Monday, July 23, 2007

The Second Week

Now here begins the second week. Scroll down if you haven't read the first week. Sorry for taking so long, but it takes a while to download all these pictures.
Anyway, we woke up in Sunday to cinnamon rolls and fruit for breakfast. It was odd not to be in church as we usually are. Mandy received a call from Dad, who asked why she had called Bethany during church. Mandy denied that she had done it, and Bethany later asked her the same question. After lunch, we drove to Fossil Creek. The ride was unforgettable. It was the longest, bumpiest, and dustiest ride I have ever been on. The road was narrow, winding, and bumpy since it was not paved. There were no guard rails on the side, so we drove along the side of a cliff. The creek was beautiful and unexpected. It was clear and bluish green in color as well as icy cold. We kids played in the water, and Mandy had to ask Seth to carry her so she would not get carried away by the current. It was getting cloudy, so we drove back to the cabin. We began playing rummikub when it started raining. Then, lightning flashed less than fifty feet from the house, and the thunder cracked. Grandma looked like she was about to have a heart attack, and Seth's game pieces were all over the floor. It scared us so bad, and our hearts were pounding for a long time. We later learned that the lightning had destroyed a neighbor's shed.



On Monday, after Grandpa Tom came back from his doctor's appointment, we drove up to Clarkdale to visit two places: the mining town of Jerome and the ruins of Tuzikoot (unsure if I spelled that right). We first ate lunch at Jerome at the Haunted Hamburger than went shopping. Mandy got a gift for Bethany, Seth got a sign for Dad, I got butterfly earrings, and we all bought Mom more hairclips, since her favorite one came from Jerome and she needed more. The sky had been sunny but now was dark and threatening rain. We drove down to Tuzikoot. The ruins were cool, and the views were beautiful. I wish we could have stayed longer there, but the rain was coming quickly. After leaving the ruins, we drove down to Phoenix to have dinner with Grandpa Tom's family. We stayed for two hours because we had to leave early the next morning.


On Tuesday, we got up early and ate breakfast before driving up to Williams. We boarded the train there for the two- hour drive to the Grand Canyon. We arrived at the canyon around noon and spent some time admiring the view and taking pictures. It was good to see it again after ten years, especially when you can take your own pictures and remember things that happened there. After snacking for lunch, we hung around the area since it was beginning to rain and thunder again. We picked up a few things, including a head scarf for me and a cap for Grandpa. That afternoon, we boarded the train and drove back. I forgot to mention our stewardess Jodi. She was lively and talkative and played games with us. The marshall from the Wild West show came to our car and gave a nearby boy a hard time, making us laugh and get glared at by the marshal. Late that afternoon, we arrived back in Williams. We drove to the restaurant The Sizzler, a good place. The only downpart was finding a bug in my food, but we got refunded for that meal.


On Wednesday, our original plan had been to go to Sedona and see the formations there. However, we were all tired from our long driving the day before and decided to relax that day. We had Pizza Factory for lunch, and then Grandma took us kids bowling. She gave us good tips on how to do better, and Seth did the best out of us kids. After bowling, we went to Fireside for smoothies. Mandy and I had decided to make dinner that night, so we spent some time trying to figure out what to make. We settled on poppy seed chicken and went to the grocery store for supplies. We spent a few hours making the meal, which everyone enjoyed.


On Thurday, we woke up and eat quickly so we could leave for one last sightseeing trip: The Petrified Forest. A few years ago, my family had wanted to go there but did not have the time to do so. We arrived at the forest and watched a quick video on the park's history. It was interesting to see how the trees became rock, who used to live in the park, and how the park was founded. We were severely warned not to pick up any pieces of petrified wood under pain of arrest and fines. Afterwards, we toured the park. The rocks were beautiful and smooth. The day was hot, and we had to carry around water. We saw rocks with ancient Indian pictures, a couple of annoying and croaking ravens, some beautiful landscapes, and the Painted Desert, which is made of red rock. Seth saw the Indian ruins, but the rest of us were too hot and tired to go see them. After our tour, we left the park to go get some lunch. We drove a little on Route 66 and saw some of the old shops, motels, and gas stations along it. When we got back to the cabin, we kids started getting our packing ready and organzing what went where. Mandy's suitcase was stuffed, and mine quickly started looking the same. We went to a local restaurant for dinner. That night, Mandy and I talked before bed about going home.


On Friday, we had breakfast of French toast with bananas, strawberries, and whipped cream, a delicious alternative to the usual syrup and butter. We drove to Phoenix, where Grandma had a doctor's appointment. We kept ourselves occupied by playing Mexican Train. After lunch, we ran some errands since we still had time before we had to go to the airport. We went to Petsmart, where we got supplies for JD, who would be arriving on Saturday. There were adorable kittens there. We wanted to take them home, but we decided that Dad would not like it. After a few more stores, we drove to the airport. We tearfully said good-bye to Grandma and Grandpa outside of security. We passed through it easily with no problems. We waited around for a couple of hours, waiting to board our plane. Our plane arrived late, so we boarded later than usual. We took off after a while due to airport "traffic jam." The trip seemed longer, and I was tired. We finally arrived in Atlanta at one thirty Saturday morning. We met Mom and Dad then went to go get our luggage. We did not get home until after three. We gave the gifts and then went to bed.

All in all, a fantastic trip. It was amazing to see all the ruins, the beautiful country, and old towns. We learned about the Indians, the mines, and more. It was amazing. The country is beautiful, especially watching thunderstorms over the plains far away. And now, a big thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for making this trip possible. Hugs and kisses to the both of you!

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