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This year we decided to go to Yellowstone for vacation. It was a really great time. The weather could not have been better. We got to see bears, elk, deer, antelope, eagles and hundreds of bison. We did some hiking and ran into some fresh bear tracks along the way. We hiked down to get a better look at some of the waterfalls and we tackled the Yellowstone River for our first whitewater rafting adventure. I’ve posted video and photos from the trip.

The vacation is almost over. We leave tomorrow to head back to Raleigh. It’s about 11pm here on the west coast and I’m uploading some pictures. They’re all lumped into one category since I haven’t had a chance to organize them. We stayed at Harrahs’ in Lake Tahoe and visited Yosemite National Park and San Francisco. It was a busy, but very fun time.

Click on the pictures over on the right of the page. Hope ya’ll enjoy them.

Well I made my first trip out west last week. Mom, Dad, Jayme and I packed up and headed out to Arizona to see the Grand Canyon. It was an awesome trip. It was the first time Dad has ever flown on a commercial jet and the first time I’d flown since I was in 9th grade. We stayed at the J.W. Marriott in Phoenix. This is the nicest place I’ve ever stayed at on a trip. It was spectacular. We went to the Grand Canyon on Saturday morning and spent most of the day checking out the unbelievable views. You have to go and see it with your own eyes to appreciate how big and overwhelming it is. We also took a helicopter ride over the northern ridge of the canyon. It was a 30 minute ride and well worth the cost. It was pretty much the highlight of the day. On the way back to Phoenix we drover through part of the Painted Desert. The landscape in that part of the country is indescribable. Jayme has some videos of the helicopter ride on his site. Check them out. Here are some photos of our day at the Grand Canyon: Grand Canyon, Az

On Sunday we visited the opposite end of the state. Anyone that knows me knows I’m a huge fan of the movie Tombstone. I can pretty much quote the entire movie. I wanted to go visit the old town and check out places like the O.K. Corral and the Oriental Saloon. It was pretty neat to be there where Wyatt and Doc walked. We got to see the graves of the Clantons and the McLaurys. They were killed at the O.K. Corral by the Earps. Tombstone was out in the middle of nowhere. There was nothing else nearby except a small town named Benson. We had lunch there and decided to head down near the border and see if we could see a little bit of Mexico. I’m beginning to understand now why there are a lot of Mexicans in Benson, NC. It makes them feel close to home I guess. But anyway if you want to see some photos we took while in Tombstone click the link: Tombstone, Az

Yea it was a short trip to travel that far. I think I’m still suffering from the time changes. It was worth it though. We all had a good time and got home safe and sound. Here is a link to some pictures of Phoenix and the place were we stayed if you want to check them out. Phoenix, Az

Last Saturday Mom, Dad and myself went down to White Lake for the day. It looked like when the day started it might be a total wash. I had been wanting to get on Steven’s pontoon. I was very impressed with it and how it cut through the white caps out at White Lake. You actually have room to move around and enjoy some food and beverages without worrying if you are going to fall out of the boat. I think if I was going to get a boat that I would have to consider getting a pontoon. I could have just ridden on it and been happy. I did get on the tube and wear my arms out. Anna didn’t give me any room and was making it hard for me to stay on :) I had fun and I think Mom and Dad enjoyed it as well. We’ll be back down there on August 19th if anyone wants to catch us playing down there.

Only a few more days until vacation. I’ll be off for 9 days straight. That hasn’t happened since I started working. The family is headed down to the beach next week until Friday. I got a little primed this past weekend with a trip to the beach. The weather was nice and the water felt awesome. I’m ready to spend some time there. We’re coming back to go to White Lake for the weekend of the 4th. Some other family members are camping down there for the weekend. I’m going to try and ski this time. I’ve never been able to get up on them. But I haven’t spent a lot of time trying before. I think we are all supposed to be playing some music down there on Sunday morning for the church service. It should be an awesome time. I’m getting pumped.