Camping In Bryce Canyon

We decided to take a last minute end of summer camping trip before the kids started school.  We left last Thursday, August 30th and spent 3 days and 2 nights in Bryce Canyon.  We had never been to Bryce and we decided it is about time we went.  It was beautiful, the weather was perfecto and we couldn't have asked for better company.

The first day, we got there in the late afternoon and set up camp and read and played games and ate.   Since we had never been there before, we decided to camp in the park.  We have never done such a thing before. When we first got there and Steve and I were popping up the camper, the girls went to the bathroom.  They came running back to camp so excited.  "HEY MOM!  GUESS WHAT?!?!?  THEY HAVE REAL BATHROOMS HERE!!!  LIKE WITH REAL TOILETS THAT FLUSH AND EVERYTHING!!!!"  

The next day we went for a long hike.  We hiked the Queens Garden Trail and added a few other trails to that to make one big loop down through this little beauty:

 It really was breathtaking

If you know my husband, you know that his phone rings non stop.  I am glad he has the dang thing so he can leave town with us and still conduct business.  However, his phone worked for way way too long while we were hiking.  I was for sure that he would eventually lose reception, but he never did.  At one point one of the other hikers asked me if he ever got off his phone.  At one point, way deep down in the canyon, I said, "IS THAT THING EVER GOING TO STOP WORKING?!?"  I then told him that really, it should have stopped working a long time ago and why doesn't he just turn it off and pretend like he doesn't have reception.  Blessedly he did.

OK, so I'm going to warn you right now.  This post has a LOT of pictures.  I was able to narrow it down from over 350, but there's still a plethora that I plastered on here.

When we were hiking in Moab last year, we kept Addy going by having her act as scout to lead us from cairn to cairn.  A cairn is a pile of rocks stacked up to guide you along the trail.  Ever since then Addy has been obsessed with cairns.  We kept seeing them along the trail and every time we did, she got excited.  Well, imagine her excitement when we rounded the corner and saw this:

We all left our own little cairns.  I actually don't think they are cairns.  I think people were trying to duplicate the hoodoos that we were hiking through.  Hoodoos are the rock  formations that grace Bryce Canyon.

Everyone carried a pack with their own food and water in it.  We found a nice shady spot and ate our lunch.  We took MRE's for lunch.  The kids were so excited because they had never had them before.  Neither had I.  I was pretty surprised at how good my beef stew was.

What's up with this tree?

 And here we are at Wall Street, ready to start our ascent up the canyon.  

Up ten thousand switchbacks, I kid you not.

 

1/2 way up! Zac stopping to take a picture of where we came from.

My kids started to complain about all the switchbacks and I told them they should be thankful for the switchbacks   Otherwise they would be hoofin' it straight up the side of the cliff.

 There were times along the trail when I really felt like I was in an Indiana Jones movie

YAY!  We made it to the top!

Taking in the gorgeous view of where we had just come from.

I really wish you could see this in 3D because it is stunning.

After our hike we headed over to the visitors center to take in a movie about Bryce Canyon.  

And true to form, I took that as a chance to take in a little snooze.

I think this picture speaks for itself.

Rainbow point

We are on the side of a cliff here and the railing is not around the whole thing.  My kids were so loony, I think because they were tired from the hike, and this is how they were acting the whole time.  We finally had to leave because I was scared someone was going to go over the side of the cliff.

 Back at camp.  We played games and made dinner and had a fire and roasted marshmallows.

The children warmed their feet by the fire.

Then it started to rain so we watched a movie in the camper.

The next day we drove around and took in a few view points. 

 Overlooking fairyland loop

Zac spent the entire day barefoot.  I started calling him Frodo.  It stuck.  

Everyone started calling him Frodo.  Including the lady who took our family picture above.

 We took a short hike up to Mossy Cave and saw, well, a mossy cave.  Oh, and a waterfall.

You will note that by this time, all the kids were hiking with no shoes on. 

I blame it all on that dang hippy survivalist guy.

"HEY LOOK!  A horchata river!"

Sadly our trip came to a close shortly after that.  We stopped at a picnic area and had lunch.  Then we started to make our way back home.  We loved our visit to Bryce Canyon and are already starting to plan our next trip there.  We want to do some really long overnight hikes next summer.  We shall see...

First Day 'O School 2012

Yesterday was our very first day of school for the 2012 school year!  My kids got all cuted up and I took pictures as proof.  Aubrey and Addy are my last two in Elementary.  Here they are above as we were on our way to the school.  Cute!  Cute I say!

This is Emily's first year of Jr. High.  She is in the band and she is playing the flute.  

She isn't excited about Jr. High or anything.  Like she could so totally care less about her locker (they don't have lockers in elementary).  She didn't go out shopping with her friends two weeks before school started to buy stuff to decorate her locker or anything.  We haven't made special trips to the school just to decorate her locker either.  We also didn't have a big fight in the middle of the hall because someone who has never opened a combination lock before in her life wouldn't listen to a person who has opened a combination lock 5 million times in her lifetime (you really do have to pass the second number once)(and you do have to turn right first).  If you think her locker is looking a little plain, don't worry, she has added to it since this picture was taken.

Last week she went to a 7th grade "Intro to Jr. High" where she was able to go to all her classes for a shortened length of time so she could get familiar with the school and where her classes are.  Here she is with some of her friends that day.

Here is my sweet little Aubrey.  I can't believe she is in 4th grade this year.  4th Grade!  When we moved into this house she was in Kindergarten.  Has it really been that long???  This is how good of a mom I am.  Yesterday was an early out day, for some unknown reason.  And guess whos mom didn't know?  Yep.  Poor Aubrey.  20 minutes after school got out (in the middle of the day) my sweet tenderhearted Aubrey showed up all hot and sweaty on the front doorstep.  HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!!

And believe it or not, this little gal is in Kindergarten!  She is so excited to go to school.   Have you ever seen anything cuter in your whole life?  Didn't think so.

Kindergarten here is 1/2 day.  Yesterday wasn't a real day of school for her.  We went to Back to School Morning and then went to meet her teacher in her classroom.  So today is her first REAL day of school.  She is in Spanish Immersion like Aubrey so 1/2 her day is completely in Spanish.

Zac could really care less about me taking a picture of him on the first day of school.  He left to meet his friends to go to the bus before I could even say goodbye, let alone take a picture.  I snapped this picture today (his 2nd day of school) as he was on his way out the door.  The girls are always messing with the settings on my phone camera so this is the best I could get in the time I was allotted.  He would not even consider waiting while I tried to remedy the situation.

I was able to get this picture as he was on his way out to the bus.  Zac is in 9th grade this year!  A Freshman!  I really can't even believe this.

9th grade is in the Jr. High here.  He is starting his first year of Seminary.  Seminary is a 4 year class that High School students in our church take where they learn and study the scriptures.  Zac is lucky because we live in Utah and Seminary is offered as a class in school.  Everywhere else it is done early morning at the church before school.  Steve and I were both talking to Zac about our Seminary experiences.  Steve, growing up in Missouri, had to leave his house at 5am to make the 30 minute drive to the church for 5:30 Seminary.  I, growing up in Texas, had to leave the house at 5:30am to  pick friends up and make it to the church by 6:00am.  Here, Seminary is a real paying job that people do as a profession.  Everywhere else it is a church calling, which means Seminary teachers are regular members of our church with regular jobs and they serve for a period of time teaching Seminary without getting paid.  I have often said that I am glad I live in Utah, because that is not a possibility for me.  My Grandma served as a Seminary Teacher when my dad was growing up.  My Mom was serving as a Seminary Teacher when she moved here.  And now my dear Sister Farrah just taught her first day of Seminary yesterday.  I can't imagine having to prepare a lesson every day and then having to get up and get ready and teach a lesson that early!  So here is a BIG

THANK YOU

 to all Seminary Teachers everywhere, including my own, who sacrifice and give so much to teach the youth of this church!

So I took the kids shopping for school clothes last week.  We had been so busy all summer, we just hadn't had a chance to do it before then.  Last week I realized that we all need haircuts.  Everyone needed new shoes and clothes.  Zac needed a Birthday party.  Emily needed to go to her Jr. High thing.  And we needed to take a family camping trip!  Monday was pretty much the only day we could go shopping.  So I decided to throw all four kids in the car and head out.  I was like, "Oh yeah, they're old enough.  We can go and knock this out in a few hours."  Yeah right.  8 hours and several meltdowns later, and we were finally done.  The first store we went to was Plato's Closet to look for clothes for Zac and Em.  Emily had been there before and as we were walking in she told Zac that the boys clothes were in the back of the store.  After a few minutes Zac came back and said he couldn't find the boys clothes.  I walked back with him and showed him where they were.  On our way back we found these jeans hanging on the rack.  I jokingly asked Zac (who will not wear jeans with any kind of design, fading, distressing, rips, buttons,nothing) if he wanted to try these on.  He looked at me like I was crazy and said he wasn't going to try on girl jeans.  I told him these were boy jeans.  He said, "Well no wonder I couldn't find the boys section!  They all look like girls clothes!"

Addy was a special treat on this shopping trip.  I let her ride this scary looking creature at the mall in exchange for her screaming and crying to cease.  

And FINALLY!  Our last stop of the day, Target.  Where Addy made about 1,000 videos on my phone.  Most of which consist of her saying, "Wanna see my throat? AHHHHHHH!"  And opening her mouth and well, showing you her throat.  She also turned my camera on to sepia.  She.  I told you they are always messing with the settings.

You Do The Rolly Polly And You Turn Yourself Around

Addy jumps up on the table and screams: MOM!  HURRY!  QUICK!  COME KILL THIS BUG!

Me: What bug?  That one there?  Addy, that's just a doodle bug.

Addy: BUT THEY FREAK ME OUT!

Me: Doodle bugs aren't scary.  Aunt Kristy used to keep hers in her mouth.

Explanation:  My sister Kristy, when she was very very little, loved doodle bugs (pill bugs, potato bugs, rolly polly, whatever you want to call them).  They were her special friends.  One day she was so excited and ran up to tell my mom or dad (I can't remember which one) that she found a great new place to keep her doodle bugs.  They asked her where and she replied by opening her mouth, lifting up her tongue and showing them.

The Birth Of A Boy Named Z

Fifteen years ago today my life was forever changed.  That was the day I became a mom.  

Zac was one anticipated baby.  He was our first.  He was the first grandchild on my side of the family.  I remember the day he was due.  Steve and I were living in Taylorsville Utah.  My sister Farrah was going to BYU in Provo.  Her soon to be husband, Bart had just returned from his mission and was in Utah visiting Farrah from Texas.  We were hoping Zac would come on his due date because Bart was leaving the next day, and he wanted to be there.  But alas, Zac did not come on his due date.  I'm kinda glad because that date became famous for another reason.  The night he was due, Bart and Farrah went out to eat.  They came home and Steve and I were in bed watching TV.  Farrah brought me the other half of her Asian Chicken Salad from Applebees.  That is when we told them that a Princess had just left this earth.  

Two more days went by and STILL no baby!  Everyone was sure that he would come on LABOR DAY of all days.  But no.  He was being stubborn (a trait he still carries with him today).  He had to wait until just after Labor Day was over.  Thirty minutes after it was over to be precise.  Bart was back in Texas.  Farrah was back in Provo.  I had just gone to bed and was getting ready to fall asleep when I started having these horrible pains.  I tried to ignore it and go to sleep, but they wouldn't go away.  Then I realized what was happening!  I told Steve and we called my parents.  My mother started freaking out because she had a plane ticket to come from Dallas but it wasn't until the September 3rd- the next day.  Steve and I got all ready and left for the hospital.  

We had taken a child birthing class and the lady who taught it told us all about how she had her all 8 of her children naturally, and that was really the only way any good mother should have her children.  So I, in preparation for being the perfect mother, decided to start my perfection right off the bat.  I had done as the instructor had said and made Steve promise me that no matter how much I begged for an epidural, he was not to give in and let me have one.  Because, as the wise instructor had said, as soon as the contraction has passed, you will be fine again and you will be sorry you gave in.  And you can never go back.  No more perfect mom for you.

So this is how it went down in my delivery room.  I had gone into labor at 12:30ish the morning of September 2nd.  We arrived at the hospital about an hour later.  Steve was at my bedside at my beck and call.  When I was not having a contraction, I wanted him to touch me.  Stroke my hair, rub my arm, gaze lovingly into my eyes.  The eyes of the woman who was about to give him his first child.  Then when a contraction hit, if he was touching me, well, let's just say...he learned real fast not to touch me in the middle of a contraction.  Then there was my mom.  The poor woman.  Her first baby was having her first baby, and she wanted to be there.  She was mad at my dad for making the plane ticket for the day AFTER her first grandchild was born (although how was he supposed to know).  And she kept calling my hospital room to check on the progress (this was pre-cell phone era).  This calling my room took my birth coach (Steve) away from me and so at one point I was mid contraction and Steve, who wasn't allowed to touch me mid contraction but who still needed to keep his ever loving attention focused on me, was on the phone with  my mom.  So I yelled, "TELL HER TO STOP CALLING!!!!!!"  A fact that she still likes to bring up to this very day.  But you must remember, I was trying to birth my first child without the aid of an epidural.  

So...many, many hours went by.  Twelve hours to be exact.  Twelve hours of natural child birth.  And still no baby.  I really could take no more.  I thought if I had to endure another contraction, I just might die right there on the spot.  So I told Steve, who had been instructed by none other than myself, to refuse my requests for an epidural, I told him that I needed one.  He very dutifully stroked my hair and said something to the effect that it would be ok, I didn't really want one, I could do it, blah, blah, blah...To which I grabbed him by his shirt collar and pulled his face up close to mine and yelled, "GET ME AN EPIDURAL NOW BEFORE I HAVE TO SUFFER THROUGH ONE MORE CONTRACTION!!!!"  And....he was off.  To find a nurse.  And get me some drugs.  

This is what they don't tell you.  When they tell you to be a good mom and go natural.  They don't tell you that if you hold out as long as you possibly can, and you get to the point where you cannot possibly handle one more contraction, well, you have waited too long.  Because it takes them FOREVER to get a dang anesthesiologist to come and administer the thing.  But finally.  Finally he arrived.  Oh sweet relief.  It was about 30 minutes after that that the kid-I mean Zac-finally popped out.  I often wonder how much sooner he would have arrived if I had had the needle jammed in my spine when I first arrived at the hospital.  We shall never know.

So we were rebels and we never found out with any of our kids what they were going to be before they were born.  But Steve and I were both so sure that this baby was going to be a boy.  We had the names Austin and Zachary picked out.  We were just waiting to see him to decided which one fit.  As soon as we saw him, we both knew he was a Zac.  We gave him the middle name of Roy.  My doctor thought we were naming him after him since his middle name is Roy, but that wasn't the case.  He was named after this bunch:

His great grandfather Roy Nelson, his grandfather Roy Otto, and his father Stephen Roy

My dad, as soon as he got the word that it was indeed a boy, went out shopping.  My mother arrived on the plane the next day with a huge, huge bag full of boy clothes.  I think Zac could have worn a different outfit every day for a month.  Everyone wondered how I could not find out what I was having so that I could prepare.  My reply was that I didn't need to worry about that.  I knew it would be taken care of.  He had a full years worth of clothes before he even left the hospital. 

And there we were.  Our cute little family of 3.

Not long after Zac was born Farrah and Bart were married (hence the tux Zac is wearing in the above pictures) and they lived in Provo and we were able to see them often.  Being the first grandchild, he was very spoiled by everyone.

My brother Sam was only 10 years old when Zac was born and the two of them were best buds.  They share the opposite affliction.  Sam has 4 older sisters and Zac has 3 younger sisters.  I still remember the time I put Zac in the car when he was really little.  He asked where we were going and I told him we were going to Sam's (the wholesale club).  And he thought I meant Sam's (his uncle in Dallas).   He was so confused and sad when we pulled up to do our grocery shopping.

In December of 2010, Zac was the Best Man at Sam's wedding in Dallas.

Steve and Zac (AKA Mini Me)

I really can't believe it has been 15 years.  In just a few days Zac will start his freshman year at school. 

Here he is with his friend Garrett at EFY earlier this summer

Being goofy with his friend Ethan 

And on his way to his first week working at Scout Camp.  He worked at a Scout Camp (this has been a dream of his since he was a Cub Scout) this summer.

Z, I love you.  You are my most FAVORITE son.  

Thank you for being you.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY. 

 Love, Mom.

Reese's Pieces Day 8: Sunday July 29, 2012

On Sunday Kristy and her family went to church with my mom.  Spencer came with us and we went back to our old ward to for Eddie's homecoming from his mission.  It was so nice to be back in our old ward and see so many people that we love and care about.  Here is a picture of Steve with some of his old scouts.  (Above: Eddie, Keven, Spencer, Steve)

After church we all met back at our house and we made breakfast for lunch.  We had yummy waffle scones. I could really go for a waffle scone right about now, come to think of it...

Addy performed her usual gray hair check on my mom.  

Then it was time to take Zac back to scout camp.  He worked at a scout camp all summer.  Spencer was leaving us to go back to Kentucky 2 days later, so this was the last time he and Zac would see each other.

Saying goodbye

Steve and I drove Zac to where he needed to be.  Then we came home and said goodbye to Kristy and her kids since they would be leaving extra early the next morning to go back to Virginia.  And we also said goodbye to Granny Snow who would also be leaving in two days to go back to Washington.  We had a fun visit with them all and it was sad to see them all go.  How thankful we are for family and for the chance we had this summer to spend so much time with so many people we love.

Reese's Pieces Day 1

Reese's Pieces Day 2

Reese's Pieces Day 3

Reese's Pieces Day 4
Reese's Pieces Day 5
Reese's Pieces Day 6
Reese's Pieces Day 7

Flashback/Flashforward Friday - I Love To See The Temple

Flashback: Summer 1985

 Dallas Texas Temple

(People didn't take as many pictures back then as they do now, otherwise we probably would have known to turn around so the Temple was behind us instead of the parking lot.)

Flashforward: August 2012

Brigham City Utah Temple

Yesterday we had the opportunity to go to the open house for the brand spankin' new Brigham City Temple.    It was a great experience to take the kids and show them the inside of the Temple and explain to them what each room is used for.

(Apparently there are still some people who don't know how to take pictures.  I guess that's what you get when you ask a random stranger to take a picture for you and then don't check the image to make sure it is decent.)

Temples are different from our regular chapels that our congregations meet in each week.  After this Temple is dedicated, only members who hold a current Temple recommend are allowed to enter.  One of the things that happens in our Temples is when a man and woman are married there, they are sealed together for eternity.  This means that after they die, they are still married and their children are still their children.  We believe that through the sealing ordinances that take place in the Temple, families can be together forever.  

 “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19)

To learn more about Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, click here.

To see Pictures of the inside of the Brigham City Temple, click here.

To watch a video about why Mormons build Temples, watch here: