Alamogordo, New Mexico

Pool. Pool. The hotel's got a pool. Life is good again. But we decide not to get in it right away. Dad has been talking about the White Sands National Monument saying that it's this giant park with miles of nothing but white sand. No plants. Giant dunes. OOOOooooo! A giant sand box! Perfect!

So we go out there and instead a giant sand box, it's a SUPER GIANT SAND BOX, with dunes fifty feet high that go on forever. I walked, ran, jumped, fell, rolled, slid down on my stomach, dug, threw sand, threw these weird hard chunks of sand that blew up when they hit Dad (until he got mad)...got lost...it was a BLAST!

As the sun was setting, we went back to the car and there were these kids and their parents playing on the top of the gigantic hill next to where we parked. The kids were sliding down the dunes in plastic saucers and on this really cool thing like a snow board.

At first Dad and I would run as fast as we could down the hill until we couldn't go any faster, then fall and flop and flip until we rolled to the bottom. I had no idea Dad could fall like that and still get up. The other kids thought it was cool and starting doing it too. They tried to talk their parents into trying it but they wouldn't.

Then Dad and I got invited to try the snow board. Very Cool!! We did it until it was too dark to see and the park was closing. Then Dad and I went back to the hotel and, yep, you guessed it, we swam.

Good day.

Tombstone, Arizona

Next morning, Dad and I walked back to the beach to throw the tumbleweed we caught into the ocean. Dad said we'd be bringing desert to the sea. I said I'd get another chance to stick my feet in the waves, which I did.

Then, after breakfast we started driving to Tombstone. The traffic was so stupid again that Dad decided to get off the Interstate and drive down the coast highway. Great idea! Not only was it faster, it was cool scenery. I like the beach. I want to spend my whole next vacation there.

Since we got a late start, we didn't get to our hotel in Tombstone until after 11 at night. It was not like the other hotels we stayed at. Instead it was kinda small and creepy and I felt kinda creeped out. But Dad felt good about it and when I woke up the next morning after sleeping like a log, I felt okay about it too.

Tombstone is booooorrrring! Nothing opened until afternoon -- gunfighter shows, OK Corral, that stuff -- and Dad said we didn't have time to stick around. So we walked through the Boot Hill cemetery (cause it was free and on the way out of town). Lame. Won't go back. Dad said he won't either.

Oceanside, California

After Dad finally dragged me away from Universal, we drove towards Oceanside...slowly. The traffic on the highway barely moved all the way from LA to Oceanside. Fortunately I had plenty of Gameboy games to play. And even Dad didn't get upset (much). He just got bored waiting for the traffic to move faster.

When we got to the hotel at Oceanside, that's what we did...ocean side! Dad and I ran right to the beach and body surfed for what seemed like hours. It was great except for some strange thing that happened to our nipples. Yes, I said nipples. Something about the water or the new shirts we were wearing made our nipples sting so bad that had to laugh. So...we did. A lot! Hard!

At sunset, after Dad ordered me out of the water (see the picture of me pouting...NOT), we walked along the pier and I saw a really weird shark this guy caught. It was flat and looked like a sting ray, but had fins like a regular shark. I talked Dad into turning it over so I could see the bottom but he wouldn't open it's mouth so I could see the teeth. What a wuss.

Universal Hollywood Theme Park

This is the coolest place!! Rides and shows! Getting soaked! Spongebob! Shrek! Dinosaurs! MUMMIES!!

We rode every ride and saw every show except WaterWorld which we skipped only 'cause we ran out of time. Ran out of Time!? We went two days in a row!!! We were supposed to go the the San Diego Zoo Wild Animal Park the second day, but I said I'd rather come back here and we did! So we rode everything, yeah, more than twice, yeah, more than three times, YEAH!!

Here's what we did...The Mummy (my favorite!!), Jurassic Park (my second favorite), Back to the Future, Shrek 4D, Terminator 3D, Special Effects show (which I was in), Backdraft, Nickelodeon Blast Zone (water, water, water!!), The Studio Backlot Tour (Dad's favorite...lame), and then everything again!

I had my face painted like Darth Maul. You'll have to beg Dad before I show that picture (but it's great!). I don't want to leave!!!

Los Angeles, California - Getting There

Dad said that getting to Los Angeles was just going to be a long drive with nothing to do. NOT! Instead, he decided to go off the highway and down Route 66 for a while. I thought of the movie "Cars". But it wasn't like this. After a few miles we were in the middle of the desert on snakey, cracking roads that almost fell off the edges of the rocks they were carved out of. It was 113 degrees here!

We stopped in the only town for 75 miles -- Oatman, Arizona. When the miners quit working there years ago, they left behind their burrows which are still there. They wander in the street begging for food. I think I fed them three bags of carrots. The signs said that they might bite or kick. But all they did was eat and get petted a lot. Especially by me.

After we left Oatman, I played my Gameboy while Dad drove and drove. When we got to Los Angeles at dark, Dad started freakin' again saying that the traffic was crazy. I didn't notice. Just a bunch of cars like any other city.

When we got to the hotel, the pool was still open. Yay!! There was a couple of other boys swimming, too -- Parker and Ryan. We had fun 'til they had to close the pool.

Tomorrow we go to Universal. I have no idea what that's all about.

The Grand Canyon

WOAH! This is a really, really big hole! Dad said it is 8000 feet to the bottom. He said that a lot. Especially when I got near the edge. Which I did a lot. It was so cool to throw rocks over the sides. I never heard them land.

We rode buses all afternoon and saw the canyon from many different places. But it was all kinda the same for me. Yep. It's still a hole. Yep. It's still big. I mean...I liked it okay, but going around looking at it just wasn't the same as doing something like going down in it or maybe something like that. But Dad said we just didn't have time and that we could go in it next time we came. Okay.

That night, Dad came running in from a short walk freakin' and telling me to come on. He drove us to one of the lookout places...in the DARK! When he told me to look up...I freaked!! There were more stars that I had ever seen! Some places the stars were so crowded that it looked like clouds! Being at the lookout at night was kinda cold and creeped me out a little, but it was worth it. We even saw hikers miles down in the canyon.

Here's a picture of a squirrel that kept coming up to me right at the edge of the canyon. Dad said he was old. But he sure was friendly.

This is a cool place and I'll definitely be coming back. But not to just look. Next time...I'm going in!

Flagstaff, Arizona

On our way to the Grand Canyon, we had to stay in Flagstaff. But on the way to that, me and Dad stopped at Arches National Monument. Lots and lots of cool rocks and trails.

Here I am at Delicate Arch. I'm the dot in the left corner. This rock was really huge and had a sheer cliff on the other side (which drove Dad insane). It was over a 3 mile hike in the desert heat, up rock and next to drop-offs to get there and I nearly passed out on the way back. (Of course, I was just being dramatic to keep Dad on his toes.)

And...that's all we did that day. Since we stayed at the Arches so long, we didn't even get into Flagstaff until after 10 that night and the pool was already closed. SNAP!!