Time Together at Timpanogos Cave

The majority vote for our summer family outing was to climb the 1.5 mile trail to Timpanogos Cave. Many had never been to the cave or hadn't been there for almost 20 years.

Of course we're all smiles at the first tunnel barely 1000 feet into the hike. We have the fastest (Noah) and slowest (Allan) hikers pictured at the top. The cave itself cooled us down from the 90+ hot air outside. The quiet unique beauty of the natural formations with our tour guide, Mark, kept us interested to the very end. Alicia's wedding ring sparkled like a mirrored dancing ball when the lights were turned out and it was spotlighted This will definitely be hiked again in five years or so.

Pizza, fishing at Tibble Creek, Mom's homemade cinnamon rolls, slip'n sliding, and a barbeque at Jor & Sari's ended the fun day together. Start planning what you want to do next year. Breann's vote is Bear Lake. How about you?

The Shepherds and Their Sheep

We snapped a few pictures of the Crosman family minutes before their sheep, Salt and Pepper headed into the auction block of 4-H history books at noon Saturday, August 7th.

After two months of being surrogate parents to a couple of lambs along with their 4-H group, the kids learned alot. Brayle and Hunter were kept busy feeding, chasing, checking on, caring for, protecting from danger and more. With judging time hours away, the two charges were bathed and their coats sheared to a plush carpet finish.

Weighing in at 107 and 111 pounds, both animals proved their owners worth down to the last minute detail. Grossing $575 at the auction the kids has money left over after paying off their debts. Who wouldn't look forward to another year of shepherding the sheep.

First Place at the Fair

The family did well at county fairs this summer with half a dozen first place awards.
Free craft classes kept the kiddies happy all afternoon preventing them from begging us to blow $25 on the midway rides.

Brayle got blue ribbons on her sheep, Salt and Pepper at the Tooele County Fair. They won first and second place spots out of her category. A small miracle after one of them was attacked and bitten on the face by a hound dog at home. It helps to have seasoned sheep friends that know what to do in these cases. Who knew that white flour did such damage control.

Brayle looked like a natural standing in the auction ring first with Pepper, then with Salt, as the auctioneer called out the buyer bids. The arena was surrounded with families, ranchers and lookie-loos like us. Cattle, sheep and pigs marched through one gate and out the other all afternoon. That nagging voice saying "50-50, who'll give me 75" was repeated over and over. The magic sound of "SOLD" completed each animals future.

Allan entered numerous wood carvings into the Salt Lake County Fair. His maple leaf candy dish set won High Blue and was found in the coveted glass display case. His sister, Marion, received Honorable Mention for a quilt block contest. What fun to be a part of the best talent in the county. May we all have a hobby to show next year.

Sew Happy

As you may know, since I bought this new sewing machine, I've been a sewing mad-woman. I've been working on many things but one of which I am very proud are the new pillows for my couches. Mom's wanted to see them for a while, so check them out. (They look pretty professional, don't you think?)

Fast Approaching Adolescence

After a lifetime of tending, Brayle & Hunter are entering their adolecent years. It's time to do the neighborhood fun things going to the movies, park & such with friends. Fixing lunch, chores and checking in with Mom & Dad keep them happy.

They've outgrown the free entertainment I've hauled them to & it's boring. An excursion to the Museum of Natural History and Liberty Park was our latest outing.
What can I say, I'm out of ideas. Perhaps our visiting grand children will have more fun than a barrel of freebies. Maybe moving to another state will change all that. Time will tell.

Peas Picking Pot

Miraculously we planted peas at the perfect time this year out in our park strip sometime between March and April 15. Cool weather lovers, they were blooming by May 3rd. We began picking the green pods both sugar snap & sweet peas by June 12th.

They provided a healthy treat for three straight weeks both at work and home. Snack food move over for a little organic Vitamin A. I pulled the vines out on July 5th. Just in time for the neighbor's plants to start yielding. Thanks for the spring rains I rarely had to water them. They are just a pile of rabbit food now.

How are your gardens growing?

New to Us

After the search of a lifetime, I finally bought a sewing machine. I'm "sew" excited about it! It's a Pfaff expression 3.0 and I got some pretty great savings because I bought it on ebay, new rather than from the dealer. It is quite the machine though, and I feel like I have a LOT to learn. I have many projects in the works. Check out this super cute apron that I made. (It's reversible!)

Also, Jed and I have been looking for a four-wheeler for a little while. Well, we finally found the right one! We got a Honda Recon (it's a smaller 4-wheeler) for me to ride. Jed found a 1972 Honda SR-125 bike. (We'll see how that goes - I'm a bit afraid of riding bikes. I fell over on Jed's brothers bike last spring - because I can't figure out the buisness of shifting. It was a bit embarrassing!) There are a LOT of trails around Twin Falls too, so it shoud be a great weekend activity for us. After looking at these, I just can't believe how much money people will spend on a hobby like this! CRAZY! Come visit and let's go for a ride!