Camping in Joshua Tree National Park

We loaded the car on Friday and headed to Joshua Tree National Park. After driving through 5 campsites (which were all full) we finally ended up in this site near Cottonwood Spring. This was our first camping trip as a married couple. I was quite impressed with Joseph's camping skills... obviously an eagle scout!

The highlight... s'mores, of course! This is James' first bite out of the marshmallow. At this moment, he was saying "mmm"!

It takes true love to eat something out of an 18 month-year-old's hands.

David was especially excited about sleeping in a tent. Despite a rough night, James woke up pretty happy but completely conked during our hike.

The neatest part of Joshua Tree were all the huge boulders. David couldn't wait to climb them. We wish we had a few of these in our backyard...

David was really a trooper and made it the whole way on our 2.5 mile hike. This is a view of the desert from Mastadon Peak. We truly enjoyed ourselves, especially being able to get away for a while from modern living. The world is truly a beautiful place and I am grateful that we were able to get out and be in it.

The Desert is in Bloom

Here are some of our favorite wild life shots. The desert was definitely in bloom, revealing it's beautiful side. It is amazing that such vibrant colors can exist in such a hot, desolate place. Our campsite was dotted with these little beauties.

David.. a little too close and personal with a flowering cactus. He paid for it later by having to finish our hike with dozens of invisible stickers poking him. Maybe he'll listen to his parents' warnings next time.

Ocotillo flower... almost like looking at a plant in a Dr. Suess book.

Desert iguana... This little guy came out to sunbathe while we were enjoying the mammoth rocks.

We stumbled into this diamondback rattlesnake on our hike... not my favorite critter.

Lizards are a dime a dozen at our house, but this zebratail lizard was pretty unique.

Built With Love

My sister Emily, is spearheading a huge effort to build a family in her ward a home. There are 8 children in the family, 7 of which are adopted, and 5 of which have disabilities. Recently, the father, Steve, lost his job and physical strength due to a chronic illness. The home they live in now is unsuitable for their circumstances, but because of Steve's situation they are stuck. I knew this family as a child and remember them as being the most loving, charitable family. If you would like to learn a little more about them, or even donate a few pennies, check out the website.

www.BuiltwithLove.org

Bad News

Well, if you are not in California NOW, you are missing out on the most beautiful time. Because we have has so much rain this year, the wildflowers are everywhere and they are gorgeous! The beautiful weather today prompted us to take a few (attempted) photo shoots. As soon as we arrived we realized that our camera's battery was dead. These aren't the best because they were done with our phones.

Random field full of daisies near our house...

Gorgeous mustard growing on the hills in San Juan Capistrano

The perk to living in California is that we have flowers year round. With the added wild flowers, we are truly surrounded by color!

Brothers

This is a typical shopping trip with the boys... nose pulling, ear yanking, sound effects, bear hugging and shrieking. What am I going to do when I've got three busy bodies?

Next time we go to Lowes, I want to buy a set of noise-cancelling earmuffs!

Sweet Faces

Easter Wrapup

Here are some Easter highlights:

David practicing his bunny hops

more bunny ears on our easter egg hunt

Ever since he opened his first egg, James has been a candy-aholic.

It only takes one...