Adam, Sophie and Eric's pants were soaked through after multiple runs down the snowy hill.  Yup, we're definitely from the desert.
We spent a lot less time our way south than we did going north.  This meant a lot of time crammed in the car, and I found that I actually like sitting in the back corner seat, where I can cuddle up in a blanket either writing on my computer, drawing, or watching Mean Girls with Olivia on the iPad.
You can't be a true American without having Yellowstone on your bucket list.  I had no idea how incredible the colors of geysers could be!  Years and years of heat melded the minerals into bright oranges and tainted the water with turquoise.  We even saved ourselves front row seats for over an hour so we could watch Old Faithful explode, her steam shooting magnificently into the sky.
The next morning, we were so very grateful to reunite for the first time in years with our Boston friends Sunni and Jason and their family.  Then we headed on out with the plan to make it home by evening.  It had been a wonderful trip, but once we were in the car I was anxious to return to Arizona because I really wanted to surprise Dallin {whom I'd previously told I wouldn't see until after his Lake Powell trip, which I'd thought at the time I told him was overlapping}.  Unfortunately, the car disagreed.  In Beaver, Utah our fuel line shattered and, to make matters worse, the piece is only sold at certain locations AND since it was July 3rd, all the auto shops would be closed till the following Monday {which would in fact cause our trips to overlap}. Although once again thankful that we hadn't been killed by some car mishap, we were still bummed out because now we'd be spending fourth of July in a small town with no possible way to get around.
  It ended up being alright, though.  A mile away was a KOA campsight with a pool and some very kind people.  After three weeks being constantly on the go, we were able to wind down, and I spent hours simply sketching.  For Independence Day, we were startled by the apparent UT tradition which involves cannons shooting off at 6 AM for fifteen minutes straight.  That night, we walked to the Family Dollar for ice cream while singing Bonnie and Clyde songs and watching fireworks in the distance.  God Bless America!

 Alberta is like that fairytale land you'd think was too enchanting to actually exist.  From the mist-blanketed mountains to the virgin forests so pure that one breath can cleanse your mind of the tumbling vanities of our modern world, this part of Canada reminded me just how beautiful our mother earth is.  
 Last year when we helped move our grandparents down from Salt Lake, we discovered a projector and dozens of picture slides dating back to the fifties.  One of the sets showed my grandma young and smiling with her cute vintage fashion-- and a stunning emerald lake behind her.  Turns out this was Lake Louise, and my jaw dropped the very second I set my eyes on it.
 In Banff we walked through a highly sulfur-scented tunnel and saw an sacred Native American hot spring shimmering below the cavern's stalactite.  
Some of the small Canadian towns reminded us a lot of the ski towns in Utah and Colorado.  Mom was super excited because, as it turns out, the candies we discovered in Spain are actually called livewires and are popular in Canada. 
We also stayed in a hotel next to the Olympic stadium, complete with a fabulous water
slide that we couldn't help but go down over and over again in the ten minutes before the pool/hot tub closed.  The three younger kids were so ecstatic to relax in the room that they offered to stay back with a cheap Wendy's meal while us older people ate at a fancier restaurant.
 I told them they shouldn't feed the wild animals knock-off Cheeto puffs, but they couldn't resist the urge to bribe furry critters into their laps.  We saw lots of animals including moose, bison, bighorn sheep, and antelopes, but no bears-- to my strange family's disappointment {not mine}.  One night while camping Adam YouTubed a video of a bear growl, played it right outside the window and made Sophie cry.

 The only time I had ever been to Canada was as a toddler visiting Niagara Falls. This time we started off by climbing two suspension bridges-- one over a botanical garden and another over a river with a waterfall.  My siblings thought it was hilarious to run over them as fast as possible.  My mom, on the other hand?  She rubbed her hands raw by clinging for her life to the rails.
I absolutely love Vancouver with its gleaming skyscrapers and boats and maple leaves and random steam-spewing grandfather clocks.  Rachel is obsessed with sushi, so this heavily-Asian community was basically heaven for her.

Sunday morning when we were driving to church, Dad blew through a red light.  I chastised him, but a few minutes later as he slowed while turning left into the parking lot, suddenly the car wouldn't stop.  It took a moment and he was forced to reverse in the turning lane in order to make it.  As it turned out, brake fluid was gushing from the vehicle, and had he not run the light, he would've rolled into the intersection! To make matters worse, the church was locked and completely empty.  Apparently today was stake conference. Luckily a member of the bishopric happened to stop by and, after taking us to conference, rounded up a bunch of people to chauffeur us, feed us lunch, and fix our car. Basically if you combine Mormonism with Canadianism you get the kindest people in the world.  Although it was Sunday, these mechanics were clambering over each other to make repairs {our caliper had shattered!} and refused to take payment for the labor.  They also couldn't believe how the Lord had protected us-- the days before we had been driving on thin, windy, cliff-drop roads and we'd be doing the same tomorrow.  If the brakes had gone out any of those times....  I'll just leave the rest of that sentence to your imagination.
 Heading east we fell head-over-heels in love with the Kangaroo Creek Farm.  Established in the 80's as a sanctuary for the sweet marsupials about to be killed in New Zealand, the farm now thrives with kangaroos, capybaras, emus, goats, tail-wagging pigs, booty-shaking ducks, peacocks, sugar-gliders, etc.
Baby MaiMai is a baby albino.  One of the other I held had only been out of his mommy's pouch for 5 days!
{capybara}

{baby emus}

Soon after this pic, the bird pooped in Sophie's hair.
Soon after this pic, a clump of Liv's hair fell out.
 Soon after this pic, the emu bit my mom's ear.