Monday, October 13, 2008
A Day We will Not Soon Forget!
Yesterday was our Primary Progam, and lil' K's first one. If any of you know her, she has a hard time with new things. She'll wail about going to someone new's house, she cried about going to swimming lessons (even though afterwards she had great fun...and would even do it again!!) So we were prepared for the worst. She said she wasn't going to say her part. At all of our practices, she did great saying her part..."How do we know God loves all His children?" lil' K: "Because He gave us butterflies and flowers." (That was her exact response to the question which became her line) After the practice on Saturday, she actually told me she would be partcipating!! But I knew that could be very wrong. I imagine all the little children filing up to the front, quietly, while she is taken from the chapel in tears and screaming. Because I help out in the Primary, I went up first and then the children came. lil' K filed with the other children, quietly!! I was so excited! The sunbeams were at the beginning, and I began to fell anxious again. The children lined up and each took their turn at the podium, lil' K said her part just right all by herself and even into the mic so everone could hear!!!! Hallalujah! I almost started to bawl just because she said her line! We were proud parents, seeing her sing all the songs she has worked on learning this year. Despite our fears, the program turned out beautifully. The other children were so wonderful and things ran smoothly. The Spirit spoke to each person in the chapel that day confirming the knowledge the we are all children of God. I know I am thankful for that knowledge. I hope that each of you remember you are a child of God, too.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Ahoy, hoy!
Alas, Me Hearties!! SeptembArr 19th be speak like a scurvy pirate day. Be preparin' yerself with this here tavern. Dust off ye eyepatch, raise th' Jolly Roger in celebration. If ye don't be knowin' how to shout scurvy pirate, here be th' way. Fer ye land lubbers, who not be participatin'...t' th' planks!!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Yellowstone
August was one busy month. Every weekend was filled with some adventure. The first weekend, Lake Powell, then came the opening to a record breaking Olympics and Family Reunion Relay Day (we had 5 family reunions, but only attended one, which was more than enough). Followed by my weekend of "Living the Good Wife" in which I "allowed" my hubby to leave me for fishing with the boys. While he was gone, I completely cleaned his truck (this included using a carpet cleaner) What a difference!! The third weekend was "Rockapulco Fest 2008" a.k.a. my family's trip to Rockport. We got the kids out on the boat. lil' K and I along with her cousin got out on the tube. I waterskiied in which I have not done for years...just like riding a bike. F took the 3rd of 4 certification tests, then off to Yellowstone for Labor Day weekend. Our calendar hasn't taken so much abuse before. I think it will miss me and all the scheduling, now that things have calmed down a bit. Anyhoo... this brings me to Yellowstone. This is an annual trip we take with F's family... The same crew from Lake Powell.
We left early Friday morning, stopping only for gas and breakfast. We had lunch in Yellowstone National Park, walked around Norris Geyser basin, saw a small group of elk and relaxed in our hotel. This year, we forfeited the portable crib for lil' L. He and lil' K shared a queen bed (we did push it against the wall for safety reasons) He had no idea what was going on. I was constantly laying him down for about 30 minutes, before he finally fell asleep. By the third night, he had it down, and was asleep in a matter of minutes with no persuasion.
The best part...I went to take pictures of them as the came back down the stairs. At the bottom of the stairs is a huge gate which gives history and tells readers they cannot go further. A mother is telling her children that "no one" can go up any higher, when along comes the bell hop (their guide) carrying the flags he had just retrieved from the roof. The mother explains he gets to go up there to bring the flags down. Seconds later...F's dad wearing his rain jacket, shorts, and sandals. The mother looks and totally had to retract what she has told her children. A few seconds later comes F's mom with her camera taking all sorts of pictures. The mother didn' t know what to say, so she just went back to explaining that the bell hop goes to get the flags at night.
(Elk, Brink of the Upper Falls)
We left early Friday morning, stopping only for gas and breakfast. We had lunch in Yellowstone National Park, walked around Norris Geyser basin, saw a small group of elk and relaxed in our hotel. This year, we forfeited the portable crib for lil' L. He and lil' K shared a queen bed (we did push it against the wall for safety reasons) He had no idea what was going on. I was constantly laying him down for about 30 minutes, before he finally fell asleep. By the third night, he had it down, and was asleep in a matter of minutes with no persuasion.
(Uncle Tom's Trail, Yellowstone Lake Hotel)
Saturday, we went through Canyon. After seeing the brink of the upper falls, we rounded to the other side to do a hike...more like stair stepping. Uncle Tom's trail took us to the opposite of the falls and to the bottom (great view!!). The downside, 328 stairs. lil' K even made it down and up the stairs. Whenever we stopped to wait for others, she would be itching to keep going. We had to tell her to slow down and rest. lil' L would always ask for water when we took water breaks (I guess he was breakin' a sweat being carried around in a backpack complete with sunshade) Along our drive through Hayden Valley, we came across a buffalo herd, just before that, we got up close and personal with a buffalo (see video). On our drive back into town, we saw the group of elk again, which had backed up traffic and we also saw a bald eagle in a tree top. We were back in West Yellowstone in time for dinner. The boys we looking forward to watching their recorded U game, but something got messed up, so no game.
(View from Hike behind Old Faithful)
Sunday, half of us drove down to Lake to the Yellowstone Lake Hotel. Today was kind of chilly, it did rain a little bit, but only when we were driving. The buffalo were gone from Hayden Valley. We spent lunch through dinner at Old Faithful. We hiked up behind Old Faithful to see Old Faithful go off from above, which was awesome. My sis-in-law worked in Yellowstone in the Old Faithful Inn some years ago, but still knows people there. She pulled some strings and got F's parents a special trip up to the top and onto the roof of the inn (most people can only go to the third floor). The inn has a crow's nest in which an orchestra used to play music ages ago. 
(Parents on top of Inn, Firehole River)
The best part...I went to take pictures of them as the came back down the stairs. At the bottom of the stairs is a huge gate which gives history and tells readers they cannot go further. A mother is telling her children that "no one" can go up any higher, when along comes the bell hop (their guide) carrying the flags he had just retrieved from the roof. The mother explains he gets to go up there to bring the flags down. Seconds later...F's dad wearing his rain jacket, shorts, and sandals. The mother looks and totally had to retract what she has told her children. A few seconds later comes F's mom with her camera taking all sorts of pictures. The mother didn' t know what to say, so she just went back to explaining that the bell hop goes to get the flags at night.
(Comic Relief at Canyon)
Labor Day was spent shopping around town and driving home. We were going to stop at Big Spring for lunch, but it was co-o-old. We arrived home and unpacked, what a month!! Lots of fun and memories, but now it is time to breath and catch up on sleep (most of the damage down through the two weeks of endless Olympic footage). The next vacation on our list? None planned... for this year.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Need a Laugh??
I was checking out some links on dear ole bro's blog, they had a link to Ellen's hawaii chair. Lots of laughs, but more importantly, I'll be receiving mine in 6-8 weeks! (not really, but it could be fun)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHiqVygN-w0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHiqVygN-w0
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Lake Powell
Aaah, relaxation. We travelled with my "in-law" family to Lake Powell. We spent four days on a house boat, at the end of a canyon, with only a small boat and each other... we a lot of each others. The total number of people: 13 adults, 5 children. We had a great time swimming, swimming, eating, playing games, swimming, swimming, and a little bit of sleeping. The kids went to bed late, got up early and did not sleep well away from home. lil' L was wary of the water, but loved to hold on to the oar to our little boat. One day, we took our kids out on the little boat to do some fishing. The fishing lines of the little ones got tangled 
up and as we were trying to untangle, there was a mysterious "pull" to lil' L's. Once we got it rangled in a bit, much to our surprise, there was a sun fish on the end of the line!! lil' L's first fish! I gently held onto the pole (our prized Superman pole) and F motored us to shore. F's dad took pics of the fish, which I don't have. Quite exciting for lil' L. Across our little bay was a large, flat rock wall. We swam or took the boat over for lizard counting excursions. Our highest number at one time: 14. This included baby lizards, only about 2 inches in length. This was also our last time on the Bullfrog Burro. Sad to say, it has been sold. Now someone else can brag about owning the Lake's oldest houseboat (I wish I had a pic, but apparently the opening ceremony of Lake Powell took place on this boat) 
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Burgers and Fries
This last weekend, our little family ventured out to dinner. We decided to try a new little place known as "Five Guys Burger and Fries" Apparently it is new to the area and is quite big in the East. It has won several food awards. The was quite a line to order (probably due to the fact that it just opened within the month) and the dining room was filled. They were quick to move everyone through. Their regular size hamburgers were...double decker, homemade, extremely delicious, and tummy stuffing. The "little hamburgers" were just singles, I probably should have ordered that one. The toppings for the burgers was huge, and all free. None of this 1 topping free, 50 cents for each additional topping. But if you don't order it, you don't get it. The "Large Fries" were just that, Large, enough for our whole family, and fresh (You know it by the bags and bags of Idaho potatoes that double as part of the dining room). While you wait for your food, they have boxes of peanuts for you to snack on. It is not In-N-Out Burger, but it was fantastic. If you have the chance, find one and try. Delicious!!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Day 6 and 7
Friday: San Diego Zoo
For our last full day in San Diego, we spent one last time at the Zoo. First off, we took the Skyfari down to see the Polar Bears. Apparently they are supposed to be more active in the morning. Not so, they were hanging around eating carrots. After watching them for a little while, long enough to apply sunscreen, we made our way back through the artic aviary, the hippos, and took the bus ride again. Afterwards we ate lunch before entering the Children's Zoo. This was a favorite among the kiddies. They have places to have 
your picture taken as various animals or characters. My favorite was the fly stuck in a spider's web. They have a small petting zoo with rabbits, goats, sheep, with cows and pigs in a pen. I thought lil' L would be a bit timid about the animals, but after petting a rabbit, he was happy to chase around the goats. The children's zoo also has a great viewing area of otters. They were happily swimming about when we went through. We walked down Bear Canyon. 
During this walk downhill, lil' L fell asleep. I walked down with him behind me rolling backwards, to keep him laid back. He slept the entire time down the hill, while we shopped for a few minutes and most of the way back up the hill through Cat Canyon. Boy, was he tired. I love seeing all the bears and cats! We walked through the Giraffes and Elephants. By this time, about 3 p.m., F wanted to go back and see the Polar Bears one last time. This would entail a skyfari ride, walk down a steep hill, see the polar bears for the 3rd time at the zoo (5th if you count Sea World), a walk up the steep hill, and one last skyfari ride. I had to be the big bad parent and say no. lil' K had 
already spent a good amount of time telling us she was tired of walking. Therefore, no last look at the Polar Bears. Instead we headed out to Mission Beach. The children played in the sand for a little while, (still only content with the dry sand) until time for dinner at In-N-Out Burger. F has had a shirt since his mission, that is more or less falling apart, so I bought him a new shirt 
for his souvenir. On our way back to the hotel, we exited the freeway and went to the temple grounds. The kids were most fascinated with running on the soft grass. We talked with a missionary for a few minutes. She showed lil' K pictures of the Temple. When we got back to the hotel, guess what!?! One more dip in the pool. After putting the kids to bed, F and I packed up our stuff. Saturday morning, we ate breakfast, cleaned up and headed to return our car. We got to the airport about 2.5 hours 
before our flight was scheduled to leave. We got checked in and went up to the security check. There were not many people in line, about 50 people ahead of us. We had been in line just a few minutes, when they stopped moving people through. TSA couldn't tell us anything but that no one was going through and that no planes were coming or going. We waited, watched the line grow longer and longer behind us. Pretty soon, they were evacuating the terminal. All employees, people ready to board, even some planes. TSA was squeezing people down the stairs, over a sky walk, any place they could. We 
happened to be at the right spot. The people behind us in line, were pushed back to open a walk way to the stairs, which was filled with people who came out of the terminal, meaning we kept our place in line. We heard that TSA had pulled a bag to be checked, at the same time their system froze, and the person with the bag disappeared. It got to be such a big deal, the news showed up. I was hoping to get an on camera interview as weary traveller, but I don't think I looked weary enough. The wait ended up being an hour 
before they moved people through again, and also to not ever find the missing bag/person. We got to our gate about 10 minutes before the plane was scheduled to leave, but of course they couldn't because we were some of the first passengers there. They figured it would be 40-45 minutes before they could even think about it. They were close. 45 minutes later, security still had 2-3 hundred people to get through security. Overall, we were delayed an hour. Not too bad, but I certainly would not like to do that again 
with the kids. I do have to say, they did really well being in cramped quarters filled with people. We had others comment on how behaved they are. I was quite impressed, but was even happier to get on a plane. lil' L ended up falling asleep as we took off and didn't wake until we had landed. This made for an uncomfortable flight for F, he was the one holding lil' L the whole time. The trip was a blast! So much fun, it was the first big vacation we have taken as a family which did not include extended 
family.
Pictures on the Left side: Polar Bears; lil' L sleeping peacefully; Spider K and Fly L; lil' K and lil' L at the Temple; The kids swimming.
Pictures on the Right side: Kid on the hippo statue; Big...big bear; Petting zoo; Good looking couple we found at the beach; The same good looking couple at the Temple.
For our last full day in San Diego, we spent one last time at the Zoo. First off, we took the Skyfari down to see the Polar Bears. Apparently they are supposed to be more active in the morning. Not so, they were hanging around eating carrots. After watching them for a little while, long enough to apply sunscreen, we made our way back through the artic aviary, the hippos, and took the bus ride again. Afterwards we ate lunch before entering the Children's Zoo. This was a favorite among the kiddies. They have places to have 
your picture taken as various animals or characters. My favorite was the fly stuck in a spider's web. They have a small petting zoo with rabbits, goats, sheep, with cows and pigs in a pen. I thought lil' L would be a bit timid about the animals, but after petting a rabbit, he was happy to chase around the goats. The children's zoo also has a great viewing area of otters. They were happily swimming about when we went through. We walked down Bear Canyon. 
During this walk downhill, lil' L fell asleep. I walked down with him behind me rolling backwards, to keep him laid back. He slept the entire time down the hill, while we shopped for a few minutes and most of the way back up the hill through Cat Canyon. Boy, was he tired. I love seeing all the bears and cats! We walked through the Giraffes and Elephants. By this time, about 3 p.m., F wanted to go back and see the Polar Bears one last time. This would entail a skyfari ride, walk down a steep hill, see the polar bears for the 3rd time at the zoo (5th if you count Sea World), a walk up the steep hill, and one last skyfari ride. I had to be the big bad parent and say no. lil' K had 
already spent a good amount of time telling us she was tired of walking. Therefore, no last look at the Polar Bears. Instead we headed out to Mission Beach. The children played in the sand for a little while, (still only content with the dry sand) until time for dinner at In-N-Out Burger. F has had a shirt since his mission, that is more or less falling apart, so I bought him a new shirt 
for his souvenir. On our way back to the hotel, we exited the freeway and went to the temple grounds. The kids were most fascinated with running on the soft grass. We talked with a missionary for a few minutes. She showed lil' K pictures of the Temple. When we got back to the hotel, guess what!?! One more dip in the pool. After putting the kids to bed, F and I packed up our stuff. Saturday morning, we ate breakfast, cleaned up and headed to return our car. We got to the airport about 2.5 hours 
before our flight was scheduled to leave. We got checked in and went up to the security check. There were not many people in line, about 50 people ahead of us. We had been in line just a few minutes, when they stopped moving people through. TSA couldn't tell us anything but that no one was going through and that no planes were coming or going. We waited, watched the line grow longer and longer behind us. Pretty soon, they were evacuating the terminal. All employees, people ready to board, even some planes. TSA was squeezing people down the stairs, over a sky walk, any place they could. We 
happened to be at the right spot. The people behind us in line, were pushed back to open a walk way to the stairs, which was filled with people who came out of the terminal, meaning we kept our place in line. We heard that TSA had pulled a bag to be checked, at the same time their system froze, and the person with the bag disappeared. It got to be such a big deal, the news showed up. I was hoping to get an on camera interview as weary traveller, but I don't think I looked weary enough. The wait ended up being an hour 
before they moved people through again, and also to not ever find the missing bag/person. We got to our gate about 10 minutes before the plane was scheduled to leave, but of course they couldn't because we were some of the first passengers there. They figured it would be 40-45 minutes before they could even think about it. They were close. 45 minutes later, security still had 2-3 hundred people to get through security. Overall, we were delayed an hour. Not too bad, but I certainly would not like to do that again 
with the kids. I do have to say, they did really well being in cramped quarters filled with people. We had others comment on how behaved they are. I was quite impressed, but was even happier to get on a plane. lil' L ended up falling asleep as we took off and didn't wake until we had landed. This made for an uncomfortable flight for F, he was the one holding lil' L the whole time. The trip was a blast! So much fun, it was the first big vacation we have taken as a family which did not include extended 
family.Pictures on the Left side: Polar Bears; lil' L sleeping peacefully; Spider K and Fly L; lil' K and lil' L at the Temple; The kids swimming.
Pictures on the Right side: Kid on the hippo statue; Big...big bear; Petting zoo; Good looking couple we found at the beach; The same good looking couple at the Temple.
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