever cover the beauty and grandeur of the Canyon. Ross and Philip took the opportunity to hike the Kaibab Trail down to the Roaring Springs down in the Canyon. They had a wonderful 11 mile “walk”. Dave, Kathryn and I drove through the park to Angels Window and Cape Royal to see some spectacular sights. We saw many beautiful flowering plants which according to the locals have not occurred for the last 20 years but because of the added rainfalls and larger amounts of snow the plants have come alive.

Saturday we rose to eat a wonderful breakfast and headed to the South Rim. Again we had rain, this time with astounding lightning. We checked into the Maswick Lodge room and a bit.
Sunday we worshiped in our room and then hit the Bright Angel Trail down to the Mile and a half station. Going down was easy, but, coming up require a few breaks for some of us. Then we took the shuttle bus out to Hermits Rest and stopped at several view points. Then we headed over here to Flagstaff where we are planning more adventures.

The Colorado River from the South Rim 

At the 1 1/2 mile stop on Bright Angel Trail 

Wildlife at the South Rim! Yikees! 

The outside of our awesome Pioneer Cabin 

Switch back on the long trail 

Roaring Springs, the half way point in the 11 mile hike Ross and Philip took.  

Inside our pioneer rustic cabin 

A look into the Canyon just before sunset with rain clouds 

We made it to the North Rim 

Down in Bryce Canyon, at the end of the trail! 

Looking down into Bryce 

Walking down a trail at Bryce 

From Mom:


In The Beginning,God Created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. Gen 12:1

Such a packed verse of Scripture, and we are certainly seeing some of the most magnificent things God has created! Starting with the rushing waters. Early Tuesday morning we headed out to the Moab Adventure Center for our Whitewater River Rafting. Four of us were in an 8 man raft with another homeschooling Christian family from Lexington, KY and Ross was in an inflatable Kayak with a guy from Australia. Because the water levels were up (The Delores River hasn’t run in 5 years and it is a raging river right now!) all of the rapid levels were up, too (and one was washed out). It was awesome! On one of the rapids, it was a III, was called Jaws because it eats boats, there was a drop which as we approached it reminded me of the up and then blind drop of the “Brier Rabbit, Splash Mountain” ride at Disney. The Drop was not as long, but equal or greater in angle. Straight down, splash into the waves, paddle paddle and into another wave. Cold waves. The water temp. was only 57. We didn’t lose anyone or flip anyone out, except the guide who took a quick dip at the end of one of the rapids. Ross in the Kayak found all the extreme spots in the rapids. We were able to share with the guide a thought about how all this beauty came to be. Dave asked him if he had ever considered that this could have all come about in one, catastrophic flood event, rather than over millions of years and the discussion, although brief, continued from there.

We came back to the hotel and crashed for a bit then headed back over to Arches. We did the “Windows” section and then began the mile hike UP to the Delicate Arch. It was a strenuous hike half way on slickrock and across a narrow 200 foot long rock ledge. It was worth it, Delicate Arch was beautiful and we were there as the sun was beginning to set (about 8:30 our time) and took many beautiful photos. It is a photographers dream to get to take the Delicate Arch at sunset. There were photographers there from all over the world! It sounded like a meeting at the United Nations. The long trip back was easier than the one up and it was quiet and beautiful. God certainly has abundant creativity! Perfect creativity! Many of the dessert wild flowers were blooming, too. We stopped at a ranch that was there in the early 1800’s. Very simple living and very small.

Moab is an incredible little oasis in the landscape. So much to do! Skydiving, mountain climbing, Arches, ATV offroading, mountain biking, Jeep offroading, shopping at some unusual shops and of course white water river rafting. This would be a fun place to come back and spend a week.
Today we will hit Arches once more as we check out of town and head to Tropic, UT to begin our exploration of Bryce Canyon. We will travel on Hwy 12, one of the most scenic roads in America. Doubt there will be any internet in Tropic, or at the North Rim for that matter, so it may be several days before we update. After Tropic, we are at the North Rim for two days and then to the South Rim. Thanks for the prayers, we all are well and learning more about God and we continue to make Him known to others around us!

--Lori

North Window. 

Narrow Trail up to Delicate Arch.

Delicate Arch.

At Wolf Ranch.

Sunset.

And now an update from Philip! I'm really starting to get into having other people write things for my blog lol.



Hello from the West! On Sunday we where able to make it to church and worship with the Lawrence church. It was definitely a small church, but it was great seeing other people having a zeal for the Lord also! Following the church luncheon we participated in, we headed on our long trek across the flat plains of Kansas. If you think that Indiana is flat, you haven’t seen Kansas. You could see for miles without any hills or trees to obscure your view. It was absolutely fascinating to see. But after looking at flat fields and tons a cows for hours and hours on end, you soon get tired of it. Fortunately, just as the sun was setting we settled into the western outskirts of Denver, Colorado. We where able to see some of the mountains before the sun set, but it was still to dark to take in there full beauty. The next day we got up and headed out for Moab, Utah. The Rocky Mountains we passed over and saw, where absolutely breathtaking! I have never seen such an awesome sight. After a couple of breathtaking hours traveling across the lush, green, snow capped mountains, the scenery began to change into a more dry and brownish landscape. Even with this change in scenery, the views where still a sight to see. We eventually made it to Moab with time to spare, so we went and ate at a Mexican restaurant. After a filling meal of salsa and Enchiladas, we took a quick trip up to Arches National Park to catch some sights of the scenery as the sun was setting. My breath was again quickly stolen away as I took in the sights of Arches. There were so many colors and views, it was over whelming. Tomorrow we are going to attempt to raft down the Colorado River and take in some more sights of Arches. Until the next update, take a little time to “Enjoy the View.”

~Philip

A huge tower of rock in Arches...More arches later! 

Arches Nat. Park at sunset