Notice the trend

I'm just saying.

She's a trouble maker in disguise!!

11 years later...

...we happened to be in Provo, UT, just finishing up a very delicious dinner at Los Hermanos when we realized that we were standing next to the very light pole that Rob and I took our engagement pictures at...

October 1998

And look at us now...

August 2009

It was so much fun taking these pics and, I will admit, slightly sentimental. You can read the sappy details here...

(You have to click on the image to be able to read it.)

Facing our fears. Day 8.

As Tyler (and my other children, too) gets older, I see him venturing out and trying new things, being brave as he attempts these new feats.

And I don't want my 9 1/2 year old making me look like a wimp, now do I? So, I tag along. (Truthfully, my silly self fears that some thing is going to happen to him. And it's not going to happen while he's alone. I know. I'm a crazy, paranoid mother.)

And look where it got me!Completely scary for only one split second as I told the guy to just push me out the front gate. The rest was...let's say...AWESOME!

But this...not so fun. Seeing my baby hanging over the earth with merely a few straps and a wire.


Our day at Snowbird was full of adventure. From zip lines to the alpine slide, it was all a blast!

The boys really enjoyed the trampolines. The perfect opportunity to practice their back flipping skills...
Or just jumping and looking cute as can be skills...
And here is our nutty Jared. The back flip king!And who knew...King of the Rodeo, too!Is it really a wonder why this child has had so many injuries?


The highlight for most every one with us was the aerial tram ride up to 11,000 feet. Too bad our camera ran out of battery (doesn't someone have pics on their camera...Jacob? Susanne?).

Oh well, you're not missing out on much...We'll leave it at that!

Thunder storms cut our visit at the top short (DARN!), so we headed back down the very steep mountain just in time to be pelted with a rain storm.

So our day was cut short, but we have memories to last us a life time!

It's a Cecret, Day 7

By day 7, I was sick of hiking, but Rob had one more hike in him (making up for his sick day, I guess). So, Rob and his brother Jacob took the boys for a 2 mile round trip hike to Cecret Lake. We're guessing that over the entire course of the trip Tyler, Jared and Evan each hiked about 8 miles...if only I could have their energy!

Very pretty views. Makes me almost wish I was there!

Day 6 ROCKS!!

Besides spending time with family, our trip to Bryce Canyon was the highlight of our summer vacation. And to think, we almost decided not to go!! The trip to Bryce added a few extra hours of driving that day, but it was 100% worth it. Bryce Canyon is definitely a must see for anyone who visits Utah.

Because of all our small children and my sister who'd caught The Lyme's and a husband recuperating from The Strep, we chose to do one hike. The Navajo hike is about 1.5 miles and it takes you to the bottom of the canyon and then back up. I stress the "back up" part because for some of those little legs hiking with us, it wasn't the easiest thing, but they all did it without complaint. And they loved every minute of it!!

We took so many photos and it was too hard to pick just a few photos for the blog. If you feel so inclined, you can view them all...


Visiting National Parks has now become our family's number one choice for vacations. We're already scheming up plans for the Grand Canyon, Arches, Canyonlands, Goblin Valley, Yosemite, and even Denali one day!! Because of Evan's height restrictions, amusement parks will not always be a fair choice for entertainment, but National Parks can be enjoyed by all of us and it's a whole ton easier on the wallet!

5

Today, Rob played hooky! He came down with a bad case of strep throat. So, we left him behind and had some good ole' fun without him!! My brother-in-law, Kevin's parents (Russ and Kay) were so kind to share their beautiful and unique home with us while were in Southern Utah. Russ took us on a nearby hike to search for petroglyphs (rock engravings). The boys were in heaven and were able to do a little bit of learning along the way! We were bummed that Rob missed out on this adventure, but the show must go on!

After the hike, we had some lunch at the coolest restaurant, Pirate Island. The food was reasonably priced and the place was very entertaining. The rest of the day was spent swimming and the boys were in heaven once again. So was I because the view at their pool wasn't too bad to look at. Gorgeous red cliffs.

Really, this was a great day and by the end, Rob was finally perking up...Just in time because the next and last day of our Southern Utah adventure was our best yet!

4

Kinda hard to capture all of this beauty.

Zions National Park



How small we looked surrounded by this massive, glorious world.

Nature's playground

After spending the day in over 100 degrees, even 150 year old rain water tasted good!

My sister and I were outnumbered!

Day 3?

Day 3 was a Sunday, so we did typical Sunday things...church, a big family dinner, some relaxing...Gearing up for the next three days of driving, hiking and swimming.

But how could I forget our Saturday night???? How fun was it to be able to attend Jessie and Dallin's wedding reception in UT and see SO many familiar faces!! A mini Manassas reunion in Kaysville, UT!

Jessie and Dallin looked so happy!
So did Sue and Tony! And so proud.
The cake table was beautiful!
So was baby Clay!! What a sweet baby...
Any chance I can get to be around the Botts, I'll take!
And look at the little girls around Jessie, the princess!
Congrats to Jessie and Dallin!

The Simple Life

We've still got pioneering on our mind. We had lots of fun at Heritage Park and This Is the Place monument. Great price for all of the fun!!! And another reminder of the great sacrifices those before us have made. And seriously...what would those pioneers be thinking now as they looked over the valley??!!



After the park we had a quick visit to Grandma and Grandpa Kunz's home. G'pa Kunz has been ill and just returned home from the hospital. Garth and Rob gave him a blessing that definitely did not leave us dry eyed! What a great life he has led and legacy he will leave behind (one day). I was really touched when G'pa Kunz knew all our children's names (first and middle). They have 64 great grand children!! I asked him how he remembered everyones names. His answer, "I pray for them." Ghah! I love this man.

Travelogue. Day 1

We arrived safely in UT. Our flight out was uneventful (yay!!).
We took it easy that evening and just hung out (what vacation is all about!!). The kids found some new favorite toys....

(Check out the old school bike, Jared found! Love the banana seat!!!)

Lots of fun to look forward to this week!

A Test for You

While on vacation to Utah, Rob likes to...


A. Go hiking with his family.

B. Swim in a river.

C. Get strep throat.
This is two years in a row!! What luck!




We hope you feel better soon!!

Some must push and some must pull

Well, our pioneer journey is complete. Our bodies are not only physically exhausted, but emotionally and spiritually exhausted. We now will try to recuperate for our next journey...to the real Utah (in five days). This time we go by plane.

It is hard to write in words the incredible experience we had with the ten youth that were in our family. They worked hard and played hard and hopefully learned even more. I think they did. We learned from them. Their strength is admirable. Their lives are not all pleasant, but they keep going. They face the trials of youth with so much courage and joy. I want to be them when I grow up!

I'm sure there are pioneers of old, looking down on them, saying "This is why we did it. For you. Press forward and enjoy your journey."

I hope they (Micaela, Adam, Dave, Jay, Emily, Christina, Mary, Chloe, Morgan and Ryan)remember the feelings that they felt during their trek experience and use that memory to help carry them through their personal trek on earth.



We were not able to take our real camera to trek and I honestly don't think I would have wanted to risk it, but our little point and shoot was able to capture some of our journey along the way.

Enjoy...