Adventures with Uncle P and Auntie K

My aunt and uncle came into town this weekend! We had a blast discovering a new part of the grand canyon, revisiting the Hoover Dam, and enjoying the entertainment of the Air Force Thunderbirds.

We did so much, I thought it would be better to share the weekend through pictures:

Hoover Dam with Auntie K!

We walked across the bypass bridge!

Nothing screams "FUN" like silly cutouts!

Uncle P is such a good sport :)

At Grand Canyon West!

Eagle Point is named for the rock formation that appears to be an eagle stretching his wings wide and looking up to the sky. The right wing starts in the middle of the photo and extends to the edge.

I survived the skywalk and got up the courage to climb to a high view point!

Beauty!

This little dude was prepared for the air show!

Thunderbirds!

My favorite formation - the Mirror!

Amazing!

So proud to be a part of the USAF!

So wonderful to be a part of generations of Air Force supporters!

It was so wonderful to have time with family! We ate lots of yummy meals and had a wonderful time adventuring together!

Ghost Town in Nelson, NV

I had such a blast photographing friends at the ghost town in Nelson, NV. Here’s a photo-journal of the day.

Beautifully recreated barns bring the town to life after it was abandoned for over 40 years!

Beautiful old doors...

Plenty of old gas station signs

 

And lots of Coca-Cola signs too!

 

We got to tour the old mine shafts - Ioved these old lanterns that have been electrified!

 

I even tried my hand at some abstract shots.

 

Love the assymetry of the missing fan blade!

And I got to photograph the 4 lovely ladies!

 

I love how serene and elegant this picture turned out!

 

This one just screams "joyful"!

 

She gave me her best NYC pose to go with her shirt :)

This was just so natural and honest looking...

And my favorite three landscape shots:

I love how this picture framed itself!

 

A good barn picture gets me every time!

 

This one makes me so excited for our road trip in two weeks!!

I definitely recommend a trip to Nelson, NV! If you’d like to see more photos from the day, check out the Dancing Willow Photography Facebook page. Some of these will be showing up on Etsy soon!

Miscellany Monday 7/25

This is my first time linking up to the Miscellany Monday posts by lowercase letters, so here goes nothing!

1) My super awesome sister Molly is in town, so we’ve been having fun showing her around and hanging out. She had a marathon of watching episodes of 24 with Keith yesterday, so everyone is happy :)

2) I’ve been working at getting my Etsy shop Dancing Willow Photography off the ground. I’ve had one sale so far (Thanks again Ana!), but am wondering what other creative things I need to start doing to get the store moving along!

3) This week is a big one for Clara the Camera and I! I’m doing at least one photo shoot with Ana from Life Sense and her three sisters some time later in the week. We’re hoping to do it at one of the “ghost towns” just outside Vegas. Then on Saturday I’m assisting a friend at a promotion ceremony at the Aria hotel. Getting excited/nervous!

Ready for battle!

4) So many house projects are getting done! Here’s a clue:

Stain and Spray Paint do magical things...

5) Hoping the government doesn’t shut down in August, because I’m about to start a countdown to our trip to Yosemite! Our backup plan is Lake Tahoe, so there will be an awesome road trip regardless, but I really want Keith to see this:

from huckleberryprairie.com

Why I Still Live Out Of Four Bags

Every once and awhile I think about changing the name of the blog. After all, we’re actually settled (for once) and will even be celebrating the longest we’ve lived in one place (14 months) in August!

No more four bag living for me…

Until I realize that I’ll always be living out of four bags. If I’ve learned anything over the last few years, it’s been to always live with the “Four Bags Attitude”. I should always be ready to get up, go, and follow God’s calling.

Every time I think of listening and responding to God’s plan for my life, I always think of Abraham (back in the day when he was still Abram in Genesis 12):

The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you…So Abram went, as the LORD had told him

So Abram went. He didn’t ask all his friends what he should do before making a decision or even argue with God about the merits of going; he just went. I have always admired him for that.

That’s why I still have the attitude of living out of four bags…I want to be ready to try new things, meet new people, see new places, and follow God’s plan regardless of whether its convenient or jives with my own compulsive planning.

The Grand Canyon (as narrated by my camera)

Once Upon A Sunny Vegas Day…

…when Elle had a brand new set of floor rugs…

…and a killer soundtrack…

…and Clara the Camera joined our family…

…Becky & Keith went on a McVenture.

They drove hundreds of miles to see a big hole…

…and take a picture to remember the moment.

A night in Flagstaff…

…and a walk through Sedona.

More driving, this time passing cows…

…until we reached another big hole (a meteorite crater)…

…and ancient cliff dwellings.

Then more time on the road…

…including plenty of miles on Rt. 66!!!

3 days of McVentures made for two tired McCoys and lots of wonderful memories!

Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar a.k.a. my new favorite place

Friends and I hit up Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar for the first time this weekend.

It was the most amazingly hysterical experience ever! We didn’t get there until late, so the people watching was amazing. The pianist/singers were incredible and it was so fun to sing at the top of our lungs and dance like crazy :)

If you’re ever in Vegas (and over 21) we’re definitely going to Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar!!

2010 via Facebook Status Updates

I am always entertained by the randomness of the Year in Review application on Facebook that allows you to see random posts from the past year. I couldn’t believe how well my 20 random posts reflected 2010. For your pleasure and entertainment:

New York: State of Denial

We heart NY!

“We’re not moving to the South West, we’re just driving back to the city!”

No we’re not!

It was a blast to drive through New York and marvel at the beautiful creation surrounding I-84:

View of the rolling hills in upstate New York.

We especially appreciated the Newburgh Bridge and reached an elevation of 1258 feet! Our New York facts included all sorts of cool things about the state and cities of New York, but we can’t remember any of them after driving for about 700 miles today – I’ll have to add an addendum tomorrow!

We finally got around to starting the state license plate game and found:

• Ohio
• Connecticut
• New York
• Massachusetts
• New Jersey
• North Carolina

6 down, 47 (including Washington D.C.) to go!!

The Air Force took our stuff away…

…and I’ve never been so happy to see it go! After my graduation, we headed back to Connecticut to facilitate our move:

First, two guys came down from Massachusetts to make sure our things were packed safely.

Before the packing and loading…

Can you spy the tractor trailer?

Our little red salamander friend :)

…and after it all got packed away!

Looking forward to seeing it all unloaded in Las Vegas! Stay tuned for updates on the move and graduations :)

…

[Read more at My Life In Four Bags]

10 Best Walks

I read this article on ABC News this morning and just had to share. It’s a summary of the 10 best walks in the world:

1. Ben Nevis, Scotland
2. Grand Canyon, AZ
3. Great Wall of China
4. Cajas National Park, Ecuador
5. Inca Trail, South America
6. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
7. Amazon Jungle, South America
8. Biscoitos, Azores
9. South Bank, London
10. Central Park, New York City

I have been on walks #9 and 10 and have always wanted to do all the rest (even if I just heard of some of them this morning)!! Looking forward to a chance to walk through the Grand Canyon several times over the next three years; it’s only going to be three hours away!!

…

[Read more at My Life In Four Bags]