A magical place

There is something to be said about warm red rock canyon country in the spring!  I am not one to continually go to the same destination over and over again, however Moab, UT has drawn me there on numerous Springs with both my family and my girlfriends.  There is just something MaGiCal about this place.

This year my dear friend Sandy mentioned that she was going to take her husband for the first time and invited us to join in.  It happened to be a week that I was off of work and with little convincing, Tob was on board.  We needed a little family vacation after a long fire season last year with a long basketball season that followed before heading back into a LONG summer.  Anyway, what I am saying is the family vaca was overdue.

Of course I worked 80 hours the week before and had a  crazy night before we left without a lunch break or any break for that matter, came home at 8am, finished packing and we were out the door by 9:15 to find that the "new" car (a 2005 Ford Exploder) wouldn't start.  We jumped it and then had to take it to the shop in LG and pay them $58 to tell us it was going to be another $800 to fix.  Luckily it was working ok at that point, so we opted to take our chances as we would have had to forfeit the trip if we chose to fix it right then, so onward we went knowing we still had a good 12-14 hour drive ahead of us.  At one point the straps broke on the bike rack and had it not been for the lock around them, my bike would have flown down the freeway at 70MPH and most likely crushed by another vehicle.  I was convinced by 1pm, delirious and almost tearful that this may be a sign to turn around and just go home.  Tob and I laughed it off and continued on and later on were glad we did.  We arrived at our campground at 2am and were in our tent and asleep by 2:35.  It was a new tent we had never set up so we were happy it was easy to assemble and didn't give us any problems.

I am also happy to report despite a friend with a sprained ankle the rest of the trip was enjoyable and relaxing.  We spent our days in Canyonlands NP, Arches NP and Mountain biking some pretty cool trails.  It was the kids first time Mnt Biking in Moab and I have to say I was impressed with their skills.  They rode some tough stuff and enjoyed most of it.

Bull Run, One of the Magnificent 7 bike rides was one of the favorites.  It was listed as an intermediate to advanced ride.  The loop took us almost 2 1/2 hours to ride.  We rode along cliff edges with some amazing views.  My heart sank into my stomach a few times wondering if my kids were going to fly off the edges, but they survived and did so with a smile.

Rippin it up in Canyon country.  The kids loved riding the slick rock.  So grippy :-)

"A family that bikes together, stays together"

This is another trail called Rockin A.  Lex wasn't a huge fan.  A little more technical at spots than she would have liked but she made it through and then Nojah went on to ride Circle O with Sandy and Karl while Tob, Lex and I took an easier route back to the car.

One of the mornings we were there, all of us adults ditched the kids at camp and headed out to the classic slick rock trail.  Tob rode for a bit but has been struggling with some chest congestion and wasn't feeling well so rode back to camp to hang with the kids.  Sandy, Karl and I finished the loop with the beautiful views and shaky legs from the crazy climbs.

This country is SIMPLY amazing, that's all I have to say.

Lex loves earning her junior ranger badge at each park we visit so we have learned quite a bit about desert animals with all our travels to National Parks over the past several years.  One animal they have always wanted to see was a Kangaroo Rat.  Tob was the hero and found them one.  Less than ideal, but the bonus was not moving, which made it easy to correctly identify and the kids could check it out as long as they wanted.

Came around the corner and Sandy discovered Turtle rock.  We decided it was a good photo op.

Arches NP is one of my favorites.  I have been there 4 times now and have not seen it all.  One afternoon we spent roughly 4 hours wandering through Devils Garden.  It was incredible and highly recommended.  It was hot and we probably should have had more water but we made it and I would do it again in a heartbeat.  Very cool!!

More in Devils Garden.  Our own personal playground.

I don't know what she said, but I thought it was funny.  I love my friend......

and her crazy husband who leans over scary cliffs.

Lex found her own little arch.  Her brother took note of that and obviously wanted to be included.

I am not going to lie......Tob Farted.

The canyon lands are amazing place to visit and I am sure we will continue to return to this heaven on earth every few years while we can.

Spring Break

After our weekend tournament we picked up our niece Makenna and headed home.  Spring break was a welcomed week of R&R for our family after the past 5 months.  

The first day Kenna was here we hiked up to the tree on tick hill with lunches Lexy so graciously packed us.  It was fun just to play around with the kids and visit.  The next day I mostly spent cleaning and Kenna helped clean both of the kids rooms.  I am wondering if she will ever want to come back to our house?  Shaun and Amy came to pick her up that evening and we enjoyed dinner, a little basketball, and cooking smores over the fire before they headed back home.

Lexy's bunny is getting bigger and will be ready to come home with us by the end of April.  A bunny is much like a dog...8-10 weeks before it can go to it's new home. We make frequent trips over to the Wilson's to visit the sweet little balls of fur, as we can't get enough of it's sweet little face.

She/he (not sure yet, but Heidi is banking on it's a her) is so sweet and snuggly.  They are growing super fast.  Only a week or two ago they fit in the palms of our hands.  You can see mama Sitka and white baby Nanook in the background.

After the 2013 Racoon Massacre I wasn't sure I'd do chickens again this year, then after buying store bought eggs all winter long......I caved and decided (kind of last minute) to start over.

So we brought home 9 chicken nuggets for Barley to guard.  (Not Eat, barley.....Guard!!)

3 of them will go to market at the 4H auction in August so we will be left with 6 for home.  This year we researched the chicks/breeds and ended up with a variety.  1 Araucana, 1 Barred Rock, 4 Light Brahma's, 1 Silver laced Wyandotte, 1 Blue laced Red Wyandotte, and 1 Golden Sex-link.  They are all pretty cute.

Since it was last minute I just opted to mention to Tob that chicks were coming.  My theory was.....If I bring home chicks the coop will come.  IT WORKED.  He has been diligently building them a home in his spare time.

A perfect end to a great season.

Basketball season has officially come to an end for the year.  Maybe I should rephrase that....  Our time in the gym has come to an end for the year and I am just starting to recover from an illness known as "bleacher butt".  I look forward to healing before it all starts over again with Volleyball season in the fall.  Of course there will be friendly 1 on 1 competitions in the driveway and camps in the near future but the high school, junior high, grade school and AAU teams are done with their games.   Our boys finished out their season taking home the Championship medals in Baker Elkhorn Elite Tourney and then 2nd place in the Pine Eagle Tournament. 

 This was Lexy's first year doing AAU and the girls were able to get in 2 tournaments which gave them an additional 9 games for the season.  They finished in 2nd place in the Battle of the Blue's tournament and we were really proud of the progress they made in a short amount of time.  Not bad for a first year and only 2 tourneys.

 The girls love basketball, but love the fun social aspect of the tournaments even a little bit more I think.

 Although you CAN'T keep the boys off of the basketball court or take a ball out of their hands for much more than a few moments, truly enjoy time with each other and have enjoyed getting to know other players around the state over the past few years.....such as the curly headed photo bomber from the Grant Union team.  This was the end of the season photo and we had lost a lot of our regular boys so we picked up Isaac, Kaden, and Ethan to complete our team.  It was fun for Nojah and his cousin Isaac to get to play together.  These are a great group of boys and benefited from an extra 25 games this season with AAU tourneys.

Our little gym rats

It was such a blessing to bring along our nephew this last tournament.  We enjoy his positive attitude and smiles and certainly cherish all the time we get to spend with him.

It's been a great year and we are looking forward to spring track meets, summer golf, biking, and hiking, and then fall sports before heading into another 5 months of basketball.

She's 12 today

She's smart, she's sweet, and she's growing up!  Alexyss has been carefree since the day she was born and has a true passion for life.  She's not bothered by much and if something does get her down she can let it go fairly quickly.  She's beautiful, she's fun, and always willing to try something new.  We love her sweet spirit and so proud of the the young lady she is becoming. 

She's a good friend, a great sister, and the best daughter a mom and dad could ask for.

She definitely lives life to the fullest and has accomplished so much in a short amount of time.  With her lively spirit and her determination we look forward to watching her grow and succeed.  Happy Birthday to our Beautiful girl!!  We love you!

On March 7, 2002 our sweet baby girl entered the world and stole our hearts.  Our sweet 6lb 14oz little girl is 12 today.

We sure are enjoying every moment with this girl and look forward to many more years to come with many more moments.  My only issue is that these "moments" are flying by way too fast.