The last phase of our trip to Arizona included Sedona and the Grand Canyon. We got up and out of our house in Scottsdale and hit the road to check out Montezuma Castle on the way to our house outside Sedona.
We had 2 rental cars on the trip and separated with my parents, me, and Paige in one car, and Brent and the big kids in the other. I was the navigator and main source of entertainment for Paige, so we had LOTS of activity books with us ha.
Man down!
Enjoyed the way Starbucks looked there - had to share with my mother-in-law!
Time for a little history lesson: Montezuma Castle is a preserved Indigenous American 'apartment' that is about 1,000 years old! The Sinagua people lived here and it acted like a high rise apartment complex. You aren't able to go into the Castle {you could until the 1950s!}, but they had a small replica that showed lots of the details of it, and it's extremely fascinating!
Resting again!
We got to Cornville {where house #2 was, about 30 minutes outside Sedona} a little early for check-in and there weren't a ton of restaurants around, so we ate at the local golf course cafe. Brent and my dad were right at home!
Brent's expression!
Drew made this collage, and it CRACKED us all up.
We got checked into our house right at 4 and immediately got in another amazing pool. Not quite the backyard set-up that we had in Scottsdale, but the view was INCREDIBLE. It was so peaceful, we loved being out here. I actually thought this would be a super fun house for a girls weekend.
Hi, Brent!
Drew strikes again! I love her photos!
We woke up for our last full day in AZ ready to hit up Red Rocks in Sedona and The Grand Canyon.
A mimosa with a view
The Red Rocks were INCREDIBLE!
I wish we had more time in Sedona, but we wanted to make sure we made it for our GC tour on-time, so we didn't spend much time there. They had tours where you could do a hike and then yoga in the Red Rocks, and I would have loved to do that. {Sounds like I really need a girls trip!}
We stopped at Chapel of the Holy Cross. It was beautiful!
We had about a 2 hour drive to get to the Grand Canyon. We decided to do a guided tour through Pink Jeep and I'm so glad we did! We had a great guide who was very knowledgeable about the Grand Canyon and have a definite love for the area. We had 3 different stops along the way and it was just beyond description for how beautiful it is. It is mind-blowing and made me feel insignificant but also in awe of our world. Lots of pictures to follow, so if you're bored with this post, this might be a good place to stop. {grin}
Our first peek at the canyon from our jeep
View #1
Our tour guide also took excellent pictures {grin}
The pyramid shaped peak is called Vishnu's Temple.
I had to take a picture for all my colleagues in India!
Snuggled up in the Pink Jeep!
View #2
Our last stop was for us to watch the sun set over the GC. That was INCREDIBLE!
Maybe my favorite picture of the entire trip!
Kate haha
Her 'Simba' moment
We got up July 2 and headed to the airport and with that, our vacation was over!
This picture made me laugh - sleeping the same way!
Drew got a hoodie at the Desert Botanical Garden but was really bummed there wasn't anything at the Grand Canyon gift shop that she liked. So we had a mission in the airport to find a second hoodie for her. [giant eyeroll at buying hoodies in July when we live in Texas] And we had success!
And yes, Birkenstocks with socks, sigh
If you made it this far, you're a trooper! We had an amazing trip, and I'm excited for our next adventure!!
