I got my baby chicks in the mail May 3, along with ducks and geese, but I ordered from Cackle Hatchery. Even though they had been in the mail an extra day, I only lost two ducks (very sad) and on the second day I lost a chick, but otherwise things have been going great. We got a mix of chicks too, and now they have most of their wing feathers I'm able to recognize some of them. lol Some are barred rock, white rock, cinnamon queen or red star . . . Not sure about all of them, but we'll see what they turn out to be. Ducks: I have 1 khaki campbell, 1 Cayuga, and 2 that are probably either Fawn runner or white peking. and my Geese, 2 that are either White Emden or White Chinese and 2 that are either Tolouse or African. The water birds are lot more messy, but they've been a lot of fun and they'll keep my weeds and bugs down a lot. We've moved everyone out to the 'coop' already--it's really a shed with a window, we haven't added nests or roosts or the chicken door yet, but it's early days yet. The water birds go out to the enclosure that will be the lean to-when we finish the dang thing, but only during the day. It's still a bit cool at night for them to be out, and while our setup is safe enough from daytime preditors, it wouldn't hold up against Racoons. Now we're trying to figure out how we're going to get t-posts into the ground when it is filled with rocks. So far we've had no luck getting it more than a few inches down and a post hole digger isn't intended to dig up rocks more than 10 inches across. *sigh* lol Heather J

I've vacationed at every one of them. All the above suggestions are good ones. High altitudes and Summer sun = a huge need for major sunscreen, hats that work, not just look cute, to keep the sun off your faces and heads, good sunglasses, constant hydration. Drinks like Gatorade hydrate while giving you back the electrolytes your body has sweated out . . . and make no mistake that you will sweat out here. Our air is just so dry that it evaporates sweat much more quickly than at more humid places. Nose bleeds occur more often because of the higher altitudes and excessive dry air, so bringing along bottles of Ayer will definitely come in handy. Dress in layers because the nights can get very cold, despite the heat of the days. Here where I live in the mountains of New Mexico, we have an average drop in temps of about 30-degrees between 3PM and 11PM during the Summer months. Smallish canvas backpacks can carry your needs, without causing excessive weight or sweating. Loose, sturdy clothing in natural, breathable fabrics. Sturdy, comfortable hiking shoes (or at least good sturdy tennis) are a must . . . with socks! Avoid sandals, especially at Bryce, Zion, GC and Sedona outside of the town. Speaking of Sedona, a place we LOVE to visit, Oak Creek Canyon is our favorite place to stay and The Silver Saddle at The Cowboy Club (for gourmet Western dining) and the Oak Creek Bar & Grill at Tlaquepaque for the best burgers (by far!) in all of Sedona, with a great setting overlooking Tlaquepaque (pronounced ta-LA-kay-PAH-kay) . . . not to mention, their delicious, award-winning, home brewed beers. Wishing you a wonderful trip! Lynn

Sounds like you had a wonderful trip and glad you all enjoyed it. That's a lot to cover in 11 days! Dh and I drove across country right after we got engaged, starting in No. California. We'd both been to the Grand Canyon before, but while living in Hawaii, we met a guy who grew up in AZ. He told us about this canyon adjacent to the Grand Canyon that he and his family used to hike into - the trail ends in an Indian reservation. We decided to do it on our trip across country. I'm not sure what we were thinking...while physically fit, we weren't big hikers and it was a 10 mile hike down, it was 100+ degrees (middle of July). We camped overnight and then hiked back out the next day. I was never so happy to get back to our car with A/C! From there we were headed to Denver, so we drove up through Utah along some deserted 2-lane highways, but the scenery was spectacular. We didn't make it to Bryce or Zion, but we have vowed that once all of our kids were old enough to appreciate, we were going to do a trip like yours. We'll probably just do Sedona, Grand Canyon, and then one place up in Utah. I assume you were driving from place to place? Did you get to stop at any of the pueblos? Those were really pretty cool. I agree with you about Vegas. Once was enough for me. We stopped there too on our trip from San Fran down to AZ via L.A then San Diego (our trip was very convoluted as we were all over the map visiting friends along the way). We just had an overnight in Vegas, but did hit a casino just for fun. Totally not my thing at all. Just too much for me. It was neat to experience once, but I have no desire to head back. Did you see the Hoover Dam too? Probably not as I imagine that wasn't on your way if you were coming from Utah. If you have any specific kid-friendly info of places you stopped, please share! I'm taking note of the Pink Jeep tour! Glad you had a great time but totally understand being a little bit too much togetherness! With four kids, I get that when we are having to stay in hotel rooms for any length of time.

It was posted on the Meeting House that Marilyn was fine, her home was in good shape, and her animals ok, other than a little debris here and there. She's prob. still without power.