Hiking the Grand Canyon has been something cherished (and repeated many times) in my family. I think it began when my parents first embarked on the big hike to the bottom and back up with my Aunt Terri when they were young newlyweds. Now, over 30 years later, I think its been at least 11 times that at least one member of my family has hiked to the bottom and up of this vast canyon.

Michigan holds so many memories for me. My mom grew up there and both my grandparents still live there, so we’ve made countless trips up there over the years; and I’ve loved every single one of them.

Growing up with moms who loved gardening, my friend Carrie and I were destined to become plant ladies; and plant ladies we’ve become! I mean, we fangirl over plants. So we certainly saw taking a trip out to Florida Cactus as a worthy cause to brave the heat and (worse yet) humidity of summer.

One of the reasons I started this blog was so I could share what costs are actually involved with travel. Over the years I’ve followed many blogs, some being travel blogs. I have always loved reading their amazing posts about adventurous and breathtaking trips. However, its kind of rare to find a post that actually outlines how much the trip cost, which usually lead me to believe I would never be able to afford it.

Hiking the Grand Canyon from rim to rim has been a dream of Lori’s and mine for a while now. Trips like that take a lot of planning and preparing, but you just have to go for them. It was such an incredible hike; filled with memories I won’t soon forget.