Remembering tonight the amazing thing God did when He sent His Son into the world…
“For God so loved the world He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him, shall not perish but have eternal life.”
~John 3:16~

]]> http://www.emlifephoto.com/Blog/friendship/feed/ 3 http://www.emlifephoto.com/Blog/grand-canyon/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=grand-canyon http://www.emlifephoto.com/Blog/grand-canyon/#comments Mon, 21 Nov 2011 18:00:43 +0000 admin http://www.emlifephoto.com/Blog/?p=3176 Last year my parents celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary by doing a 20 mile day hike into the Canyon.  They loved it so much that they planned to do it again this year…and convinced Matt and I to go along.  Actually we were pretty excited to go INTO the Canyon.  We are AZ natives and have never done more than make the drive to this Natural Wonder, stare at it for a bit, and then go back home.  Not this time.  We were going IN.
I was so determined to bring my fancy camera and fancy lens and get some really purdy shots while we were on our hike.  But as I loaded my day-pack the night before with all the essentials like oh food and water, I had a moment of sanity where an additional 7 pounds sitting on my back didn’t seem like such a bright idea.  So my iPhone is responsible for capturing our experience and I gotta say, it took some pretty decent shots!
So come on a little tour of one of the most amazing landscapes in the world and see what I saw…with some little surprises along the way!

We started in the early morning and burrrrrrrrrr it was cold!!  See my poofy headband?  That was to insulate heat in my cranium.

And there are my adorable parents.  ”The Pros.”  I’m all bundled up like it’s going to snow and they have shorts on.

It didn’t take long before we had put a good distance between ourselves and the rim.  Goes pretty quick when you are going DOWN!

And this guy.  I should say these guys.  They practically own the place!  Every corner we turned, there was a squirrel.

Alright little guy, step back from the cliff.  Slowly. Slooooowly.  One little acorn in not worth it!!

Besides the humans bring all kinds of goodies for you to munch on.  And obviously your cuteness gets you fed well.  Awwww, would you like some trail mix?  Cliff bar??  Pink rehydrating liquid?

Bummer.  Didn’t see this until towards the end of our journey.

You really need wardrobe for 2 different seasons when you do a Canyon hike.  When we started in the morning, the temps were in the 40s.  By the time we got to the bottom, they were in the 70s.

See we’re already in shorts.

The trails aren’t all that steep…just a lot of switchbacks.

Oh man I was dying to put a 6 month old in that tree stump for a photo!!  Is that not a photographer’s dream spot??

And this???  Can you just see a bride and groom under the arch on the left?  Coolest tree ever!!
Why are the coolest photo scenes in the most unreachable places??

Here is my Dad saying,”You’re taking another snapshot?  Another one?  Didn’t you just take one 5 steps back?”
Can’t help it.  Photographer.

Went through that dark dark tunnel to get to Phantom Ranch.  That was our lunch break point.

The bridge over the river

Why didn’t anyone tell me I had hair-gone-wild?!?

There’s beach sand in the canyon.  Like the real stuff!  It was so weird to all of a sudden be stomping through it and it wasn’t even near the water!  Weird.

The sand.  And my sexy hiking boots.

It’s BATMAN!!  We ran into Batman on the trail.  He looks like he’s been in the sun a little too long no??

We had to do some tricky stone-stepping across some ragging waters!!

The Canyon really is a crazy cool mix of desert and trees and cactus and vegetation and rock.  All of it in one place.  I think God was showin’ off a little here

This was posted quite frequently on the trails.  The thing about hiking a canyon is that you go down first, and then the real huffin and puffin begins.  I guess it’s not uncommon for someone to get stuck.

Aaaaaaand now we gotta go back up.  Dang it.

The last 3-4 miles were not as easy-breezy as the first 14.  We started a bit after 7 am and finished right before sundown.  17 miles.  One day.  Totally worth it.

Seeing the Canyon reminded me of this:
“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.  (Romans 1:20)

Victory!!!  Now where do we get a burger!?!

We want to go again next year.  There are lots of different trails and ways to hike this baby and we definitely want to see more!  Who’s coming!?!?
If you’ve hiked the Canyon, let me know what trails you loved!  We did Kaibab on the way down and Bright Angel on the way up.  Great combo to see a variety of views!
Til next time xoxo

This is an excerpt that his mom wrote on his Caring Bridge page:

We’ve seen the amazing things that God has done over and over again along this journey, but even still, I (Deb) anticipated that watching my child die would a horrible thing to endure. And it is. BUT I never expected what ELSE God would do… that HE Himself would infuse the experience with His presence … and give us all such wonder and joy even in the midst of our pain. Who but God could do that?! In the video, when you see Victor raise his fist in victory at a time when he can hardly breath or even open his eyes, I want you to remember that if you love this God of the gospel, HE SHOWS UP in your darkest hour. Praise be to God.

So do not fear, for I am with you: do not be dismayed,for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. ~ Isaiah 41:10

And I thought you had to be a mall cop to ride one!  Apparently not.  Next mom’s night out…were SEGWAY’IN ladies!!  Paul Blart style!
We chatted about lots of randomness…recent favorite books, how a colorful tattoo is more painful to get than natural childbirth (wink wink Momma J), hair removal methods (TMI?), how Goodwill is a secret treasure cove.  Contemplated joining Momma P in a Tough Mudder race and Momma J in a Half Marathon…and then regained our sanity.  Then we started on the topic of funny viral videos.  Here’s a few of them because if you haven’t seen them, you’ve been living in a hole you must!

Somewhere in the midst of all this chatting, time escaped us.  Our waiter came by and gleefully announced that we had made it to happy hour #2!  That’s right.  We arrived for the early one…sat drinking our weight in water…and made it to the 10 pm half priced drinks and appetizers!  Much to our waiters dismay, we were a table of light weights and one margarita was all the craziness we were havin.  But to make him feel better, we ordered the chocolate ooey gooey brownie with ice cream desert, family style.  We’re talkin brick sized brownie and we may or may not have licked the plate.
So who’s in the the next ladies night??  Anyone?  I KNOW you want to go cruisin’ on a Segway.  Cuz that’s definitely a bucket list item.  And yes the momma in me will make sure everyone is wearing a helmet.  Ladies only.  Men, don’t be jealous.

I think I laughed waaaaaaay beyond the appropriate amount of time when I saw this in the theatre with Shay.

Rapunzel…I totally get your torment.  I do this in a less dramatic way all the time.  Not about my mother’s approval.  But about a million other things.  And my husband’s response…just watch Eugene.  Opposites attract right

Hope everyone is having a great week!
Erin xoxo

If you are wondering, I am booking for the remainder of 2011 right now.  Most of my availability is in September, but have one or two spots left in October/November.  No minis this year.  But if you are up for a fun creative child/family session, I would love to chat with you!!
Erin xoxo

Children laugh on average 400 times a day…adults laugh about 15 times.
Laughter is a gift!  Here’s a great article on it that I was reading on the incredible benefits of just…laughing.  Very interesting
Have a beautiful weekend!

Jumping into a new career is not easy.  But when you find something that has changes your life, you jump.  At least that’s what Michelle did.  Becoming a trainer at SWEAT has allowed her follow her passion and help others reclaim their health.  If you are in the Anthem/Northwest Phoenix area, check them out!  I know you will be totally inspired by Michelle and she will cheer you on (and kick your butt) to a fitness level you probably never thought you could achieve.

One of the things I’ve been learning from Michelle:  don’t ruin what you did at the gym with what you do in the kitchen.  And she’s living proof of course!  I love reading her FB status updates of eating 2500-3000 calories a day and getting these results…eating clean food.  Michelle, you inspire me to put down the ice cream and pick up the greek yogurt with berries.  And it’s true…after a while you don’t even miss it (as much).

Thought this old building looked like something off an old movie set.  The funny thing is, it probably was once a grocery store.

Michelle, i {heart} your smile.

Michelle… thank you for allowing so many of us to learn through your transparency.  You are beautiful and strong and an amazing momma to your babies.  Can’t wait to see what other adventures you go on living in the moment!

Erin xoxo