Valley of Fire - now with more fire!

When I was a kid, we did a lot of camping.  Actually, my dad did a lot of camping and took us along.  He always knew where to go, when to go, how to get there, what we'd need, what to eat, everything.  In short, the bar for camping fun had been set pretty high.  Well, I was a bit nervous about going, but, after going to Valley of Fire with the elder's quorum, I figured the kids would like it.  Coincidentally, Amy was going to a spa for the weekend, so I would have the kids to myself.  

Valley of Fire is about 40 miles outside of Vegas.  It's a pretty civilized place to camp (there are even some showers there somewhere).  The terrain is stunning.  You drive through a brown desert until bright red rocks erupt from the ground, as though they are alien ships, preparing to return home. It isn't free, but it isn't expensive and it is worth every penny.  There are petroglyphs, scenery and lots of lizards.

For dinner, because the kids are picky and aren't yet worthy of finer fare, we had hot dogs.  Someone at church is a property manager and had chopped down some trees and had firewood for us.  I grabbed some coat hangers and we were set.  Of course, each kid dropped their hot dog off the wire into the dirt at least once.  

Liam looks like an old man in his chair.  They were both sipping their root beers (a passerby thought they were drinking real beer).  

On this trip, I learned what a kid is.  A kid is someone who hasn't yet seen everything.  Liam and McKinna were amazed at everything.  "Look at those mountains",  "Look Dad!  a chickmonk!"  "Wow, you can just light a fire like that?"  "This is the greatest root beer!"  "I can't believe we're camping."  "Are we sleeping in that tent?"  

They were chock-full of childlike wonder.  It was kind of sad to realize that I was not in awe of my surroundings like I should have been.

That night, was amazing.  The moon was full, and, for the first time I can remember, we cast full shadows AT NIGHT!  

After McKinna decided to go to bed early, Liam was overcome with gratitude and happiness.  He finally asked if he could pray.  His prayer was one of gratitude for going camping and for the opportunity to spend time with his dad.  I need to remember to be grateful for the time I spend with him.

Down the way a bit, there was a family camping.  They had a little girl Liam's age, named Adia.  She was quite the climber.  She would climb up and slide down the rocks.  Of course, it wasn't long before she needed new pants because she had worn the cheeks of her pants right out.  She helped the kids climb up this 20-30' face into a little cave.  

We hiked and climbed all morning.  They ran after chipmunks, chased lizards, and walked through "amazing sand".  Even though the trip home was only about 50 miles, and it was 10:30 am, both kids crashed on the way home.