Grand Canyon

Luckily for me I had the last two weeks of April off and it was great. Just as one week of vacation was ending I started another week off. Unfortunately Brody was teething the first week and he was a bit challenging but I was glad to be home with him anyway. The second week most of my family went to Arizona so that my Grandmother could see the Grand Canyon. 

Brody has flown many times as an infant but this was his first time flying as a toddler. I was as prepared as I could be and overall the flight went well. He ate lots of snacks, played with the toys I brought and spent at least half the flight sorting the magazines and pamphlets in the pocket on the back of the seats. 

The first two nights we stayed in Scotsdale and it was a gorgeous resort. We took it pretty easy, hung out by the pool ate great food. Thursday we left Scotsdale and headed to the Grand Canyon. We stopped half way and had lunch in Sedona. I had been to Sedona before and loved it. The red rock cliffs and mountains are so beautiful and something about that place just makes you feel happy. 

When we finally arrived at the Grand Canyon we rushed to make our dinner reservations. At dinner we met up with Tim and Laura McCubbin. Tim and Laura  are my parents long time friends from College. They are so funny and we are always laughing when they are around. 

The next day Brody and I had breakfast with my Dad and Grandmother while the rest of our gang was out on a scenic or I guess I should say not so scenic train ride. There train ride turned out to be a miserable bust on the vacation adventure planning. We however had fun walking the canyon perimeter at the lodge. Brody was so funny; he would walk up to the the wall and when looking over he would say "Wow" in his cute little drawn out quite way. He never even noticed the big hole in the ground but he heard everyone else say that when they looked over the wall so I guess he thought he should too. 

The rest of our time at the Grand Canyon Brody and I spent out time going to the IMAX movie, walking the national park trails, and watching live performances of Native American dancers.  Some members of our group went on a plane ride over the Canyon.  This excursion was suggested by me and was a huge hit. I would have if I had experienced this about 9 years ago when I went to the Grand Canyon with Dave's family. 

Our few short days at the Canton came to an end and we again passed through Sedona while heading back to Scottsdale. We stayed one more night in Scottsdale then headed home that Sunday morning. 

Overall the trip was GREAT!  We all had so much fun spending time together. I can't thank my Dad enough for planning and paying for this whole trip. It was so nice to spend a week away with Brody and my extended family. I am glad he had this time to know them better and to experience our family's version of a Griswold vacation.