March 31, 2026

Had so much fun at Nickel City today with Sadie, Kendyl, Laynee, and Blake - especially getting stuffed dinosaurs, playing Sadie in Dance, Dance, Revolution and Guitar Hero. Then it was hang out with my birthday bestie for a while. I love when the Biblers come to town. 

Listening to the two oldest Bibler girls with my two younger girls laugh and giggle makes me smile. 

March 29, 2026

Some thankful things I thought of on this Sunday:

March Madness and watching full basketball games. A little Arch Madness and remembering “the birth of a day” at Jacob Hamblin Arch. Game night with Mason and Rachael playing Azul (amazingly Mason didn’t win). Kenzie morning with her Dr appointment and Cubby’s to eat. A Froyo visit DKCS. A hike with the complete Canyon Crew. Being a lead tester. Birds singing in the morning. Finishing my audiobook as I finished my run. Having a few run mornings (which is probably why my knees hurt). A walk with Kelly where she helped me work through some thoughts. Grabbing lunch at Costa where I said hi to Sadie and her friends gave me the kids meal for free. Older kid Palm Sunday Easter egg hunt. Swinging with Annelise. Playing Hitster in South Jordan. 

March 27, 2026

Today started out so good. The birds were singing as I went on a pre-hike run. Just as I finished and got to our door my entertaining audiobook finished. Great timing! 

We hiked up around Pine Hollow with a little green, some fresh air, and a Salamader Flat bathroom that was open and clean.  

March 22, 2026

Sunday thankful thoughts from the past week or so:

Reflection Canyon - Reflection Canyon - Relection Canyon! Escalante area. Dance Hall Rock. Sleeping in a tent. Staying warm in a tent. Sleeping in a tent mid March - the earliest ever in a year. Headphones to muffle the wind. Jaw dropping views. Magical sunrise. A campsite oasis. Juniper trees. Navajo Mountain. Top of sandstone view. Vortex. Silence. Solitude. Getting texts while on HITRR. Magical sunrise.  Sunrise colors - in the sky and sandstone cliffs lighting with the sun. Mountain house lasagna. Dinner spot. Being with Darren in a remote and gorgeous place. Lovely weather. A short chat with Kenz. Tester training. New Goodreads friends. Comment from a temple worker. March madness. Sitting outside on a Sunday afternoon with D, KT, MR, C, S. 

March 19, 2026

Still thinking about our adventure.  I can't get over the fact that it was just the two of us in this jaw dropping place.  Amazing!

March 16, 2026

D and I chatted tonight about our amazing getaway to a desert paradise.

March 15, 2026

Yesterday after getting into the tent, the wind picked up and the gusts didn’t stop until about 2AM. Not a lot of sleep happened. Go backpacking they said. It’ll be fun they said.  Actually it was way fun even if we didn’t get much sleep. I ended up getting up about 6:30 to catch the sunrise. I went back up to the spot Darren showed me yesterday. It was breathtaking. The way the incoming light lit up the whole canyon and all the slickrock was super cool. The sunrise started a little pink and then turned to yellow and orange. Sigh. What a cool experience - magical actually. 

After snapping lots of photos and also trying to just be present, I headed down to the actual overlook and enjoyed that spot for a while. It was awesome to get two different views of the beautiful sunrise. I think that this was the best sunrise experience I’ve ever had. Just me and the rocks and the colors of the sky. Sigh!

I came back to camp where I met Darren along the way and boy I love that guy. Turns out he cleaned up all my tent stuff - packed up my sleeping bag and pad and that was just really nice of him. We had a little breakfast and then headed out. Turns out when you follow the trail markers it’s less mileage and a little easier. We made it out pretty quick (well 3 1/2 hours which isn’t really quick but wasn’t bad). I was definitely tired but extremely fulfilled. (Love this pic below that Darren snapped.)

I had packed some lunch stuff so we made ourselves a sandwich which tasted really good. Two hours back to the highway on the dirt road where the washboard stretches were long and plentiful. Then we drove the rest of the way home and make it back about 7:00. That was an incredible, awesome, beautiful adventure! Three out of three for 2026.