Through the Woods and over the Mountains...

...a hiking we will go!

I really wanted to get outside this Summer and check out the beauty we have right in our own backyard. Since I have gotten really out of shape and pretty overweight, I knew we had to start out easy. So I called up my sister since she has lots of little ones with very short legs and thought they might be at about my hiking level. My sister Julie, is a hiking beast and has hiked the likes of Half Dome and Timpanogos...but lucky for me she has recently had a baby that she now has to pack. So on Monday, we tackled Battle Creek Falls for our first hike. It was just perfect! It was a hot day and the falls were a nice reward.

 All good hikes require a proper walking stick!

 Wish I could hike in such style (Sinjin & Julie)

 Some of our hikers - Zachary, Julie, Braxton & Brooklynn

 The kids found a fun little cave to crawl into

(L-R: Braxton, Ivy, Zachary, McKenna & Brooklynn)

 

 Finally the falls...it was so cool and misty, very refreshing

 

The beautiful view from the top

A little photo op on the bridge on the way back down 

(L-R: McKenna, Ivy, Brooklynn, Braxton & Zachary)

Thursday we drove up Provo canyon and attempted to find Buffalo Peak. It was a slow start as we took the wrong trail initially and had to head up a little higher to find the trail-head. But boy, was it worth it! It was a pretty short hike but the last 1/2 is straight up so that was a little grueling, but once you got to the top, the views were stunning! And the scenery the whole way was just beautiful. It was so nice to be out in nature and enjoying all that God has created. The kids did fantastic! We took Harley this time and he was a trooper as well. I can't wait to go again! And, it has been so fun to hike with Julie and her kids too.

 Most of our hikers...on the right trail

 

We saw some wildlife along the way. If you look really hard you can spot the head of a wild turky. Ok, maybe not, but I promise it is there. There were a few but I was near the end of our group and they had mostly run away by the time I got up there. We also spotted a deer and a bunny, lots of butterflies and tons of insects.

Beautiful meadows and flowers...EVERYWHERE!

 

 McKenna and Ivy picked some flowers and made a little bouquet for the next group to pass by.

We finally made it to the top

Some of the spectacular views from the top. 360 degrees of mountains, meadows, Utah Lake and the city below. 

This little pup was pretty pooped by the time we got home

Summer is Here!

Schools been out for a few weeks and the temperatures have been in the upper 90's and low 100's for most of the time. We found a fun little spot that we like to cool off in at the Wayne Bartholomew Family Park in Springville. We have been a few times and love the ammenities it offers. We went there last Friday with the Wards and then again on Monday with some of the Gleeds, Loloheas and Oleniks. We had so much fun both times!

So the park has a great man made lake that is about 3 1/2 acres and at least 15-20 feet in the middle. You can kayak, paddle board, swim, fish and more!

On one end there is a nice, sandy beach area to play in.

Here is Julie's little boy Sinjin (almost 6mo old) playing in the sand. He's so cute!

The water is actually pretty cold because the lake is fed by the creek that runs out of the canyon which is fed by melting snow. So Ivy (Julie's-4 1/2 yrs old) is trying to warm up for a bit.

Lauren taking Ivy for a spin on "Al" the Alligator. And McKenna just chillin' in the sand. 

Here are Lauren & Tyler trying to catch some fish.

McKenna tried Paddle Boarding and loved it. Lauren and the other cousins playing in the water.

(L-R) Front Row: Coco, Sheldon, Salina, Emelia, Emmett and Weston. In the middle is Sila Boy. Back Row: Moses, Mason, Jenna Lee & Brooklynn

You might be able to see McKenna in the far distance still on the paddle board. But Tyler and Lauren are "too old" to be taking kid pictures!

Chris put together a fun video "First Day of Summer".

Blessed, Honored Pioneers

 

Trek - where do I begin??!! What an AMAZING experience. It is just too hard to sum it up in words, but I'll do my best. Chris and I didn't have the Pioneer Trek experience growing up so when we had the opportunity to be a Ma & Pa on our Stake Youth Trek, we jumped at it. We were able to go along with both Tyler and Lauren. The trek was for youth 14 and older but if your parents were coming, you could come if you were 12 or 13, so Lauren was able to come too. 

We all had to dress in pioneer clothing, pack everything we'd need for 3 days (except bedding) into a 5 gallon bucket that weighed no more than 17 pounds, and walk around the wilderness pushing a handcart for nearly 20 miles. Sounds like fun, right? It was. 

Our Stake decided that they wanted the youth to have a more spiritual experience rather than focusing on the harsh physical conditions. Not to say that it was easy by any means, but it was easier than a lot of groups that go.

 

I heard of one group who actually had to catch their own wildlife for dinner! We were spoiled and the Stake cooked most of our meals for us or provided us meals to cook that were mostly done. We ate fantastic! They also had trucks that hauled all of our tents, bedding and cooking stuff from site to site so we didn't have to lug that around in our handcarts.

The weather was brutal, over 100 degrees most of the time or right around there. There was no shade or trees to be found anywhere and everything was covered in dust. The only shade to be had was under the handcart. There was so much dirt! I had visions of sleeping on nice, soft grassy park-like areas each night, but nope, literally dust bowls! We had so many great devotionals, talks, music and a fantastic fireside given by Brad Wilcox.

 

Each day we trekked anywhere from 4 to 8 miles, set up camp, tore down camp, had our meals, had devotionals and vignettes along the way, a hoe down, camp games, lots of visiting, shared pioneer stories and more.

 

 

 

Two of the highlights were the women's pull where all the men "left with the Mormon battalion" and the women were left to pull the handcarts on their own.

 

 

We had to pull them a 1/2 a mile in ankle deep dirt which was like flour. It was so hard. The conditions were so dusty that you couldn't see the group in front of you. We ate a ton of dust being kicked up by the carts. As we neared the end we could hear the men singing softly and it was so beautiful. We couldn't see them through the dust until we were right there but it was very touching to hear them singing. 

 

It was so hard on them to see us struggle so much. We were so relieved when it was over and our strong boys could take over pulling the handcarts again. The other highlight was the river crossing. We had to cross the river in thigh-high water. The boys could carry the girls across but ours didn't because all of our girls wanted to get wet since it was so hot. I think they were kind of disappointed. Again, it was a very spiritual experience.

 

 

 

 I feel very blessed to have been able to participate and hope the kids enjoyed it as much as we did. Tyler and Lauren both had a great time and did fantastic. Tyler was assigned a different family as they mixed up all the kids so that each family group had a variety of ages, wards and about 1/2 girls and 1/2 boys. Lauren was in our family because she was too young. I suspect they did that so that if they struggled or whined that their parents could deal with them. However, she did amazing and would have been fine anywhere. Oh, and on the 2nd day of the trek each family "lost" loved ones, just like during the real Treks. Our family lost Lauren. They got to ride ahead up to our next campsite and hang out, play games and have treats while we all trekked some more. Later that day they got to come back. It was just such a great experience and we totally want to go again next time.

Our Trek Family

 Our Trek Family - the Girls

Our ward kids

 

(L-R: Back - Spencer Miller, Rachel Albach, Tyler, Lauren, Bro. Crismon Lewis, Front - Constanza Cuello, Ryde Casper)

Tyler's Trek Family

 Tyler and his friends

(L-R: Landon Lawrence, Treadon Casper, Ryde Casper, Josh Buss, Spencer Miller & Tyler)

Lauren in her BFF - Kaylee Dial