The "Big Ditch" one more time...and our tranny God story!

After leaving the wonderful state of Utah, we headed down to Flagstaff, AZ, to meet back up with our good friends, Ron and Jaymane Dunn.  We planned one last Hooray with them since we didn't know when we would be back through Arizona.

We found a great townhouse and rented it for the weekend so we could play games all night and see the Grand Canyon during the day.  Ron had never been to the Grand Canyon, so we were excited to get to go back with them.  It had been since '87 since Jaymane had been. We had our plans and sunscreen ready to meet them on the 8th.  

Since we arrived early, we decided to stay back at the military base that we had stayed once before and just relax a day or two before they arrived.  We also knew it was time for our oil change in the rv and there was a Camping World right by the townhouses so we made our appointment for the morning of the 8th and were going to park it at the Pilot at the end of the road.  Our plans were set, well except the part where the RV was making a weird noise. The only way I could describe it was airy.  The motor wasn't sounding big and strong like normal, it was a loud airy sound, so we were going to have that looked at too.  I, of course, sent out prayer requests to my immediate prayer warriors that they were to be in prayer for an honest repairmen and that if something was wrong, that it could be fixed.  So, we dropped it off and the repairman went for a ride with me to hear the noise...and yes, he agreed it was airy, but he looked at me and said it was the motor fan and it was NOT suppose to sound like that. It definitely needed to be checked out since it's not suppose to get to 4500 rpms before it shifted....so, we left the RV.

We received the call that we could go early to the townhouse, so we headed out.  The Dunn's arrived and we were all settling in and laughing of course and enjoying the fellowship together when we received "the phone call".  It was the repairman! He said, "We have a very big problem, the transmission is on it's way out."  Oh WOW, I soooo did NOT want to hear that, I think I was in shock a little, since after all it was a 2014 RV and we only had 26,000 miles on it...But, either way, I had to swallow and face the facts.  I asked him if he thought I could make it to Florida and have it fixed there, and of course he said, "No!"  It was one of those situations where you could make it 1000 miles or it could make it 1, you just can't tell.   He also told me with the low miles that it probably was still under warranty which meant that ONLY a Ford certified mechanic could work on it.  OK, so we stay a little longer and get it fixed, so I thought...

I went back inside to share the news with Momma and Daddy. We were all bummed out a little but then of course reminded ourselves that God was in control, no matter what!  Crazy how my first reaction was panic, worry and then Oh Yea, I don't have to worry about all this, God's got this!  PERIOD!  For me, I am one that completely trusts the fact and take extreme comfort in HIS sovereignty, everything that happens to me goes through His hands and that He is in Control, not me...the outcome is ALWAYS for HIS GLORY, whether I know "the rest of the story" or not.  I trust Him, so I completely trust HIS plans!  SO, the facts were, we needed a new transmission and we needed it ASAP.  So, I called the Ford place in Flagstaff....they didn't do RV's, he refereed me to another Ford place on further down the road...their bay wasn't large enough for our RV to fit.  I called another Ford place...nope - RV was too large.  He gave me a number to a Ford place an hour and a half away in the opposite direction of where we were planning on going when Jaymane and Ron said, just call Tuscon (where they live) and we could stay with them while the RV was under repair.  Ok, that made sense, but Tuscon was 4 hours away, would the RV make it that far?  Would we break down on the way?  Albuquerque was closer, but we would have to drive straight through the desert. If we broke down that would be a nightmare waiting for who know how long for a tow truck.  So, we thought about it and it really made more sense to try to make it to Tucson because there were towns and people pretty much the whole way.  If we didn't make it all the way to Tucson, we had Phoenix and they had lots of Ford places there.  Now we had a plan, head to Tucson.  But, do they have a Ford place?

I Googled it and yep, lots of Ford dealers in Tucson, I called one after another, getting voicemail after voicemail, I landed on Holmes-Tuttle. I called, got transferred 4 times before I finally got a guy, no excuse me, a "service specialist" named Mike.  I explained my problem, he said yes it needed to be looked at, but he was short handed, yada yada.  I then proceeded to explain, we are just trying to get home to Florida by the 24th and we were at his mercy.  I had called several Ford places and due to the RV size, they couldn't take me. He told me to bring it on in so they could get it in line, to which I had to tell him, I couldn't be there till Monday (Thursday was the day this all happened).  So, he made me an appointment to come in Monday morning.  Shewwww - good, now that was all over - we can get on with having some fun with our friends....Let the games begin!!!!

The next morning we got up bright and early to go see the Grand Canyon! I loved walking up to see it and the reaction on the face of our friends.  There is really NOTHING like it.  The Grand Canyon is just so different, but so over the top on grasping what you are seeing.  A mile deep, 200 something miles long with such color and different layers of rock. It was just as breathtaking the second time as it was the first time I saw it.  This time around I didn't take quite as many pictures and just stood in God's presence and marveled at His creation and how He created it all to work.  What a mighty God we serve!  

We spent the whole day stopping at each pull out to view and marvel at His handiwork. Every spot was so unique, the colors, the way the sun hit the cliffs, all of it, just glorious! We stopped along the way for a picnic, there was nothing like it. It's been great to picnic in these national parks, as we sat IN nature and heard the sounds and saw the birds and listened to them sing.  It was wonderful, a perfect day with some of our dearest friends, our brother and sister in Christ, family.  

When we got back home, you guessed it, we pulled out the games for more laughter and fellowship, after dinner of course.  Funny part was, we really did play games pretty much the whole time we were at the townhouse and eat...LOL.  It was a precious weekend for sure.

Our time in Flagstaff was winding down, we were to leave the next day.  We were prayed up, I sent messages to some of my wonderful prayer warriors, I knew we were covered in our journey to Tucson, I had the sweetest peace that we were ok either way.  I love that peace that only He can give.  

We were off to Tuscon, (actually Green Valley, right outside of Tuscon) 283 more miles we needed to go.  Praise God it was mostly flat driving, only a few inclines were in our path. We decided to have Daddy follow us in the car instead of towing it, and the the Dunn's were right there with us...so our little convoy of 3 were off.

We arrived without incident after a stop at Rudy's, the absolute best bbq that I have ever eaten in my entire life.  If you are ever out in Texas or Arizona, look it up, you MUST go get some extremely MOIST, cooked to perfection, fun atmosphere and super yummy food!  Oh, ok where was I?  Oh yeah, back to the trip, all smooth sailing, motor being held together by the hands of my heavenly Father.  

Our appointment was set for Monday, we arrived bright and early since we were so eager to have it looked at.  Mike (our service representative) said they wouldn't be able to look at it until later in the week, which ended up being Wednesday.  We got a call bright and early and said that yes in fact it was the transmission, but we also had the motor fan burn out and PRAISE GOD it was in the ON position when it burnt out (the airy sound I heard, I knew I wasn't crazy, well you know what I mean)...not sure how all that works, but he said that had it not stayed ON the whole time it would have killed our motor....WOW - ok that is a huge PRAISE GOD right there,!!! Can I get an AMEN?  SO, when he told me, "that never happens" I just smiled and told him, "that was all God!"  Ok, at this point, we had the motor fan, and two parts in the transmission that were bad and needed to be replaced, and we were only half way through the tear apart...I received another call on Thursday, that all parts were ordered and there was nothing else that was needed, the parts were to be in that afternoon or Friday morning.  Mike said very tentatively we might have it back Tuesday afternoon, but they were going as fast as they could since they knew we needed to get back on the road.  OK, here's another PRAISE GOD, we got a call at 7:14AM on Tuesday morning that she, the RV,  was ready to be picked up and hit the road....WOOOHOOO PRAISE YOU GOD, we were able to pick it up and hit the road all before lunch time on Tuesday!!!  Sure, we were set back a few days, but we were back on the road.  How fast do you think we were packed up and ready to go?  LOL  We arrived at the service department to pick her up and the lady checked us out and said, "have a great day and enjoy your travels..."  what, that's it?  The entire thing was covered under warranty...yep...another PRAISE GOD and can I get an AMEN?  We got the keys, repacked the rv, said our goodbyes and hit the road, all before lunchtime.  

As you can see, God's provisions for us are in the big details, as to where we were going to stay and the warranty covering the repairs to the tiniest of details like me being awake at 7am to hear the phone ring that was still in my backpack so we could get on the road earlier that we expected.  When you look for God everywhere, you will see Him everywhere, that's a promise you can count on.  I do however want to go on record here, even if He hadn't provided smooth sailing through this whole process, His provisions are still beyond me. He provided my salvation, and in the scheme of things, that ALONE is the ONLY provision we are in need of, His Son, Jesus Christ.   

Also, just want to do another shout out to our precious friends the Dunn's - THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR HOSPITALITY AND LOVE!!!!

Not too many pictures in this one, but enjoy the "big ditch" pictures and ones we took along the way....

Love ya'll and keep us in your prayers!!!
  Kristi
Carol and Bob
Galatians 6:9-10

THE BIG DITCH...

AKA GRAND CANYON

TOWNHOUSE

A turanturla...IN THE WILD...doesn't look
that big but OMW it was huge!!!

My birthday breakfast...
Cinnamon roll pancakes!
AHHHHMAAAZING!

 My birthday lunch - Mexican BUFFET!!!

MOST AWE INSPIRING SUNSET I HAVE EVER SEEN

THERE WAS COLOR ALL 360 DEGREES

OUR LAST NIGHT WITH THE DUNN'S

Canyons, Hoodoos, Windows and Bridges of Utah

Our last post, we were heading out of Colorado going towards Utah.  Oh, what an amazing trip that was.  I think we have just as many "our travel to x destination" pictures than we have of those we've taken at the actual destination we happen to be touring.  I really do want to say, what an absolutely awe-inspiring country we live in.  I can't say anything about the state of our country, but we really do have so many magnificent sights that are right here in our own back yard.  I have been completely blessed to have been able to do this trip with my parents. Seriously, it has shown me that there is no reason why people can't travel.  You CAN do it on a budget, you CAN do it short term or long term.  I know the Lord brought us on this journey and am so very thankful for it.

Now back to the beautiful state of Utah, and let me just start at the beginning, the Canyonlands National Park.  How wondrous it was to see all of the different mountains or whatever, cliffs maybe, and rock formations.  Coming from little ole Florida for most of my life, these areas were just so different from anything I had ever known.  Such diversity in those areas.  We took off to explore and had an amazing time of praising God at all of the stunning sights.  Since we really were on a time schedule we pretty much just spent one day at each park, driving in and checking out all of the view points and very short hikes that wouldn't be too much on Daddy with his hip.  

 

After Canyonlands NP, we went to the Arches NP.  They were geographically so close together you could do one park one day and the other park the next.  It was so mind boggling at how time and erosion had taken place and created such odd shaped rock formations.  Some appeared to be balancing and looked like they could fall at any moment. It was also really interesting to read the names that the native peoples came up with for the formations.  After reading the names, it was fun trying to see the shapes that they saw to name it. Hearing the stories behind them were so interesting too.    

We were so blessed to be able to watch the lunar eclipse and super moon.  So thankful that Momma suggested that we go back into the park for a dinner picnic and watch it from there across the canyon.  Umm, let me just say here, absolutely astonishing!  I hate my camera didn't take good pictures, but in a way, I look at it as a blessing. It caused me to put the camera down and I enjoyed the eclipse, watching it in quiet reverence.  The really cool part was that there were probably 100 people at the same point we were and we sat in complete silence. You could have heard a pin drop.  It was as if everyone was just as moved as we were.  As we watched the sun set in one direction, we turned our chairs the other direction to watch as the moon peeked up over the mountain to begin its performance.  It was another one of those once in a lifetime "just me and God" moments and I marveled in His presence that night.  I was in a state of worship the entire time, and feel so very blessed to have seen this.  Oh and it was my first eclipse I have ever seen since they always happen in the middle of the night back in Florida.  It began that night at about 7:30/7:45. 

Ok, now off to the next NP, Bryce.  The cool thing about going to Bryce was that we were able to drive straight through Capital Reef NP which was just as breathtaking as the others. I want to say, for any of you that may be in an RV and do this trip, there was a crazy curvy steep section along this path, with 14% downgrades....up to this point the steepest we had been on was an 8%...the higher the number the steeper it is....so this section has some serious downgrades.  You also get the privilege of driving through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, which has more amazing sights.  If you are a hiker, these NP's are for you.  There are so many hikes you can take that it would keep you busy for months.   can only imagine what hikers must see as they hike on paths that are a little less traveled.

We finally made it to Bryce NP.  Momma said the one thing she wanted to do was hike the Hoodoos.  We checked it out and were able to go in and do the Queen's garden section which was considered the "easier" way in and out of the canyon floor.  Since we never found where exactly the Queens garden entrance was, we decided to go on in through the other entrance.  YIKES...talk about crazy steep and switchbacks like crazy.  I had no idea how long the path was down, but it felt like a mile at least....(but I'm sure it really wasn't). Thankfully, I was so awe-struck I really didn't pay much attention to the steep path with nothing to keep me from falling to my death.  Whew, we FINALLY reached the bottom! We decided to head towards the Queens garden and exit through there.  It was right at 3 miles, and both of my parents agreed we would just take it as slow as we had to and just enjoy the hike and the scenery.  We are in the canyon floor with these rock formations that reached to the sky, hundreds of feet up.  We felt about as big as an ant down there.  The view gave us such a different perspective.  Breathtaking was an understatement.  My parents did great!  e finally got to the Queen's garden and began our descent UP this time.  Now remember they said this was the easier way in...OMW ARE YOU CRAZY?!?!?!  Let me just say, I found out just how ridiculously out of shape I was in.  This path was just as bad as the other path, it just didn't go as long.  Praise God Momma needed to take a few breaks on the way out...I never would have made it straight up....and yes, there were NO railings to keep us safe and the wind was blowing like crazy! Yes, I must share with you, I literally prayed myself out of that canyon...when we finally reached the top I wanted to fall down and kiss the ground, but don't worry, I contained myself.  We hiked the Hoodoos and we survived!  It ended up being one of the most memorable excursions of our trip.  Again, so thankful for Mom and her bucket list...I never would have known to add that to mine...LOL.  It was a truly spectacular hike that I will never forget.  

So after Bryce NP we set off to Zion NP.  We decided to just stay on the outskirts of the area.  We stumbled across a really small, only 12 sights "mom and pop", RV park, right off the road but under a beautiful canopy of trees with wonderful fast wifi and only $25 a night....it was great!  As Momma was checking in, she realized that the actual office was in a small building shared with the small town post office. I wish we would have gotten a picture, it was definately old school small town USA for sure.  They even had free cucumbers fresh picked from the garden...did you catch that...FREE!  I will just say, it was a great little spot. Ok, back to Zion, since we arrived later in the afternoon, we decided to go on in and explore the park and make a plan for the next day.  They offered a trolley to see the park since driving is prohibited.  We were so thankful for the trolley.  We even got to see two different groups of guys who climbed the mountain side.  The trolley driver said they were staying the night on the side of the mountain in one of those hammock things...CRAAAAZYYYYY, no thank you!  But,  it was really cool seeing them in action so high.  The park was great and we even got to see the sunset as we were heading out of the park.  It gave a completely different view of the park but was so relaxing.  

We got up the next day with our plan to hike the Narrows, to see all the stuff we could see. At this point let me tell you that it was a Saturday....the entrance gate had a line almost a mile long. It took us over 30 minutes to get in the gate.  I will admit, I was seriously dreading the battle to see the park, hike the paths and see the sights with all these people.  If you haven't been to Zion, I will give you a hint...DONT GO ON A SATURDAY!  Since you can't drive into the park, the only was is through the Visitor Center. Then you take the trolly to the different stops.  So, we finally got to the Visitor Center and drove around for another 30 minutes trying to find a parking spot....they put a sign out as we were circling that said, there was parking available in town and then you could ride the trolly back into the park from town....and this would be where I bailed!  I completely gave up on the thought of doing Zion that day. I am so thankful that we were able to view the park the day before and have that experience WITHOUT the 4 million people! (ok so maybe I am exagerating a little). lol

As we left the park, there was a line even longer than the one we experienced when we entered the park. That was just crazy!  We went back the the rv and came up with a new plan for the day.  We hit a really cool tourist shop and then Mom and I thought we would hit the little town and just knock around.  We found a little grocery/hardware store.  It was GREAT!  I think we spent almost 2 hours in there, they had everything from horse shoes to fabric in there.  Even hung out with the man that worked in the hardware shop for a while.  It was just a great small town USA experience.

The next morning we headed out to go back to Flagstaff.  Kind of bitter sweet again, we were now starting to go back to stops we made on our way across the United States.  The reality of going home was really starting to hit.

I also wanted to share with you that during our time through Utah, he began praying and asking the Lord for wisdom and discernment on heading home early.  After much prayer we decided it was time to start our journey back home.  We were way ahead of schedule and we didn't want to stall for time just because we planned our trip through February.   So, I am happy and sad to say we are heading home after our weekend visiting with our friends the Dunn's.  We wanted to meet up at the Grand Canyon and see the "big ditch" together, play some games and just enjoy each other one more time before we head back to Florida. I will put up a whole new post just for that weekend trip....Can't wait to see them again....Next stop...Flagstaff, AZ.

Thanks for traveling with us on our journey!  Hope you enjoy the pictures and please keep us in your prayers!!!

Love you all,
Kristi
Carol and Bob
Galatians 6:9-10

Arches National Park

Canyonlands NP

Natural Bridges and Capital Reef National Parks

Bryce National Park

Zion National Park

HOPE YOU ENJOYED OUR TOUR 

OF THE NATIONAL PARKS