Goblin Valley

Day 3 continued

Goblin Valley

This was my favorite. These huge mushroom shaped "goblin" stone formations fill this valley and you can run around and climb on them. We got there while it was raining and it was so fun. Running around in the mud. Kids would love this place. I think we want to take our nephews camping here. Laser tag at night would be fun.

Capitol Reef State Park

Day 3 continued

Capitol Reef State Park

This canyon was really pretty. There was once a town called Fruita. There are still orchards growing at the foot of the canyon walls. It was such a cool place. There were a ton of old cars traveling somewhere together while we stopped.

As part of the park they have a scenic road the has huge cliffs we drove down too...but Fruita was my favorite.

Boulder Mountain

Day 3 continued

Boulder Mountain

This was an awesome drive up Boulder Mountain. You could see for miles and the landscape was incredible. The mountain had aspens at the higher altitudes and it was really green. The mountain is an open cattle range so cows were all over the place.

Town of Boulder

This tiny town has a population of 150 people and it is clear in the mountain. Completely isolated from anything for hours in either direction. We drove through as the sun was setting and the town was having a big party with live music and it was so quaint. I can't imagine what life would be like in such a tiny, isolated town. I think the majority of them are mountain cattle ranchers. It was neat to drive through.

On the south of Boulder, UT the road is built on what they call the "hogsback" which is a narrow ridge between huge canyons. The photo above doesn't do it justice, but for miles the road was curving along this narrow strip with cliffs of canyon on either side. We read that it was completed as a government funded project to provide jobs during the Great Depression (Civilian Conservation Corps) and was finished in the early 1940s. It was the first time the residents of Boulder, UT received regular mail deliveries. It later allowed them to have electricity for the first time in 1947. It was crazy to see these power lines perching on the edge of the cliffs.

The rest of the canyon on our way out of boulder toward Escalante.

Bryce Canyon

Day 4

Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon is impressive. It is a huge area in the mountains that has these huge stone pillars called Hoodoos. It was really large and kind of overwhelming, and the last stop on our trip.

These Peas Are Killing Me Right Now

While I was watching my nieces/nephews in Logan, one little nephew, Mitch would always say that food was "killing him right now". For example, one night Rhett, RJ and I were eating dinner in the basement apartment we were staying in and we had a frozen pizza. All the kids follow us wherever RJ goes so they were sitting on the couch chatting with us as we ate. Their dinner was being prepared upstairs by their mom. All the sudden, Mitch couldn't take it anymore and interjected in the middle of a conversation: "Man! That pizza is KILLING me right now." We gave him some.

Anytime there was a food he loved and he couldn't eat it right then, it would kill him. I thought it was funny.

Lately, these fresh peas from my mom's garden have been killing me right now and every day since they've been ready. The last couple years I've slowly developed an allergy to them. You may think, big deal, you can't eat peas anymore. You don't understand what they mean to me. As a kid my mom would always ask us in the early spring if there was anything we'd like her to plant in the garden. I would always tell her just to plant the whole garden full of peas. I wasn't the only one in love with the peas. I asked Lynette yesterday if she also had the childhood obsession with the peas and she replied: "Oh ya. I remember waiting for them to be ready, then we'd eat all of ours and go to Grandma's to eat all of hers. Pretty much eat peas for breakfast, peas for lunch, and diarrhea the rest of the day." Totally. Pea season was magical as a kid.

But yesterday I ate 10 pods worth, obviously in quick succession, and immediately my throat started itching like crazy. Rhett was standing there as I lamented my physiological reaction to my favorite childhood food, and intervened as I started opening another pod. "What are you doing? I don't want you do have an anaphylactic reaction. You can't eat peas anymore." Wo is me. It's like going cold turkey on some addictive drug when your illegal peers are harvesting the marijuana or something. Large green, lush piles everywhere! My mom suggested blanching them to cook the allergic enzymes that are evil to me, but it's just not the same. I can eat cooked peas anytime.

These peas are killing me right now!!!!

Home Again

We're back home again after our month in Logan. It's nice to be back. This photo is my favorite place in my mom's house. The French windows open to the outside and the roses frame the view and smell so great. I like to read or write on the couch and I feel like I'm in a Jane Austen novel or something.

Happy Father's Day

This is a great video of an ordinary but very inspirational father. My favorite was the photo of him and his baby son sleeping outside just waiting for the sun to rise to go fishing.

I won't go on about how great I think Rhett is at being a dad, because no one probably cares to read that, but I think one thing he does have, that Bill in the video had, was the feeling that being a father is his most important role. That's one of the things I love about Rhett.

...but I'm not sure I'll be able to get him all 10 kids he wants. :)

Latest Product from our Family

Aubree's XXX3000 Mop

Featuring: locations in Hyrum, UT and The Sorting Hat as the announcer

Yesterday the kids were bored so we slopped together a video. Lately we've preferred commercials. The girls pretty much planned the majority of the film, and I'd give suggestions. They picked out the entire soundtrack, I was surprised they knew so many classics. Rhett was good to comply and help us out again as usual, being the announcer and teaching me how to edit this thing.

Ultimate Fort

Last week the kids and I made the ultimate fort. Using 3 couches, ottoman, a dining set, and every blanket/quilt in the house, we ended up with a 6 room fort. IT WAS AWESOME. It was up for 3 days, the kids slept in it and loved it.

My favorite experience with the hut was the first afternoon. I had brought one of my favorite books, The Twits by my favorite author, Roald Dahl. It is short and really funny for kids. We had two big bowls of popcorn in the hut and would read a little chapter and pass it to the next person to read.
I remember laying on the floor, looking up at the quilt ceiling, where you can see the different shapes and colors lit up--kind of like a fabric stained glass window, listening to my nieces or nephew read, all the kids giggling and chomping on popcorn, and it was so fun. I love these childhood magical moments and it's just as magical to me as an adult looking around at the kids as it was when I was 8 years old.

My favorite passage in this book is:
"Mrs. Twit came back and climbed into her bed and put out the light. She lay there in the dark scratching her tummy. Her tummy was itching. Dirty old hags like her always have itchy tummies."
We were all laughing so hard, at that point it was Brooklyn's turn and we had her read it over and over, busting up every time.

Just to let everyone, especially Kristi, know we cleaned up the fort in 30 minutes, all the blankets were nicely folded and replaced, and we vacuumed under all the couches, and it looks normal again. The kids hoped I'd let the fort stay up the whole time I'm here, but 3 days was a good life for the fort.

Half A Decade

Today Rhett and I have been married 5 years.

Still in love, still happy--we've accomplished a lot I think.

We aren't really doing anything today to celebrate. Rhett is working of course, and I have 5 kids to take care of. Anniversaries are huge for Rhett though. We are going for 4days/3nights somewhere next week--it's a surprise and I'm really excited. In the past we've gone to Park City, UT, Italy, 2 years living in MO, and now for #5 another fun one! Originally we planned to switch off planning the anniversary, but as it turned out he's done all the work.

She is amazing...

My awesome friend Katherine posted a great photo of a window display from her recent cruise. Check it out. It is so funny.
Reminds me of my old Aerocare friends back in Missouri:
Summer Fun for the Physically Disabled
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
Lame Summer


If anyone has any other great creepy store window photos to share, please do.

Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies

The two 11 year old nieces have loved helping me cook since I've been watching them. We made these bakery chocolate chip cookies all the kids loved them because they are huge.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Big, Fat, Chewy Bakery Cookies
from allrecipes.com

3/4 c. butter, softened

1 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. white sugar

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 T vanilla

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 c. flour

2 c. chocolate chips

Preheat to 325 degrees.

Cream butter and sugars. Add egg/yolk and vanilla until light and creamy. Add dry ingredients until dough forms. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop cookie dough in 1/4 c. globs on greased cookie sheets, at least 3 inches apart.

Bake 15-17 minutes, until edges are lightly toasted. Cook on sheets a few minutes before transferring to wire rack.

Makes 12 cookies.

Because these are huge, 1/4 c. of dough per cookie, you bake it longer at a lower temperature to cook them through. You could probably make 24 cookies and adjust cooking time and temperature. You could also use your favorite cookie dough to make these huge monsters.

Slip N Slide

I've been watching our nieces & nephews for a week while their parents are out of town in Europe. It's a lot easier to watch teens and elementary aged kids than babies. It's easier and a whole lot funner. Bret got this Spiderman slip-n-slide for his birthday and so we set it up and used it for the first time.

Bret tried once, but it didn't work and he wouldn't try it again, but just stood in RJ's wading pool instead.

Mitch broke his arm last week, so it took him a while to figure out how to run and dive onto the slide. It was really funny to watch, but he finally got the hang of it. We put a bread sack over the cast and secured it on his bicep w/ a rubber band.

After a while of watching the kids have fun, I gave in and busted out the bathing suit. I can't remember having a slip-n-slide as a kid. It was awesome! Until I failed to arch my back sufficiently and dove on my chest...I gave it a rest for a while after that.