Bryce Canyon

Ryker and I went on our first vacation with Ryan's family this summer. We went to Bryce Canyon for a couple of days of camping.... in tents, which I HATE, but I figured I had to go along without too much complaining otherwise Ryan might change his mind about the whole wedding thing. ;) Luckily, we had a wedding shower with Ryan's family before we left and they stocked us up with plenty of camping equipment which made the trip a little bit more comfortable.

Here are a few of the kids hanging out at the campsite. Ryan's brother, Wade and his family, gave all the families a "Christmas in July" present which consisted of a hammock and some flashlights. My plan was to relax in the hammock the whole trip and read my book, but it didn't go that way since I had to fight the kids for a turn in the hammock!

On Tuesday we went for a hike down in Bryce Canyon. It was a really pretty hike, but VERY hot.

(Don't let my smile fool you... at this point I was wanting to pack up and go home. I HATE being hot, hate being dirty and I HATE, HATE, HATE bugs. That's the last of my complaining.)

All the grandkids (minus Blaise, who was sleeping) Ryker fits right in with this group of wild and crazy kids. He is so excited to have so many cousins and had a lot of fun camping.

The parents of all those crazy kids...

Me and Ryan, Melissa (Ryan's sister) and Jason, Tricia and Lance (Ryan's brother),

Dorothy and Wade (Ryan's brother), Lori and Blake (Ryan's brother)

I was much happier (for real) in this picture... Lori and I went for a nice trail/road run and it was just what I needed. Plus- I was just about to go take a shower which is the real reason I was smiling!! :)

Later that evening, we drove to a lookout point and walked around a bit. It was a pretty amazing view.

More hiking...

This hike was really nice, not too hot and had a river to cool off in.

All the kids took turns sliding off this little waterfall and the guys sat under the waterfall to cool off.

Another waterfall

Although, I'm not a big camper, I had a good time with Ryan's family. It is so nice for Ryker to have so many cousins to play with and I really enjoy being with Ryan's family. Thanks to Lance and Tricia for planning such a fun trip!