4 Wheels 4 Girls

On April 2nd my family and I went to the Desert Lookout. On the way there we saw elk. We saw a big herd of 28 elk.

A herd of elk

They were big, brown, tall, furry, and had a white rump. We kept on driving and saw more elk.

When arrived at the Desert View and went to the Visitor Center. We looked at books and then we left to go to the Desert Lookout. We walked to the Desert Lookout. When we got there we ran into the Lookout and started our journey to the top. We kept on walking till we got to the top of the Lookout. When we got to to the top you could see the Colorado river. You could also see part of the Grand Canyon. We stayed up there for a good view.

My family at the Desert View lookout

When we got down we looked in the gift shop. Then me and my mom went to look in a different gift shop. I found a water bottle that I loved. I got to get it. And there was a mountain lion in the gift shop!

We finally saw a mountain lion!

On March 30, we left from phoenix and headed to a place were my mom had never been before. We crossed three mountain ranges. Coming down the side of the third mountain, we came to a neat little town called Jerome on the side of the mountain. We saw small houses and a few cars. The houses were all built along the winding road on the side of the mountain. They were built one on top of the other down the side. Then we drove a little farther and saw stores and people. We got even farther and then my mom said, “Look, there’s a big, old hotel over there.” We all looked and we thought it was really cool. Then we stopped and got out to look back at the town.

An old mining town way up on the side of a mountain

Jerome was a mining town a hundred years ago. Then everybody left and they called it a ghost town because the buildings were all empty. Now people came back and live there.

On Saturday, March 26, it was a bumpy ride into Saguaro National Park. Our dad told us that the cacti we were looking at were saguaro. We saw huge saguaro standing with arms pointing in all directions. There were mountains covered with saguaro and other types of cactus. The saguaro looked like tall prickly green things with arms. Daddy said the saguaro looked like crowds of people standing around all over the mountains. When you looked at the saguaro closely, you saw lines and lines of prickles and you even saw holes in them. The holes had birds flying in and out of them. A park ranger told us later the birds were cactus wren.

On the ground were prickly pear cactus. All of a sudden, our dad yelled, “There’s a critter by that prickly pear cactus!” We all looked and saw the critter. He was a small and cute rodent, and he ran away quickly.

After driving on the bumpy road for a long time, we finally saw a sign that said “Visitor Center 1 mile.” We all cheered because we had finally made it to our destination. We did the junior ranger program. We watched a short movie about saguaro.

Dad says saguaro teach us to reach high

We went for a walk in the desert and looked for birds. Here are some pictures of us imitating some of the cacti we saw:

Ellie as an Ocotillo

Dad as a Chain-fruit Cholla

Stella as Saguaro. Dad says they teach us good posture, too.

Greta as a Prickly-Pear

On our hike into Chiricahua I had to overcome my fear of heights. When we got on the trail to hike down from the top, I looked over the side and I saw a huge drop. I knew I was not up for this walk. I was scared because I did not like being up high where there was nothing to support you. For a long time, I did not like the hike at all. I knew I couldn’t be scared for the rest of the hike, so I decided I had to stop being scared.

We had lunch at a big rock hanging over the edge. I was really scared but I decided I was going to get up on the rock and look over. When I looked over, it wasn’t that bad. Then we continued our long hike down.

Up high in the grottos along the trail

To get to the top of the arch you rode in a tram. It was small, round, white, and there were five little seats in a circle. We climbed in a tiny door and it shut. Suddenly it lurched forward. It seemed like it was going sideways, and it was. Then we started to go up and up and up. Through the tram’s little window you could see spiral staircases and regular staircases.

When me and my family got to the top of the arch, there were stairs leading up to the room where you could look out. The room was like a plane, except bigger, and there were no seats. I was frozen with fear in the middle of the room and did not want to go look out. I was high-sick. My Mom finally got me to look out a window. When I looked down, I saw cars, roads, skyscrapers, builds, people, and a stadium. I was looking down at St. Louis. I ran back to the middle of the room and I asked Mom, “How tall is the arch?” She said it is 630 feet tall.

At the very top of the arch

I loved being at the very top of the arch even though I was scared of being so high. I hope we can come back another time.

The City Museum was fun. I loved climbing in the tunnels. It was a great experience for me and my family.

One day in Louisville, my family and I went to help pack glasses at my Grandmom’s business.

Girls Packing Glasses for Grandmom

When we got there, Pam taught us how to pack the glasses in bubble-wrap. My mom took all the glasses out of the first case. Greta set each glass in bubble-wrap and taped the sides, then I taped one end and stuffed the bubble-wrap inside the top. Stella and Ana did the same on the other side of the table. Then my dad took the finished glasses and set them in a box. It went on like this for four hours. We got to take a break and look around. Then we went back to wrapping glasses.

It was fun, because I got to help my Grandmom in her business and learned how factories work.

On Thursday, March 10th, it was cold, wet, and rainy as we headed out to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. When we got there, it was still raining. We went into the lobby to get our tickets for the movie and the museum. We walked around and explored. The movie was about how the KY Horse Park began. Then we went to the museum.

Statue of a Horse

We saw skeletons of prehistoric horses and how they evolved into modern day horses. In the arabian horse exhibit, Greta led me through windy halls until we got to a room with a game we could play. We got a card and put it on the screen of an “oasis” thing. All of a sudden ten horses appeared. You could pick a horse, choose its name, and go on adventures with it. I played over and over and then me and Greta found the rest of our family. We rushed outside to tell Stella about the game. We all played it.

They have big geese in Kentucky

After that, me, Stella, Ana, and my mom went to the Hall of Champions. In there, we saw some horses. Two were named Funny Side and Cigar. We went back to the lobby and looked at the gift shop. When we left, the rain turned into snow.

On Wednesday, March 2 2011, we went to a circus in LaCrosse, WI. I went went my friend, Nell, her mom, my sisters, and my mom. When we got to the circus, we saw elephants, tigers, and ponies.

Here is a dancer on an elephant

You could ride on elephants and ponies. Me, Nell, Stella and Ana almost got to ride an elephant, but the line got too long.

We had to wait for about half an hour for the show to finally start. Suddenly the lights went out and a lady walked out in a light, fluffy coat. She was the ringleader. First she told us her name and then she told us some tigers were performing. When the tigers came out, Nell hugged me really tight and told me they scared her. Then the tigers started performing. They jumped over fences and they rolled over and did tricks.

After the tigers, there was a woman on the moon. She would do handstands and cartwheels on the moon. The lady on the moon would jump and twist and twirl and glide on the moon.

Out on stage walked a very funny looking clown. He had a stuffed elephant. The ringmaster gave him some more stuffed animals. The clown decided to play with his new toys and he got bored with all of them except the elephant. The clown had no clue how to get the elephant to start working. The ringmaster told him he had to wind it up to get it to start. He put it on a rail and it started walking. Then it stopped and fell over. He wound it faster and faster each time, until it broke. The clown cried huge tears that rained on the crowd. Then, to our surprise, out of the stuffed elephant costume jumped the cutest little dog.

I had a great time at the circus and I hope we can go again next year.

This last summer, my uncle Mike took me, Ana, Stella, and Greta tubing on the Mississippi River, right in front of Lansing, IA. It was really exciting.

Me, Ana, and Stella tubing on the Mississippi River

The day was warm and the water was freezing. Stella fell off the tube. It was super fun to watch Stella fall off the tube. But I felt bad for Stella because I always think catfish are going to bite off my toes.

Me and Ana tubing

You can tell from me and Ana’s faces that we are having a blast tubing on the Mississippi.