{"id":13419,"date":"2016-05-02T22:14:00","date_gmt":"2016-05-02T22:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/?p=13419"},"modified":"2020-08-20T15:28:04","modified_gmt":"2020-08-20T19:28:04","slug":"the-grand-canyon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/02\/the-grand-canyon\/","title":{"rendered":"The Grand Canyon"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>When Andy told me he had to speak at a conference in Las Vegas, he asked if I wanted to tag along. He suggested we rent a car and drive out to the Grand Canyon. A few days later I was chatting with Austin after school and he said, &#8220;I would love to go to the Grand Canyon&#8221;.<br \/>\nSo of course I started thinking, Senior year, last time our schedules will match up, he had all of his AP exams done except one&#8230;. I texted Andy and said, &#8220;we should take Austin&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>So we start planning our trip and every now and then Austin would ask &#8220;is Blake going?&#8221; or &#8220;can Blake go?&#8221; At that point to add Blake to our trip was going to cost a pretty penny. And I mean pretty.<\/p>\n<p>So we said no.<\/p>\n<p>I think it was the day before we were scheduled to leave when I texted Andy and said &#8220;can we please bring Blake?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13420\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2101-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2101\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Taking kids to the Grand Canyon is something people do all the time but I have to say straight up I am not sure I would have gone with the younger ones. Well Cole maybe but not Eva.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13422\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2102-1024x705.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2102\" width=\"1024\" height=\"705\" \/><\/p>\n<p>It was big, and beautiful, and a little bit scary.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13423\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2110-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2110\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There were plenty of areas where you could get a great view that had railings for protection<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13424\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2117-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2117\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" \/><\/p>\n<p>But there were also a ton of places (actually most places) where you could just walk out into the great wild with great big drop-offs. It made my knees feel weird just being watching people out there<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13425\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2118-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2118\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Fortunately Austin and Blake had no desire to venture out there<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13426\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2121-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2121\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" \/><\/p>\n<p>These guys&#8230;. I got a couple pictures but my stomach was flipping around like crazy hoping he didn&#8217;t fall&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13427\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2124-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2124\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We googled &#8220;how many people die at the Grand Canyon each year?&#8221; 12 is the average in case you are interested.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13429\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2130-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2130\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We stayed in safe areas<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13430\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2140-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2140\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13431\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2148-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2148\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Until we didn&#8217;t<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13432\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2154-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2154\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We decided to hike on the trails- it started out innocent enough<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13433\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2160-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2160\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13434\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2162-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2162\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>But then the trail had no protection- we hiked a little bit down into the canyon but the way back up was tough. Austin wants to go back when he can camp down at the bottom. That is at least a two day deal.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13435\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2189-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2189\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13436\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2192-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2192\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13437\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2195-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2195\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13438\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2196-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2196\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2196-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2196-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2196-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2196-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I am so happy we got to take the older boys and spend time with them on their own. It really made the trip something special<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13439\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2171-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2171\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So glad this guy joined us at the last minute<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13440\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2176-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2176\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The Grand Canyon is something that I think should be on everyones bucket list. It was a pretty incredible sight.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13441\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2197-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2197\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-13442\" src=\"https:\/\/elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2203-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Q14A2203\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" \/><\/p>\n<p>But don&#8217;t go when it&#8217;s prime season- those trails aren&#8217;t very wide!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When Andy told me he had to speak at a conference in Las Vegas, he asked if I wanted to tag along. He suggested we rent a car and drive out to the Grand Canyon. A few days later I was chatting with Austin after school and he said, &#8220;I would love to go to the Grand Canyon&#8221;. So of course I started thinking, Senior year, last time our schedules will match up, he had all of his AP exams done except one&#8230;. I texted Andy and said, &#8220;we should take Austin&#8221;. So we start planning our trip and every now and then Austin would ask &#8220;is Blake going?&#8221; or &#8220;can Blake go?&#8221; At that point to add Blake to our trip was going to cost a pretty penny. And I mean pretty. So we said no. I think it was the day before we were scheduled to leave when I texted Andy and said &#8220;can we please bring Blake?&#8221; Taking kids to the Grand Canyon is something people do all the time but I have to say straight up I am not sure I would have gone with the younger ones. Well Cole maybe but not Eva. It was big, and beautiful, and a little bit scary. There were plenty of areas where you could get a great view that had railings for protection But there were also a ton of places (actually most places) where you could just walk out into the great wild with great big drop-offs. It made my knees feel weird just being watching people out there Fortunately Austin and Blake had no desire to venture out there These guys&#8230;. I got a couple pictures but my stomach was flipping around like crazy hoping he didn&#8217;t fall&#8230; We googled &#8220;how many people die at the Grand Canyon each year?&#8221; 12 is the average in case you are interested. We stayed in safe areas Until we didn&#8217;t We decided to hike on the trails- it started out innocent enough But then the trail had no protection- we hiked a little bit down into the canyon but the way back up was tough. Austin wants to go back when he can camp down at the bottom. That is at least a two day deal. I am so happy we got to take the older boys and spend time with them on their own. It really made the trip something special So glad this guy joined us at the last minute The Grand Canyon is something that I think should be on everyones bucket list. It was a pretty incredible sight. But don&#8217;t go when it&#8217;s prime season- those trails aren&#8217;t very wide!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":13428,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,20],"tags":[836,835],"class_list":["post-13419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family","category-travel","tag-arizona","tag-grand-canyon"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Q14A2126-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13419"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13419\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17429,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13419\/revisions\/17429"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13428"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.elisalou.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}