Death Valley

I finally decided to scan the kids' school pictures from last year and this.  It's really cute to see how they've changed in a year.
  

Connor - 2nd Grade

Elise - Kindergarten

Connor - 3rd Grade

Elise - 1st Grade

    

The week after we got home from Utah was crazy.  We had a church bowling activity, regular school and lesson stuff, and Connor's actual birthday.  We celebrated with presents and ice cream (he still requests it over cake.)  Then, we left Friday afternoon for our long-awaited Death Valley trip!

   

He's flashing "9"

We arrived at the Stovepipe Wells campground around sundown Friday night.  Our camping-expert friends arranged a huge group from our wards (never mind that over half the jr. primary teachers skipped town over a Sunday.)
  

  

Saturday morning, we went to Badwater Basin to see the lowest point in North America.  It was covered with an awesome salt flat - the kids even tasted it.

  

To the top left of Ryan's head is the "Sea Level" sign.

  
After Badwater, we hiked Mosaic Canyon.  All the kids in the group tried to give their parents heart attacks by climbing the rocks.
   

  

Elise went on ahead . . .

Late Saturday was set aside for the sand dunes.  This was the kids' favorite part, I think.  They hoped to sled down the dunes on plastic signs, but the sand was too sticky.  They had fun, anyway.
  

I turned around, and realized Evan had been left behind.  He didn't care.

  

Connor, reading Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Sunday was my favorite part.  We went to Salt Creek to see the pupfish.  We got there at the height of their mating season, so they were super active and colorful - like blue and yellow guppies.  The males chased each other around, defending their little territories. 
  

You can barely see them in this picture, but Connor thought the fish were cool, too.

    

  
The trip home was annoying due to our losing our right front window.  Actually, the window was there, but it wouldn't roll up (same thing happened to the left window a couple years back.)  We duct taped this box to the car to keep from being blown away - it peeled the paint when we took it off the next day.  There was a peephole in the middle for checking oncoming traffic.  Super safe, huh?