One of the things we miss most about moving from California is our cousins. I didn’t tell my kids that their cousins were coming to visit over spring break. They were SO excited! It was right around Gandalf’s birthday. I had been wanted to visit Sedona since we have moved here. It seemed like the perfect time to pull my kids out of school and have a family day. We left early in the morning and packed up some lunches.
It’s hard to find information on what to do in Sedona. At least what to do with a good size group and a small budget. I had heard about Bell Rock from a Blog Simple As That. We stopped by there first. It was gorgeous! (I still need to practice shooting in manual when it is really bright.) I would be happy to spend the whole day there. We pasted the dome and parked in lot on the right just after the dome. You are required to buy a day pass. We hiked up the trail together. They had a great display about not stepping on the “crust” and the damage it causes when you do. As my boys are all about Leave No Trace, they were more than happy to stick to the trails. We had fun exploring and finding bugs and beautiful flowers.
The view was gorgeous! And I have heard there are caves to explore. We just spent about 20 or 30 minutes here so we could check out other places as well. The boys loved climbing up big rocks and being in nature. We made sure we packed enough water and packed out our snack trash.
It was a great way to spend some time with our cousins. They were pretty great about letting me take pictures.
My niece was nice enough to get a shot of me and baby girl. I carried here in my Baby Bjorn. She loved it. And she loved getting out and walking around when we got to the top. You could tell she felt proud. I try to get in a couple of pictures with my kids. They love seeing pictures of mom too! I love hiking with my family. We need to do it more often. It’s great to be outside and enjoy our beautiful earth. It’s wonderful to be active and teach my family that these adventures bless our lives.
Next we drove to Slide Rock Park. It’s an area with a hike to a fun water area. There is a natural rock slide. It was really beautiful there. The water was a bit cold for me in April. I wouldn’t mind trying it in the summer. We ate our lunch there and explored.
I would love to go back to Sedona next month. I think I would love to spend the whole day at Bell Rock. And get some great pictures as the sun was going down. And then head over to the little town and try out a cute restaurant. I would love to stay till dark so we could see the stars out there. Maybe we will have to get a book from the library. I did hear that slide rock is a lot less crowded early in the morning. Personally I would rather go there with the hubby since I have 4 kids and only half of them are good swimmers.
We loved having our cousins come visit! And we love visiting a fun new place as a family.
I am hoping to take the kids back to Sedona next week! Your your summer holiday is going well!
