Snowbird 2015 Style

Jeremy and Jaxon were still away at scout camp and had McKay left to join them for Youth Conference.  So Josh, Kayden and I decided to take the opportunity to use the White family time share and go up to Snowbird over night.  We had a great time and it was nice to get away.

When we got there, we found a playground right away and had some fun making obstacle courses and playing.  We weren't the only ones there to have a good time.  Right next to the playground we found a moose grazing in the grass (behind Josh and Kayden).

Another view of the moose with Josh.  We were surprised how long that moose stuck around to have a snack.

 We enjoyed dinner back in our room.  Kayden sure thought the calzone was tasty. 

The weather turned cold and windy since a big thunder storm was moving in.  So we decided to go and play some games down at the arcade.
 

The next day we went over the resort to enjoy all the activities that they have there.  Above Josh, Kayden and I were waiting to take a ride up the tram.

It was down right chilly at the top of the mountain!  Kayden had to tuck his arms in his shirt to stay warm. But man the view of the valley below was spectacular!

Then Kayden moved inside the tram car and stuck his head in his shirt too.  For a July day 50 degrees was COLD!
 

 Josh and I stayed outside of the tram to enjoy more of the views.

 Josh had a good time doing tricks on the bungee trampoline.

But our favorite ride of the day was the Mountain Coaster.  We went on that a bunch of times!

 

Left is Josh and Kayden riding the zip-line and right is Josh on the Mountain Coaster.  We had a great time spending time together making our own memories while the rest of the family was off making memories of their own.

Timp Caves

Jeremy and Jaxon were off to scout camp, but we stayed busy with our visiting cousins.  We decided it was time to take the cousins with Grandma and Grandpa and go and see what Timpanogos Caves are all about.
 

At the trails head.  It was a nice day for a hike.  We were worried about the heat, but we had some cloud cover and a nice breeze.

 Kayden was thrilled to bring his hiking stick along--that is until it broke.

 Along the trail.

 At the top of the trail ready to go inside the caves.  

 

Kayden (left) is showing the beautiful view behind him at the top of the mountain. Josh inside the cave (top) and Josh with the caramel formation behind him (bottom).

McKay just before the lights went out (left).  Josh and his cousin together inside the cave and Josh with the heart of Timanogos (right).

After we finished hiking and enjoying the caves and also a nice picnic lunch in the rain, we drove to Pleasant Grove where we had heard a scout troop draped a flag at the mouth of one of the canyons for the week of the 4th of July.  It was a beauty to behold.

We all enjoyed seeing it--except for Kayden who was very grumpy that we stopped here before going and getting ice cream.

It was a nice day and a good way to spend time with cousins!

A Garden of my Own

Four years this year have we been in our new house.  All four years I have taken the opportunity to harvest my neighbors' gardens.  I was really looking forward to have my own garden space and finishing off the south side of our backyard.  A couple of weeks before Mother's Day I asked Jeremy if he had already gotten my gift.  He laughed and said, "You think way too much of me!"  I told him I wanted a garden to plant this year.  Finishing off the side yard was already on our "to do" list, but I wanted to plant this year.  Jeremy wasted no time.  He called his nephew and made arrangements for him to build us garden boxes.  While they were being built, Jeremy trenched and hooked up the irrigation system to be ready for the boxes.  He and the boys leveled the area, place the boxes and filled them with dirt.  Then the boys helped Jeremy load sand to be able to place the flagstone and then also placed the crushed granite path.  It turned out beautiful!

They had most of the garden done before Mother's Day--enough for me to plant some corn, carrots, peas, beans, raspberries, squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, four types of peppers, tomatoes and onions. It is going to be a busy harvest!  It has been a wonderful gift that I will enjoy for years to come.

Backpacking Adventure

Jeremy decided to take all four boys backpacking this summer for three days.  I wasn't officially invited until the morning of when Kayden decided he would miss me.  I thought about it for about a half second and decided backpacking in the back country with no bathrooms was not my kind of adventure.  Jeremy gave Kayden his own pocket knife for the trip and suddenly mom was a second thought and they were off.  They had a great weekend and I enjoyed staying home getting things done and spending time with my sister, niece and nephew who were in town from Houston.

 

On the way to the Uintas,  they stopped and took a short walk to the Provo Falls.  

 

On the trail.  Josh and Kayden were surprised to still see snow in June!  (We had a horrible snow pack this year.)

 

Camp life.

 They took a hike up to "The Saddle".  It was a beautiful view.

 A dad and his boys.  They had a great time making memories together.

 They even did some cliff jumping.

 They did some playing around with taking videos of them jumping in slow motion.  They happen to catch Kayden doing a nice face-plant.  They all thought it was quite funny.

All four of the boys jumping in all at once.  McKay's pose was just too good to not include.

When they got home they were glad to see me.  However, they said that they mentioned several times at camp that it was a good thing that I wasn't there and that I would have never let them do several of the things that dad let them do.  I am glad they had a good time together--even doing the things that I would have never allowed!

20 Year Anniversary

Time is a funny thing.  It has been 20 years since our wedding day in 1995:

 
We look like babies.  Not much life experience and definitely not any money.  My Grandpa Culley used to ask us, "What are you going to live on?  Love?"  And that is precisely what has pulled us through these last 20 years.  In the last 20 years we both graduated with our bachelors, moved across the country, Jeremy graduated from dental school, I taught school, we endured miscarriages, opened a business, bought a home, sold a home, built a  home, had four boys, grown through various church callings and who knows what else.  We definitely have more life experience, money sufficient for our needs and a lot more love.

So we decided we needed to celebrate our 20 year anniversary with some zing!  Jeremy decided he would plan the whole thing.  He told me what to pack and even set up babysitting for the weekend with Grandma.  We left after work on a Thursday and came home on Saturday afternoon.

We started out having dinner at one of my favorite restaurants.  Then we drove up to Park City and got in late to our hotel which was right on the base of the Park City Resort.  We slept in the first morning and then went and toured the Olympic Park.  It was fun to see where a lot of the events took place during the 2002 Olympics. Afterwards we spent some time having some fun at the base of Park City Resort.

 We rode the chair lift, went down the Alpine Slide and also rode the Mountain Coaster.  It was an fun afternoon.  We loved just hanging out together.

 

The next morning Jeremy had arranged for us to take a ride on a hot air balloon.  Now talk about an adventure!  We had to get up early to help set up the balloon.  It was neat to see Park City from a bird's eye view.
 

 Ready for lift off!

 Jeremy took a panoramic shot of the valley.

It wasn't scary at all being up high in the balloon.  The only time I felt nervous was when I looked straight down (pictured above on the right--there were a couple of balloons below us).  I felt a little dizzy and decided that looking out and beyond was the best.

We had a great weekend and loved spending time together reminiscing and looking back over the years.  We are so grateful for each other and are looking forward to the years ahead and into the eternities.

Stake Young Women's

My heart is full of love for these women:

I have worked for the past year and a half in the Stake Young Women's program with them.  Left to right: Andrea (1st counselor), me (secretary), Gay (president) and Cathy (2nd counselor)  This photo was taken at the end of our amazing week at Milestones to Christ.  We spent a whole week with 100 of the Laurels in our stake learning about the Savior and His infinite atonement.

While at Milestones to Christ, we did a impromptu service project.  Our group chose to go to a rest home to visit the residents there.  All the residents were in "brain therapy" except for Betty (pictured with the girls above), whom they allowed us to visit.  Betty is an amazing woman.  Her husband died when she was a young mother and she raised 5 kids on her own.  She put herself through school and then taught home economics at the high school in Manti for nearly 30 years. She was full of wisdom.  She counseled the girls that life will be hard and that you have to decide now how strong your testimony is and what you will do when you face adversity.
 

A couple of days after we got home, a sweet laurel anonymously brought me a bouquet of roses with a thoughtful thank you card.  She has no idea how much this means to me.

I am so blessed to have had this opportunity to serve the young women in our stake with the women that I have.  I have learned and grown so much from the people whom I have served and served with.

UPDATE:

About two weeks after Milestones to Christ, we learned that we were being released from our callings.  It was rough as we loved what we did.  We had a dinner get together at Gay's cabin where we talked about all of our experiences and our favorite memories.

 I LOVE these women.  I have learned so much from them and created such a quick bond with them.  They helped strengthen my testimony and to help me realize some of my potential.  They will always hold a special place in my heart.

Our official releasing.  Here we are pictured with the High Councilman that we worked with, Rob Smith.  What a terrific experience that made me grow way outside of my comfort zone and that taught me so much.

Summer Fun

Oh the joys of summer!  We had a spontaneous game of  baseball in the backyard.  It was a game full of fun and laughter.

 Batter up, McKay!

 Kayden on second base with Josh in the outfield.

 Jaxon patiently waiting on first base to be hit home.

McKay showing off his skills--sticking out his rear and all.  He had us all laughing!

These are the days to remember!