Beautiful Zion

(there are a lot of photos in this post – but really, they’re of Zion National Park, so you won’t be bored. Oh yeah, and disclaimer – these were all taken on my iPhone. Some day I will remember to use a real camera. Or I’ll just get an iPhone 4s and I will have a real camera on my phone)

Early in the week before Memorial Day weekend a friend of ours from our old Portuguese ward that we were attending texted me and asked if we wanted to go to Zion National Park with them. I’ve never been (Russ has been a few times) and of course I said yes! Russ was out of town, so it was going to be just me and the kids, and because the choir would be singing on Sunday I had to be back in time for choir practice before church.

So we agreed to go down Friday night and then drive back home Saturday night and spend the night with Russ’ sister Mary in Payson and then drive the last hour on Sunday morning. It was a lot of driving, but Rhiannon and Iara (two of the other wives who were going down) helped drive on Friday night so I could sleep some.

We go to Zion around midnight and the guys helped set up our tent. As we laid down in the tent, Joseline looked up at the starry sky and said, “Look at all the stars!” It was a precious moment as I realized she had probably never see so many stars in her tender little life. It made me want to go back soon so she can see the stars again.

Around 3 am I woke up to moist pricks on my face and the slow drip of a light rain falling on the tent. And realized the fly wasn’t on our tent. The next morning, Iara’s husband Zach told me that he had realized the same thing when he heard the rain and was about to get up and help me with the fly when he heard me jump out of my tent, open the car, grab the fly and put it up in about 30 seconds. Thankfully our tent is really easy to put up, and the fly is just as easy.

Joseline trying on hats the the gas station during our potty/snack break

Saturday morning we ate hugemongo muffins for breakfast. The kids both picked chocolate muffins and finished off their chocolate milk that was leftover from our gas station snack/potty break on the way down. They definitely needed all the chocolate and sugar for all the hiking we did.

breakfast of champions

little posers – they wanted to pose, and so here are their “poses”

a big gnarly tree with exposed roots down by the river

throwing sticks in the river

throwing sticks and rocks in the water–and the gnarly tree

me and my mini-me on the way to the visitors’ center. I love that girl!

After breakfast, Rhiannon (who was about 28 weeks pregnant – that’s why she invited me and the kids – pregnant woman friendly hike = kid friendly hike) had to drive all the other campers up to the start of their day long hike and rappelling trip. While she was gone the kids and I explored around the campsite. We camped close to this little river, so we went down to throw rocks in for a little while. Then we followed the path over to the visitors’ center where we took a shuttle bus up to the Emerald Pools trail.

Riding the shuttle was pretty fun because we got to look at all the rock formations. The bus also had a little informational/educational recording that played as we drove up to the trailhead.

We hiked up to the pools and a little waterfall. It was an easy trail, completely paved, and when we got down to where the pools were and the little shower of water (it wasn’t really a waterfall – I mean, technically it was, but really it was just water trickling off a cliff… which is a waterfall… but you know what I mean. If you don’t, see the pictures below)

I was surprised (perhaps I shouldn’t have been) at how many people from other countries were there at Zion. I heard people speaking German, Chinese, Italian, and that what sounded like some type of Middle Eastern/Indian language (Hindi? Pashto?). It was fun to be in a place where people come from all over the world.

it was like standing under the rain… there is something really magical about a waterfall

my cuties posing again for me – they were such troopers on this whole trip!

    

some of the flora and fauna we saw on our hikes – Not sure what that big fat black beetle is, but it was super cool. And big. The white flowers I am pretty sure are snap dragons. I love snap dragons. And Vince found the lizards by the visitors’ center. We love lizards around here.

Then we headed back to the campsite to meet up with Rhiannon. We packed lunches and snacks and drove out to the back country to hike through a remote canyon and up a cliff.

Getting down to the sandy canyon bottom took a little doing – it was pretty steep and I had Joseline in the backpack/carrier. She still only weighs about 30 lbs, and I figured carrying her would be easier than waiting for her to follow us. She is soooo slow on hikes/walking/etc.

So we basically hiked a mile (one way) in the soft sandy bottom of a canyon before we headed almost straight up a cliff to get to the top of the rocks. We would have gone further, but Joseline stepped in a cactus, and I wasn’t sure we would make it back to the car if we had gone all the way up to the summit we had planned on getting to.

king of the mountain – or rather, the canyon – this kid loves Zion National Park and keeps asking to go back

another lizard up close. I took this picture a few inches away from the lizard. I was surprised he didn’t run away at first

    

the cliff we all scaled – even Miss Joseline

We ate lunch at the top of the cliff and the kids wandered around looking at rocks and cacti and all the other vegetation growing on the cliff.

  

Ironically, climbing down a cliff is harder than climbing up one, but we made it, and then hiked back out of the canyon. It was a beautiful hike, and the kids really enjoyed it. Well, Vince enjoyed it. Joseline mostly just hung out in her back pack. The weather in the canyon was pretty chilly, but once we got up on top of the cliff we could feel the sun and it was pretty warm.

Back at the camp, Rhiannon watched my kiddos so I could get a nap before we had to drive home. She also cooked a fabulous Dutch oven dinner – creamy chicken soup stuff, biscuits, and a scrumptious potato casserole. We had to eat and run so we could get to Payson sooner than later.

The sun was just setting as we left Zion. It was an excellent trip, even if it was fast. Totally worth all the driving, and I can’t wait to go back – hopefully for a week long trip with Russ and the kids. Anyone want to come?

A Mother Heart

I love these guys. So much.

I got stranded in Wyoming last night,
and I didn’t see these precious faces until this evening.
I just couldn’t get enough of them!
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There’s something really special about being a mother. Something that makes me love it.

You know what else I love?

Watching complete strangers being awesome parents.

Today at Kohls’ I walked by a young couple with a little one or two year old boy in the mother’s arms crying. The father got close to the little boy’s face, and in the sweetest voice said, “I know that’s really fun to play like that, but you can’t ___.”
(I think the blank was something about being in a crowded store and running away from mom and dad being dangerous – I was mostly out of earshot by the time he got to that part)

I just loved that the dad was so in tune with his kid – the kid did think that running around the busy store was fun! But he also needed to understand how dangerous it can be not to obey mom and dad, and not to stay near them. Overhearing that exchange in the store lit up my face. Seriously. I smiled for almost a minute afterwards. I see too many moms and dads dragging their kids around public places, snipping at them, saying mean things to their kids, or even spanking them in the middle of the store (sometimes I am guilty of this behavior – not so much the spanking part, but definitely being impatient with my kids in public places). The way this father spoke to his son was so sweet, so loving, so tender. I’m sure that little boy had no doubt in his mind that his daddy loves him and that all his daddy wanted was to keep his little boy safe.

What a great dad.

I’m married to a guy like that.

He’s a great dad.

Great dads make great kids.

That’s why my kids are fabulous.

Just Keep Swimming

One of our favorite things about living in Salt Lake County is the recreation facilities. Our local Rec center here in West Jordan has an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, an indoor track, basketball court, weight room, and a daycare (the kids absolute favorite). With our pass we can get into any county facility – ice skating rinks included, which is another favorite pastime.

The indoor pool is nice, especially in the winter when we’ve got a hankering for splashing around and the snow is falling outside.

The last time we went, however, was right after the outdoor pool closed (and it was still super warm outside, but oh well).

We went with our friends Gabe and Noah and their mama who were staying with us for a while. It was loads of fun, and we miss those cuties! 

And going to the pool is always more fun when Papai comes along!

The Hearts of the Children

Every few years, the descendents of my grandmother and grandfather (Joseph Theron Smith and Neva Almira Harper) get together for a huge family reunion. There are 10 living children of Joseph and Neva, all with spouses, and somewhere around 40 grandkids (with the number of great-grandkids skyrocketing).

This summer we had a little “mini” reunion (I put mini in quotes because even our “small” reunions are still big…) Because the weather was horribly hot this summer we went up to the little fountain pools at Nelson’s Grove park in Orem. We had actually had a potluck picnic behind my aunt’s stake center and the kids needed an escape from the heat, so we walked over to the park. The kids (and some of the older “kids”) got in the water and splashed around.

I always love being with my Smith family. I think every single one of my Smith relatives is a kind hearted, loving, decent person who wants to help each other in every way they possibly can. Sure, as with every family there are miscommunications, mix-ups, and disagreements, but I feel like everyone tries to handle them pretty civilly, and no one really holds any grudges.

One of the nights we had a “girl cousin’s sleepover” – we’ve really gotta come up with a better name! Anyway, it was a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed getting to know my girl cousins better, especially the somewhat younger ones (like these two lovely ladies here). It’s really fun that we can all be so close and have so much fun together. I feel like I have instant friends in my cousins, even if we don’t see each other very frequently.

Some of the younger kiddos having a blast in the water.

   

We got everyone to run around the wading pool in a line. This is the beginning of it. The picture at the top is the middle. I wish I had a better camera so we could have got a better shot – but it was still fun.

A Day for the Governor

This weekend was a big one for us! Friday night was the military ball, Saturday was Governor’s Day, Sunday was my first day teaching Relief Society in our new ward, and Monday is the E4-E5 promotion board!

The military ball will get it’s own post, and maybe I’ll post over on My Soul Delighteth about teaching Relief Society.

Saturday morning Russ had to be at formation at Camp Williams at 0700 (for those of you who don’t speak military, that’s 7:00 am – and we live about 20-30 min away from Camp Williams, depending on traffic). We had stayed at the ball until about 2300 (again, that’s 11:00pm) dancing to Article 15 (the UT National Guard’s band). So we didn’t get home until around midnight. I don’t even remember what time Russ got out of bed, but I don’t think he left until around 0630. I won’t ask him how fast he drove (he took his motorcycle) but he ended up getting there on time.

On time for some waiting. They had a formation at 0700 and then released every body until they had to form up again around 0930 for the parade. If you are unfamiliar with the Army (or the military in general) their motto is “Hurry up and wait.” You might think that it is “Army of one” or some such nonsense, but it really is “Hurry up and wait.” That’s what they always do. Form up and then wait for forever for nothing. Or something. But they have to wait. Wait wait wait wait. But you better be on time to wait.

I didn’t get to Camp Williams until about 1005, a few minutes after the parade started, but I think all we missed was a prayer and maybe the national anthem or something. We got there just as Governor Hubert was speaking. We had to park all the way in the farthest north corner of Camp Williams, but the army was cool and picked us up with a van and dropped us off right by the parade. On our way down to the parade grounds three C-130s did a fly over. They were pretty close to the ground, and the kids got a kick out of it (Joseline thought it was a little loud).

We got to the parade grounds and found a seat just about in time to watch the soldiers parade around.

Now, a military parade is not like a Fourth of July parade or a Homecoming parade. Basically the soldiers form up with their companies and in their units, and in their battalions, and they march past the Governor and salute him so he can “inspect” them. I’m sure he doesn’t really do much inspecting. He probably just smiles and looks pretty for the cameras. Mostly a military parade is just for show – but it is a cool show, and a powerful representation of our military. There were so many troops there. It was the entire Utah National Guard – Army and Air Guard. It was crazy. The Guard also had three Black Hawks fly over during part of the parade (just before the Air Guard marched by, I believe). The kids loved that, too.

I didn’t get a good picture of Russ because I was too busy trying to point him out to Vincente. By the time I remembered that I need to take pictures, I had to take them of the back of his head.

Russ was the third from the front on the second row.
You can see his beret where the arrow is pointing.

The band was great, and the soldiers looked fabulous.

After the “parade” they had a fair type thing where all the units and battalions sold food and the Guard put up a zip line and a bounce house. They also had a lot of booths advertising all of the services the military has for families. I signed up for the FRG for our unit, talked to some Military OneSource folks, and got information on the local Family Assistance Center. We also signed up for the Enlisted Association of the National Guard. Apparently they are the people who lobby our politicians to keep the benefits for the Guard soldiers.

They also had an Apache helicopter and a Black Hawk medic helicopter the kids could get around, touch, and (for the Black Hawk) get in. The Apache folks were a little more touchy about the kids getting in the cockpits – but I think that’s because Apaches have guns, and the Black Hawk didn’t. The pilots were all really nice and talked to us about their helicopters.

Vincente loved being the helicopters and decided that he is going to join the army and fly helicopters when he gets “big like Papai.” Cute kid. I told Russ that I secretly hope that Vincente will join the National Guard when he is old enough. No matter what else he chooses to do for a career, I would absolutely love for him to be a citizen-soldier!

The last thing we did was head over to the 19th Special Forces Group’s tent where Vince tried his hand at a paintball gun. He was actually doing pretty well. He was aiming. Russ said Vince couldn’t figure out just how to use the scoping bars (or whatever Russ called them) because he was consistently hitting the wrong spot so he probably had the target through part of the scope and not the whole thing. Anyway, after hitting a few targets and some unsuccessful attempts at shooting the rest he told Russ he was done, so Russ finished out – left handed. And of course took each one out in one shot.

Joseline mostly sat in her stroller and enjoyed a cookie. She tried the bouncy obstacle course but ended up getting stuck. She liked the helicopter, but I think what she liked most of all was being with Papai. She’s super attached to that guy.