A dad and his boys, I mean girls

After we spent the weekend in Yellowstone and Scott was remembering all the fun he used to have with his dad and grandpa hunting, he decided it was time to teach his girls how to shoot.

We went to Cabela's and found a pellet/bb gun and found a location near by that would allow us to shoot at targets.  (Shooting a pellet gun is different than shooting a real gun because the pellet is shot with air instead of gun powder).  So we headed out to the other side of the lake for Family Home Evening.

I was really impressed with how well the girls did.  They both struggled to keep one eye closed so we were glad to have the work around of an orange headband our stylish younger one had worn.

It wasn't easy getting them to feel where to hold it against their cheek and there were times the gun was more resting on their shoulders but eventually they caught on.

We all took turns and had fun racing up to see if we'd hit anywhere on the target and were always thrilled when we actually nailed it.   As you can see below, we hit the apple a couple of times, tore through the can and grazed the yogurt bottle.  But we have several hits on the wood.  Which, in my book is pretty darn good.

The kids loved it and are looking forward to going out again.

Ice Castles - The group

Each year you can find beautiful snow castles up in Midway.  This year, we finally managed to make it up to them before they closed.  It was a cold day but it was definitely worth it.  We went with my parents and my sister's family.

We almost got in trouble because of the brief snowball fight we had in one of the open areas.  The girls thought it was really cool.

We went first in the afternoon, then went and had BBQ (that was only mediocre) and then went back to see how the castles looked in the evening with all of the lights.  I thought they were super cool in the day but far better at night.

Girls on the top of the world

The girls loved being up on the top of the world. The smiles were non-stop. Even when they were cold, they were still having fun. We spent about a half an hour at the top of the world in the cold. Fortunately there was a warming hut and a bathroom at the top. Each girl found different ways to entertain themselves up on the top of the mountain.

They danced and did gymnastics because that is what they do. (We saw a guy with a yoga shirt doing handstands on the rock by the edge. Jade was not about to be outdone.)

Two cool girls...

Weekends are full of so many options. Options that always present a struggle. With two working parents, our house and yard show some wear and tear by the end of the week. Our weekends could be filled with cleaning, organizing or getting projects done. We could make our house and yard look perfect. Or we can spend time playing with the girls escaping the mundane.

When our girls are grown, what are they going to look back and remember the most? They aren't going to remember the weekends we cleaned the basement or winterized the yard. So we are trying hard to make sure they have special memories of the time that we spend together- as a family.

The girls were being very "cool" while they walked to the tram carrying their cans of food.

Snowbird Tram- Customer Appreciation Day

Snowbird Ski Resort does a fantastic Customer Appreciation event. The first two weekends of this November, you could donate a can of food and receive a free tram pass.

So we took the opportunity and seized the day. We had a relaxing morning of pancakes and reading. We slowly got ready for the day and headed up for the cold. By cold, I mean 34 degrees cold.

Jade and Ivy were lucky and they got to be up at the front of the tram. The poor woman behind us was struggling with a fear of heights, so my kind husband pointed out whenever we were over a significant drop off. My girls didn't get nervous, but she did. It's amazing how high the tram is, you are looking down on the chairlifts and they look so little. But it was beautiful. Unfortunately there wasn't much snow. I can't imagine them really being able to open for Thanksgiving.

Scott and Josh went 4-wheeling along the road to Provo. Jade was looking so adorable by the sign that I had to capture it.

We got some fun pictures of the family with the beautiful view behind us.

The Rock Picture

The tradition of the Little Sahara four wheeling trips is a picture out by the Rock. Here's the picture of the group that went out to the rock.

While we were out at the rock, Jade and Scott went for a climb to find snake skins. They didn't have any luck but had fun climbing together.

Saturday November 7th at the Dunes

As you know, Scott goes to the Sand Dunes at Little Sahara, UT about 15 times a year. We used to go to the riding together when we were a carefree couple, without kids. But, now that we are a family of 4, I don't like to take the time away from the girls and I'm a bit frightened of getting hurt and leaving them without a mom, so I don't go with him. Saturday November 7th, was the first time I've been back to Little Sahara, since Jade was 4 months old. I loved our outing with our girls and loved getting to enjoy the great big dunes of Delta.

We went with the Johnson family and 3 of their friends. It was fun creating a circle of cars and trailers, setting up a canopy, lighting a fire and cooking on a grill. The kids had a blast riding around the camp on the little four-wheeler and playing in the sand. Plus the weather was amazing. Scott commented that we could go the next 20 years on November 7th and never have as good of weather as we did. It was short sleeve weather most of the day. As the sun started to set, the sweatshirts came out, but that was it. No need for hot cocoa, thermals or jackets. The only downside of the great weather were the crowds. There were people nearly every where you looked. Because there were so many people, we saw an ambulance and a helicopter. Which means the sign entering Little Sahara shows zero days since the last injury.

As soon as we got there, we did an easy ride to the left of Sand Mountain. We took it slow and kept the caravan of about 10 quads together. The worst thing that happened was a broken flag from being kicked on a dismount. Everyone was able to get where we needed and everyone had a great time.

After the first ride, we gathered and ate and ate and ate.

With full bellies and kids full of sand, 5 of us decided to ride out to the infamous rock. The remaining riders stayed at camp and did some training rides on the smaller dunes. The ride out to the rock was beautiful. The sun was just setting on our way back and the shadows of the dunes was absolutely breath taking. It reminded me of some rides we used to do as a couple. The guys got to shoot some of the tall hills and speed around some of the bowls. And Jade got to roll down some of the monster hills. Her shoes were full of sand and so were her pockets, but she was in heaven.

After a great day at the dunes, I'm looking forward to next spring when we can take the girls down again and enjoy Sand Mountain and the Rock.

Haunted Train Ride...

In preparation for Halloween we went on the Heber Creepers Haunted Canyon. The weather was great and almost everyone had a great time. Jade and Ivy loved everything about the ride. They loved the ghosts, the ghouls and the werewolves. Harrison raved about the characters and Luke covered his eyes the whole time.

It was fun hearing all of the stories about the haunted canyon. Some of them were more believable than others, but all were fun.

My only complaint is that it only lasted 35 minutes round trip.

BYU Campus for a day...

Scott and I had bronchitis. Neither of us were feeling very well, so my parents were kind enough to take the girls for the day. They went and had a blast playing at BYU.

First they played at the Bean Museum- a famliy favorite. Grandma held a snake, Luke wore a shell and Jade kept herself busy doing the scavenger hunt.

After going to the Bean Museum, they walked up to the bells and had fun getting their hair stuck to the wall. Jade's did it the best and Luke required a little help from the rest of the kids. (note the small picture on the top left corner).

What better way to finish up a visit to BYU, than the Creamery on 9th. BYU really has some of the best ice cream and the price is right. The kids were very creative in their demonstration of how to eat ice cream.

Thanksgiving Point- Children's Garden

On Labor day we had gone through the Thanksgiving Point Discovery Gardens before going into the Luau. Ivy really loved it and was eager to go back. A couple of days later she asked Miss Kim to take her. As Ivy and Jade are both "list makers," Ivy created a list of things to see and she wanted to take her sketch book with her. In addition to the notebooks, she also took the camera. (I do love that my passion for photography as been passed on to my girls). The bottom two pictures were taken by Ivy. She's actually got a pretty good eye.

Labor Day - Part 2

To finish off our Labor Day celebrations, my folks took all of us to Thanksgiving Point for their Labor Day Luau. Did you know that they do a Luau? It is really great and very well done. First they have a buffet of some really yummy food. The girls ate really well, of course Ivy loved the watermelon and Jade loved the meat. They both ate a ton.

After dinner we wondered around a bit and then there was a show put on by UVU's Legacy. It was very fun to watch. Jade loved it and was copying the dancers in her seat. Unfortunately we couldn't stay til the end, so Jade was crushed. We're on a quest to find when they are performing next so that she can see the whole show.

It was all wonderful, I have to be honest. As much as we enjoyed it and as great as it was- there were some definite items that could use some improvement.

1. The line was so long for the food but it moved very quickly. Unfortunately, they did not have enough drink stations or enough juice. We were not close to the end of the line, and all that was left was water.

2. The show was advertised as starting at 7:00 and that it would be an hour show. They were a half an hour late starting, and when we left at 8:30, they were referring to the second half of the show.

3. It didn't seem like the performers had run the show with the music and lights before. There were cut-offs mid song and delays.

4. The traffic guys were sending us through residential neighborhoods to get back to the freeway. There has to be an easier way to leave the Thanksgiving Point Amphitheater.

Overall, it was a wonderful night and a very fun day.

Thanks mom and dad for taking us, it was great.

Sunday up at Cascade Springs

Jade managed to get pretty sick during her third week of school. She had a fever for 6 days- which is normal for Ivy, but definitely not for Jade. We took her to the doctor and determined she had tonsillitis. They said to keep her home for the duration of the fever and an extra day after the fever broke. So, she was still fevering on Sunday, but she was feeling pretty good. That ended up being our day that we played hookie and went up to Daniel's Summit. Strawberry Reservoir was SO packed that there were NO good places to take our family pictures. On the drive home we decided to drive the Alpine Loop and stop off at Cascade Springs. (My parents almost did the same thing and would have arrived there at about the same time as us, but they changed their minds. We didn't know until hours after we came home.)

Cascade Springs used to be one of my places that I would escape to when I was mending a broken heart, struggling with the woes of being a college student or just needed a break after work at Sundance. I remember finding a bench and reading or doing homework for hours. This was my first visit since maybe 1996. It is still as beautiful as I remember it, but definitely more crowded.

We got a few pictures and headed home to give Jade more Ibuprofen.

It was a wonderful, relaxing and beautiful Sunday. Sometimes Sundays like this are just necessary.