Fall Break

We didn't really have any plans for Fall Break this year. We (I) thought it would be too much work to have to pack up the entire house, drive in a car for many hours with 3 kids and 1 husband who ends up sleeping the entire way. Emily has been asking us to go to Flagstaff for a weekend. So, I put on my big girl panties and throw in the towel. OKAY we'll go for a mini trip over Fall Break. We stay in Sedona at our timeshare. We leave on Friday afternoon, (2 hours behind schedule) and make a half way point stop at the Outlets. This stop is just so mom will be happy for a few hours and can finish the drive without looking for the nearest cliff. We do a little shopping and jump back in the car to finish the drive. We all comment on how well Katie has done on the trip. Of course,we spoke to soon, about 20 minutes outside Sedona, Katie starts screaming. She doesn't want the bottle, toys or anything thing else we try to do to calm her down. Meanwhile I'm trying to drive without losing it. She continues to scream and scream and scream. She cries and screams so much she throws up. Not once mind you but 4 times. Luckily I'm driving and don't have to deal with that. But poor Emily is sitting beside her, and being very much like her mother, she starts to freak out over the vomit. After 20 very long minutes we arrive at the resort. We get everyone settled and unpacked, and I grab my book, stick my nose it and pretend I hear or see nothing. (a little something I picked up from my husband) On Saturday morning we get up and head to Flagstaff. We plan a day of parks, hiking and just relaxing. We get out of the car, and the cold air smacks us in the face and then the wind blows us over. Forget this, jump back in the car and head back to Sedona. We spend Saturday in Sedona, watching the girls play webkinz and I read my book. Ahhh this was bliss. On Sunday morning Greg tells me to call up the Spa and schedule a massage. What???? My husband said to get a massage??? Yeah, his reasoning.... if these last two days are anything like what you've had to endure over the last 2 weeks, you are in need of a massage. He tells me to go and relax. Isn't he the sweetest guy ever. Nice to know that he feels your pain. After my massage, we head to the Wildlife World Zoo in Camp Verde.

This is when the family fun really begins. We had an absolute (with tonic) blast. This is the coolest zoo I've ever been too. Take a look at these pics.

We went to a Tiger show and after the show you could feed the Tigers raw meat. I was really surprised Abbi did it.
No Surprise that Emily did, Tigers are her favorite animal.

Baby Katie enjoying the sunshine. She did great. She sat in the stroller all day and just enjoyed the outdoors. She loves to be outside and feel the air hit her face. Isn't she the cutest thing ever. Momma loves you Katie Bug.After the Tiger Show, we walked around the zoo. It was amazing how close to the animals you were. Check out this Tiger: We are standing next to the Pole on a lookout ledge.

Notice the Prison in the background. Talk about having armed guards staking out the perimeter.
This is one of my favorite pictures. Reminds me of a scene from Lion King. I started to sing Hakuna Matata but the girls told me to stop. Guess I was embarrassing them again.
Emily loves Tiger, but she especially loves White Tigers. She was so exicited to see one up close. Greg was following him trying to take his picture when the Tiger stopped and let out a very loud growl. Check out those teeth.
After we walked around the whole Zoo, we took the Safari Ride. This was my favorite part of the whole day. Everyone packs in a bus that had the windows removed and the roof raised. The driver gives everyone a carrot and tells us we are going to get to feed the giraffes. Not only do you feed them but you can put the carrot in your mouth and have the giraffe take it from you. Giraffes are my favorite animal. I loved being so close to them. Katie was sitting on my lap and she never once screamed or acted scared. I was a little nervous with her being so close but she smiled and laughed the whole time. Here is a pictures of Greg feeding the giraffe. The picture kinda sucks because I was sitting in front of him and he had the camera around his next so I just pointed and clicked.
I opted out of putting the carrot in my mouth and having the giraffe get it but this person did it and got a VERY big WET kiss. His tongue was HUGE !!!
The giraffe just leans into the bus and takes the food from your hand or mouth. He is so friendly and he seemed to perform for the crowd.

Isnt he beautiful !!

The Zebras hang out with Giraffes and they too are looking for a little action. The driver gave us hay biscuits to feed them. Did you know that Zebra's are black with white stripes. Their stripes are brown when they are babies and as they get older they turn black.
Thanks to my family for a great weekend. A special thanks to Emily for begging us to go somewhere. I can't wait till our next trip to the Zoo.