Well, technically we only camped 1 out of the 3 nights we had planned, but that’s okay. Valley of Fire State Park is a GREAT and beautiful area between Mesquite and Las Vegas. I (Julie) was sick of the cold and we had to go that far south in order to get some decent weather.

We stopped at Cove Fort for lunch (covered in snow) and then stopped at a friend’s house in St. George to let the kids play for a while and then by the time we got to Valley of Fire, the 2 campgrounds were full. Pretty strange since I’d been there multiple times before and had never even seen anyone else in the park.

We played in the sand for a while before we drove to Las Vegas (our last time EVER) and stayed at the Stratosphere. As soon as we walked out of the parking garage Nate looked up and saw the tower and exclaimed, “Hey!! This is the world’s highest roller coaster!!” I guess he saw a show about that…pretty funny that he remembered and recognized it. I think it really made his night as he kept saying it over and over!

The kids were pretty mesmerized by the lights, sounds, and “games”. I had to keep quite the hold on them. This is the first time we’ve had Madeleine share a bed and after a while, success!! Good to know we can all fall asleep in the same hotel room together. Of course, that means Rob and I have to go to bed really early, but with me being pregnant that wasn’t a problem at all!

The next morning, we grabbed some pastries from the Paris before heading back to the park and grabbing a great campsite. After setting up camp we spent the rest of the day exploring, climbing, running, and playing. We all had so much fun! Can you even imagine how perfect this place is for a little boy and his dad?? They were seriously happy.

That evening the wind and cold really kicked up. I was hesitant to camp, but we did. I’m not a deep sleeper at all, especially while pregnant, but Madeleine and I had to share a sleeping bag in order to keep her warm. It was not fun at all. Between the rolling, kicking, occasional crying, not being able to move, the wind whipping up the tent like crazy, and the drunks singing as loudly as they could (and it echoing off all the rocks), you could say I didn’t get much sleep.

The next day was beautiful but after playing until late afternoon, everyone was exhausted. We decided to drive to St. George and stay in another hotel. We’d get some rest and it’d make the drive home the next day shorter. We showered, ordered pizza, watched a movie, and all fell soundly asleep.  

Our drive home included a stop at Kolob Canyons but it was covered in snow so we weren’t able to leave the parking lot. That was a bummer. But the rest of the drive home was great. Our kids are such good travelers!! Yay!!

We have quite a few landscape pictures, but who knows when we’ll ever get to editing/posting those. But here’s a short video of our campground (see it here in hi-def) and if you’re interested in more family shots, they are here.

http://www.rjsnowphotography.com/ria/ShizVidz-2010012201.swf

Above is a petroglyph (one of hundreds in the park). I thought it described our family perfectly 🙂