DAY TRIP.... X 5

Time for Nascar, Las Vegas style. Settle. It. Down. February 25th - March 1st we camped outside turn 1 of Las Vegas Motorspeedway and it went a little something like this.
Day 1: Plan on leaving at noon, after repairs to the trailers and a trip to the E.R. we left about 4ish. We did get there in time for the hauler parade, those not familiar they have the haulers carrying the cars line up on Las Vegas Boulevard and then parade them down the boulevard and into the infeild of the speedway. Then went back to our campground to wait for the lock smith to overcharge...I mean unlock one of the trailers that had a broken lock. Finally after much convincing and several two-ones (oreo's) we went to bed.
Day 2: Qualifying. So every year we get garage passes but this year we hit the jackpot! We found a nice little area just off pit road where the drivers would walk past to get to pit road or go to their motorcoach lot. We got several autographs and photos and the drivers were, for the most part, very friendly and patient with the kids. We were literally the last ones to leave. My legs were so sore from standing in that one spot all day waiting for Dale Jr to come by. Yep, you guessed it! We saw everyone BUT Dale Jr. So in the last 6 years that we have been attending this race I have no autograph and no photos with him. Erin 0 - Dale Jr. 6.
Day 3: Rain, rain go away! It was cold and rainy but it did clear out and they did race. We were all rooting for Danica Patrick. Who was wrecked but she did not disappoint on her in car audio! This chick can totally hold her own with these guys and I'm excited for her future in Nascar.
Day 4: THE race. Fire. It. Up. Nascar never disappoints and this race was no different. It was sunny and warm and racy. Unfortunately, JJ won.
Day 5: Drive home, one blown engine and one lost trailer window.

DAY TRIP!

So our first day trip of the year coincided with a scouting activity for Cooper. He needed to teach a group of people about the history of St. George and who knew we were surrounded by so much beauty...I know, me neither! Our stops included the St. George Opera House, outdoor amphitheater at the main street park where the kids put on some fantastic performances, Brigham Young winter home, and finally feeding the ducks (and swan) at the St. George Golf Club course. It was a little cold but any day spent with family is a fantastic day!

CATCH ME!!

We found an awesome place to go sledding, only problem...the slope and 4 foot drop off at the bottom sent you flying through the air.

The kids (and grandma!) had a fabulous time sledding and then having Ian catch them.

Yoga...this is NOT what I looked like.

So with a new year comes new experiences. Tonight that new experience was yoga...or rather Power Yoga. **DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME** I am going to be so sore tomorrow. I was the girl in the back corner constantly falling over and not inhaling and exhaling through my nose as instructed but with my mouth gaping open, with an occasional laugh, and breaking a pretty decent sweat. I'm definitely up to try it again but first...I gotta try Zumba!

Easter 4-Wheeler Ride

I made this cute slide show of our Easter ride to Mount Trumble with flowers because it is suppose to be spring, but it was FREEZING!! I had never been out to Mt. Trumble so I was excited. We were thinking of a back up plan all week because the weather was suppose to be rainy and cold, and it was. It was raining all day, the truck broke down, it took us more than 2 hours to get there on the slick, muddy roads....oh yeah did I mention IT WAS FREEZING!! But, it was fun and we got some good pictures. If you've never been I highly recommend it. There is so much history in the school house. The mountains have so much color and it is just miles from the beautiful views of the Grand Canyon.

8 adult, 7 kids, 4 days in 1 RV......

Oh how the time flies. All year long I look forward to going to Nascar weekend in Las Vegas and every year it passes all too quickly. This year was no exception. We left Thursday, pretty close to the departure time that I had been barking in everyones ear for the last few weeks. The Sprint Cars were racing on the dirt track so I wanted to go watch if we got there soon enough, no go. So Friday, bright and early, I headed over to the track with all the nieces and nephews in tow. It was so fun to watch Paxton's reaction to all the cars during practice. We literally had the best seat in the house sitting on the wall on pit road the cars came within just a couple feet when they would go in and out of the garage. The girls on the other hand could care less. Ashley kept saying "Let's go find Dale Jr." She wanted an autograph and I tried to explain to her it is not that easy you have to be in the right place at the right time and no one knows where this place is you just have to be ready at all times. She did get a lot of other autographs but we were not so lucky this year with Jr. Friday we spent most of the day in the garage. Saturday was the Nationwide race. Brad Kesolowski wrecked early and was on pit road every 10 minutes and Jr's car was crap he was never close to contending for the win, so that was a fun day. Then Sunday the track and the garage are so packed with people I usually go over just before the race and go straight to our seats. This year was no exception, it was a full house. The race was mired in cautions all day. It was some great side by side racing, a lot of lead changes, a lot of different drivers actually had a shot to win and in the next instance they were 40th and the 40th driver was running 3rd, it was awesome. For those who have never been to a Nascar race (Emily) you have to have a track scan radio so you can listen to the drivers, the officials, or the TV broadcasters. For the most part I listened to the TV broadcast because Jr. just wasn't too talkative. Those guys are a hoot! It was so funny to listen to the on air broadcast and then when they went to commercial they would say what they were really thinking about the race and a couple of the drivers. It was very entertaining and I'm already counting down the days to next year........

Christmas and such

Hope everyone had a great Christmas, I know I did. I haven't had a white Christmas for a few years, not like this year anyway. It was so fun to be home in Enterprise with all the fam and play in the snow.