Fall Fun 2015

Tonight my mom cooked a delicious dinner with a Halloween theme.

Not pictured: "Mummy" French bread.

Back to the Future Day happened on 10-21-15. Everyone was disappointed that we don't have hoverboards but, other than that, the future is pretty much way cooler than we expected.

The kids celebrated by watching Back to the Future II. A few weeks ago, we also saw a funny parody at the Ziegfeld and Ian got to meet this famous time traveler (Link from Zelda).

A friend sent a box of clothes for Katie and there was this cool green shirt in it for me. 

Katie now has about 20 pairs of shoes (I am not exaggerating). She is in heaven about that.

For the second year in a row the Ram Run happened. This is a 5K fundraiser we started at Mount Ogden Junior High last year to raise money for the school. We raised almost twice as much money from last year and had more than twice as many runners. It is a lot of work, but so rewarding when it is over. 

Check out that great finish line Brian painted! Boston's got nothing on the Ram Run. This cute little Fiat was loaned to us by a dealership to use as the pacer car.

When the race was done, to my surprise, they gave me the keys and let me drive it for the weekend! 

If you look close at the figure inside the car, it is Ian getting ready to head to a soccer game. I let him sign up for two teams. One team had two games plus a practice every week and the other team had one game plus a practice. September and October were busy getting him to all the games and practices. He had a blast and his last game was yesterday. Whew--a break until spring.

I used the Lagoon passes to take the kids to Frightmares. 

Unfortunately, this was a perfect fit that day -- haha!

We had fun but only stayed a few hours because it was crazy crowded. I was able to ride Cannibal for the first time. It was awesome!!!

The next weekend, I got a ride for Ian to his afternoon soccer game so I could take Katie and Isaac to the Treehouse Museum. I thought we would stay for 2 hours or less. But, these two adorable cuties played and played and played using their most amazing imaginations. Watching them warmed my heart all over and I couldn't make myself pry them away for 3.5 hours (and only then because it was a mealtime and they were starving).

In September, Sophie was so disappointed that we didn't get tickets to see Taylor Swift -- Again. This is the second year we have tried to get tickets but they sell out immediately and then you have to buy them for $150/each resale. 

It turns out Owl City is her new favorite band and they came to SLC last Tuesday. I was able to get tickets ($25/each, oh yeah!) and we had a little adventure. 

Leading up to the concert, I was not sure how to feel. When I was young, I loved going to concerts and I went to quite a few. As I looked back at those memories from my (ahem) more mature point of view, I wasn't sure I was going to love all the loud, packed in crowded, sweaty revelry quite as much. Out of love for my daughter, I did it anyway.

What can I say? This girl was beyond thrilled to see this band perform. And, out of all the people in the world, the person she wanted to share that moment with most was me.

Terrible picture because it was so dark; wonderful memory. Turns out, I shouldn't have worried. We had the perfect spot right in the center of the front half of the room. The crowd was very respectful. There were lots of people my age there accompanying their teenagers. I guess that is a thing now. Here is how many concerts my parents attended with me: zero. I never really thought about them going to a concert with me. Times have changed. It was a great show! Lots of fun. Bonus: I could hear my own voice without yelling when it was done.

Brian has been in Oregon promoting the Ogden Marathon at running expos. Today he got to run the Columbia Gorge Marathon. It was his 31st. He is trying to run 50 by age 50 (that means he has four years to run 19 more).

He is not going to like it when he sees I lifted this picture off of his facebook page because, you know, he's a photographer and it violates his copyright or something. But, he looks kind of handsome, don't you think?

Our lives in a nutshell. 

This week looks like it will be crazy busy for me as I get ready to head to Denver for my new job next week. New since May. It still feels kind of new. We get to stay at the Four Seasons. Fun! But, based on my work trips from a few years ago, I'm pretty sure I'm only going to see the inside of a conference room for two days straight.

And, my hotel room for seven hours each night (most of those I will be sleeping).

But, I get to meet my boss who lives in Chicago for the first time and there is sure to be some spectacular food.

I Feel a List Coming On

Today swept me up and tossed me around like I was riding a giant ocean wave. I admit it was a thrill ride at the time. But, it has left me tired and my head hurting. I am giving myself a little treat for all I have accomplished called -- finally taking the time to sit down and update my blog!

1--Big news at our house. HUGE news. Brian started a full time job with the G.O.A.L. Foundation on October 1. If I made a list of all the things Brian loves and turned that list into a full time job -- this would be that job! G.O.A.L. stands for Get Out And Live. They are a non-profit organization created after the 2002 Olympics to continue that spirit in the Ogden community of, well, getting out and living. They do cool things like organize the Ogden Marathon and Xterra events. Brian gets to be their marketer which means he will use his photography and design skills to promote his favorite passions -- running, biking and otherwise testing the limits of the human body. He will travel around from time to time promoting G.O.A.L. at expos (this man has an inexplicable love of running expos) and while he is there I am sure he will run whatever marathon is associated with said expo. Did I mention he is trying to complete 50 marathons by age 50? Perfect.

2--Sophie absolutely loves her new school. Her creative writing class is just the right fit. For language arts, she gets to travel by FrontRunner once a month to Salt Lake to see a matinee by professionals at Pioneer Theater Company. Her drama class recently returned from the Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City. The other night we stayed up late and she told me about the cool science experiments she gets to do in biology. I can't say enough about how great this school is for her. She is so happy. It makes me so happy!

3--Ian has seamlessly made the transition to junior high. I got to go to his (and Sophie's) parent teacher conferences two weeks ago and it was an absolute pleasure (both times) to get to go from teacher to teacher hearing about how awesome and smart my kids are. I don't usually like to brag but here I am saying it -- straight A students! The news that Brian got his new job, the delightful parent teacher conferences and the news that Ian earned first chair in band all came in the same week. It was a good week. Here is a story about Ian -- he has always been such a good kid about practicing the piano. This year, he decided he would like to play the drums in band so he signed up for 7th grade, or beginning band. Right before school started, I realized he would be bored. Even though he has never played the drums, he is very good at music and I knew he would do what he had to to get caught up. The school messed up his schedule so while they were fixing it I asked them to put him in advanced, or 8th grade band. They really didn't want to, but then they did it anyway and, BAM! First chair on his first test and all the other drummers have had at least one more year on the drums than him.

4--More good news. About 8 months ago I asked a performer in Ogden who is super talented if Sophie could take voice lessons from him. He put her on a wait list. Last month he had an opening and Sophie got the spot. I am so happy for her to get this opportunity. She is glowing when I pick her up after her lessons. She also worked up the courage to audition for a part in a Christmas show at the Ziegfeld, a local community theater. She got up and sang with so much confidence and beauty. She even got a call back. We haven't heard for sure, but I don't think she made the final cut. I am still so proud of her for going for it. There is so much talent in our community. The competition is stiff. It's difficult even to get a call back. Way to go!

5--Life is so busy. Ian plays on two soccer teams. The games are usually about 30-minutes away. My mom thinks my life is crazy busy. But, everyone I know is busier than me and -- I don't know how that is possible!? Last night, when Ian's soccer game in Brigham City ended at 7:30 p.m., it was all I could do to think of getting home, feeding the family and putting everyone to bed while the parents all around me were talking about how they were headed next to take their boys to basketball practice at 8 o'clock at night after we had all devoted three hours to a soccer game. On a school night! I digress. Life is busy and I suppose that is how it is for everyone. Shuttling four kids to three schools is busy enough before adding in all of the extras. I don't know how many times I drive right by a park and Katie and Isaac beg me to stop so they can play and I can't because we have to keep going to the next thing and the next thing after that and the next thing after that. Today, after I picked up Sophie from school, we drove past this really awesome park we call the spider web park. Katie and Isaac asked if we could play and I said "yes." We dropped off Sophie at home, took Ian to his piano lesson and headed back to the park to enjoy the most perfect park weather and the playground for 45-minutes. It was superb. It was just what I needed.

Labor Day 2015

Our weekend started like this -- Friday night at the Raptor's game. 

Sophie and Ian were to my right when I took these. But, Ian was feeling very under the weather with a cold and Sophie was feeling sad because 1) she is a teenager and therefore didn't want to be at the Raptor's game and 2) it was the night of the Taylor Swift concert, which is where she wanted to be instead.

I took those two home during the third inning and then came back to watch the Raptor's win big and to enjoy the fireworks at the end of the game. 

It was Katie's first baseball game -- good times with our two little ones!

Saturday morning, I shopped for tons of groceries while Brian worked feverishly on the yard trying to finish up some landscaping projects he had started a few days earlier. Sophie and I drove to Brigham City for fresh peaches on fruit way. As long as we were there, we decided to pick up fried chicken and peach pie from Maddox and bring it home to everyone for lunch. Yum yum!

In the afternoon, I took Sophie to the movie "Once I was a Beehive" at the theater in Station Park and we shopped at It's Sugar after to try and make up for her big disappointment the night before. It was a really cute movie.

One of the things Brian was working on in the yard is this --

One of the first things we did before installing a sprinkler system and grass was that we put up a wall of landscaping rocks and poured a patio. 

That was about three years ago. It's nice, but we've never put on the finishing touches. Namely, between the patio and the rocks there was about two feet of dead space where dead leaves, rocks and weeds collected.

We also plan to build two staircases leading up from the patio to the next level and we have grand visions of a lovely fire pit someday.

These, and so many other finishing touches are still needed in the yard after three summers in our home. It all happens in good time . . .

Brian decided to tackle the space between the patio and the rock wall. I am soooooo happy! He worked so hard to put down a beautiful strip of cobble stones with sand in between. It looks so good. He was hoping to pour cement steps also and started building the forms. Alas - that project will have to wait.

He worked until sometime around 11 pm and when we woke up the next day, Sunday, it was his 46th Birthday. 

At breakfast, we presented him with gifts before we headed out for our early church. After church, I made him his requested lunch, whole wheat pancakes and fruit. Well--I actually got the lunch started and then Katie started throwing up. She wanted me, so he had to finish cooking his own birthday lunch. But, I did make his favorite cake and a birthday dinner later on.

After lunch was cleaned up, the true fun began. Brian wanted to start a tradition this year of inviting friends over on Labor Day in the evening for homemade ice-cream. We just got an ice-cream maker this week and looked up a bunch of recipes on-line. That thing was buzzing non-stop as we whipped up seven gallons (including, of course, fresh peach).

Today is Labor Day and many friends and people from the ward will be arriving shortly. Brian has spent the entire day working in the yard and I have spent the entire day cleaning the inside of the house.  

Now, Brian is making a playlist of 80s music for the party. He is really in rare form getting his groove on. I guess I wrote this post to unwind and get myself to stop cleaning. The problem with cleaning for me, is that it will never be clean enough. I have to just let it be and know that -- it really is enough. It's been a great Labor Day weekend. Now the party begins!

Bear Lake 2015

Last time I wrote, I was wistful. I was not ready for summer vacation to end. I am slowly coming around to accepting that it pretty much has ended. A couple of trips to one of my favorite places, Bear Lake, helped.

Bear Lake is the place I camped when I was a teenager after we moved to Utah. We stayed at a campground in Idaho that allowed us to pitch our tents on the sandy beach right next to the water. We had a ski boat, a jet ski and four wheelers. We rode the four wheelers up and down the sand at the water's edge and were amazed every single time at the magical turquoise color of the water when we got out on the lake on the boat or jet ski.

Some years, we have taken our family to a cabin with my extended family and I have been so incredibly blessed in my life to make a tradition of joining my friend Heidi at a lakeside cabin every year since Sophie and Ian were babies (twelve years). It is the perfect arrangement! The cabin is located right across the street from the Garden City KOA so we can stock up on ice or groceries conveniently. It is also down the street from all the places that sell raspberry shakes and, the cutest candy shop "The Chocolate Bear" that sells chocolate dipped raspberries and other treats -- mmm-mmm!

This year, Heidi invited us to join her family at the cabin on the exact dates we were in Disneyland -- Boo! I was worried we wouldn't make it to Bear Lake this year, so on Isaac's birthday halfway through August, we decided to take a day trip.

We left at 8 a.m. to drive to Montpelier for the Bear Lake County Fair where our talented friend Terresa was performing songs with two other ladies. It was fun to see the goats, chickens, pigs, cows, steers, sheep and rabbits. We also enjoyed the performance and let the kids ride a few rides (giant slides and house of mirrors) before we headed over to North Beach.

We went with another family and it was fun because it was my friend Amber's first time at Bear Lake! I hope she loved it. Packing everything into one day was worth it and I would do it again, but it was exhausting.

We played in the water and the sand, had a picnic on the beach, and lounged around in the shade and the sun before we packed up for the day. On our way out of town, we stopped at Zipz, a new restaurant with outdoor seating that boasts having the "least famous shakes." Haha! It's funny because every place in Garden City advertises "famous" Bear Lake raspberry shakes. We ate our shakes, burgers, hot dogs and tons of food in an old fashioned ski boat built into the patio with a large table down the middle. Good times!

I think Isaac had a fantastic day, but at the end he proclaimed it his worst birthday ever (only because he didn't want to leave!).

As we were enjoying what we thought would be our only Bear Lake day of the summer, we got a text from Heidi inviting us to join her for a last minute jaunt to the cabin the following week on Tuesday and Wednesday.

That turned out to be a fun way to begin bidding our summer farewell. Brian had to work, but on Tuesday morning, I headed back up one of the most beautiful canyons in the world (Logan) with my kids and one of Ian's friends.

We arrived at the beautiful lake to enjoy a day of perfect weather that turned into night games under the stars for the kids while Heidi, Paula and I sat visiting in the cabin (just like old times when the three of us spent a week together at the cabin every summer). Listening to the kids having a blast outside felt like the purest joy.

Here are some pictures. They actually start near the end of the trip and don't go in any order. Katie and Isaac played non-stop in the water and sand (we can walk to a nice sandy spot and the water right from the cabin) on Tuesday and Wednesday. Wednesday evening, we were packing up when Heidi suggested we stay one more night and leave in the morning, which, of course, we did. Wednesday night, right after we made that decision, we celebrated at a Mexican restaurant down the street with this hullabaloo (Paula and Ian's friend had already returned home):

Tons of food and fun times!

The kids had fun on the kayaks and paddle boards. If this picture doesn't say "perfect childhood moment" I don't know what does.

I couldn't get enough photos of these two on the swing.

A sandcastle built by Katie and Isaac on our corner of beach looking out on the captivating lake. This is the view we see when we look out the windows from the cabin.

Katie ended up with a mermaid tail a few times.

This guy could never get enough of building dams and canals connecting this enormous land-locked puddle to the lake. It made me so happy to see Katie and Isaac playing in the sand and the sun for hours on end each day the way Sophie and Ian did when they were younger.

Could they be more happy?

On the last day, Heidi and I remained with these six kids. We took this traditional photo by the swing right before we left.

Thursday morning we were working so hard to pack everything up. When I finally sat still for one second as I started the engine to the van and got ready to pull out, my eyes stared out at the lake seeing the same view I have seen every year for twelve years. Suddenly my mind was overcome with all of the memories of my babies and all the good times we have had at this very spot! I could see five-year-old Ian zooming up and down the steep gravel driveway over and over on his red bike and making circles in the dirt with his fingers. I could see little Sophie swimming in the freezing lake like a fish all day and begging me to join her. Sometimes there was an amazing ski boat for us to ride in and other times we sped across the lake on jet skis. I could see Isaac and Izzy as toddlers when they use to be best friends laughing around the fire. Katie when she was one and Brian was her favorite parent. The kids singing along to Rock Band songs. Arts and crafts galore. There have been so many outdoor movies under the stars on the giant lawn and crazy dancing and games on that lawn too. We have enjoyed so many delicious meals together in the cabin and napped under the endlessly blue sky in the hammock. Ugh--so many memories it makes my heart swell and my eyes get all blurry when I think about it.

I have been so blessed in my life with good friends to help our family make these memories. What a perfect way to work out the end of summer blues.

On Tuesday morning, before we left for the cabin, I woke up extra early and decided to fill out an on-line registration form to get Sophie on the waiting list for the charter school DaVinci Academy. I had no idea what our chances were of getting in or not.

On Wednesday, I got a call from the office saying school had started and if I would bring in Sophie's birth certificate, etc. they would put her in the lottery so we could find out Friday if she could get in.

When we got home on Thursday, I rushed the documents to the school before they closed for the day and -- wallah! We were the first to turn in all of the documents so we got the slot that was open.

Friday morning, I went from thinking that summer break was almost over to suddenly being dropped into a place where my oldest had already missed the first two days of school. We met with a counselor and got her registered for classes.

I have a really good feeling about this decision and she does too. Which is saying a lot because this is my daughter who normally resists every change no matter what.

Since then, life has been a whirlwind of buying school supplies and school clothes and getting everything ready. I have had to accept that summer is essentially over. 

But, I think we made the most of it.

Summer 2015 Winds Down

Looks like it's almost time to send these four back to school. It is with very mixed emotions, but I am trying to focus on the positive.

I feel a little sad that Sophie, my soon to be 9th grader expresses such a strong dislike for school. This is my child who absolutely loved school so much she couldn't stand to miss a single day right up until junior high began. It's not the academics she hates. All of her teachers love her, so I know she is respectful. I want to help her find a way to be happy. We have recently started discussing the option of transferring her to a charter school.

Ian, my soon to be 7th grader is excited to see what junior high is all about. I hope his experiences will be more positive.

Last February, I made the decision to pull Katie and Isaac out of their elementary school to homeschool them. The thing that surprised me most about this decision is all the FUN we had. We loved it and I was looking forward to homeschooling them for at least a full academic year.

I accepted a five-hour-per-week-work-from-home job that quickly turned into a fifteen-to-twenty-hour-per-week-please-come-to-the-office-when-you-can job.

I think when I said "yes" somewhere inside of me I knew this might happen. And, it did. And, it's good. It's a really good job and I think ultimately it is a better situation for my family.

It has been a summer of transition with the kids getting use to me being away more. Once school starts I can make my own schedule and work while they are at school (if you have to work, it doesn't get better than that). I absolutely love my office right on Historic 25th Street in Downtown Ogden. Every time I drive there I think about how blessed I am to have zero traffic on my beautiful commute. And, I work with the most incredibly positive, kind people I have ever met.

Awhile back (before the notion of homeschooling), I was looking ahead to the 2015-16 school year and wondering what I would do? I would only have one child left who was not in school (I am speaking here of a child I babysit). My income would drop. I kept wondering if I should go to work or enroll more children. For the first time in 14+ years since becoming a mother, all of my children would be in school all day opening the door to new possibilities.

After so many years of raising my kids and watching other peoples' kids, I figured the best skills I had were patience and nurturing. I had gone to the trouble to get my license. Lots of working moms need childcare. It seemed there were compelling reasons to go with growing the childcare business.

Then the decision to homeschool came along and that felt right. I figured it wouldn't be too tricky to homeschool two with a little friend (who I babysit) joining us. And, to write my weekly restaurant feature. And, when the opportunity presented itself, to work five-hours-per-week-from-home. I figured I could find one hour per day (but, definitely not two -- that was where I would have to draw the line).

At first when I saw the new job would be more than expected, I was determined to find a way to make the job plus homeschool work. I figured out how I could do it. It was nice to say to myself, "I really can do this if I want to and feel like it is the right thing." After I considered that for some time, I gave myself permission to not be the mayor of crazy town. To do that, I would have to decide to quit the job or send the kids back to school. Because, even though in theory my plan would work, it would only stay on track if everything went perfectly. There was no leeway for, let's say, illness, for example. If there is one thing I know about my life it is that it almost never goes as planned. Did I mention one of my greatest skills is also flexibility?

I thought and thought about what to do and I decided that, even though I didn't plan on this job, it is the direction I should be taking in my life right now. It was really hard to let go of the homeschool dream, but I am reassured by the fact that everyone has told me the teachers Katie and Isaac have for the upcoming school year are awesome.

I am so grateful for the few months we had together. I learned some things about them that I really needed to know. Like -- that the medicine Isaac was taking always made him fall asleep in the afternoon (his teacher had never once mentioned it and when I asked her about it, she said, "Oh yeah, he always falls asleep and I make him stand at his desk -- how miserable must that have been!?). We took him completely off the medicine and we have seen very little negative impact from that -- a huge benefit for everyone.

I also learned that Katie needs some extra attention when it comes to reading and math. I was cruising right along assuming she was getting everything she needed because that is how it went the first three times around. We have spent the past six months focusing on reading and just last month made some giant strides forward.

I am grateful for the extra time, the extra outings and for getting to see my children's brilliant minds at work up close and personal during a small window in our lives.

I am mourning the end of summer (I always do) and getting use to the change of plans. I keep telling myself that once school starts I will probably love it so much I won't even know what to do. Maybe these awesome teachers have something they need to give my little ones that I am not capable of giving them.

If we all hate it, I can always pull them out again and figure out how to make homeschool happen.

Time will tell. Meanwhile, I do look forward to fall which is perhaps my favorite season with its cooling temperatures, stunning sunsets and all around dazzling colors. Maybe my house will be clean again. Maybe I will renew my commitment to go to the gym. Life is one big present waiting to be unwrapped.

The Himalayas

"Are we going to the Himalayas?" he asked, his blue eyes twinkling. "No. Wait. Not the Himalayas. What is it called again?"

I had just told Isaac we were getting ready for our annual family reunion (with Brian's family) to the Uintahs. His comment was so appropriate in my mind, since the Uintahs, being so remote and so drastically high above sea level (10,000 feet?), may as well be the Himalayas to me.

Our work schedules dictated that we would only spend one night. I don't know how anyone spends more than one night at a campground with no running water anyway. So, it was perfect.

We arrived Sunday afternoon, pitched a tent, built a fire, and commenced making hobo dinners. We decided to try steak instead of hamburger this time (thinly sliced and chopped carne asada). They were the best! I was hesitant to change things up from what I am use to. But, now I don't think I can ever go back.

As I sat scooping raw meat, onions, carrots and potatoes into double thick tin foil packets, Katie walked up and said, "Eww that looks disgusting." She and Isaac are my terribly picky eaters. I said, "Everything tastes better when you are camping. We will cook them in the fire and like magic they will be delicious."

Isaac took my comment to heart. For the next thirty minutes we heard him explaining to Katie, his cousins, and everyone else how we were eating magic dinners and because of the magic they would be delicious.

Like magic -- he gobbled his up.

This is saying a lot.

For the first time in my memory since we started going to the Uintahs with Brian's family every summer 14-years ago, the bugs were minimal. Normally, I feel like I am swarmed by them day and night even with straight deet applied head to toe. But, this time, I didn't need bug spray until after dark. It was like a Himalaya miracle.

My brother-in-law told me that the reason it is so buggy (and, often cold, sometimes dropping below freezing at night) is because we go in early July and the season for camping there doesn't start until late July. I guess after that, the area becomes quite pleasant. I wonder if our hot, hot, hot summer accounts for why the experience seemed so much better this time.

However, Brian's sister said her family camped in the Uintahs last August and woke up in the morning to SNOW! I guess you never know.

On the topic of camping, growing up I loved it. I mean, I LOVED it!

Every summer we went to Strike Dam (in Idaho where I spent the first half of my childhood) and camped in a camper and took our ski boat out on the lake.

I treasure my childhood memories from Idaho when we spent time at Strike Dam with dozens of cousins. My dad is one of nine siblings and they all grew up to have large families. These were good, good times. There were always oodles of cousins to play with.

Sometimes my dad and the uncles would load up a bunch of kids and head to the foothills to camp. There was lots of dirt, no toothbrushes or hairbrushes and probably the only food we took was a package of hot dogs to roast over the fire. I am sure there were outhouses (if there were any facilities at all). My dad liked to camp remotely, much like Brian's dad.

I treasure these camping memories as some of the best times of my childhood.

After we moved to Utah, we made an annual tradition of camping at Bear Lake at a place where we could pitch our tent right by the water. Many more fantastic memories were made. We took the ski boat on the water and rode four-wheelers up and down the sandy shore.

When Brian and I married, I liked camping. Sometimes we went camping with friends and none of us even had kids. We did it for fun.

For Brian's first father's day (after Sophie was born), I surprised him with some camping gear and an impromptu camping trip.

That is why it was such a surprise when I started to lose my love for camping.

I think I can trace it back to the first time Sophie was mobile and I started to worry about her safety. That was also the summer I slept on the ground while I was pregnant with Ian. And, by "slept" I mean I laid wide awake and in pain all night. I thought this had to do with being pregnant, but, the reality is that after he was born, my body never felt like sleeping on the ground again. Two more pregnancies and childbirths haven't helped that situation.

Camping with two babies ages two and under (and then two ages three and under, and then three ages four and under) also dampened my affection for the great outdoors. I worried about them getting lost (I probably worried way more about this than necessary, but, every year I heard about some child wandering off in the Uintahs and being lost for days). I worried about them being run over by a car (it is so easy for young children to wander into the dirt roadways that are right next to campsites). There are also water dangers (lakes and rivers) and sunburns (thinner atmosphere) and mosquitoes (West Nile virus). It is no fun taking a child who is potty training to an outhouse and I didn't enjoy seeing my little cherubs covered in dirt head to toe as much as I enjoyed myself playing in the dirt during my own childhood (there were definitely toothbrushes and hairbrushes and clean faces on the camping trips when my mom was present).

I guess I outgrew camping. It has become a real challenge for me. I feel like a bit of an outcast around Brian's family since his sisters love staying for 4-5 days -- pregnancies, little kids, no showers, mosquitoes and all.

It is a challenge because I want my kids to grow up having crazy childhood camping memories like I do. But, it is hard to make those memories without camping.

So . . . I found myself in the Himalayas, I mean, Uintahs, eating magical hobo dinners, looking out over a gorgeous silver lake.

The bugs weren't too bad. The temperature didn't drop too low. And, I got to sleep on a fold down bed in the back of the van while the kids crashed in the tent with Brian. It was an absolute slumber party of one in there. I pulled down the blinds and devoured a good book before dropping off.

In the morning, we cooked wolf 'ems over the fire for breakfast. If all the electricity in the world shuts down, it looks like we are prepared to make all of our meals over a fire now.

The kids kayaked all over the lake for hours. Katie and Isaac seemed so grown up out there paddling by themselves. It was a lovely, lovely time. It has definitely gotten easier now that they are older and maybe the van bed is the answer to my camping woes.

Two weeks earlier, Brian and Sophie went on a pioneer trek while I took the other three kids to a hot springs in Idaho for a family reunion (my side of the family). It was one of those shady campgrounds with mowed grass. The boys slept in my parents' trailer and Katie slept in the van bed with me. We swam in the warm pools, there were showers, and Katie and Isaac entertained themselves endlessly in a small stream that circled the campground.

Two successful camping overnighters so far this year. Not bad. But, my favorite kind of grown-up camping is still the kind that includes a nice comfy cabin.

California 2015

We have the kind of van that begs to be taken on a road trip. Finally, we drove that lovely vehicle with all of its cargo space, leg room and plush seats the way it was meant to be driven.

Our adventure began on a Friday in June. The plan was to drive halfway to Anaheim. At the last minute, Brian was hired for a freelance photo assignment in Salt Lake. We decided to make it part of our adventure.

After we had done all of the important things like pack the van, take out the trash and paint all of the girls' fingernails Disney-style:

We drove to Salt Lake. Brian headed to his photo assignment while the kids and I did some exploring. First, we walked all around the outside of the conference center and admired its waterfall. Then, we walked through the manicured gardens at Temple Square. We found ourselves in the beautiful City Creek Center. And, ended up at Discovery Gateway Children's Museum.

I love that even though Sophie and Ian are grown-up (14 and 12), they still had a great time at this place. They even figured out how to play a Taylor Swift song on the bells. Pretty cool!

Around 1 p.m., we met back up with Brian and forged ahead to eat lunch at J.C.W's in Lehi. Yummy burgers and fries!

That evening we checked into the Lexington in St. George where we enjoyed swimming in their indoor/outdoor pool and this view of palm trees framed by a rainbow:

It was a beautiful start to our road trip. In the morning, after a hot breakfast, we returned to the van to finish the drive to Anaheim where we checked into a Castle Hotel across the street from Disneyland.

After we got settled in the room, we grabbed our pails and shovels and headed to Newport Beach. I love spending time at the ocean. It was a gorgeous evening that turned freezing cold for little ones covered in salt water. 

We wrapped everyone in towels and found a Ruby's Diner for dinner. Normally, we love their milkshakes, but this time it was hot cocoas all around to warm us up.

Sunday, we attended church in the morning and headed back to Newport Beach for more fun. Brian and Ian played frisbee. We built a giant sandcastle. Sophie and I walked out into the enormous waves and let them crash over our heads for a long time. It was a beautiful beach day. (Brian has all of my beach photos on his computer at the moment)

After we had showered and prepared for an early bedtime, my parents checked into the room on one side of us and my brother and his family checked into the room on the other side of us. 

So began a week of extravagance. Five-day-hoppers to Disneyland. Life doesn't get much more lavish than that.

My favorite part of vacation is being with my family. Fun uninterrupted. I loved turning off all the alarms in my phone, put there to keep me on task throughout each day, and setting my planner aside. I didn't even bring my laptop. It was a true vacation from worries and work.

Monday morning we visited Disney California Adventure first so we could get fast passes to the Car's ride and tickets to World of Color. We hit all of our favorite DCA rides while we were there like Screamin', Tower of Terror, Soarin', Toy Story, Monsters Inc. and The Little Mermaid.

Monday was our one hot day at the park. We were so lucky to have cloud cover and highs in the 70s for the rest of the week. Monday hit 90-degrees. I took Katie and Isaac back to the hotel room to rest during the hot part of the day. I loved it so much when they snuggled up with me, one on each side, and we all fell asleep. I know it wasn't Disneyland, but it was pretty much the best.

This was also the best:

Look at Brian! He totally got into it.

These moments when I spied him taking such good care of our kids and enjoying his time with them made my heart so happy.

Sophie is not a fan of big rides, so this was her first time riding Screamin' and Tower of Terror. I am so proud of her for being brave.

Monday night, I returned to the park and met the group to watch the new World of Color. It was spectacular! I loved hearing stories about Walt Disney and enjoying the colorful fountains. There were some unbelievable balls of fire mixed into the show. It was really special to be there during the 60-year-celebration (diamond anniversary) events.

Tuesday, we found our groove, which was this -- wake up early and get to the park right when it opens, enjoy the rides before the lines get long, go back to the hotel to rest in the afternoon when the park is packed, return in the evening for more rides and to watch the shows. 

Everyone saw the new light parade on Main Street Tuesday night. Unfortunately, Katie and I got so caught up in riding rides, we didn't go back to the hotel for a rest until dinnertime and then she was too tired to go back.

However, on Wednesday night, when the rest of our group decided to go to bed early, Sophie, my dad and I went back to the park to see the parade followed by the fireworks show. It was amazing! I was in disbelief at the incredible floats they have created out of lights. It was like nothing I have ever seen before. 

The fireworks show was also out of this world. The buildings on main street were transformed into a bustling beehive, a coral reef, and then we were immersed in a blizzard while thousands of voices in the packed crowd sang "Let it Go!"

So . . . Tuesday, I rode the rides Katie wanted to ride. The Finding Nemo submarine, It's a Small World, Snow White, Pinnochio and the Storybook boats. We also got on Star Tours (I was the rebel spy!) and rode the train all the way around the park. Katie did not care much for the Haunted Mansion. But, Winnie the Pooh was one of her favorites. 

We also got to see the afternoon Main Street musical parade with the Disney characters.

Wednesday began at DCA again. I took Sophie and Katie to a Frozen sing along that was absolutely beautiful. After that, they met Olaf. And, after that, they met Elsa and Anna.

It was kind of a frozen themed day.

Katie and Princess Anna gaze into Snow White's wishing well.

Wednesday was extra exciting because the girls (my daughters, niece, sister-in-law and mom) had a reservation for lunch at Ariel's Grotto. 

I love everything about this luxurious experience. The dining room is gorgeous, the food is delicious and beautiful princesses come to your table to sign autograph books and pose for pictures. I feel truly spoiled there.

 Meeting Ariel

Beef medalions 

Catch of the day 

 Elegant desserts

I think Katie's expression on this final picture is so funny. Doesn't that somehow say "Disneyland" to you? A princess crown and a scowl -- from all the decadence and revelry until it overwhelms the little ones.

I think the Pinnocio ride's message is ironic in a way.

She was actually giving me that look because I was encouraging her to eat her vegetables.

Wednesday was a lot of fun with the princess lunch as the highlight. That was the night I was wowed by the evening parade and fireworks. 

Thursday we had the option to take advantage of magic morning -- the chance to enter the park an hour before it officially opens. Disneyland was open 8 a.m. to midnight every day we were there and we arrived pretty close to 8 a.m. each morning. Although 7 a.m. is ambitious, on Thursday we decided to go for it and left our hotel rooms at 6:40 a.m. to be at the gate in time for the countdown.

One group raced to Tomorrowland and another group raced to the Matterhorn -- only to discover there was already a 45-minute wait -- what? We re-grouped in Tomorrowland where we were able to walk right on to Space Mountain, Star Tours and the Nemo submarines. 

Sophie wanted to ride the monorail (one of her favorites). We used a Disney secret she found on-line to score seats in the front of the train with the conductor. It was really cool! Brian's mom made Sophie the darling Minnie skirt she is wearing in this picture.

Around 10 a.m., my girls and I went to Toon Town and it was empty! We had the whole place to ourselves. We rode the roller coaster, explored Donald's boat and Goofy's playland, and met characters without any wait at all.

The day before, we had visited Toon Town in the afternoon when it was crowded and it took us 45-minutes to meet Mickey.

It was worth it.

Isaac and my niece Anna were chosen to complete Jedi training. They were grinning ear to ear when they got their certificates at the end.

Katie and Isaac were funny. They kept wanting to go back to the hotel to swim in the afternoons. I think they enjoyed it almost as much as the parks. This little one learned to swim on this trip:

The whole group rode Splash Mountain on Thursday. It was Katie's first time and she LOVED it! I was glad. When we took Sophie and Ian when they were 5 and 3 it terrified them so much that for years the mere mention of Splash Mountain brought them to tears. It was perplexing. The whole family likes the ride now.

We ate lunch at the Hungry Bear, a cafe near Splash Mountain that serves fried green tomato sandwiches and the most scrumptious lemon cupcakes with an edible bee on top:

Three Disneyland trips ago, when my mom took the kids and me, I got spoiled on eating Disneyland's food. It turns out, it's not really that expensive (other than the fact that eating out anywhere with six is expensive) and it is really tasty!

Meals are not unreasonable, but treats and drinks are expensive. One of the best secrets I have learned is that Disneyland will give you as many free ice waters as you want. Drinking ice water all week saved lots of money and was more healthy too. 

There was still plenty of sugar to go around.

In Tomorrowland, we indulged in some fabulous Mickey mousse. And, then there was ice cream:

This last photo also says "Disneyland" to me. The crown, the Frozen dress, that glazed over look and a crazy ice-cream on a stick dipped in chocolate and sprinkled with every conceivable topping.

Friday came so quickly! I couldn't believe how fast the time flew by. We got to the park early and did all of our favorite rides again.

It's a Small World -- one of my mom's favorite rides.

Brian and Sophie snuck off for a father/daughter lunch at a Mexican restaurant. My dad explored Tarzan's treehouse with Katie and Isaac. Katie got to ride Splash Mountain again with Brian and her brothers. We hopped between parks so everyone could ride Screamin' and Soarin' again. Isaac requested tomato soup for dinner (a new food he likes introduced to him on this trip by Brian), so we got it at the Jolly Holiday Cafe.

That night we watched Fantasmic and ate kettle corn. Right when that show ended, we made it over to Main Street in time to enjoy the unbelievable fireworks again. Spotlights lit up the sky in diamond shapes. The castle glowed in different colors in the distance. Tinkerbell and Nemo flew across the sky. And, of course, there were the special effects on Main Street. Oh yes, and a top notch fireworks show to boot. 

When the show first began, my dad lifted Isaac up so he could have a better view. After a few minutes, I found a spot for him that would work without anyone having to hold him up. Can you believe my dad? Isaac is nearly 10-years-old. I felt so lucky that my son has a grandpa who would do that for him.

Sophie stayed at the park more than anyone. She loved every minute. She and my mom stayed at the park until it closed at midnight on Friday. It turned out the lines were really short again between 11 p.m. and 12 a.m.

It was sad when it was over. But, happy to have all of the memories. 

Saturday morning, we slept in and played lazily in the pool. Then, we got dressed and headed to Hollywood.

Hollywood took longer than we thought (L.A. traffic), so our beach time was cut short. We still had some lovely moments at Manhatten Beach before we headed back to the hotel where Katie and Isaac swam until bedtime. Brian, my dad, Sophie and Ian had tickets to an Angels game. They won!

Sunday--we packed up and drove all the way home. 

Our bathroom seemed so big after 10-days with a tiny hotel bathroom, where everyone had to shower and change clothes.

It was a beautiful vacation. 

Now, back to real life.