Where is Fall?!!

It is UNSEASONABLY WARM here in Vernal. We have been in the high 80's - low 90's all September long. So last weekend we decided to take advantage of the weather and go on a day trip to Red Canyon up Flaming Gorge.

We started off with a picnic...

Then did a little bit of fishing at the kiddie pond. They keep the pond stocked with fish in the summer, and only kids 12 and under can fish. It was a great place to teach The Girl and The Bud.

They each caught a fish too! Rachel's unhooked itself before we could pull it out of the water. Ben caught his though...BOY DID HE EVER. He caught it so good that the fish swallowed the hook and we couldn't get the hook out so we had to cut the line to release it (it was catch and release only), but the look on The Bud's face says it all...

(I don't know which is better, the look on The Bud's face or the look on the Dad's face! Unfortunately after we cut the line and released the fish we found him 20 minutes later belly up on the other side of the pond. Sorry Red Canyon Lodge!!)

After fishing we rented a row boat and road out onto the reservoir. The kids LOVED being in the boat...

I loved the perfect weather and the beautiful mountains...

The boys loved the cool beaver dam...

And Benja loved feeling the water flow through his fingers. This is what he looked like pretty much the whole time. I had to hang onto his life jacket to keep him from falling overboard and once he even stood up and tried to climb out of the boat into the water! I need to get this kid into swimming lessons!

After our trip around the lake we drove over to the lookout over the gorge. It was spectacular as usual.

It's one of our favorite places to visit.

On the drive home we finally found some evidence that fall is on it's way...

We came around a bend and the mountain lit up with golden aspens.

Then we took a detour down the Red Cloud Loop to see if we could find any more evidence of fall. Here is the Golden Aspen Corridor.

The colors were spectacular. We had a fantastic time.

WE HEART VERNAL!!

If You're Looking for a Book to Read...

This one should be at the top of your list. It's a true story, amazingly enough, about the way faith, perseverance, and grass roots education, will change the tide of war and bring peace to the middle east. I'm not going to lie - it's not an easy book to read. Having never been to Pakistan myself, I found it hard remembering names and places as the book progressed. But it is an absolutely profound testimony to the truth that the secret to success lies in the home. As one man with a vision, Greg Mortenson, realized that by providing education to children in poverty stricken villages in Pakistan and Afghanistan he could change war torn nations from the ground up, he stopped at nothing to bring that idea to reality. Instead of going to extremist madrassa schools because they had no where else to go, and then joining the Taliban because they had no other means of supporting their families, children could get educations in their own villages in the schools this man built and then build lives without the Taliban. His story is miraculous. His efforts seem unprecedented. I wouldn't be surprised if he won the Nobel Peace Prize someday.

This book did three things for me.

1) It took me to a new place. It's easy to get stuck where you are in the routine of life. I have often wished I could go back to Africa for a few weeks and relive the life I had there. This book submerges you in climate and culture you have never experienced before.

2) It taught me about a religion that I had a completely skewed view of - Islam. I sat here looking through my "American Glasses" at the burning twin towers hating Muslims. I was wrong. I thought they all had the same beliefs, but this book helped me to learn that the fundamentals of Islam are very similar to the things I believe as a Christian and a Latter-Day Saint. Obviously they don't believe in Christ and He is the center of everything I hold dear, but they do believe in God, in peace, in charity, and in all of the other Christ-like attributes that we strive to develop in ourselves. Because of 9/11 and some other events, we weren't allowed to proselytize to Muslims while I was in Africa for safety reasons. Naturally I developed a fear of a people I knew nothing about. This book changed that.

3) It taught me about the power of education. Especially educating women. If you educate a man you create a breadwinner. Someone who can provide for a family. If you educate a woman you create a whole offspring of potential breadwinners. Now I know that situations are different in every family - they were definitely different in mine growing up - but as a whole, especially in countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan - the woman stayed home and raised the family and if she was educated she could pass that on to her children. Our rolls as women are important - VITAL even to society as a whole. That couldn't have been more emphasised in our General Relief Society meeting last week. As we catch the vision that a loving Father in Heaven would have us see, we realize that we as women really are the source of power and "Relief" to save the world one family at a time.

If you've read it - post your thoughts on it in the comments section.

If you haven't read it - READ IT.

Now - - who wants to go build a school with me?

Who Dat?

My Dad sent me this picture today - I have no idea who these people are. I mean they're single and hip and YOUNG! We're married and boring and OLD, so it can't be us...but wait...look closely...yep it IS us!! We were BABIES. This was taken before Paul and I were even engaged! You know how I recognized him? The killer dimple.

Yep. He's still got it!

WHERE'S MY CAPE?

SUPER MOOOOOOM! Dun dun dundundun DAAAAA!

You forgot I was Super Mom didn't you?

That's okay. I forget sometimes too.

But today I remembered. Today I unleashed a new super power (new to me anyway).

THE POWER OF PRESERVATION!!!

Oh yes I did. Those peaches didn't stand a chance against me.

And I used my POWERFUL MULTITASKING ABILITIES to help me. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

What's that you say? Am I not potty training The Bud? Why yes I am. Oh wait, and he came down with stomach flu right in the middle of the project. No worries! Nothing is too much for SUPER MOM!!! Well okay, maybe I did call for reinforcements on that one.

Thanks Super Dad ;)

Training The Bud

I used to clip diaper coupons like crazy. Those suckers are expensive so I took every dollar off I could get. I found one in my grocery sack this morning - $3 OFF! YAHOO!
Then I realized it.
I don't need it.

The Bud is POTTY TRAINING.


A wave of emotion hit me unexpectedly. It was a double edged sword (a plastic one, but double edged nonetheless). At first I thought, "YES!! We've GRADUATED FROM DIAPERS!! FINALLY!!" Then the bitter aftertaste followed close behind - "My baby isn't a baby anymore. He's growing up. And there isn't a little one in the forecast yet to assume the position of diaper wearer in our home. Bummer." Don't get me wrong. It will be a nice respite from diapers however long it lasts, but it tugs at the heart strings to see your babies grow up.



Fortunately potty training keeps me busy enough not to dwell on the other stuff for too long.

And with said training a host of new words have entered our 3 year old's vocabulary. No profanity - just potty talk. Suddenly this once abstract physical phenomenon has become the front runner of bodily functions and thus the center of every song, joke, and conversation (for the kids, not the parents). Paul and I just sit back with bewildered looks on our faces..."We didn't teach them this? Where are they getting this? Do we need to have a talk with the neighbor kids' parents?" No. We don't. Because it seems to be (especially for boys) part of the package in potty training.

As I sit here typing Ben is in the bathroom giggling uncontrollably. "What's so funny?" I ask, afraid to know the answer. "I TOOTED!!!" is his reply followed with the most joyful laughter in the world.

Ah the physical body. A wonder and a miracle and a source of endless laughs.

They Don't Make 'em Like They Used To

Recently I have been looking around for Birthday presents for The Bud. He'll be 3 in 2 weeks...HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?! Let me tell you there is no end to the toy possibilities for kiddos this age - and yet for the most part they are JUNK. They just don't make toys like they used to! The kidlets favorite toys at their grandparents' houses are the ones Paul and I used to play with when we were kids. Remember these classics?

Rollie-Phone

Mr. Turtle

and of COURSE the wind up Radio!!

could there be anything more tempting for playful hands and imaginative minds then a big bucket of blocks?

I rest my case.

Family Pics - by Val

It's a hard thing to replace old photos on the wall with new ones. It means we're growing up. Good thing the new ones are just as irresistable as the old ones!! Thanks Val!

The Girl

The Bud

The Happy Couple

The Fam

"The only duration of family life that satisfies the loftiest longings of the human soul is forever....Our family is the focus of our greatest work and joy in this life; so will it be throughout all eternity..." Russell M. Nelson

I LOVE YOU FOREVER, FAMILY!!