where in the world; the finale.

once again, despite our thorough forage, this famous Jessica person had somehow managed to elude us.  this left us scratching our heads, wondering how someone could be so cagey.  although with all the racket her kids must make, she's probably a master at "hiding out" in order to grab a little peace and quiet.

clearly we were dealing with an expert here.  

to prevent being foiled again, we decided to give our next plan of attack a little more thought.  and so, a meeting was called to order.  after a brief brainstorming session, we concluded that following a long hike and refreshing swim, certainly a person would need to stop and refuel.  no doubt her energy level must be dwindling by now.  to us it seemed, the most likely place to eat would be at the campground.  so, off we scrambled to scope it out.

on the left: the twin tents.

on the right: cooking up dinner.  we froze chili beforehand and put it in a small, soft-sided cooler for the trek down.  by dinnertime, it was thawed and ready to heat up.  it sure beat those dehydrated meals we had the last time.  we also packed a few eggs in one of those egg container thing-a-ma-jigs and enjoyed REAL scrambled eggs for breakfast. (apparently, raw eggs don't need to be refrigerated?) see, we're getting smarter.

we camped along the creek.  the campground was in pretty rough shape due to the flooding last fall.

a meticulous search around the campsite revealed nothing but a pair of wet, dirty socks hanging on a nearby tree branch, as well as a couple pairs of hiking shoes strewn haphazardly on the ground.  the socks were light green, which meant only one thing: they HAD to be hers. (the handsome gent in the light green button-up shirt, remember? yeah, how could you forget.) but alas, there was no one in sight.      

hmmm.  so where would a person dare venture around these parts without hiking shoes?  that's when it dawned on us: Mooney Falls.  of course they'd want to check out the largest waterfall here at Havasupai!  interesting fact: this waterfall in the Grand Canyon towers over Niagara Falls.  wow.

in order to view Mooney Falls at ground level, we had to first clamor down a 200 foot sheer rock wall.  this involved grasping onto ancient, rusty chains, climbing down precarious ladders, and using metal spikes for footholds to prevent tumbling down head over tea kettles.  definitely not for the faint of heart.  I may or may not have peed my pants, it was THAT scary.

              

moms: just when you think you don't have to worry about your kids attempting crazy stunts anymore, think again.

only after we had reached stable ground, and all persons were accounted for, were we finally able to gaze at our gorgeous surroundings.

it was like we had stepped straight into a postcard.  the vegetation was lush, green, and dense; the water crystal clear and aquamarine.  we spent a good hour or more wading through the creek, and soaking in the scenery.  earth is awesome!

oh my goodness!  we were having so much fun that we totally forgot to look for Jessica!

hiking back out in the early morning.

top right photo taken by 2 Remember Studio.

a quick stop at Navajo Falls to snap a few pictures.

almost to the top... this is looking back at the canyon we had hiked through.  all.ten.miles.

two days and several attempts later, Jessica has finally been found!  and look, it's those same strange people!  imagine that!

(and that was possibly the dorkiest story I've ever written, complete with abrupt ending. if nothing else, I hope you enjoyed the pictures :-)

and lastly, a group shot, taken by 2 Remember Studio.

we had such a great time that we made plans to do it again next year!  possibly with a few of the older kids-- they'd have an absolute blast!

happy Monday.

-jessica