Jacob was fascinated with the rainbows, lightning and thunder that came with our wet June weather.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
VACATION - BRYCE CANYON & CALF CREEK FALLS
Wednesday after we left Zion we headed over to Bryce Canyon. On the way we stopped at a rock shop. Then Nathan and Joe went up a canyon rock hunting a while. We rode into Panguitch for lunch and a shake and then went over to Bryce. We stayed in North Campground in the park. We were really close to the Visitor Center again. We went on a ranger walk along the rim of the canyon that evening.
On Thursday morning, we rode over to Calf Creek Falls which was about an hour a way. We hiked the 6 mile hike to the Lower Calf Creek Falls. The kids loved it so much. We all wore our swimming suits under our clothes so that we could swim in the pool when we got to the end. It was cold and refreshing. It was a bit too cold to put our heads under the water though.
We had our picnic lunch at the waterfall. There was a raven that was hanging around trying to find some scraps of food. Jacob hadn't eaten all of his sandwich, so we put it back in his bag for later. We tucked it in with our stuff. As we were walking away from our blanket the raven went over and grabbed his sandwich from our pack. Jacob has talked about the raven taking his food ever since. We have gone on a few picnics since then and if a bird comes around he will grab his food, hold it tight and tell the bird, "It's my food." It is pretty funny. It was the perfect weather. There was a little breeze while we were hiking which helped keep us cool enough. There are several sections that are sandy like the beach, it was harder to hike on those sections. It was kind of long and Joe was pretty slow, but he did hike the whole way and he did a great job.
That evening we went to the ranger program and learned about the nocturnal animals in the park. Then Mark took the big kids over to look through the telescopes. They saw the moon and Saturn. They could even see the Saturn's rings. They said it was so cool and they wanted to get a telescope after that.
Friday morning Nathan, Sammi, Mark and I hiked down into the canyon on "the best three mile hike you will ever go on!" We hiked the Queens Garden Trail over to the Navajo Trail. It was really pretty. It was cool to see the hoodoos from a different angle. The weather was a little cool. It was nice that we weren't hot! We hiked back to camp because the bus wait was longer than we could have walked back. When we got back Shelly and Mom had camp all cleaned up and we hitched the trailer so we could check out of the campground in time. We parked it in the parking lot and went on the shuttle to all of the overlooks. We had our picnic along the way. At lunch there was a cute little squirrel that kept coming over. Jacob had fun watching and talking to the squirrel.
Friday we drove back to Ft. Green so that we could stop to mow the lawn. We stayed the night there and then came back to town on Saturday. We had a great time. Mark was already trying to plan another trip before we were even back.
That was our big trip of the summer. We had fun and hiked about 20 miles. Now the kids have gone to all of the National Parks in Utah. We need to start on the National Monuments and State Parks. We are hoping to go camping a few more times this summer on the weekends. We love camping!
On Thursday morning, we rode over to Calf Creek Falls which was about an hour a way. We hiked the 6 mile hike to the Lower Calf Creek Falls. The kids loved it so much. We all wore our swimming suits under our clothes so that we could swim in the pool when we got to the end. It was cold and refreshing. It was a bit too cold to put our heads under the water though.
We had our picnic lunch at the waterfall. There was a raven that was hanging around trying to find some scraps of food. Jacob hadn't eaten all of his sandwich, so we put it back in his bag for later. We tucked it in with our stuff. As we were walking away from our blanket the raven went over and grabbed his sandwich from our pack. Jacob has talked about the raven taking his food ever since. We have gone on a few picnics since then and if a bird comes around he will grab his food, hold it tight and tell the bird, "It's my food." It is pretty funny. It was the perfect weather. There was a little breeze while we were hiking which helped keep us cool enough. There are several sections that are sandy like the beach, it was harder to hike on those sections. It was kind of long and Joe was pretty slow, but he did hike the whole way and he did a great job.
That evening we went to the ranger program and learned about the nocturnal animals in the park. Then Mark took the big kids over to look through the telescopes. They saw the moon and Saturn. They could even see the Saturn's rings. They said it was so cool and they wanted to get a telescope after that.
Friday morning Nathan, Sammi, Mark and I hiked down into the canyon on "the best three mile hike you will ever go on!" We hiked the Queens Garden Trail over to the Navajo Trail. It was really pretty. It was cool to see the hoodoos from a different angle. The weather was a little cool. It was nice that we weren't hot! We hiked back to camp because the bus wait was longer than we could have walked back. When we got back Shelly and Mom had camp all cleaned up and we hitched the trailer so we could check out of the campground in time. We parked it in the parking lot and went on the shuttle to all of the overlooks. We had our picnic along the way. At lunch there was a cute little squirrel that kept coming over. Jacob had fun watching and talking to the squirrel.
Friday we drove back to Ft. Green so that we could stop to mow the lawn. We stayed the night there and then came back to town on Saturday. We had a great time. Mark was already trying to plan another trip before we were even back.
That was our big trip of the summer. We had fun and hiked about 20 miles. Now the kids have gone to all of the National Parks in Utah. We need to start on the National Monuments and State Parks. We are hoping to go camping a few more times this summer on the weekends. We love camping!
Sunday, July 5, 2009
VACATION - ZION NATIONAL PARK
After leaving the Grand Canyon on Monday morning we headed up to Zion National Park. On the way we stopped at the Moqui Cave in Kanab. The kids liked to see the gems that glowed in the dark and of course shopping in the store.
We camped at Watchman campground in the park. We could just walk over to the visitor center from the campground and get on the bus. Jacob loved the bus and loved that there was a "trailer" on the bus. We always had to sit in the back bus so we were in the trailer. On Monday night we went on the bus tour with the ranger. It was nice to see an overview and learn some of the history right in the beginning. That night we went to the evening fireside ranger talk about the flora and fauna of Zion. It had rained earlier in the day and the road was still wet. As we walked in the dark to the ranger talk, Mark almost stepped on a frog. We turned on our flashlights and saw many frogs. After the talk we went frog hunting until about 11:00 p.m. We had fun walking around looking for frogs.
On Tuesday we hiked to the Upper Emerald Pools. We also hiked the Weeping Rock trail and the Riverside Trail. We did a lot of hiking about 8 miles or so. We had a great time exploring the canyon beyond the bus tour. The kids loved wading in the water at the Emerald pools. There were tons of tadpoles and frogs. They even saw some mating. A big hit for the big kids.
Wednesday morning the kids went to a Jr. Ranger Program where they learned about wild turkeys. They got a special patch to go along with their Jr. Ranger badge. We left Zion that afternoon to head to Bryce Canyon. The kids liked riding through the tunnels. Zion is beautiful! Mark wants to go back in the fall and hike Angel's Landing. I hope we make it back there. Zion National Park is 100 years old this year!
We camped at Watchman campground in the park. We could just walk over to the visitor center from the campground and get on the bus. Jacob loved the bus and loved that there was a "trailer" on the bus. We always had to sit in the back bus so we were in the trailer. On Monday night we went on the bus tour with the ranger. It was nice to see an overview and learn some of the history right in the beginning. That night we went to the evening fireside ranger talk about the flora and fauna of Zion. It had rained earlier in the day and the road was still wet. As we walked in the dark to the ranger talk, Mark almost stepped on a frog. We turned on our flashlights and saw many frogs. After the talk we went frog hunting until about 11:00 p.m. We had fun walking around looking for frogs.
On Tuesday we hiked to the Upper Emerald Pools. We also hiked the Weeping Rock trail and the Riverside Trail. We did a lot of hiking about 8 miles or so. We had a great time exploring the canyon beyond the bus tour. The kids loved wading in the water at the Emerald pools. There were tons of tadpoles and frogs. They even saw some mating. A big hit for the big kids.
Wednesday morning the kids went to a Jr. Ranger Program where they learned about wild turkeys. They got a special patch to go along with their Jr. Ranger badge. We left Zion that afternoon to head to Bryce Canyon. The kids liked riding through the tunnels. Zion is beautiful! Mark wants to go back in the fall and hike Angel's Landing. I hope we make it back there. Zion National Park is 100 years old this year!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
VACATION - GRAND CANYON
The last day of school was on Friday, May 29. We left straight from school and went with Shelly, Grandma Linda and Nathan on our big camping vacation. We started at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We arrived Friday evening and stayed there until Monday. The weather was rainy each afternoon, but it didn't hamper any of our plans. We just put on our jackets and rain coats and still had fun. Who would have thought that we would be wearing our coats at the Grand Canyon in June? I didn't pack many warm clothes because we were going to the Grand Canyon and it was suppose to be warm, right?
We camped in the campground in the park. It was really nice and there was a big place for the kids to play. We went to ranger and evening programs about the California Condors, bats, stars and of course the kids did the Jr. Ranger program. We love to learn about nature and enjoy the ranger programs. We hiked several of the trails that were on the rim and overlooks. It was really pretty. We didn't think that we were quite up to the 15 + mile trails that dropped down in the canyon, but we did enjoy the beautiful views from above.
We camped in the campground in the park. It was really nice and there was a big place for the kids to play. We went to ranger and evening programs about the California Condors, bats, stars and of course the kids did the Jr. Ranger program. We love to learn about nature and enjoy the ranger programs. We hiked several of the trails that were on the rim and overlooks. It was really pretty. We didn't think that we were quite up to the 15 + mile trails that dropped down in the canyon, but we did enjoy the beautiful views from above.
Crazy May
May flew by and is long gone but I had a few pictures that I wanted to post. We love the springtime in Fountain Green. We love to go up to the farm and see the baby lambs. Sammi always says that she want to be a sheep farmer after going to the farm. We helped to plant the garden. This year we are trying to grow a sunflower circle. I got the idea from a children's book. Then it becomes a playhouse during the summer. We will see how it turns out. I survived the end of the school year with all of the deadlines and our end of the year program. May is a crazy time of year for teachers, but it is a the time of year that we look forward to because it means that it is VACATION TIME!
Friday, May 1, 2009
April in Review.
Ok, I am a huge blog slacker. Here is a slide show of our past month in review. We have been super busy, but have had a lot of fun. Jake is now talking up a storm and saying all kinds of things. There are only twenty more days of school, but who is counting?
New Shoes!




I haven't splurged on really nice shoes since I got married. I have needed some new shoes and I have been researching for a while. I found amazing deals on the website 6pm.com and I splurged and got three pair of Dansko shoes, because I got them for over 50% off. I got three pair of shoes for cheaper than I could have bought two pairs of shoes in the store. They are so cute and super comfortable especially since I am on my feet most of the day. I have got lot of comments on my "sexy" red shoes. We also got Sammi a pair of DC skater shoes for $10.00. The shipping was only $7.00 total for all four pair of shoes. If you are looking for new shoes check out that website they have awesome deals, amazing shoes and great brands. I did try similar styles on in stores to check out sizes and fit especially since they are European sized. I love my new shoes! I also got a pair of my classic Teva flip flops. Shoe shopping is so much fun! I even bought all of them online.
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