A Weekend, A Wedding, and A Really Big Canyon

It took a wedding to get out of the heat for a weekend. The daughter of a friend of my foster-family was married up at the Grand Canyon on Sunday. What a great excuse to go to the Grand Canyon! See, Arizonans going to the Canyon is sort of like New Yorkers in Manhattan. It's just another place to go. But this time, my kids have not been yet, so it was another all new experience for me. :-)

So, my brother Andy flew in on Thursday, and my parents got in Friday. That afternoon we all trekked up north. I love watching the scene transitions as we rise in elevation. From desert, heat, and cactus, to cooler temps, pine trees, and fresh clean air. We stopped for gas just a few miles south of the park entrance, and Bret told me to get out and smell the air. Ahhhh... pine. The girls told us it reminded them of being back in Maryland at my parent's house. Pangs of homesickness hit me, as we didn't get to make our yearly trip there this summer. Sometimes it really stinks to be an East-Coast girl stuck in the desert. But, I had my parents here for the weekend, so that helped ease the sad feelings temporarily.

Our room was tucked nicely away in the trees, and had no A/C. I didn't mind, but the blast of afternoon stuffiness that hit us when we first opened the door didn't make my husband very happy. I tried to reassure him that though it was warm in the afternoon, it would cool down and be wonderful in the evenings. He also grumbled a bit when he found out we were not staying with the rest of the family in the hotel outside the Canyon Park. My thinking was it would be fun to stay inside the park, and also close to where the wedding was to take place. He grumbled some more, but felt better when he found out that others were staying scattered all over the area as well. I was feeling guilty and bad about it for awhile, then promptly decided that I was not going to be upset about it anymore, and moved on with the weekend.

Saturday the family split up for most of the day. I had a bridal luncheon, and the dad's all took the kids sight-seeing. When I returned to the lodge no one was back yet, so I took advantage. I quickly changed, and went off wandering on my own to explore the area (and work off some of the cheesecake from lunch!).

It was a nice hike. Started out on the warm side, but through the tree tops I watched an afternoon storm blow in, and by the time I returned to the room again there was that pre-storm energy in the air. I love that feeling, of a storm brewing. Even here at home with the monsoon, although it's still very hot and gross, I love to sit outside and watch it progress. I had missed Bret and the girls by about 30 minutes (we were exchanging quick notes), so I lied down on the bed, listened to the wind in the trees, and promptly passed out for a bit.

The evening was nice. A group of us went to dinner, and I got to catch up with my parents a bit. The down side was when the waitress spilled hot chocolate all over our friend Christa. That is bad enough in itself, but Christa also has MS and is in a wheelchair. :-( They were so worried they had EMT's come and check her out. She took it in stride, but luckily the drink was for one of the kids, so it wasn't as hot as it might have been.

Sunday was wedding day. It was, of course, beautiful. You can't have a better backdrop than the Canyon to say your "I do's". It was small, only about 40 people. I enjoyed the fact that I pretty much knew everyone there. Pretty much all-inclusive, with a breakfast before the ceremony where we all mingled, watched the kids next to the cliffs, and took in the view. All in all a lovely day, even the drive back was nice. Though it was almost saddening to feel the blast of heat as you opened the car doors.

You can see the rest of the photos here. :-)