Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon trip was amazing! It was a last minute trip so it was especially exciting that we were able to pull it off. In mid-May we were doing our daily lunch/park routine before Mark headed off to work. It dawned on us that our 1st anniversary was just around the corner (right after Memorial Day) and we wanted to do something special. The Grand Canyon was one of many ideas.

We finalized our trip on Thursday evening and headed out Saturday morning at 4am! Zae was an angel on the plane, as usual. He likes all of the attention...I think he knows he's cute and has picked up on how to manipulate the ladies with his grin. Unfortunately, he was a true lap baby since the flight was booked. This was somewhat challenging since Zae doesn't really like being held. Not something I generally complain about.

We rented a car in Phoenix and drove to Sedona to have lunch and sight see. Sedona was definitely beautiful.

We soon discovered a major hiccup while trying to find our way to our hotel at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The North Rim is an oasis in the desert known for its peacefulness, small crowds, and great hiking. The South Rim is the tourist epicenter with the fantastic views. We planned to have 2 nights at the North Rim (to avoid crowds) and 2 at the South Rim (once the holiday was over). Our travel agent totally screwed up. She booked us at 2 different hotels, both at the South Rim. We made the last minute decision to spend the first two days at the South Rim (with half of the world!) and the last 2 nights at a cabin in Sedona.

I think the screw up worked in our favor for the most part. The Canyon was amazing! Yes, it was busy, but you hardly noticed given the unbelievable views. After taking in the sheer magnitude of the canyon for the first few hours, we realized we had a lot of orienting to do. Time flew by while we stood with our jaws in the dirt. Its really breathtaking...and, there is so much to do there!

We decided on a scenic drive in the park along the rim to give Zae some much needed rest. We stopped at every single overlook to get photos. Later we took Zae to see an IMAX movie of the Grand Canyon. He "oohed" through the whole thing. Especially, the white water rafting parts. I was so proud that he was enthralled and happy. We got lots of dirty looks when we walked in. I love proving the public wrong when my child doesn't throw the expected tantrum. :)

The following morning we took a helicopter ride around the entire Canyon! This was probably the best part of the trip. Zae loved it and the couple we rode along with was ecstatic about him...after we landed. I again saw the fear in their faces, "will this baby ruin our helicopter ride?" Nope! Another victory for little Zae! After the helo ride, we hiked part of the South Rim, had lunch, and took a shuttle back to the car. Zae got some much needed sleep while we headed back to Sedona.

In Sedona we did a lot of sight-seeing. Just driving around the area to get photos of the amazing red rocks was a full day. The best stop by far was along Chapel road. There is a Catholic church built on the mountain that has a wonderful lookout. You can get some great photos from there.

Sedona had some of the best food ever! If you ever visit I recommend the Blue Moon Cafe for breakfast (the best coffee I've ever had) and Oaxaca, which was by far the best Mexican food I've ever had.

On our last night in Sedona, we relaxed in our peaceful cabin in the woods, played in the creek, rocked in the hammocks, and let Zae play in the jacuzzi. Yes, the place was sweet....until about 3 am. I woke to a horrible smell. I thought I smelled rubber burning. When I woke Mark, he thought it was sewage coming out of the jacuzzi. We got moved to another room, but I just couldn't shake the smell. It made me so nauseous. We got a few more hours of sleep and headed off to a jeep ride through red rocks before heading out to the airport. After a day spent smelling like a dead, burning animal (that's for you Mark) we learned we had been skunked! A family of skunks was living under the cabin and sprayed. Our luggage, carry-on, and clothing wreaked of skunk. I'm sure our neighbors on the plane weren't pleased.

As tired and pissed as we were that morning, the skunk incident ended up being so hilarious that we thought it was the perfect ending to the trip. The funniest part was probably my version of the skunk story for the better part of the day. I thought Mark told me that he and the office attendant had found a dead animal that caught on fire in our cabin. I spent the whole day telling people how crazy our night was. "It sounds crazy, but last night at about 3 am we discovered that an animal had gotten into our cabin and died behind the refrigerator. Apparently there was some electrical trouble or something and the nasty thing caught on fire!" Ummm yeah, Mark let me go on telling this story until we got in the car for the airport. It turns out he told me it SMELLED like a dead burning animal. In reality, it was just skunks. Oh well...I'm sure I entertained quite a few people with my tall tale. :)