A Weekend Where it's Warm

Like birds often do, my family flocked south last weekend to Hurricane, Utah - home of my grandparents, Jim and Shirley Baker. Grandpa Jim was turning 80, so my grandma had worked secretly for two months planning a surprise birthday for him. Over 100 people would attend. When I got down there Thursday night my grandpa pulled me aside and said, "Ya know, I love your grandma but she's driving me crazy! She's always disappearing or up to something and she won't tell me what's going on." I nodded and shook my head simultaneously as people do when they're overtly agreeing with something. "Oh, yeah.. that's just something all old women do I think..." Nodding some more. Yeah. He'd buy that right? He took a deep breath, then said, "Ya know, chicken is getting so expensive..." I'm pretty sure he hadn't heard a word I'd said, but it didn't matter. We were now onto more important things, like the price of chicken.

That's one of many things I love about going down to my grandparents' place. Random conversations in which you glean bits of timeless wisdom, mixed with ample spoonfuls of humor. It's the best...

Any trip to Southern Utah isn't complete without hiking. And the best part of the hike is in the details, right? The texture in this picture makes me want to touch that moss...


Tyler and Ryan - my two hiking buddies.


It was a beautiful day, albeit a little hazy.


Our hike of choice: Red Cliffs Recreation Area. It's like a giant sandstone playground.


With the warm afternoon sun on the rear porch, you can't help but smile.


The setup for the birthday was festive.


Surprise!!! He was so touched by this that he could hardly speak. It was incredible.


Lexi and Shannon. :)


Grandma and Grandpa.


Our awesome family.


I made sure to catch them while laughing. I love this picture...


Later, we hiked out to the edge of the Virgin River. It's quite the drop. Thank you, Chad, for standing in for scale.


On the other end of the photographic spectrum is this macro photo of pebbles in the sand. The way they erode, even at a miniscule scale, fascinates me.


ATV on the river bed that had been washed away in a flash flood. I couldn't help but wonder if somebody had been riding it, or if it was carried off of somebody's property. The thing looked brand new besides the fact that it was full of debris and some damage to the handlebars. I almost wished I could find the owner and tell them their ATV was found. :)

All in all, it was a fantastic weekend full of adventure, laughter, and wonderful family memories. I love my grandparents and appreciate any chance I have to go visit them. The hiking isn't bad, either. :)

-Barry