The Brant's on Vacation

Summer flew by and the kids are back in school.  I am hoping you had some lazy days full of reading and lemonade (or whatever your favorite lazy thing is), as well as fun times with the people you love.  Here's a bit of our adventure!

This raised-in-Arizona girl has finally seen the Grand Canyon!  Scotty, Cel and I took a splendid end-of-the-summer road trip.  We headed north, to Williams, AZ.  I didn't know that such beautiful forest-covered mountains existed in Arizona!  We rode a zip line and wandered in and out of the shops on Route 66.  Scotty and I even went for a run and took on a couple of steep hills.  You know you're a runner-geek when you can't wait to run a new trail in a new place!

Zip Line!

Her favorite - pistachio almond

Early  morning run with Scotty

The town was alive long after the sun went down and Scotty and I took a stroll in the cool evening air, stopping to listen to a live band play outside of a restaurant.  It was loverly.  The next morning the three of us hopped onto the Grand Canyon Railway Express for a two-hour ride to the Grand Canyon. 

Amazing.  That's about all I can say about the Grand Canyon.  You just have to see it.  We took a billion pictures and returned back to the hotel, exhausted and famished.  What a great weekend it was!

We were excited to start Part 2 of our trip - Provo, Utah, to visit my sister and her family!  What can I say?  Nothing is better than just hanging out in the familiarity and comfort of people you love too much.  We stayed up late talking, shopped, played cards, had a family Nerf gun shoot-out and ... of course, went for a run around the Provo River Trail.  I love that my sister and her hubby are runner-geeks too!  I can't leave Provo without telling you how beautiful it was there.  The mountains.  And the waterfalls.  And the people I love.  Simply beautiful.

My beautiful sister

Cousins

Family shoot-out

Vacation, Part 3 took us to Colorado Springs.  Oh my.  The drive.  Ten hours of beautiful mountain roads, through rocky gorges and the summer-green slopes of Vail, and did I mention the mountains?  Finally, I got to hug my boy and see that he is healthy and clothed and alive after being away from me for 8 months!  It was the four of us again, being a family.  

We went to the zoo, Garden of the God's, visited Focus on the Family and Whit's end.  I must say, I was most excited about that tour.  I grew up without television and Mr. Whittaker and Adventures in Odyssey were my childhood!

Garden of the Gods

Whit's End

Odyssey and Narnia

We celebrated Taye's birthday and ate way too much!

And Scotty and I took a wild leap!

It was AWESOME!

We spent the final day playing laser tag and bowling.  It was a day I wished would never end.  We said goodbye to our son and hugged him hard.  Before leaving Colorado we met up with childhood friends of mine - 27 years later!  It was oh-so-wonderful to meet their families and reminisce.  I barely remember my food coming or even eating it, before the waiter came back to take my plate.  Can't wait to do it again!

Jamming while they wait for their turns

We returned home 2,526 miles later, happy and road weary, to say the least!

After more than 36 hours in the car, I've seen enough truck stop restrooms and fast food to last a looong while.  But our hearts are still brimming and running over with time spent together.  It's rough getting back to real life after such an adventure.  I am ever so grateful to have had it.

Love these two!

I'd love to hear about your summer!  And then - let's dig into Fall!