Archives for December 2021

December 31, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Twelve – Saguaro National Park

I was so looking forward to visiting Saguaro National Park, seeing all of these towering Cacti was amazing.

We loved learning about the environment and the kids participated in the jr ranger program.

We did a short hike around the visitors center before getting back in our car and driving out into the park.

Our first stop was to hike up to an overlook to see some petroglyphs.

Our next stop was for lunch.

They had very nice tables to eat at with an overlook. We had packed a picnic in the morning, our little lunch boxes were well used again on this trip.

We then drove around the rest of the scenic loop. We decided that we wanted one last hike as a storm was rolling in.

This was when messages started rolling in from friends and family. Our neighborhood and my parents’ was in a pre evacuation zone because of a fire in our area. This was the start of the Marshall Fire that devastated neighborhoods near us.

We really wanted to leave and drive home immediately to be there to help friends that were evacuated from their homes and to grab important things from our home. We did feel comfort that we were dafe and everything important was with us (each other). Our dog Humphry was safe at my brothers home far from the fire.

Friends and family were sending us pictures of what they could see from their homes. We really wanted to pack up and head home as that is where our hearts were but (luckily) a snow storm was coming in that night and we didn’t want to pull our trailer into a storm. The snow was good as it put out the fire.

The views were scary but we were lucky and our neighbors didn’t have to evacuate.

We were very worried for our friends that were evacuated and for Cory’s office that was also in an evacuation zone.

December 30, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Eleven – Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

I was so so excited to go to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. I visited once years ago while at a conference and loved it. When we planned our trip to Arizona and we planned some time in Tucson I knew we had to go.

The exhibits here are amazing. It’s a mix of botanic garden and zoo and so well done. The cave exhibit is so fun and the views and spectacular.

We loved the cactus gardens.

The kids loved the Sting Ray touch pool.

We had the best time.

We spent the entire day exploring the museum and had to hurry to our campsite before it got dark.

December 29, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Ten – Sonoran Desert National Monument

We woke up early ready to hit the road again!

The kids climbed the rocks behind our campsite while I packed up the trailer.

They did help me check under the car and trailer.

We did drive through the Sonoran Desert National Monument, it was fun to see the landscape change as we drove.

We got to our campsite right before sunset.

It was a beautiful evening. We made dinner, a camp fire and roasted marshmallows. Not bad for late December.

Dinner by campfire light.

December 28, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Nine – Joshua Tree National Park

We had a full day to explore Joshua Tree National so we started with the Visitors Center.

We got maps and found a few short hikes that we wanted to do.

Our first stop was at hidden valley where we did a fun hike and lots of rock scrambling. We took our time, drove the rest of the big loop and went back to our campsite for lunch.

We then went back to explore the area around skull rock, it was very busy so we observed it from a distance.

We did the Discovery Trail, made by kids for kids. It was a fun little hike.

The Joshua Trees here are huge and amazing. It’s something you have to see in person.

It is magic here! We made it back to camp made dinner and enjoyed our last night. We would have loved more time (as we always say) it’s a sight to be seen.

December 27, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Eight – Anaheim -> Joshua Tree

The eighth of our trip was mostly about chores and driving out of LA. We took advantage of the laundry facilities at the hotel we were staying at so we would have clean clothes for the second half of our trip. We packed our things back into our travel trailer and started heading back east. We also stopped at a couple grocery stores to restock our cabinets.

We were so excited when we got to Joshua Tree, our campsite was actually in the national park and it was amazing! We loved our site tucked into the rocks. Cannon said he liked it better than Disneyland so I probably won’t ever be able to talk Cory into going back.

We ALL want to go back and spend more time in Joshua Tree.

We didn’t have time to really explore the park since we drove in late in the day but we have the full day tomorrow.

After a few nights in a hotel in the city it was nice to be back out and camping.

December 26, 2021

Christmas Day in Disney’s California Adventure

It was raining on Christmas day but as the video shows the kids just danced through it, they were having so much fun.

We had considered just spending both days in Disneyland and that would have been amazing but we decided we wanted to see California Adventure decorated for the holidays as well. Both Parks were not very busy which was very nice.

Cars Land was so cute!

While we definitely prefer Disneyland, DCA is fun too. There wasn’t any parades, or fireworks, snow or light shows so it felt less magical.

We were able to get many of the rides in, mostly because we did buy the Genie+ pass for the day.

The park at night was all lit up and so beautiful.

We left for the nigh worn out and much past our bed times!

It was a very merry Christmas!

December 25, 2021

Christmas Eve in Disneyland

This entire trip is a dream, but getting to surprise the kids with a trip to Disneyland on Christmas Eve was a highlight of my life.

Walking from our hotel to the entrance Emmy somewhere guessed but we had the cover of the stroller down because it was raining. It was so so fun to see how excited they were when they realized what we were doing.

It was a little rainy in the morning but it didn’t dampen the fun at all.

The decorations are just magical at Christmas time!

We tried to be as Covid safe as we could, we were only inside for rides. We ate outside and wore our masks whenever it felt crowded.

Because this was our first time visiting Disneyland at Christmas and we only had one day we prioritized holiday events rather than riding every single ride. We loved the Christmas parade and Small World Holiday, each room had a different smell!

We enjoyed the fireworks, while Emmy fell asleep in the stroller. It was so loud but we put the cover down and she slept through all of it.

We had so much fun being together and just taking in the beauty of the park at Christmas time.

This was a dream come true for me.

December 24, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Five – Quartzsite -> Anaheim

We spent our fifth day of the trip driving from Quartzsite Arizona to Anaheim California.

Quartzsite got us really excited for the second half of our trip exploring southern Arizona.

We made a quick stop in Palm Springs.

Cannon is wearing his Jr. Ranger badge and I LOVE it.

Grabbed a few things we needed for the next few days. Then drove into a storm.

It rained over two inches and there were flood warnings near where we were going. Luckily we made it safely but there were some intense moments.

We ditched the camper in the hotel parking lot and enjoyed a little more space for our Christmas holiday.

The kids didn’t know that we were taking them to Disneyland the next day and I couldn’t wait to surprise them.

**Emmy calls Hotels “Show-Tells” and I never ever want to forget it {love}

December 23, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Four – Sedona

Our day in Sedona was cut a little short when we needed to make a quick repair on our trailer in the morning.

We still were able to fit in an amazing hike just outside of town.

The rocks were so beautiful and we loved the scenery! We would have liked to have hikes Devil’s Bridge but we didn’t have time.

SOURCE and information about the hike.

We also drove though town and we agreed that Sedona was likely the most scenic town we have ever seen, maybe tied with Lauterbrunnen.

We are already planning a trip back for more time in Sedona and the Grand Canyon.

December 22, 2021

CHRISTMAS CACTUS – DAY Three – Petrified Forest National Park

On our drive west from Santa Fe to Sedona we stopped at Petrified Forest National Park. It was such an interesting area to visit.

We did a few short hikes and got to see so much petrified wood.

We learned a lot about how petrified wood is formed and why there is so much in this area.

The visitors centers were nice and informative. While we would have loved more time to explore I don’t think you need more than half a day to see this park.

We only spent a few hours exploring because we needed to drive further west to get to our campsite in Sedona.