Bandelier National Monument Hike and Exploration

We later found out that the birds in the logo were "turkeys" and were inspired by the local lodge hostess in the early years.

On the list, of places to visit for this trip, was Bandelier National Monument, located about 45 minutes NW of where we were staying in Santa Fe.  From the reading we had done, it sounded similar to the Pueblo Indian ruins we explored in Colorado, when we stopped at Mesa Verde National Park, so we packed up for the day trip and looked forward to what we would see and learn.

The weather was beautiful and the sunshine felt great, so being outside was refreshing.  It was slightly windy, but that didn't bother us too much as we walked along the Frijoles Canyon Trail (Main Loop) which was right around 1.2 miles round trip.

I knew that the dwellings were carved into the cliff walls, similar to Mesa Verde, but what I didn't realize, was that the whole area we were going to be exploring, was covered in "tuff" or ancient volcanic rock, and this is what made it unique and easy to carve into for the ancient people.  I had assumed it was limestone or sandstone cliff walls, but ancient volcanic ash was pretty interesting.  The whole canyon was layers of light-colored volcanic ash, and standing back, looking at its swiss cheese appearance, you could see all the different areas that the ancient people used for their dwellings and storage for food.

This plaque states that the tuff is over 1000 feet deep in some areas and airborne ash was found in Iowa, Texas and Nebraska.

This is the valley overlook area.
The tight bunch of trees in the center of the photo is where we hiked and where the visitors center was located.

The park was busy, it was spring break week for a lot of the cities around, so we had to take turns and wait a few times while exploring the ladders and dwellings, waiting for people hiking in front of us to finish so we could look and explore.

Although it was busy, it was a nice day to be outside and overall, although not my most favorite hike we've been on, it was interesting and worth seeing.  Plus, they had a Junior Ranger program for the kids, so they enjoyed getting a badge when we were finished.

When asked how it compared to Mesa Verde National Park, Ethan didn't think it was much in comparison, as the structures and villages at Mesa Verde were so much larger and more involved, but maybe the back country trails we didn't hike would leave us with a different perspective?  Maybe we will come back sometime and try the other hikes?

For more information on this National Monument this book provides a lot of details and speculation about the construction of the ruins and the people that might have inhabited the area.

Great Grandpa an d Ernie walked the loop at their own pace while we explored the ladders and other areas.

Behind Ev and Ethan you can see the "tuff chunks" that were pasted together like bricks to make larger, multi-level  buildings.

Over their heads you can see all the hollow cave areas in the cliff face.

Some of the ruins were reconstructed for a better visual understanding of the ancient dwellings.

From above, you can see just how large that brick and mortar village was.

Grandma Vicky climbed up the ladder to see inside too.

This reconstructed cliff dwelling/kiva was fun to go inside.

Inside was cool and breezy, a nice break from the warm sun outside.

The Ponderosa Pine trees were pretty massive and after watching one of the guides
ahead of us, we discovered they smell like candy.

All over the cliff walls were petroglyphs (cave carvings).  These were very high, roughly 2-3 stories,
so we thought that the previous brick exterior dwellings would have been stood on to carve these faces.

Everywhere we walked, there were little areas hollowed with more evidence of the holes that would have held beams for exterior structures.

More petroglyphys with those evenly spaced holes for timber to support the roof.

This was a fairly large carving in a larger hollow far up on the cliff wall.  Is it a dinosaur?   

That previous petroglyph is in the dark hollow at the center of this photo.

The loop hike took us over the water to the other side of the valley.

Once we crossed the water, it was more obvious the layers of soft volcanic tuff.

The area we were climbing to was 150 feet up multiple ladders.
If you look closely, you can see people on the ladders and narrow walkways.

Ladder #1

Ladder #2, the longest ladder I believe.

All smiles!

Ladder #3 was pretty steep.

Looking down you could see just how high we were!

All the climbing took us up to this alcove area with a reconstructed kiva.

It was a great view!

The boys, sitting in front of a reconstructed ceremonial kiva.

What comes up, must go down.  Ethan prepared for the decent to the valley floor.

Going down was not as easy as going up, but the kids had fun.
But we were all covered in dust once we were finished!

Once you unleash the monkey, you can't keep him from climbing!

A previous flood left all this wooded debris, so our monkeys insisted on climbing it.

Everett tried his skills at the spider climb, American Ninja Warrior style!

Elliot wanted in on the climbing action.

Success!!

And sometimes, they can be sweet.

But still a little CRAZY!

Ethan next to a HUGE ponderosa pine.

The bark was pretty impressive with the layers and colors.

As we were leaving, we spotted some wildlife in the construction area.

They were very close!

As we exited the park at the end of our hike, I was surprised to see snow on the distant mountains.

On the Road Again... New Mexico Here We Come!

The drive time said 14 hours and 36 minutes (956 miles) on the map.  Driving with kids always amounts to more, and not wanting to sleep in the van makes for a long day on the road, so we had a hard time deciding when to leave for this trip.  I, as always, procrastinated on packing, and this time it was until the day of our trip.  I guess you can say my lack of pack was the majority of the hold up in the exact time of departure.

To be honest, I don't know why I've been lacking motivation lately... it seems EVERYTHING takes 10 times more effort to do, and I'm always doing it while holding a baby, and I get interrupted a million times in the process, then I forget what I'm even doing... so lately, my production in "moving in the right direction" has been pretty low and the whole process is exhausting.  I'm sure things will improve, if not, I guess this is what life is with 4 kids, and I'll get used to it.

Despite it all, the packing was completed around 8 PM Friday evening, and after discussing what our evening drive would be like, and the fact that sleeping in the van our last trip (at a rest stop) was NOT very restful, we disappointed the kids by delaying our departure a few hours and getting one last night of sleep in our beds at home.  To say they were disappointed is an understatement, you would have thought we told them we were not going on the trip at all by the way they were all crying, but we stayed firm, told them we would be leaving before the sun was up the following day, and they finally decided that they could live with our decision to leave early Saturday morning and everyone went to bed.  

I had planned to wake up before 4 AM, but when that time came around (after waking at 2, 2:30 and 3 AM with Eli) I was still tired, so I slept in a bit and finally got out of bed around 4:45 AM.  I dressed, packed up a few last minute things, and then finished packing the van.  I woke up Ethan around 5:30 AM (so he could get the full effect of "leaving when it was still dark") and just when I thought we were minutes from leaving (as we loaded the DVD player to make sure all systems were go), Elliot's DVD player was broken and I needed to hunt down the additional player and switch it out.  So, with all intentions and prior preparation, we didn't get on the road until 6:30 AM, but that was still before the sun was up, so the kids were happy.  

The trip was pretty uneventful, and the scenery was pretty boring, so we let the kids watch movies, play their Nintendo DS games for a large stretch, and somewhere in Missouri they read each other books and enjoyed activities they packed in their activity bins for the trip.  

On the road to New Mexico!

Ethan was a great big brother, reading books to Everett along the way, in between movies and video games.

We were all eager to see what Kansas looked like, as the last time we drove through it was dark and everyone was sleeping, but once we crossed the boarder, it proved to be nothing spectacular, except for the many oil Derrick's we saw along the way (I was surprised to see so many).  The kids, had a great time shouting "there's Derrick" with a choir of giggles, as we passed one after another after another after another.  Oh, what we find enjoyable after many hours in the van!

This is Kansas.  Flat and empty.

Elliot slept, Eli played quietly. and everyone did great.  A few times Eli started to get bored of his seat and scenery, and I attempted to trial toy after toy to keep him entertained, but after a few minutes he was happy, or asleep, and we kept moving southwest.  

We didn't stop much, just to get gas and our normal routine of me nursing the baby while the others used the bathroom facilities, and a quick stop to grab a photo of a road sign, claiming to be the Midway point between San Francisco and New York (that I read about on RoadsideAmerica.com), so we made pretty good time. 

Midway U.S.A in Kinsley, Kansas

Two lane highways were the majority of the trip.

Derrick, who wanted to watch the ISU basketball game, decided we would stop at a restaurant with a TV sometime around dinner, so we could stretch our legs and eat.  There wasn't much around, just a lot of rundown gas stations and grain silos, so we ended up stopping at a Pizza Hut in Boise City, Oklahoma, to eat, recharge and watch the game.  Eli enjoyed walking around the table as we ate, stretching his little legs and enjoying being out of the car seat. 

As we were finishing dinner, Derrick's parents came through town too, and as we left, they took our seats and finished off our leftover pizza and pasta so we didn't have to pack up leftovers.  It worked out pretty well.  

The evening drive was not so great for me, the sinus infection I had been battling for weeks was starting to make me feel terrible and I could tell I was running a fever and had terrible body aches, so I decided to call the doc for a script so I wouldn't suffer all week.  It was a little after midnight when we arrived at the Walgreen's in Santa Fe, New Mexico to grab my script, and around 1:30/2 AM we were checked into our room and sleeping in our new location for the week.  It was nice to be off the road and somewhere new for the week.

A Thousand Words

I absolutely love to take photos as we travel, and I love to be surrounded with the Word of God in my daily life, so a while back, I had the idea to merge the two into some wall art for my home.  For me, it's like the expression, "A picture is worth a thousand words."

Each photo is special to me, as it brings me right back to that moment and speaks to my soul, then, paring it with scripture just adds the cherry to the top, grounding it with truth and wisdom.  

The photo above was taken in Lincoln, New Hampshire, along the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River, while we were staying at The Village of Loon Mountain in May of 2014.  There were a few picnic tables, an old train car, and an area where you could go down to the water and play with sand and stones, so we all decided to grab some snacks and sit and enjoy the outdoors.  There was a bridge that crossed the river where Derrick's mom, Vicky, grabbed some photos of the fading sun as Derrick and I stacked rocks with the boys.  At the time, I was teaching Ethan about one of my favorite nature artists, (Andy Goldsworthy), and with all the rocks around, Ethan was enjoying experimenting and seeing how many he could stack at once.  I took this photo after he completed one of his tallest stacks of rocks.  Although it was chilly, and Elliot fell a few times as he traversed the many rocks, we enjoyed the evening and this memory will be forever be rooted in my heart.  

I paired this photo with this verse not only because of the word ROCK, but because of the entirety of the scripture for me.  "Lead me to the rock that is higher than I." - Psalm 61:2, for me, is a reminder of parenting, marriage, family, foundational truths, as well as my walk with Christ at that moment and today.  It speaks volumes to me about the importance of a firm foundation, the balance of work and family, the fragile moments in life and most importantly the value of my faith in Jesus.  I can't even start to put it all into words, the experience with the rushing river in the background, the fading sun and the chill of the evening all play a factor as well.  This is why my heart longs for this type of art.  Combining my photo with the verse brings me back to that moment and wraps me in truth with just a passing glance.  

Speed of Life

The world just keeps spinning... oh, what I would give to have the pause button for life, even just for a day, just slow things down, take it in and catch up for a moment.

Our boys are growing so quickly.  Everett is reading chapter books and has just lost his first tooth, and Eli is 11 months old and has taken 5 steps on his own today.  Elliot is reading, growing so tall that he's going to pass his older brother soon, and Ethan, who is just a few inches shorter than me, is turning into quite a little gentleman, with his kind spirit and caring heart.  Derrick and I keep noticing more and more gray hairs, and no matter what we do, life just keeps zipping by!

It's great, though, to see our children grow, change, and become more independent, thriving as little humans, but at the same time, it feels like sand, slipping through our fingers much too quickly while we try to grab a glimpse of each grain as it passes by.

The nights with a baby are interrupted frequently with nursing and diapers, but even though, it too will pass before I know it.

So, for right now, I'm going to be intentional to enjoy the moment, even if it passes by in a flash.

Everett Lost His First Tooth!

Today this kid has a big kid smile, thanks to his younger brother!  

The boys were playing in the basement as I was trying to get Eli to go to sleep.  Just as Eli was settled, I hear a loud yell, then in a panic, Everett, whining a bit as he comes rushing into my bedroom, tells me Elliot knocked out his tooth.  Knowing it had been loose for some time, I smiled at him, gave him the thumbs up (so not to wake the baby I've been trying so hard to get to sleep) and motioned for him to leave the room.  Ethan was in the background saying "I found it, Everett, I found the tooth!" and before I could even start to direct traffic in my silent hand signals, he put it in a plastic baggie in the kitchen and they returned downstairs to play.

Once I got Eli settled we celebrated the event by laughing about the story as he retold it from his perspective and later grabbed a photo for proof.  He is very excited to see what the tooth fairy will bring and even more excited to show his friends his new tooth that is already starting to come in.  This kid is growing up so quick!

Update: the tooth fairy left a $2 bill under his pillow and he is pretty happy about losing his very first tooth!