December 31, 2020

My dad is in the hospital and I’m here in self quarantining in South Jordan away from my Covid family. So frustrating to not be able to do anything. 

Having a me party for NYE but was able to face time with the fam.

December 28, 2020

That one time yesterday when we all went to get tested for Covid. 5 spit tests and 1 nose swab for Rylie. Apparently spitting grosses her out. And apparently some spit faster than others. (Cam for the win.)

Covid for Christmas.  5 out of 6 positives (lucky negative me).  Tanner ends up coming down with it as well.

 

December 25, 2020

Merry Christmas! What a wonderful Christmas it was. Just so wonderful to have us all together. 

 

Mosiah 3:8 - And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary.

Darren was again gift giver extraordinaire. Kids were happy and surprised with gifts. It was the Christmas of drones, thread wallets, and poop bags. :)

Watching the kids together was awesome. Ry and Cam on the couch opening presents, Cam and Kenz making a Tik Tok and putting on makeup, Cam and Sadie painting and putting up stars, Kenz and Sadie making bracelets, Mason and Tanner talking drones, Mason and Ry figuring out rock band with Kenz joining in, and everyone playing Just Dance.  I always love how Tanner gets excited about his gifts. He was first to have his drone up and running and as soon as he got his hat and sweatshirt he put them on.

Christmas Eve started out with a little Roxberry from Ry.  It then had a puzzle and games and Minecraft and lots of hanging out with Rice King for dinner.  We ended the day watching Justice League.  Go Wonder Woman.

 

 

December 23, 2020

Long drive in a day trip to Arches with D where we did two hikes that made it totally worth the drive. Two lesser known hikes were awesome! I told D, I find the arches online and he finds them in real life. Good teamwork. :).

Ring Arch you park at the cottonwood wash pullout. It was less than two miles to the arch and incredible 360 degree views! Like views for days. It was such a cool spot with no other people the entire hike. This was added as one of my happy spots. (The clouds were so cool on this hike.) I could have spent more time here but since daylight is limited in December, we left to check out Christmas Tree Arch in the Windows section. What a fabulous hike to do in December. It was a bit short but fun to find. And it did look like a Christmas tree. Sent the kids a picture and Rylie was not impressed. But I reminded her it was made from wind - out of rock.  (I would also be OK if it was called Snowflake, Ornament, or Grinch Head.)

Then we drove home via I-70 through Salina  and home, to avoid slick roads. Another gas station pizza for dinner.

December 22, 2020

Successful Bethle"ham" dinner tonight. Before dinner was sibling gift opening. I just love that my kids have each other. After dinner was games. Lots of fun with all of us plus two extra in Mason’s friend and Rylie’s friend. 

December 21, 2020

Threw out some Just Dance tonight with M, C, and S. Way fun. Plus Cam and helpers defeated the dragon thing in Minecraft that I don’t understand, but apparently was kind of a big deal. Cam is pretty amazing at Minecraft.

December 20, 2020

We took a quick Sunday afternoon trip to visit my parents.  We all masked up and tried to keep distance, so hopefully no one spread Covid to Richfield.  

It was really good to see them.

 

December 19, 2020

Because of the Savior born two thousand years ago in Bethlehem, there is hope—and so much more. There is redemption, release, victory, and triumph. “The wrong shall fail, the right prevail”. No wonder a choir of angels suddenly appeared as a heavenly exclamation point to the angel’s announcement of the Savior’s birth, singing, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” No message could ever be more reassuring. No message was ever filled with more good will toward men. - L Whitney Clayton

December 18, 2020

Good - after it finally snowed - day. Shoveled some snow, threw snowballs with Russell, and helped (but mostly watched) Sadie build a snow Winnie the Pooh. Then I played pickleball at the church with Mason, Rylie, and Darren.

December 16, 2020

 Sometimes setting your expectations low is a good idea. That was true of the Yellow Fork hike.  It was very enjoyable (and steep at the end) but maybe because I wasn't expecting the view at the top of both Utah and Salt Lake Valleys.  

December 13, 2020

 Good Come Follow Me lesson that Sadie led this morning. 

I love David Archuleta’s Christmas song “He is Born”.

December 12, 2020

Had a good southern escape with Tami and Kelly to celebrate Tami turning 50.

We tried to snowshoe Cedar Breaks but such minimal snow, even at 10,000 feet, had us walking the closed road. We made it to Chessman Lookout which had a cool view of Cedar Breaks. It was cold and windy but a great stop. 

We also adventured a little on Saturday with a bike ride along the Virgin River trail. We biked in the rainy drizzle for a bit. I stopped for a moment to enjoy two hawks circling and perching on the rocks. 

Heading home we stopped at Red Cliffs and hiked the short hike to the dry waterfall. The walls were pretty and it was a good little hike. 

Good birthday celebration. 

December 9, 2020

Went on an icy hike with Lorien, Sariah, and Deb.  Donut Falls was kind of sketchy getting to the cave but we had spikes for the win! Pretty cool site with the icy donut hole.  We also found a Christmas tree.

December 6, 2020

I love the First Presidency Christmas Devotional every year.

December 5, 2020

Tonight’s entertainment was Arctic Circle (nothing new there - we have been 3 times this week) and finding Christmas lights. We found a house that had music and lights and even played “raining tacos”. :). Also - we just love when they put the star up on the barn by the cows.

December 4, 2020

A couple of things that make me smile. 1. Coming across Sadie art. 2. When Cam plays hide and seek with Baylie. 3. Going to lunch with Kelly - everyone should have a friend that is a therapist. Lunches with therapist friends help with my mental health state. 4. Texts with old pictures (from Patty). 5. Mail from Brynn with the best drawing.

December 2, 2020

Finally got on a hike with Lorien and Sariah. It has been almost a month since we were last able to get out. We hiked the road from Tibble up to Silver Lake Flat. Not a pretty hike, but you get some mileage (6) and a little incline plus there was a frozen lake at the end. It had the coolest sounds of water moving under the ice. 

December 1, 2020

Cam and Ry went to Panda and left a fortune cookie for me.  I opened it up and it could not have been more perfect.  "A vigorous hike and fresh air are just what you need."

 

November 28, 2020

 

We had the best time spending Thanksgiving holiday in Thayne, Wyoming.  We rented a basement apartment that was great.  Star Valley was pretty and Thayne was the cutest little town. 

Wednesday -

The girls were so excited for cats and goats.

Thayne is so pretty.

We pulled out the dominos and played some Mexican Train.  Which oddly enough, Rylie remembered how to play better than D or me.

Watched Cars.  Such a good flick.  It had been awhile since any of us had seen it and we all chuckled throughout the movie.

Thursday -

We drove to the Tetons.

Taggart Lake was an amazing snow hike.

Hearing the water running even though you can’t see it was cool.

Mason got to throw some snowballs.

Way cool forest in black and white.

Ry and Mason blazed a trail to a rock through snow. Mason had on tennis shoes.  :)

We snapped a good family pic standing on the frozen lake.

The road to Mormon Row was made of ice.  We may have had to get pulled out of the snow by some people from Jackson in Land Rover. 

Time to buy a tow rope.

We saw 7 moose from afar, 1 bald eagle, 1 squirrel, and two hundred or so elk.

Hot chocolate from Maverick is a good choice for a Thanksgiving afternoon. People should really make sure their bathroom stall is locked.

Cats are definitely the favorite thing.

Evening was spent having Thanksgiving dinner while chilling at the Airbnb. Our feast turned out pretty good. Turkey and potatoes and pie for the win.

We kept with the Disney movie theme and watched Finding Nemo.

Friday - 

Girls still love the cats and goats. 

Increased our wildlife sighting today on our scenic drive. More moose - the 3 bulls were standing up plus we saw lots of moose sitting down from a ways away and then 2 closer on the way home.  We also saw 4 eagles, a couple bison, and 2 coyotes (we debated for awhile if they were fox but we're going with coyotes). It was so awesome to watch one hunt and ounce on rodents. 

Teton views were amazing. No clouds covering them today (like yesterday) and blue sky. They were showing off in all their glory.

Seeing the geese with bums up and heads in the water makes me chuckle again today.

Pizza, ice cream, games, and Guardians of the Galaxy 1 & 2 for evening entertainment. 

Saturday - 

Morning walk up the road with frozen trees. 

The girls apparently named the cats - Butt Cheek, Big Chungus, and Paul. They fed the goats before we left. 

We filled up at McDonalds in Evanston and made it home safely. 

 

So many pictures:

 

 

(I love, love, love this above photo.)

November 26, 2020

Such a good Thanksgiving in Thayne, Wyoming.  Turkey in the Tetons and just our little family was wonderful.

November 25, 2020

 “Ain’t it funny how the best days of my life was all that wasted time.” - Keith Urban.

November 23, 2020

Today was a quote kind of day.

“Nothing in nature lives for itself. Rivers don’t drink their own water. Trees don’t eat their own fruit. Sun doesn’t give heat for itself. Flowers don’t spread fragrance for themselves. Living for others is the rule of nature. And therein lies the secret of life.” —Amit Gupta

“Having different blessing than someone doesn’t mean God loves us less, it means He loves us individually.”  - Mary Stallings

“At this time of Christmas, this season when gifts are given, let us not forget that God gave His Son, and His Son gave His life, that each of us might have the gift of eternal life.” - Gordon B Hinckley

November 22, 2020

Happy Darren’s birthday. Sunday birthdays just aren't the best for celebrating.  I'm glad we were able to sneak away yesterday.

I gave a talk in the 3rd ward on mercy. I very much enjoyed pondering justice and mercy this past month. It is beautiful how God is both just and merciful. 

November 21, 2020

Convinced Darren that driving to Canyonlands and hiking for a bit would be a great way to spend his birthday Eve. 7 hours in the car was worth the 5 hours at the park.

We hiked Neck Springs. It had such a high rating on alltrails but it did not have a high rating from us. We both agreed on 3 stars. It had a cool alcove and old troughs, but that was it. We saw an arch with no trail to a lookout. Then when there was a trail out to a lookout it was of nothing. That happens. We said hiking a 3 star trail is way better than not hiking at all. 

We also hit Buck Canyon lookout, Orange Cliffs lookout, Grandview Point, and Mesa Arch. 

Mesa was way cool as we caught it at sundown. Great ending to a good day. 

Gas station in Wellington came through for some pizza for dinner that was surprisingly yummy. Good country music and chatting made the drive quite enjoyable. 

November 20, 2020

 “Counting our blessings is far better than recounting our problems.” - President Nelson. Oh how I needed his smile, his optimism, and his encouragement to be grateful. 7 days of thankful journal couldn’t have come at a better time. 

November 17, 2020

May have been the worst day of my life. 

November 14, 2020

Governor quarantine allowed D, Sadie and I to relax and watch movies this weekend. Friday was Jurassic World and Saturday was Jurassic World 2 and it was so nice to relax and watch movies.

November 12, 2020

When you only run once a week, it’s always painful. But listening to a good podcast helps. This morning was - Don’t Miss This, Ether 1-5. Good episode. “Faith = confident that He can, hoping that He will, but I trust that His will is good.” Also, God works in disappointments.

November 7, 2020

Pickleball at the church with D, Mason, and Rylie was a fabulous Saturday night event. Then pizza and Just dance for even more fun. 

November 7, 2020

Zion was way fun! I love that this may be an every year thing now that we’ve done it two years in a row. Hiking in beauty with friends for 4 days is awesome! So many smiles, much laughter, and such beauty. I especially love the east side of Zion.

Day 1 - drive to the cabin and quickly head out for a sunset hike to observation point. So pretty as the sun goes down. We chatted with a girl whose birthday is tomorrow. Hike back had the last mile in the dark. Way dark with awesome stars. Thankful for Sariah’s big light. 

Day 2 - we explored the main canyon since we thought ahead and reserved shuttle tickets. Hiked emerald pools. The upper pool was set in an alcove with way tall walls. We ate lunch on the rock pile. The middle “pool” was more of a puddle but it had such a cool reflection. Lower pool had awesome white and black stripes in the wall. It was fall in the canyon with yellow trees all over. So pretty. We saw the girl we saw last night at Observation Point.  We wished her a happy birthday.

We grabbed some ice cream before heading back to the cabin. We stopped at Canyon Overlook and did a quick Covid hike since there was a parking space. Amazing views. 

We also explored some more of the east side and spotted some big horn sheep! Wahoo! Then we ended the night with some game playing. 

Day 3 - long hike day to Deer Trap Mountain. This hike is a destination hike. Not amazing along the way but then you get such amazing views down into the canyon. The light this hike was awesome. There were clouds and then the sun would shine through, lighting the rocks. One time it lit up angels landing and some yellow trees behind it. So cool. We also saw where we hiked yesterday with the emerald pools. 

After our long hike we hit the hot tub at the resort. Ahh. 

More games and hanging out pretty much concluded our stay. 

Day 4 - drive home. We stopped for lunch at Ideal Dairy and my friends were kind enough to do a drive by and wave to my parents since there’s no covid visiting. 

What a wonderful time with friends in Zion.