Hoover Dam, Quick

The drive home from San Diego was epic, compounded by the fact that I had to uphold the family tradition of pictures at the Hoover Dam.  It really is not on the way home.

We pulled into the parking garage. Rinar waited while I ran the kids down to the sign. I really did not want to pay $10 for parking, for a 15 minute visit. We were there for just about 5 minutes total.  But I got the pictures I wanted.

And wow, my kids have grown.

I wonder if the next time we make it down there, Raef and Zach will be at the top of the circle. It would not surprise me at all.

Hoover Dam Tradition

On our return trip to Reno, we drove through Las Vegas. I just had to get a picture at the Hoover Dam.  What can I say? It is a tradition.  I can't believe how much my kids have grown.

The next time I get back for a picture, Raef and Zach are probably going to be at the top of the seal. And this time, instead of being intolerably hot, it was quite chilly. I think it was in the 30's.

We then headed up to St. George to stay the night. St. George is not really on the way home, but I had a little chore to do.  I met with Lyf to get the elk meat that was processed from Rinar's successful elk hunt in November. We stayed at my Grandmother's house. It was probably like a whirlwind for her, but she was incredibly kind to put up with the chaos.  We even ate black-eyed peas and rice for the New Year. I was surprised to see that the kids actually really liked it. Harry especially liked the black-eyed peas.

Nordel met us at the park before we left and the kids were able to play for a little while. Nordel is holding his son Boston, in this picture. What a little cutie.

The drive home was very long, but uneventful.  Thank goodness for that.  I was elated to be back on home turf, sleeping in my own bed. Hallelujah!

Hoover Dam

Once again, we made our yearly trek to Hoover Dam. Why, oh why do I always do this in July? It is beyond flippin' hot and there is no shade and the solar rays bounce off of the lava rock. It is brutal. But you know, a tradition is a tradition.

It only took about 45 minutes to drive 3 miles to get there. Then we paid $7 to park, almost evaporated in the sun, spent 10 minutes getting pictures and got the heck out of that dam place. Ha ha...you knew I would have to put a stupid dam joke in there somewhere.

I mean, look at this dam traffic.

I could have jogged there faster.



If you notice to the right of the picture is an empty road. That is the soon-to-be-opened highway and bridge over the dam, so that it doesn't take 2 hours to get through like it does now.

It looks like the bridge is done. Isn't that a sweet shot. I just started taking pictures...aiming my camera in the general direction as I drove by. My eyes were on the road the whole time. I just snapped, snapped, snapped and luckily got one. I love digital cameras.

Ta da! You can make a comparison with my post from last year.



Raef and Zach are really into the cartoon "Avatar" right now. I think they are trying to bend something in this shot. Raef was director and director of photography.


Isn't that an amazing shot of the bridge. I am so excited for it to finally open. Arizona will actually be accessible now. I won't have to grace Laughlin with my presence anymore.

Hoover Dam 2009

A tradition I started when we moved here...take the kids pictures once a year at the Hoover Dam seal in July. Take a look at how they have grown. The first picture is from 2006, when they were 4 years old.

20072009



In the background is the huge overpass freeway they are building from Arizona to Nevada. Right now, it is painful to have to drive over the dam, the only way to get to Arizona. The overpass opens in June 2010. It will make the drive sooooo much faster.