I explained carefully where Mike would be waiting, but after deplaning, the three of them had gone up one floor. After a good hour and five or so phone calls back and forth between me, Mike and Pilar (a nice person let her use their cell phone), they finally connected and were on their way back to St. George. No sooner had they arrived, when we received a call from Natalia saying she and her father, Juan, just boarded a plane and would arrive in Vegas within two hours. Mike groaned, hopped back in the car, and headed back to Vegas for pick-up #2. At least Natalia had a cell phone so they could find each other! By the end of the day, Mike suffered from a severe case of TB (tired bottom).
Wednesday morning (23rd), after breakfast, we piled in the car and headed to Snow Canyon. The Celys were awed by the majestic red rocks and loved hiking them. Estefania encountered a lizard which made her a bit skittish. We enjoyed a beautiful lunch at Kokopelli's and Natalia loved the photo ops provided by the water features, green grass and red rocks. She's picture crazy!
Visitor's from South America can't come to Utah without hitting Deseret Book and Deseret Industries for favorite gifts to take home to their families. An afternoon swim in the pool ended a beautiful day.
On Thursday (24th), we did the Kanab-Page-Fredonia loop. Our road trip began with a drive thru Zion National Park, with photo stops at various majestic views. Even though the car was a tab bit cramped, it was filled with happiness as everyone aboard loved to laugh. Natalia is a giggler and precipitates lots of laughter with her comments. Cristina quietly adds clever one-liners under her breath which sends us into stitches. Pilar tries to keep things calm, but doesn't succeed with so many jokesters in the car.
Our entourage had fun exploring Denny's Wigwam in Kanab, the Glen Canyon Dam overlook (deemed "magnificent"), eating a nice lunch in Page, driving over the Navajo Bridge, and posing for pictures at Cliff Dwellers, AZ. Herds of huge, hairy buffalo filled the group with awe as we drove along the route to the Grand Canyon's North Rim. Luckily, we caught the view from the Visitor's Center just as a storm rolled in, filling the canyon with clouds and letting loose torrents of rain. We stopped at our favorite steak house in Fredonia, AZ for a late dinner on the way back to the Gecko House.
Morning (25th) began with a stop at the Jacob Hamlin and Brigham Young homes. The Celys loved visiting the actual places recorded in church history and seeing how the early church members lived on a daily basis. We also stopped to visit the St. George Temple before heading north to Springville, arriving at Mike and Amy's for the night after dinner at the Golden Corral. Livi and her friends embraced Estefania, hauling her off for night games until after ten, while Natalia was out with one of her many "guy friends".
Salt Lake City and Temple Square were stops for the 26th as we headed to Morgan. The beautiful flowers were in their glory making a colorful background for pictures. While touring the Conference Center, we took a few minutes to rest and listen to an organ recital in the main hall. We made a quick stop at Costco so they could see where Mike spent his working years and purchase food for the road. Pulling into Morgan just before the 24th of July parade began, we all took off and watched the procession of trucks, tanks, and cars go by. This is definitely NOT a mini "Days of 47 Parade", but all the entrants throw lots of candy, so the kids were happy!
Church the next day (27th) was interesting, as Natalia was spotted by an eligible young RM who wished to come by later and visit. Mike's brother, Ric, told his Young Adult Ward about Natalia and several of them stopped by also. In between, a "guy friend" from Provo drove up to spend some time with her. Ahhhh---to be young again. Estefania spied on them while they were chatting in Mom's garage for some privacy and reported a little "lip action" going on.
Heading out early Monday (28th), we drove by the new, beautifully remodeled Ogden Temple as the Celys love visiting temples. We also stopped at the temple in Logan and took lots of photos on the grounds which have been updated with a fountain and lovely beds of flowering shrubs and colorful annuals. A drive by the Rexburg Temple finished the day, before we turned in for the night at Rexburg's AmericInn, excited for tomorrow's adventure in Yellowstone National Park.
The weather on the 29th was a bit cloudy and cool as we started out, but by afternoon, the sun came out adding to the splendor of the waterfalls and hot springs. We drove to West Yellowstone via Mesa Falls and since we traveled so far, and the Celys would probably never return this way again, we decided to stick around for the eruption of Old Faithful. The crowd and squirrels entertained us as we waited. The eruption was a bit less impressive than I had built up in my mind, but it was fun to see. Buckled in, we hurried on our way trying to make it home without stopping again for the night. Driving north along the Madison, thru Virgina City, the Celys got a glimpse of life in the old west. We finally arrived quite late and settled in for several days (July 30-31 and August 1-3).
Estefania loved the toy room and the rest of the family enjoyed going thru Mike's joke drawer. The favorite item was the Fart Machine (they later purchased their own at the Pike Place Market several days later). Pilar thought Hobby Lobby was craft heaven and she purchased a cutting machine for about $150 less than what she could buy it for in Bogota. Visiting the Merrill home was a highlight and they loved Dad's garden filled with all kinds of fruits, vegetables and flowers. We took a trip to the East Wenatchee bowling alley (Juan thumped everyone), and at the arcade afterwards, everyone took turns on an arcade ride that jiggled, jostled and rattled the teeth.
August 1 took us to Leavenworth to enjoy the flowers, music and feel of the Bavarian town. And how can you go to Leavenworth without stopping to try on hats at the Mad Hatter? It's a must. Afterwards, we stopped to introduce Mark, Laurel and kids to our dear friends, then had a nice visit to Fro-Yo for a sweet treat.
August 2 we gathered at Tom and Beth's for a swim with Mark and Laurel's kids and Katie, Kyle and Max who had pulled in for a visit. We ate the final dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant in Cashmere. Sunday morning, the 3rd, we went to church, then later, all our family joined us for Fast Sunday dinner. My brother, Rick, came from Richland, as he served in the Bogota, Colombia Mission, and was eager to meet the Celys. (The dolls were hungry, so Estefania fed them early.) Things got a little teary as we gathered in the sitting room around the piano and sang,"God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again" in Spanish.
We awoke early Monday (4th) for our final day together. We packed all the bags, bodies and two weeks of souvenirs into the Pilot and headed to Seattle via Yakima and Mt. Rainier. It was a perfect, Northwest day. As you head over Chinook Pass on Highway 410, there is a spot near Tipsoo Lake where, all of a sudden, Mt. Rainier is just THERE. We prepared everyone for the upcoming view of mountain by telling them how big and pretty it is, but there are no words for how stunning it is up close on a nice day. We pulled off the road for a minute to take pictures and everyone was in awe of the spectacle. A little farther on, we stopped again for the snow! Some of the family had never encountered the white stuff before. We even managed to fit in a snowball fight and KR showed them how to make a small snowman.
After grabbing lunch in Enumclaw, we spent the rest of the day in Seattle - Pike Place Market, the waterfront, a tour of Alki, fish and chips in West Seattle, and a quick ferry ride from Fauntleroy to Vashon (we parked and walked on, getting an added run to Southworth as a bonus). On the way to SeaTac, I showed them my boyhood home and old stomping grounds. In the late evening, we dropped the whole Cely clan off at a hotel across from the airport for a good night's sleep before their early Tuesday morning flight home. What a trip! Mike and I were both exhausted as we headed home to Wenatchee for some rest.
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