Thanksgiving in Moab

For Thanksgiving this year, we decided to express our thanks to God in a different location. So on Tuesday, as soon as school was out, we loaded up the truck and we moved to Beverly ... Hills that is ... swimmin' pools ... movie stars.

No, wait, that's a TV show. We actually loaded up the van and headed 3 1/2 hours south east to Moab, Utah, home of Arches National Park and quite possibly one of our mostest favoritest spots in the world.

We arrived Tuesday night, checked into our deluxe accommodations (well, better than adequate accommodations) at the Moab Valley Inn and grabbed a delish meal at Smitty's Golden Steak (how could we not eat at a place named after us?). With visions of arches, red rock and gorgeous blue sky dancing in our heads, we valiantly tried to to hit the hay and put aside the anticipation of all that lay ahead of us over the next 3 days.

On the title of the blog, you'll have noticed for several weeks now a shot of Double Arch from a previous trip, and that was our first stop on Wednesday morn.

Double Arch is an incredible place. I've blogged about it on a previous entry, so I won't revisit it's splendor, except via photo.

Phenomenal.

We love to climb around as well as just sit back soak it in.

Correction: Karen and I enjoy sitting and taking it all in. The girls just like climbing around in it.

The little purple spot you see in this next shot? That would be Emily.

Having climbed up one side of the alcove, she's looking to see if there's a higher spot she can climb (there was), whilst her parents look away, take deep breaths, pray for God to encamp around her, and try desperately not to rob her joy by telling her to GET DOWN FROM THERE!

We didn't. Rob her joy, I mean. She climbed freely, and God graciously kept her from injury.

It may have shaved a few days off my life, though.

Stay tuned for more Thanksgiving adventures in Moab.