Two years ago, and one year ago

Two years ago today,

I can't believe I was here!

My sis is going here very soon and I am so excited for her! (Eat lots and lots and lots of nachos with the yummy white cheese. mmmmmm)

One year ago today, on a neighborhood walk.

And today...

no image! Cause my camera is at Brant's work. :(

But if I were to take a picture today, it would be of my sunburn cause it was SO beautiful yesterday that we sat outside for hours. :)

Angel's Landing

It's no secret that since it has been snowing even in mid-april, I love to go to warmer weather in Southern Utah.  This trip, I wanted to make it a point to hike one of my favorite hikes in the world which is Angel's Landing.  Who better to hike it with than my adventurous best friend Jessica.  This time of year is the most perfect time to hike it because it's not too cold, and not too hot.  The hike is mostly in the sun and I can imagine if I tried to hike it in the summer, I would pass out from the heat! 

See the highest tip on the left rock in the photo, that is where we would end up in many heavy breaths, sweat droplets, and a couple hours later!

It's always a gamble to hand your camera to a stranger and hope they take a decent photo of you, this one proves to be 25% decent. Jess and I are totally out of focus. haha Oh well! At least we have evidence that we did it!

Trail

This is a very steep part of the hike.  It's a series of switchbacks called "Walter's Wiggles".  While hiking, Jess and I kept exclaiming "Screw you Walter!!!"

Almost to the top!

View of weeping rock

So the last half mile of the hike is pretty dang scary.  You have to hold on to chains so you don't plummet to your death with thousand foot cliffs on either side of you. People die on it quite frequently and they say on the shuttle "Beware! Fatalities have occurred!"  My heart especially raced this trip because I kept thinking about the woman last year who just misplaced her foot and fell to her death. I also kept thinking that I have a lot more responsibility this time than the last time I did it because I have a beautiful baby girl who needs me!

I didn't dare take my camera out on the scary parts because almost as scary as myself plummeting to my death is my camera equipment plummeting to its death.  But this photo shows on the far left a chain and a steep cliff next to it.

These are not my photos because I did not DARE take my camera out at these points of the hike, but I just wanted to show a couple of the scary parts so you know what I'm talking about.

Thank you Joe Braun for the photos. He's a pretty dang good landscape photographer!

You can easily see in these photos how one mis step could result in death. You are one brave soul Joe for pulling out your camera at these points in the hike!

We made it to the top!

See that little white thing on the bottom right of the photo? Yeah, that's a bus! We were pretty high up there.

Don't lean too far forward and die Jess!

We had a blast, and were so happy to have done it! It was a beautiful day with beautiful company. If you are physically able and not deathly afraid of heights, you should really give this hike a try! It's pretty amazing!

Snow in St George

Wouldn't it be ironic if two or three days after I went to St George to escape the winter, that it wold follow me down?  Well, that happened.  Good thing it melted later that afternoon!

Photos taken in January 2011

Arizona

Made an impromptu visit to Arizona while I was down south.  Here are just a few photos I took along the road.

Snow Canyon

Remember how I hate winter?  I think the worst of it is just after Christmas.  So lucky for me, my folks live in St George!  Claire and I escaped the drab, cold, inversion and went to St George...for like a month! It was absolutely we needed!  Brant jokes that I'm "solar powered", so the sunshine was good for my energy levels. :)  He got to come down and visit on the weekends to escape the winter too.  We got to play outside at the park almost every day.  Plus when my mom makes delicious home made meals every day, it makes it tempting to stay!  One of the most beautiful places down south is Snow Canyon state park.  It's worth every last penny of the $6 entrance fee.

Claire had fun playing in the Dunes.

I'll end with my favorite shot. Yes, you can get that much contrast in lanscape in one photo.

Toes

Toes....

meet sand!

Toes and sand...

meet water!

*sigh!*  This feels goooood.

One of the most incredible and unforgettable experiences of my life.

Disclaimer: I just may go on a little tangent.

One of the things I was dead set on doing while we were in Maui was to do a little whale watching.  This pod of humpback whales feed on krill in Alaska in the summer months, then make the journey to Hawaii during the winter months to breed, give birth, and train their babies to be strong for the journey back to Alaska.  They love the warm waters of Hawaii because it is safe and virtually predator free.

So we got up bright and early to catch a boat at 7 am (which really wasn't that bad since it's basically 10am Utah time).  On our journey out to sea, our eyes were peeled for whales.  We saw a few off in the distance, primarily a little baby doing some jumps.  But then, all the sudden, right next to our boat, three big whales were breaching and spouting out of their blowholes.  Wow. Wow. Triple wow.  Our guide figured that it was two male humpbacks trying to impress a female.  After all, it was mating season!

This is the way whales should be seen and enjoyed by us humans.  I am really not a fan of sea world at all. It is completely inorganic and unnatural for whales of that massive size to be swimming in circles in a tank with virtually no stimulation.  It's like putting us in a windowless circular padded room.  It is unnatural and inorganic for them to be waving to the crowd and splashing and launching trainers in the air. I'm sure it is amazing to see, but  I'm just really not a fan.  Whales should be seen in their natural habitat doing things that come natural to them. Seeing them this way is so much more awe-inspiring. 

The first time I saw humpbacks was in 2007 hiking to the Makapuu lighthouse on Oahu.  It changed my life.  This time around, it was just as breathtaking.  Seeing these whales brought tears to my eyes.  They truly are just the most incredible creatures.  Here are some photos I took from our phenomenal morning.

Brant is armed and ready to see some whales!

lifeboat

He's so cute!

We were on a boat, but another way of seeing them is in a raft.  The rafts can legally get much closer to the whales than the boats.  The whales are federally protected since they are endangered.  The great news is, since poaching whales became illegal in the 70s, their population has grown exponentially and they are not afraid of boats or rafts anymore so they swim right up to us and show off!

I'm pretty sure they got splashed by this tail slap

Do you know what is hilarious?  On the boat they had for sale photos of whales just like mine (but of course mine are better hehe) for "just in case" you didn't get the photo you wanted.  At 9 frames per second, I've got my shots thank you! No need to purchase your stinkin photos. hmmm...maybe I should sell them my prints. hehehe 

Check out this guy.  He willingly swam within the legally protected distance of our boat which was fine by me!

Go on wit your bad self male humpback! Show that female what chu got!

If I were the female, I'd be pretty darn impressed.

I'll end with my favorite shot from the morning, a full breach. Can anyone say i.n.c.r.e.d.i.b.l.e???  I just love these whales with all my heart!

Brant took some video, I'll post that later. :)

Succulent

My goodness I love these plants! They are so stunningly beautiful.  I am pretty sure I need a print of this one on my wall.  Where should I put it?

Maui Vacation Itinerary: A whole lotta nothin

Usually when I plan a trip, I am go go go go and more go!  I want to do and see everything I possibly can. It usually drives people nuts.  It drove my sister nuts when we went to NYC, Washington DC, and San Diego together, I am sure it drove my mother in law and sisters in law nuts when we went to San Fran, and I'm sure it quietly drives Brant nuts who is a laid back and chill dude.  Surprisingly with this trip, I didn't plan a thing! I knew I maybe wanted to do or see a couple of things, but would decide when we got there what to do.  I mainly just wanted to lay and sit around.  These past 6 months have been beyond insane! (Please don't let me get that insanely busy again, capeesh?)  Here are some photos I took while I was just sitting around.  It was quite enjoyable!

One of our favorite things to do when we visit Hawaii is to stop by the road side fruit stands.  I mean, can it get any better than a local Maui Gold pineapple?  We gorged ourselves on fruit and shaved ice while we were there. 

I saw a guy on the beach who had a 7D and a 70-200 lens so I said "Yes! This guy knows how to handle a camera!" so I handed him mine, and he took this shot for us.

From Kaanapali beach right outside our hotel you can see the other major islands Lanai and Molokai.  It was so neat to see the other islands off the coast.  I've been to 3 out of 7 of the Hawaiian islands, maybe next time I'll visit Molokai and Lanai and knock out 5 and 6 on the list.  Our boat we went on (more on that later) got really close to Lanai, does that count? :)

Here's Lanai

and here's Molokai

Maui Sunset

Twilight Sky