Day 5. We all woke up early before our alarms and made it out to see a clear morning and beautiful sunrise at Monument Valley. We were so thankful that the skies cleared up and we didn’t drive out in the middle of Nowhere, Arizona/Utah to see nothing! 🙂 We bundled the kids up and let them run around again while Jordan was getting sunrise shots. Then it was back to the hotel restaurant for a great breakfast and an actual view at the window seat. And bonus! Since it wasn’t as crowded at breakfast (and possibly because they remembered the struggle from the night before!) they let us use a high chair at the window seat!
We loaded up and hit the road just in time for a mid day nap for the kids. The biggest struggle we have had with car naps is one waking the other up. They usually wake up crying which then wakes the other one up. We have hung black out curtains in the car but I haven’t decided if that has helped yet or not. It definitely helps keep the sun out of their windows, so that’s something! Here are two ways we have attached the curtains-
We also have this black out curtain for travel that is from Amazon. It has suction cups on the back side and works great in so many situations!
We made it to the Grand Canyon a little after lunch and the kids had lunchables in the car while Jordan scouted out some photo stops for sunset and sunrise. The kids also got to see and play in some icy snow which they thought was awesome! Once again, our easily accessible outerwear tub came in handy. I love how it keeps things tidy in the car and that all the gloves and hats stay together. Everything has a place!
We got checked into our hotel at the Grand Canyon and then walked along the Rim Trail. The name makes it sound a little dangerous but it is not at all. We grabbed the double umbrella stroller off the top of the car and strapped the kids in. We did not have a double umbrella stroller but thought we might want one for this trip. We got a used one on Facebook Marketplace for $28! It works great and is lightweight and small enough for easy travel, but sturdy enough to push through the light snow.
Jordan found a spot on the Rim Trail for sunset and the kids and I went back inside to look through shops, see the animals on the wall, and wait in the warm indoors as the sun set. They would get restless and loud if we stopped moving so we literally walked around, in and out of the hotel and gift shop for over an hour. We would make our way back outside for a few minutes at a time and thankfully got to snatch some views of the gorgeous sunset.
Once Jordan was finished with sunset, we hit up the food court (much faster and less expensive than a sit down restaurant, and it was good!), ran into the market for more milk, and back to the room for bedtime!
If y’all know our kids, you know we need milk ALL THE TIME. They love milk. We got a half gallon Yeti bottle for Christmas. This is the best for keeping milk cold and easily accessible! We had used the regular sized Yeti bottles in the past, but it is awesome having a whole half gallon! We stick the bottle in the fridge at night (all of our rooms have had a mini fridge in them) and the milk stays perfectly cold all day long.
Live Moore Fully 