Red Rock Canyon

My sister and her son came to Las Vegas to visit for a few days and see Matthew. It was so nice having some help with the feedings and changings . . . and it was so nice to have an excuse to leave Matty with his Daddy and go out and explore Nevada! With temperatures hovering around 110 and Matty needing to eat every 3 hours, it's impossible to get out and do too much. And anyone who knows me knows I can only stand sitting around the house for so long before I go stir crazy. In addition, I'm getting pretty antsy knowing that I'm not pregnant anymore but I STILL can't go work out. The only exercise I'm cleared to do is walk and, although I walk Oskar twice a day, it's pretty boring walking around our sub-division over and over. ("Look, Oskar! It's a house! Look, Oskar. . . it's ANOTHER house!") So when my sister said that she really wanted to get out of the city and see some of the Nevada desert, I jumped at the chance. Since I'd already been up to Mt. Charleston, I suggested we head out to Red Rock Canyon, which is only a short 20 minute drive away. So after giving Jonathan 4 pages of instructions (okay, so I didn't actually write everything down. . . but there was at least a 20 minute lecture), I left Baby Matthew for the first time and headed out into the desert with my sister and Gabe.

Red Rock Canyon. . .

It was killing me not to just go off hiking through this scenery. But I followed the doctor's orders and took it easy by just stopping to pose for pictures.

I will always be a Midwestern girl at heart, but the desert landscape is growing on me. It is pretty breath-taking in its own way. . .

Okay, so we did do a LITTLE bit of hiking up into the mountains, but we didn't get far. We hoped to get far enough up the mountain to see some of the rock etchings left by ancient Native Americans, but Gabe swore he was going to pass out from the heat. So we turned back.

It was a beautiful afternoon expedition and a welcome break from the demands of mommyhood, but I was relieved to get back and hold Matthew again. (Jonathan did just fine, as I knew he would. . . but HE needed a break by the time I got back.) I'm excited to go back when the weather's cooler, Matthew's a little older, and I have the doctor's permission to hike until my heart's content. :)