2018 Winter Holiday

So this year we initiated a new plan for our family gatherings over the Christmas holiday.  Ideally, we  would like to rent a cabin every year somewhere near a ski resort and have everyone come.  However, we were having limited success because Christmas holiday is the hardest time to find a cabin.  So we decided to book a cabin a year in advance each year and let the kids take turns choosing the location.  

This first year it was our turn to choose the location so last January we booked a beautiful cabin in Sundance, UT.  The dates for our winter holiday were Dec 27 - 30th.  We started our trip from Sacramento, CA where we spent Christmas with d and Zhouyi.  We left d's house on Dec 26 headed to Elko, NV each in our own cars.   Near Winnemucca, NV we ran into a big snow storm that significantly slowed our travel.  We were in our 4Runner which did fine in the snow but d's new hybrid Hyundi was a little dicey so we dragged into the hotel at Elko late that night.  The next day the storm had moved further east and we were worried about hitting it again when we got to Utah but we had no further trouble.  When we got to Provo we stopped to rent skis in order to avoid the lines at the resort.  Then we headed up to the cabin.

The cabin is very near the Sundance resort (within walking distance) and we had a view of the ski slopes from the cabin deck.  The cabin was amazing with lots of room for everyone including a loft with beds for all the grandkids (Akston, Reayen, Elynn, Denae, Beau, and Meila....Euan slept with his parents).  The Keeton's were first to arrive so they were already there when we came along with d and Zhouyi.  Topher and My didn't arrive until after midnight that night.  Rachael and Kevin missed out this year because they spent their Christmas holiday in Scotland, England and Ireland (pretty nice alternative). 

Great Room in the cabin

They even provided a Christmas tree

Talking around the kitchen table

Great views everywhere!

Grandma & grandkids

The fireplace insert helped keep us warm

View of the ski slopes from the cabin balcony

d immediately began setting up a gaming center on the bottom floor using the big screen TV.  That, along with the pingpong table, foosball table, and indoor spa provided all the indoor entertainment we needed.

Rec Room with d's video game set-up

Enjoying some down time

Relaxing in the spa

Unlike last year, this year there was plenty of snow for all outdoor activities.  The first morning in the cabin we started with sliding down the hills on the sleds and discs we found in the garage of the cabin.

Elynn - so cold!

Sliding down the hill by the cabin

Snowman built by the kids
(the snow was too powdery to make snow balls)

Then Liz began a shuttle service in the car to the Sundance ski resort for the skiers (even though the cabin was within walking distance of the resort it couldn't be walked with ski boots and equipment).  Everyone skied except Liz, Zhouyi and Euan, so the shuttle service was kept pretty busy.  Kathryn had arranged ski lessons for all the grandkids on the first afternoon and they all practiced on the bunny slope with their teachers (the ski lessons were definitely a good investment).

Skiers heading for the slopes

Reayen with her unicorn helmet

Meila with her ski instructor

Elynn with her ski instructor

Akston & Reayen skiing down

John, Akston, Reayen, & Kathryn on the slopes

Akston coming through the gate

On the second day we all went skiing again.  I was having a great time on the slopes but was pushing my luck with my knee.  However, I had promised Akston I would ski a run with him before I was through so around noon we hooked up and skied a couple of runs together.  We had a great time!  After that I could tell I was done and it was time to go the cabin and hit the hot tub.  That evening, Kathryn, John, Akston and d went night skiing to finish off their ski adventure.  The rest of us stayed in the warm cabin and watched movies and fell asleep.....it had been an exciting day.

Grandpa watching movies with the girls

My & Beau after a long day

Zhouyi & Euan

Next morning we reluctantly checked out of the cabin but took some group photos before our exit.  We had to balance the iPhone on a chair and try to get everyone to smile at the same time for the picture...quite a feat with this group!

Reayen, Denae, Euan, Liz, Beau, Meila, Lee, Elynn, Akston

Back Row - d, Zhouyi, My, Topher, Kathryn, John

We left the cabin and went down to Provo to see a movie at the theater.  d and Zhouyi headed home with their kids and the Keetons went to the airport to catch their flight.  After the movie Liz and I went to visit Grandma Dayton along with Topher, My and their kids.  We met Johathan Dayton (my nephew) who was also visiting Grandma so it was good to see his family as well.

Grandma Dayton with the Topher Daytons
and the Johathan Daytons

We stayed a couple of nights with Grandma because Liz had an LLC meeting with her family in Salt Lake on Dec 31.  We had dinner with Liz's siblings and had a chance to catch up with her brother Alan and her sister Kathryn who didn't make it out to the reunion at our place in December.  We also drove by the old house in Oak Hills in Provo where I grew up....a little nostalgia.  It was really cold...single digits during the day.

My boyhood home in Provo

On January 1 we headed for home, staying overnight in Pueblo, CO and arriving home the evening of Jan 2.  We arrived with a warm feeling in our hearts for family and for the occasions that bring us together.  Every once in a while those occasions are truly magical and exceed our expectations.....this trip was one of those occasions....we will never forget it.

Christmas in Sacramento

This year we decided to spend Christmas in Sacramento with d and Zhouyi.  They have 3 year-old Meila and 6 month-old Euan and we thought it would be a great year to do Christmas with them.  We also decided to drive the 4Runner instead of the RV because we would need it for the Winter Holiday in Sundance that we had planned after Christmas.

We departed on December 19 and spent three long days driving to Sacramento making overnight stops in El Paso, TX, and Kingman, AZ. We arrived a d's house the evening of Dec 21.  It was great being there before Christmas because it gave us a chance to participate with the kids in preparations such and cooking and doing puzzles.  We also visited Fairytale Town (near Sacramento Zoo), Apple Hill in the Sierra foothills (kind of like Delicious Orchards with pies, doughnuts and cider) and the California State Railroad Museum (a fascinating look at into the past of railroads in California complete with restored steam engines and passenger cars).  Grandma also got some real quality time with Meila teaching her about Christmas baking.

Fairytale Town

Liz & Meila making cookies

d and Euan looking on

Chocolate covered pretzels 

Christmas day was magical with Meila and Euan (Melia now "gets" the Santa Clause thing and Euan likes wrapping paper).  We had a wonderful time watching the grandkids opening presents.  We also did a marathon shift working on a 1000 piece puzzle (d and Liz completed it with a late night effort).

Christmas morning

The finished puzzle (1000 pieces!)

On the day after Christmas we began our trek to Sundance, UT for the Winter Holiday (we'll pick up that story in the next blog post).  This was our first Christmas with d and Zhouyi and we had a marvelous time!! 

2018 Zollinger Sibling Reunion

This year Liz decided to host of reunion for her siblings at our house in early December.  Four of her siblings along with their spouses came.  Anna Maria & Jim and Jacob & Kimberly arrived on Wednesday night, Nov 28.  Paul & Vicki and Barbara & Frank arrived on Thursday.  On Thursday we explored some local sites near us including South Fork Ranch, home of the 1980s TV show Dallas.  That night we had dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Abuelos.

Visit to South Fork Ranch

Jacob & Kimberly, Jim & Anna Maria, Lee & Elizabeth

Dinner at Abuelos Mexican Restaurant

On Friday we went to see sites in downtown Dallas including AT&T Stadium (Dallas Cowboys stadium), the Grassy Knoll (where JFK was shot), and the George Bush Presidential Library on the SMU campus (our tour of the library was cut short by a power outage). 

Outside AT&T Football Stadium

Saturday we went to a home show in McKinney and shopping at Nebraska Furniture Mart.  We had dinner at Maggiano's, a great Italian restaurant.

Dinner at Maggiano's Little Italy

On Sunday everyone departed for home except Barbara and Frank.  They joined us on a trip to San Antonio to see the sites there and visit our kids. We visited the Alamo and the River Walk.  We met the Keetons and Topher Daytons for dinner at the Rain Forest Cafe.  We spent the night with Topher and My at their house in Helotes.

The Alamo in San Antonio

Barbara with Elynn at Rain Forest Cafe

Elizabeth with Beau at Rain Forest Cafe

On Dec 3 we drove to three more missions just south of San Antonio along the San Antonio River.  Like the Alamo, these missions have been partially restored and there is a nice bike path that connects them.  We then headed back to Dallas and dropped Barbara and Frank off at the airport for their flight home.  It was great to spend time with Liz's siblings and give them a chance to see the area where we live (they all live in Utah and Idaho).  We look forward to getting together again.

2018 Dayton Sibling Reunion

In the fall of 2018 my mother and siblings set up a reunion in St George, UT.  Liz and I decided to drive the motorhome out to the reunion and make a trip of it.  We left on October 3rd and headed for Caprock Canyons State Park, a place in west Texas that we hadn't been before.  This is one of the few real canyons in Texas and it has it's own buffalo herd.  The scenery is impressive and there are plenty of hiking trails and some biking trails...we did both.

Caprock Canyons State Park, TX

Tunnel on the trail

We camped in Caprock for 1 night and then moved on to Amarillo.  On Oct 6 we headed to the Great Sand D Dunes NP in Colorado expecting to spend the night but discovered that the campground was completely full so we pushed on to Alamosa, CO, where we stayed for the night.  In its day, Alamosa was a major train hub for the Denver and Rio Grande railroad which still has a strong presence in the town.  This town has some real "old west" personality and we enjoyed walking the downtown area and down to the train station.

The next day we drove to Mesa Verde NP which is on the west side of Colorado.  Here we stayed in the campground for 2 nights.  We spent the day of Oct 8th touring the park.  It was the end of the season so access was closed to some of the ruins and we had to make do with seeing them from viewing areas instead of walking through them.

Ruins viewpoint at Mesa Verde

Leaving Mesa Verde we took a drive up the canyon toward Telluride to see the fall colors.  We were rewarded with some beautiful color displays as well as some snow.

Fall colors in Colorado
 on the road from Cortez to Telluride

We hit snow approaching  Telluride

That day we continued on to Cortez, CO where we planned to spend the night at the Ute Mountain Casino (we have stayed there before).  However, they changed their policy and no longer allow RVs to spend the night so we pushed on to Kayenta, AZ where we arrived late and spent the night.  Next morning we drove to Page AZ and stayed at Wahweap campground for the night.  It was great to be back at Lake Powell and nice to be at the dam end of the lake for a change instead of Bullfrog.  We got out the bikes and rode all over the campground area.  The next day on our way out we decided to take a tour of Glen Canyon Dam, something we've never done before.  We're so glad we did....the tour was well worth it!

Our campsite at Wahweap on Lake Powell

Lake Powell from the Dam

Glen Canyon Dam

Power generators inside the dam

Looking down river from the dam

We took Hwy 89 into Utah and followed it through Orderville to the junction with Hwy 14 which goes to Duck Creek Campground where we stayed the night.  On Oct 12 we drove over to Cedar Breaks NM, sort of a smaller version of Bryce Canyon NP.  This is also a place we've never been so we were very impressed with it's breathtaking beauty, especially covered with winter snow.

Cedar Breaks National Monument

Even more amazing with the snow

 Our next stop was Zion National Park where we had reservations at Watchman campground for 3 nights.  This was the perfect way for us to see Zion.  We left the RV in the campground and walked, rode our bikes, or took the shuttle to everything we wanted to see.  We found that the shuttle could load up our bikes and take us to the top of the canyon after which we could ride all the way down, stopping at scenic views and trails when we wanted.  We had a blast! and would love to do it again.  We also took the shuttle into Springdale one day for dinner at a restaurant in town.  Zion is amazing and we thoroughly enjoyed out time there.

Zion Canyon - View from the Lodge

Great White Throne

Entrance to the Narrows

Ready to ride our bikes down the canyon

Shuttle bus that provides transportation up the canyon

Sunrise from our campsite in Zion NP

Walk from campground to visitors center

On Oct 16 we left Zion for St. George where we camped down by the Virgin River.  St. George has some very good biking trails that follow the river so we spent the afternoon trying them out.  Next day we drove up to the venue in St. George that had been reserved for the reunion.  It was a restored historic home called the Whitehead home, near downtown.  That afternoon my mom and siblings gathered at the venue where we stayed for 3 nights.  We had a very enjoyable 3 days catching up and visiting sites in St. George.  We particularly enjoyed the Red Hills Desert Garden, a sort of arboretum with plants and flowers from the local area.

Red Hills Desert Garden at St. George, UT

On our way home we made overnight stops in Flagstaff, AZ, Santa Rosa, NM, and Childress. TX, arriving home on Oct 23rd.  Trip highlights must include Cedar Breaks NM, Zion NP, and touring Glen Canyon Dam along with seeing Mom and the sibs.  Now we have some new places to go back to.!!