american west, Family, Hiking, Kids, Museums, national parks, outdoors, photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Vacation

Petrified Forest National Park

Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona was another amazing park on our Spring Break Southwest Roadtrip. The landscape born of volcanic activity, sediment deposits, and geologic uplift looked as if it truly were a desert scene of vibrant color painted on canvas. The national park preserves petrified logs, as well as ancient petroglyphs and desert formations.

american west, Camping, Family, Hiking, Kids, Museums, national parks, outdoors, photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Vacation

El Malpais National Monument

After four full days of visiting Ruidoso, New Mexico, we headed to Flagstaff, Arizona for the next leg of our Spring Break Southwest Roadtrip, stopping along the way in the scenic and geologically interesting El Malpais National Monument.

american west, Family, Hiking, Kids, Museums, national parks, outdoors, photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Vacation

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

The second post in our Spring Break Southwest Road Trip series has us spending some time "indoors." We visited the grand caverns of Carlsbad Caverns National Park in southern New Mexico.

american west, Family, Hiking, Kids, Museums, national parks, outdoors, parenting, photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Vacation, writing

White Sands National Park

This first post in our Southwest Adventure series showcases our family's experience at the unique and spectacular White Sands National Park in Alamogordo, New Mexico, with photos of sand sledding and enjoying the natural settings.

Family, Halloween, holidays, Kids, Opinion, parenting, School, Uncategorized, writing

How old is too old to go trick-or-treating?

How old is too old for trick-or-treating? While there is not a right or wrong answer, the Cranky Camper opines that the spirit of Halloween fun is more important than the question of numeric age.