Week of the loin cloth

For the past week, B sported a loin cloth and various weaponry belts day and night (only allowed in the house of course). We set up a tent in his room (oops I mean tepee), read Indian books, crafted a homemade quiver for his "arrows" (Lincoln logs), and ate Indian cuisine (broiled fish, popcorn, etc.). Toward the end of the week he hurt his ankle at a church activity and came immediately home, changed into his loin cloth attire, attached an ice pack to his leg, and built a homemade crutch out of a spear handle and toy handsaw. Here's the week in review:

Recent discovery

After my first trip on a motorcycle recently I realized that I have a surprising love of speed! I took several trips on Michael's brother's new bullet bike and couldn't get enough. Leaning into the turns, wind blasting my face, no roof over my head... amazingly exhilarating for me. Perhaps some far-off day we'll tour the country this way (don't worry - I did wear a helmet).
:)

Kids and cousins

How could I not post these adorable pictures of our kids and their cousins at Zion? My children bring such unspeakable joy to my life. I love watching them explore new surroundings and interact with new faces. Here they are exploring the outdoors and having fun with their Lewis cousins.

Native American home built inside a huge boulder:

Cool climbing spot in the boulders:
Some of the cousins at the cabin home where we stayed (this is the hammock we just purchased in Mexico!):
Hugs on the Emerald Pools trail:
Michael's mom prepared a sweet program for all of the little ones... they sang and recited poetry for everyone:

Picnic at Zion:

They're all so beautiful!

Zion

After another week of vacation (after the cruise) and a week to recover, I'm finally posting about our amazing trip to Zion National Park. I'm always amazed and humbled when I visit this incredible place. We hiked the Emerald Pools trail, Angel's Landing, and part of the Narrows. I love the high climbs! Especially the technical aspect of finding footholds and ways to balance while holding onto a chain bolted to the mountainside. Michael was so worried about me climbing, but how could I not go? Hiking is one of my all-time favorite actvities. Especially at a place so magnificent as Zion.

Here are some shots from our many hours of hiking during the week:

View from atop Angel's Landing:

Michael and his brothers lounge by the cliff edge: Michael and I stop to rest along the trail:
Michael wading in to hike the Narrows:
Me on the cliff edge to Angel's Landing:
Adventurous Lewis family hikers atop Angel's Landing:
Rare shot of Michael by the edge of the 1000 foot cliff:
The fam on the Emerald Pools trail:

Cruise!

Michael and I just returned from a 5 day cruise to Mexico! It was strange to be without agendas or the noises of busy little ones but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The first day we were excited to go to sleep without an alarm, but alas, we both were fully awake the next morning at 4:40am so we decided to head up to the top of the ship for an interval workout on the track! It was extremely windy but so exhilarating to be running at sea. Here's my prep pose:

Next we took a break to watch the sunrise:

Then we hit the gym for some weight lifting on their state-of-the-art machines. Loved it!

Most of our time on board the ship was filled with eating gourmet food, reading in the sun, eating more food, catching an (amateur) show :), and taking naps. My favorite part was watching the water. We found a secluded spot to observe the ocean onboard and we would often go there and see flying fish! Too many to count! Unfortunately they were to fast to catch on camera.

We had two day trips to Mexico... one to Progreso where we visited these Mayan ruins:

We had to get this shot of a real ziggurat for Brendan:
Then on to a private beach:
We found so many great shells as we walked along the tranquil beach. We also got slightly tan (even with the 45 SPF protection).

In Cozumel we snorkeled and kayaked in the crystal clear ocean water. The color of the water was incredible.

Clear kayaks:

The beach resort:

We snorkeled during a short thunderstorm and saw some neat coral:Here are a few more fun shots of us on the ship... we even met a pirate at dinner one night! The kids loved hearing about that.

A lovely vacation! We headed home, relaxed and rejuvinated, and left that day for another week of vacationing with the whole family. I'll post about that next...