Canyons of Providence: The Fam Weekend

Since my Dad left for India on Friday, my dearest Mother decided to pack up the kiddos (not in suitcases, I promise) and come and see us for the weekend. We have a 2 bedroom townhouse, which is totally not big enough for everyone. Still, I was more than willing to sacrifice to see them! I don't get to spend nearly as much time with them as I would like. Fortunately for my sanity, Jonathan's grandmother sweetly volunteered to house some of the crew for a few days. They arrived at our humble abode Friday night and we had such a fun time eating pizza and catching up.

Saturday morning I awoke to a knock on the door. It startled me at first, but then I remembered..."Oh yeah, my family is here." I opened the door and my Mom and my littlest siblings galloped into our house. All I can say is that I've never been happier that we own a PS3 and have cable. My brothers were occupied by Jonathan's games and my sisters were glued to the Disney channel during our down moments. (They don't have cable or a PS3...thus the fascination with ours.) After some coffee and a bagel with cream cheese, we ventured out for a trip to Providence Canyon State Park. Fun times.

This is my irritated face. I thought we'd never make it to the park. First, my mom almost ran out of gas on the way...and we were out in the middle of Timbuktu with no gas stations or sign of civilization in sight. My little brother said, "this would never have happened if Dad was here." So true bro. Fortunately, a nice person saw us on the side of the road and said the blessed words, "there's a town 5 miles ahead." Then, my phone went dead after 1/2 hours of using GPS. Then I had to resort to our old one, which hasn't been updated in over a year. Apparently it didn't know about roads in Timbuktu. It was quite an adventure to say the least, but we made it at last!

It was a pretty neat sight.

Lunch ensued upon arrival...we were starving.

It was a PERFECT day for hiking.

Once we reached the canyon floor is was very muddy. Supposedly  it is because the floor is so close to the water table or something.

The sibs...minus my brother Matt.

My poor sis didn't bring any closed in shoes besides her Sperry's, so she had to wear an old stinky pair of flats I found in the back of my closets. Those shoes have been to India and the Philippines. Their last venture was here. At least they saw daylight one more time before a wonderful future in the trash!

You weren't suppose to climb...but...we did anyway.

All hail Luke, the conquering hero!

It was really quite a sight.

I couldn't believe how warm it was! My legs were able to see the light of day for the first time in months!

Luke liked showing off his mad jumping skills.

It sure was an adventurous afternoon! Not only did it keep the kiddos entertained, but I had an excuse to do something out of the ordinary. I highly recommend this state park to anyone who likes hiking and adventure! 

Sunday, I had the privilege of worshiping with my church family and my mom, brothers and sisters! They were able to see us lead worship at our church, which was very exciting for me. They've heard me sing and play my entire life, but not with my husband in a worship setting. We love to lead worship together, so I was glad that my family was able to see us "in our element" so to speak. It was a great Sunday to say the least! 

Alas, all good weekends must come to an end. We saw them drive off after Sunday lunch. Until next time dear ones!