What's up, wonderful, amazing, sweet, and lovely people! 💕 How are you all doing today?
I am so happy to be back with another exciting blog post on Maryamsjoyfullife Blog! Today, I want to share with you guys what we did this past weekend because, whew… we had an ADVENTURE!
So, we—meaning me and my family—decided to take a little road trip adventure to Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico, and you guys, it was AMAZING!
🦇 Exploring Carlsbad Caverns
You guys… THE CAVES!
When I tell you that Carlsbad Caverns was an experience, I mean it. The caves were absolutely incredible.
There are two ways you can really experience the caves. You can take the elevator down and go to what they call the Big Room, where you get to see all these incredible formations and crystal-like sculptures that nature created over millions and millions of years.
Or, you can do the full experience and hike down into the cave from the top. And guess which one we chose? Yep… we chose the full experience! 😂
Of course, we chose the adventure!
The hike was about 2.5 miles down, going roughly 750 feet underground, and let me tell you—it was WORK!
I was carrying the baby, the big kids were walking on their own, and my sweet man was right there with us. And you guys… there were some moments where I was like, Lord, what did I get myself into? 😂
There were some sections where I was like…
"Lord, please just get me through this!" 😂
There were steep areas, dips, and places where there was literally a valley or a cliff right beside me. Now, it was pretty safe because there were railings all around, but that didn't stop me from being scared. 😂 There were times when I just did NOT want to look down.
And guess what? I didn't look down! 😂
There were moments when I was literally looking at one foot in front of me and one step in front of me because I did not want to see those dips and holes on either side of me. I was just thinking, "Let me keep moving and get to the bottom!"
Meanwhile, my sweet man was over there looking around like:
"Whoa! Whoa!"
And I'm thinking:
"Sir, please stop looking! I am trying to make it out of here!" 😂
But honestly, even though parts of it scared me, I kept going.
🌑 Deep Into the Darkness
One of the coolest things about the caverns was how DARK it could get.
There are lights, bulbs, and panels along the way, but there are also certain areas intentionally left dark because the caves are home to nocturnal animals that like their peace and darkness.
So there were spots where we actually had to use our cell phone lights to explore.
You guys…
It was REALLY DARK! 😂
Being underground, surrounded by these massive formations and trying to see what was around us with our phone lights was just CRAZY.
And the formations themselves? WOW!
They were absolutely amazing. Some of them were even named after famous characters and objects, and you could almost see the characters in the sculptures. Nature really did its thing!
Nature created these incredible sculptures over millions of years, and some of them have names inspired by recognizable characters and objects because, when you look closely, you can almost see the shapes.
It really makes you stop and appreciate just how incredible our world is.
🥵 My Legs Got A WORKOUT!
Let me tell you something else. Those steep parts of the hike were NO JOKE!
My calves? WORKED! 😂
I already work out regularly, but that hike reminded me that there is a BIG difference between working out in a gym and walking down into a gigantic underground cavern while carrying a baby. 😂
By the time we finished, my legs definitely knew they had been somewhere!
But here's what I'm proud of:
I didn't quit.
There was a point where I could have decided that I was done. I could have turned around and said, "Nope, I'm going back."
But I kept going.
Step by step.
One foot in front of the other.
Even when I was scared.
And eventually, we made it to the bottom.
When it was time to leave, we took the elevator back up—and honestly, I was VERY happy about that elevator! 😂
Would I Do the Hike Again? 😂
Now, here's the big question:
Would I go down from the top and do that hike again?
Absolutely NOT! 😂😂😂
Nope! I did it once, and I am proud of myself.
If I go back to Carlsbad Caverns again, I am taking that elevator straight down to the Big Room!
I want to enjoy the incredible formations, look around, take pictures, and enjoy myself without worrying about how steep the path is or whether there is a giant drop somewhere beside me. 😂
I'll happily take the elevator!
🍜 Dinner at Dragon Buffet in Carlsbad
After our adventure at Carlsbad Caverns, we went to a Chinese buffet in Carlsbad called Dragon Buffet.
And you guys…
The food was wonderful! Our waiter was amazing, too.
He took great care of us, and we really appreciated his service, so of course, we gave him a good tip. We had a wonderful experience.
It was the perfect way to end our big day of exploring.
👽 Next Stop: Roswell, New Mexico!
But our adventure wasn't over yet!
The next day, which was the day we checked out of our hotel in Carlsbad, we decided to drive to Roswell, New Mexico.
We had heard so much about Roswell and the famous UFO story, so we figured, why not go see it for ourselves?
It was about an hour and 30 minutes from Carlsbad to Roswell, and when we got there, we went straight into exploring.
We did a spacewalk tour, and WOW! It was beautiful!
It was beautiful and fascinating.
Then we went to the museum, and you guys, we learned SO much. We saw so many props and displays, and it was just wonderful.
I absolutely loved the experience.
Honestly, the Roswell experience could easily have been my favorite part of the entire trip.
There was just something about being there, seeing everything, and learning about the history and mystery surrounding Roswell that made me think differently.
It got me thinking about the possibility that we are not the only intelligent beings out there. The idea that there could be other beings who are not exactly like us, but kind of like us, is just mind-blowing to me.
It was just a very interesting experience, and I am so glad we decided to go.
❤️ I Didn't Quit!
Looking back at this trip, one thing really stands out to me: I am glad I didn't quit.
Yes, the caverns scared me at times.
Yes, there were moments when I didn't want to look down.
Yes, I was thinking, "Why did I agree to do this?" 😂
But I kept going until the hike ended.
And honestly, sometimes life is exactly like that.
You start something exciting, and then somewhere along the way, it gets uncomfortable. You get scared. You question yourself. You wonder if you should turn around and quit.
But sometimes you just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep going.
You don't have to see the entire path.
You just have to take the next step.
And eventually, you make it through.
🎥 We Filmed the Adventure!
Of course, we didn't just experience all of this—we filmed it too!
So if you want to see our family adventure at Carlsbad Caverns and Roswell for yourself, make sure you check out the vlog that goes along with this blog post. We filmed the experience so you guys can come along with us!
You can come along with us and see the adventure, the caves, the spacewalk, the museum, and all the fun we had as a family.
✨ Go Add Some Adventure to Your Life!
Overall, our weekend was SO MUCH FUN!
I am so grateful that we got to experience something new together as a family.
We explored.
We learned.
We laughed.
We got a little scared.
We ate good food.
And most importantly, we created memories.
That's one thing I want to encourage you guys to do: ADD SOME ADVENTURE TO YOUR LIFE!
You don't always have to travel across the world.
Sometimes an adventure is just a road trip to somewhere you've never been.
Sometimes it's visiting a national park.
Sometimes it's trying a new restaurant.
Sometimes it's taking your kids somewhere they've never been.
Just get out there and EXPERIENCE LIFE! Make memories with your family. Try something new. Take that road trip. Visit that place you've been talking about visiting.
You never know what memories you'll create.
Thank you so much for checking out Maryamsjoyfullife Blog today. I appreciate every single one of you for spending a little bit of your time with me and my family.
Have an amazing day, keep exploring, keep living, keep smiling, and most importantly…
DON'T LET ANYBODY STEAL YOUR JOY! ❤️
Until next time,
— Maryamsjoyfullife
