Silver Lake Fall Family Photos

Last Saturday we ventured out to Silver Lake to snap out traditional fall photos. The weather was grey and rainy, so there were very few people on the path. It took some coaxing to get the kids out of the car. I honestly didn't think many of the pictures turned out. 

Once we got going we had a fun time jumping over puddles, hiding under trees to avoid the rain, and trying to stay warm and dry.

The colors were amazing as were the clouds. As we drove down from the canyon we were literally with our heads in the clouds. The clouds were almost within reach, flowing quickly across the mountains ahead of us. 

September Adventures

Todd had the great opportunity to travel to China for two weeks for work during the month of September. 

I had the 'great opportunity' to experience being a single mother for two weeks. While he was gone, I took advantage of the flexibility to our schedule to do some fun things with the kids. 

After dropping him off at the airport I took the kids to Discovery Gateway Museum to visit their Bob the Builder exhibit. 

The following weekend the city had a family chalk art competition. Stella loved having her picture taken next - and some time on top - of the art. Her clothes were completely filthy after our little excursion.

Of course, we couldn't pass up Munchies, our favorite dessert stop!

First Day of Second Grade

This week we are officially in full-fledged school mode. Last Friday we attended a meet the teacher meeting with Emilia. Her assigned teacher, Ms. Rawlings, delivered her baby prematurely at 25 weeks. She is working part-time in order to spend time in the neonatal intensive care unite (NICU). For now Emilia has two half-time teachers and an a room instructor who assists with break up groups for reading and math and is in the classroom the entire day.

We met Ms. Pereira, one of her two teachers at school on Friday/ She is awesome! She is funny, friendly, and has a cool British accent. She has been teaching at APA for 12 years. Almost as long as the school been open. The kids will love having her.

There are several of the same kids in her class this year, but some of her good friends are in other classes. That's the only disappointing thing for Emilia.

All in all, she is excited to go back and has been asking to go to bed by 7pm. Music to my ears!

Lodgepole Family Camp

I don't recall having so many sick people at one of our family camp outs before. There was a stomach bug going around the week before our family vacation that came camping with us this year. Todd's mom got it the worse but several people suffered stomach discomforts and other digestive issues.

Between that, a sister-in-law with a severe Celiac allergy, my Menieres and a brother-in-law with a pinched disc, I felt luck was not on our side this year - at least with regards to our health - but we didn't let that stop us from enjoying ourselves.

The truth is the kids don't really care if we leave camp. They were happy playing card games, riding their bikes full speed downhill, making forts, trying to catch chipmunks - AKA monkeys, as my two year old calls them - blowing bubbles, or simply exploring the 'forest'. In fact, they whenever I asked Emilia to go on a walk or do something that didn't include her cousins she turned me down.

On Wednesday the day time temperatures dropped to the mid 50's with a morning low in the low 40's. It was grey and raining most of the day, perfect for a nap!

After an uncomfortably cold first night, we bundled up the kids with two layers of pajamans and added a few extra blankets to everyone's sleeping bags and we were all toasty warm the rest of the trip. I have been reading the book "The Adventures of Emily Windsnsp" to the kids at night time. It worked out perfectly. After they crawled into their sleeping bag, I would read them one chapter of the book. They were so exhausted from playing that they fell asleep by the end of each chapter, and we got to finish the story on the last day of camp.

On Thursday a group of us hiked the Foreman Hollow Nature trail. It is described as an intermediate 4.0 mile trail with amazing views of Daniels Canyon and Strawberry Reservoir. It was more like a 6 mile trail, not very well maintained with overgrown vegetation, decaying bridges and a steep ascent. When we reached the top we were overwhelmed by a horrible stench. A bloated, decaying dead cow laid about 30 feet from the trail. That kept us moving really fast! I really enjoy hiking but by the time we reached camp I felt like a zombie, my body kept taking steps but my mind was numb and tired.

One more camping trip for the year and we're done! Can't believe Summer is almost over.

Lodgepole Family Camp - Strawberry Reservoir

On our last full day at camp we decided to visit Strawberry Reservoir, which is approximately a 15 minute drive from where we were staying. We were looking for the shore trail we could walk with the kids. We ask the gift shop attendant at the marina about one but she didn't know of one. Instead we decided to walk down the dock to one of the boat piers and let the kids skip rocks. They were probably more happy doing so than they would have been hiking.

Strawberry Reservoir is a fishing lake. On our way back from the gift shop the kids got to see some fisherman gut their fish before storing them in their cooler. Once on the shore Emilia took off with her two older girl cousins to explore. The three of them have been quite inseparable this trip. It's so nice when they all get along so well.

Stella had fun handing me rock to throw in the water and tossing a few hand fulls herself. From the boat dock the kids spied some crawfish in the water. Carson's two older cousins decided to catch them with some tall grass. One of the crawfish was not very smart. They were able to catch the same one three times!

Lodgepole Family Camp - Heber Valley Railroad

We returned to Heber Valley a second time this summer for our annual family camp with Todd's side of the family. This time we stayed at the Logpole Campground near Strawberry Reservoir.  On Tuesday we rode the historic Heber Valley Railroad for a round trip ride across the the shores of Deer Creek Reservoir and along the Provo River to Vivian Park.

Carson who absolutely loves trains has been waiting for a month, since our last visit to Heber, for this ride.

During the three hour train ride we were entertained by a  talented lady who performed several Western and Blues songs on her guitar. At the beginning of the ride the train was robbed by Black Jack Raven and the Soldier Hollow Gang. They came into our train car, made us all raise our hands, cracked a few jokes about the passengers and left. We didn't get to see the entire act because our car was the last one on the train and we were too far away from the train platform where they were staging the robbery.  I will know better if we decide to do it again.

The kids got a bit bored during the ride. The train travels at approximately 15-20 MPH. Not very fast at all. The interior of the train cars is very old and not well kept. There is no AC or heat, some of the windows don't open and parts of the train are held together with Duct Tape. To be honest I was expecting something a bit nicer for the price they charge for each ticket. I was randomly selected to fill out a customer survey. I shared with them my thoughts. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has mentioned it.

Our our way back we were the first car behind the engine. Every time the conductor blew the whistle when approaching a railroad crossing we had to cover our ears. It was so loud it startled some of the younger kids riding with us. A toddler boy traveling with his family started to cry each time it would go off.

In the end, what matter the most to me was Carson's experience. He enjoyed looking out the window from inside the train and sitting next to his cousin Graham.

Loveland Family Reunion at Sportsman Park

 Each year, Todd's maternal aunt and uncles go camping together with their kids and grandkids. This year the family reunion was held at Sportsman Park in Arberdeen, Idaho.

While on our trip the kids enjoyed swimming in the nearby reservoir, hiking the trail around the lake and playing in the playground next to our camp site.

On one of our hikes, Todd's dad pointed out an owl sleeping on a nearby tree along the trail. The next evening we spotted the same owl on a tree at camp.

One of the activities at camp was a family history challenge. The kids had to complete eight activities that required them to learn something about their ancestors in order to win a prize.

Emilia was old enough to complete it and in the process learned more about her grandma an their shared ancestors.


 On one of the days we took a trip to the fish hatchery in American Falls. We had visited one a couple of years ago, but the kids still really enjoyed it. Their favorite part was of course, feeding the fish in the nearby pond.


I asked Carson what was his favorite thing to do during the whole trip. He answered, "Playing in the playground with the other kids before leaving camp." At this age it doesn't matter so much what we do or where we go as long as there are other kids with whom to play.

Battle Creek Falls, Pleasant Grove UT

We've been hiking quite a bit with the kids this Summer. I think we are making up for the years we lived in Texas, where there just wasn't anywhere to hike.

Two weeks ago we hiked Battle Creek Falls in Pleasant Grove, UT. The 1.5 mile roundtrip hike was perfect for our kids. Not too steep, not too long. Stella had to be carried for part of it. We just didn't want to keep her pace.

 



Carson is quite the hiker. He was ahead of us for most of the walk, exploring and commenting on what he observed. Emilia was on the hunt for the perfect rock to add to her rock collection. Stella enjoyed picking up rocks and dropping them.



 The hike is popular with those who enjoy rappelling. They hike above the waterfall and rappel down to the bottom. We cross a few carrying their gear up as we were headed down. The hike was rather crowded on a Saturday morning, primarily families with little kids and their pets. But enjoyable nonetheless.

Pioneer Day Float Previews

For the second year in a row I took the kids to the South Towne Expo Center to preview the Pioneer Day floats up close. Todd had a stake audit that evening so I was on my own. Carson's favorite float was the t-rex dinosaur float. It would open its mouth, look around and roar.

The kids got their faces painted, got balloon animals and played games. While in line to get the kids faces painted, one of Emilia's class mates from last year saw us and stop by to say hello.

Heber Valley 4th of July

Traditionally, we celebrate Independence Day with family but this year we decided to do something different and headed out to Heber City for a quick get away.

 

We borrowed Todd's parents RV and spent a few days at the Rocky Mountain RV resort. This newly built facility was great. The kids enjoyed watching a movie in the park, swimming in the pool and playing in the playground.

 

Emilia and Carson have been in swimming lessons all summer. Carson is still afraid of jumping off the diving board, but is less afraid of getting his face wet in the water. Emilia has become a little fish. Her fear of the water has completely gone away. Now, we can't keep her away from the water.

 

 

One of the mornings we took the kids bowling.  Stella scored two strikes without even trying. Emilia, who tried her hardest never got one. It's funny how things happen that way.

On the 4th of July we hiked the Provo River Waterfalls. It's not much of a hike, the waterfalls can be seen from the parking lot, but they are amazing nonetheless.

The kids really enjoyed the easy hike and playing in the water. We even got to see some really large monarch butterflies on the trail.

That evening we attended the Midway City fireworks. The city shoots them from Memorial Hill, a small hill near a park downtown.  After the first few minutes of the show, Todd asked me if I've noticed the fire on the hill. Sure enough, the fireworks had started a brush fire on one side of the hill.

It was hard to watch the fireworks. I don't know anything about fire so I was unsure as to how fast it would spread and reach the park at the bottom of the hill where we were.

Time seemed to pass really slowly between the time I noticed the fire and when I heard the fire truck's sirens headed that direction. They must have had it under control rather quickly because there was no mention of anything in the local news the next morning.

Once a year, a local collector of cowboy and Native American artifacts opens up his personal museum to the public. This man has a two-story cabin chuck full of original items.  Next to his cabin is Memorial Hill.  We decided to drive up to the monument up top and check out the damage from the fire. It was quite a scary drive for me. The road is barely wide enough for two vehicles to travel on it and there is no rail on one side. Every time we would come across a car traveling the opposite direction I would just close my eyes until we were past it.

The trip was so much fun! I am glad we decided to get away for a few days to spend time as a family.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's day to the best dad my kids could ever had!

I missed attending church with Todd on Father's day to stay home with Carson, who was sick. Cooking and baking are not my favorite things to do, but on special occasions such as Father's Day I make an exception. With three hours on my hand before the rest of the clan got home, I decided to bake him a chocolate and dulce de leche cake.

I think he enjoyed the unexpected surprise.

There are many reasons why Todd is the best dad in the world to my kids. These are just a few:
1. Incredibly patient
2. Playful
3. Loving
4. Always happy
5. Great example
6. Excellent provider
7. Supportive and encouraging

I love you Todd, and the kids adore you too!

South Jordan Parade

Each year the city of South Jordan hosts their annual Summer celebration in June instead of on Independence day. I think it's great! The mornings are warm, not uncomfortably hot the way they are in July.

This year I took the kids to watch the parade that runs near our home. Unlike other parades I've attended recently, the floats were actually giving candy and prizes. The kids got to shake hands with Spider Man and saw our neighbors, Al and LaRae Naylor, ride as honorary Grand Marshall for the city.

That weekend, we rode our bikes to the second annual South Jordan River Stake Carnival. My silly monkeys had a fun time playing carnival games and sampling the free food and drinks at the booths.

Herriman Farm Field Days

 

Who knew I have a little cowboy in the making? Carson was quite handy with the lasso on his fieldtrip to Butterfield Farm in Herriman.  The kids were taught about sheep shearing, growing a garden and raising farm animals. They saw piglets, miniature horses, lama, lambs and sheep and chickens.

 

Carson's favorite part, however, was the miniature fire truck on display. The kids got to ride in it and pretend to drive it. He was so excited when a fireman gave him a sticker badge. Best gift ever!