Provo Canyon

Darwin really really wanted to take the kids up the canyon on Saturday. We wanted to try it in the spring, but Ella was so little, I just didn't feel up to it.

The second we got there the kids hopped out of the car, crossed the bridge and started climbing all over the mountian. It was running from there on out! It was extremely humorous to watch Garrett climb up the mountian and then sliiiiiiiiiiide back down on his belly. McKay and Michael were fearless. Hannah was a little more cautious, but warmed up. We also brought some snacks and drinks for a picnic.

I also brought my camera thinking, "Hey, maybe I can get a couple cute pictures of the kids in the canyon..." HA! They never stopped moving and the light was pretty harsh at the beginning. Just when the light got AMAZING...Michael wandered off.

I was putting Ella in the stroller and was going to round up the hyper Garrett, and Darwin called back (literally a minute later), "Where's Michael?" I had JUST called to him to stand by the stroller--Darwin was getting Hannah and McKay down from the mountian--and I was sure he was still standing in the clearing, not seven feet away. But I went back and he was not there.

The problem was there was the hill he could have climbed up and he could be on the bike path up there, there was the bridge to the parking lot and he could have gone over it, and then there was the path going both ways. I was pretty sure he had not passed me. So I went and looked down the bridge quickly and didn't see him then went back to get on the bike path, and Darwin ran further down the walking path.

Well, 40 minutes later...still no Michael. So both Darwin and I started towards the van in the parking lot about a half mile away. (Unbeknownst to each other.) We both had plans to get the cell phone and call the police for help, since it was getting dark and would surely be pretty cold by the nighttime.

As I reached the halfway point to the van, I saw Darwin coming with Michael. I had the stroller of 3 kids and was a little slower. Michael had crossed the bridge and walked the half mile to the van while we all searched for him.

Needless to say, we had a talk about how lots of things are very very fun when kids stay together with their families, but they can get VERY dangerous if kids wander away from their families and get lost. Hopefully this curbs Michael's wandering adventures of the last few days. He's usually very good about staying close.
This was the best family picture I got. I THOUGHT I'd get another chance for pictures...but no. Still, I halfway toyed with posting all of the attempts at getting everyone looking the same way. I was literally falling over laughing by the end. Everyone was SO determined to look anywhere but me. It was totally funny.

It was a little easier with McKay and Darwin and Ella. Although Ella never did look at the camera. She looked at ALL of the kids and every passerby and anything else though.

McKay was up and down and up and down and up and down...and I had to change to my lens with some zoom to get any pictures of him. I really need a better zoom lens. (Darwin has agreed! Yippee!)

Hannah actually sat still for a second and looked at me when she saw the camera. That was fun.

Garrett wouldn't look, but he was totally interested in the river. It kind of freaked me out, to be honest. But he was good about staying on the bridge.

The kids were totally THRILLED with everything like this in the canyon. There are lots and lots of hatches and doors and cement "cabins" (I don't know what to call them) all over. Some are from the WPA years when they did a lot of work on the canyon. Some are newer. The kids climbed all over them and explored. I laughed when they found this hatch and tried to get in over and over. It reminded me of Lost.

Overall it was fun until the very end. The kids got a lot of energy out climbing all over the lower part of the mountian. The end was a bit scary, but it all turned out ok.

Whew.