DONE! But here's what I look like now!

This whole process of cataloging the pictures and uploading them and whatnot has been exhausing! I am so glad to be DONE, but they are there, preserved for posterity, right? So it was all worth it?

But this is what I look like now...

this photo was taken by a lady who posts a very entertaining blog called Confessions of a Pioneer Woman. She is a former city girl who married a rancher and lives in the middle of nowhere. She takes amazing photos... Anyway, they were checking the cows for pregnancies and she has a montage of pictures of the "expecting" ladies. This one was taken at exactly the moment they were... how can I put this delicately? confirming her good news? But I feel like I look like this most days so I have adopted her as my spokes-cow.

Geyser Hill pt. 1

Geyser Hill pt. 2

Old Faithful Area Trail pt. 1

Morning Glory Pool and Trail

Day 3 in Yellowstone

I forgot the loop to Virginia Cascades on the way back from Canyon! It was so pretty and quiet. It was another of those places we normally would have missed, if not for the head's up from the Garners. There weren't many people there so it was lovely.

We originally planned on just 2 days in Yellowstone but we missed seeing the boardwalk loop behind Old Faithful when we were there on the first day. N had seen a picture of a pool there called "Morning Glory" and she really wanted to see it so Dilbert, N, H and I got up early and headed back to the Old Faithful area early in the morning. The fog was amazing at that hour. We made it to the Geyser Hill area and did the hike which ended up being 3 miles, round trip (check out the slide shows for pictures of this area). It was worth it, though.

After the hike we went back to West Yellowstone. We had planned on going rafting down the river or boating on Hegben Lake but it was far too cold. Instead, we gathered the rest of the group and headed to town to do some souvenir shopping. We all got hoodies and goodies and had fun looking at all the junk for sale. While we were in one store, bnlfan_1 and Teah were offered jobs for next summer so Yeah! we may be back next year!

Yellowstone Day 3

Another full day in the park, this time going north to Mammoth, Tower-Roosevelt and the Canyon area. The kids were THRILLED to spend another day in the car, driving around, looking at NATURE.

We started with another waterfall, Gibbon Falls, which was breathtaking. The pictures did not do it justice (but what pictures do?) Then on to the Norris Basin. We saw a lot of Elk and one cute fox along the way. Roaring Mountain was very neat, looking like an enormous pile of smoking poo, but still worth looking at (that is for the kids). The Sheepeater Cliff was another very interesting turn-out. We had fun scaring the kids at the Golden Gate, but we made it past without anyone dying. The view of the valleys up there was spectacular (I am running out of adjectives).

Mammoth has changed a lot since I was there, 20+ years ago. It has dried up a lot but it is still amazing to see. We saw this moose, yes, it really is a moose, and a very sickly deer on the way to Undine Falls.

I was disappointed the trail to the base of Tower Fall has washed out and is inaccessible but the kids were not disappointed at all. I must have overwhelmingly disappointed because I didn't take a single picture there! We also stopped at Wraith falls. From here, the Canyon country opened up with breathtaking views in every direction.

Again, I was disappointed that Artist Point was closed so we took a hike to a lower viewpoint of the Lower Falls. Wow.

After that we made our way back to West Yellowstone, exhausted. How lucky we were to have hosts who stayed behind to cook and clean for us. It was better than a hotel!

Artist's Paint Pots

Mammoth Hot Springs

I was tagged...

Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name.

If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would
have liked to have had. When you are tagged you need to write your own
blog post containing your own middle name game facts. At the end of
your blog post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your
middle name to tag. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Friends... who couldn't live without them!
Order... I crave it but it is elusive. It also implies going out to lunch... Yumm!
Robert... my baby who is 18 now and leaving for college this morning.
Daughters... I was blessed with five of these wonderful creatures who look vaguely like me but are vastly more beautiful, intelligent, creative, fun, talented, ingenious, etc...

Now let's see... who can I tag? Cory (because he is my favorite person in the wole world), Lana (because you've a way with words that inspire me), Janis (who never posts enough), Carol (another who needs to post more), and Rosalie (an unbelievable artist who graciously is storing my sons crap until he moves in today--thanks again!), and anyone else who will join in!

Old Faithful Area

Lower Geyser Basin

Yellowstone Day 2

On Monday we went to Yellowstone. It was amazing, of course. We did the lower loop from Old Faithful through West Thumb and back to Madison. It was a long drive but way fun. We were so fortunate to have hosts who knew the park like the back of their hands and knew the "secret" places to see.

The first stop was Firehole Canyon Drive where we ooh-ed and ahh-ed over our first waterfall, the Firehole Falls (if you ask my kids, they believe my goal was to see every waterfall in the park). After that we went on to the Lower Geyser Basin and stoped at the Fountain Paint Pots. It was freezing cold and the wind was blowing but it was worth the walk. From there we went on to Firehole Lake Drive where we saw the Great Fountain Geyser as it finished erupting and the White Dome Geyser and walked through Hot Lake (appropriately named) and Firehole Lake. The colors were amazing. Then on to the Grand Prismatic Spring and the Upper Geyser Basin. By then it was getting late in the morning so we hurried to Old Faithful. Armed with a great parking tip (park at the Old Faithful Lodge), we made it just in time to see the eruption. We waited only 5 minutes. Yeah for us! But I realized here that my camera batteries were dying so I had to conserve the pictures. Boo hoo!

We pressed onward, past the Kepler Cascades and then up to Craig Pass to have lunch. It was freezing so we shivered through sandwiches and grapes but hurried back to the car for the rest of lunch. N was having a hard time eating her twinkie; it was so cold and she was shivering so hard, she kept missing her mouth.

We continued our drive past Yellowstone Lake, a lake so cold that a man can only last 9 minutes in it before hypothermia will kill him. There weren't many on the lake due to the cold and the wind. As we were coming out of West Thumb, we hit a buffalo road block. There was a herd lounging on the road. It took about 20 minutes before the rangers arrived and cleared them out. It gave us time to find out M is scared of buffalo. When they finally let us through, a buffalo was walking down the middle of the road, following the stripe. Unfortunately for M, it was on her side of the car. She freaked when Dilbert opened her window and locked it open. Her screams were priceless. Just so everyone knows, he did roll it up before the buffalo went berserk over her screams.

The last stop was at a place called Mud Volcano. It was a stinky place but it was amazing. In 1979 there were a series of minor earthquakes that caused the ground to heat up. All the trees in the area died and the geothermal activity picked up. We were also treated to an exciting walk along the boardwalk with a herd of buffalo. One even crossed the walk right in front of us, breaking through two boards. We were uneasy being in such close proximity to those beasts, but we managed to make it through the walk unscathed. It was here that we saw our favorite geothermal feature, the Dragon's Mouth. It sounded just like a dragon breathing fire, with steam belching from the mouth of the cavern. Coooool!

It was getting close to dinner time and the kids were getting restless so we hurried home. That night the Garners took bnlfan_1 and M to see "Catch Me if You Can" at the Playmill Playhouse in West Yellowstone. They had a fantastic time.

Quake Lake Slideshow

Yellowstone, Day 1

We had such a great time in Yellowstone. I just can't begin to write it all. Thanks so much to the Garners for taking us. Their parents (currently on a mission in Holland) have a home in West Yellowstone so we had fabulous accommodations with the best company.

We went to church at the local ward which was kind of funny. The High Councilman asked who was visiting and more than 2/3 of the congregation raised their hands. He said there were more than 1000 in sacrament meeting in Island Park, a ward with about 75 attending members.

After church, we went to Hegben Lake on a drive. It is a huge, gorgeous lake but the winds were high and the sky was dark so it was kind of creepy. I loved it, of course. Right after Hegben is Quake Lake, created after an earthquake in 1959 caused a huge mountain slide which created a dam. The submerged trees are eerie reminders of the campers who were buried under the slide. It is interesting that nothing has grown in the mountain where the slide occurred. It is still barren. We walked around some old cabins on the lake shore that were destroyed during the "tsunami" waves on Hegben Lake.

After exploring there we went back to West Yellowstone and rode 4-wheelers, something my kids hadn't done (okay, me either!) and it was a blast. They decided we need 4-wheelers of our own. I think I agree. Later that night, 4b arrived with Steve.

Book fluff

After a wonderful IM session with my mind-blowingly talented niece Koola, I now have a picture of Gabriel,my protagonist.

Thanks so much for the inspiration Koola!
Here's what he drives.

Cool, huh!

Bit and pieces

This new "book" project of mine is taking up a lot of my mental energy and time. Who knew I would enjoy writing this much? I mean it is crap--really--I am no writer. But I am having a blast doing it so who cares, right? I am NOT writing the next great American novel but it is keeping me out of trouble so far...

But I thought I had better update what we've been doing for posterities sake.

This was supposed to be our wildly fun week before school started. Monday was a "back to school" launch by the elementary school administration at magnificent cabin in Morgan. What a beautiful setting it was. I got to talk to the kid's teachers and am so excited about this year. They are going to be so good for my kids. As a parent, I agonize over who my child will get each year but I make it a matter of prayer and it seems to work out better than I could have hoped. It is usually only an issue when I try to intervene. Go figure!

Tuesday I took the kids to the Great Salt Lake. It was over a half a mile to
the water from the parking lot, the lake is so low. The sandy beach
was amazing but it was far too hot to enjoy. We burned our feet badly
trying to get to the water. Of course the brine flies were pleasant.
But they got to experience the burn of salt water on open wounds,
always a fun time, and float in stinky water, another great time had by
all... But now they can say they've done it. We lasted about an hour
before H got water in her mouth and eyes. It was another 20 minutes to
walk to the showers to get it out. By then we were crusted with salt
and felt like bacon. It was also the ward party at the Surf-N-Swim. The kids always have a blast in the wave pool and I enjoy sitting on the pool deck, visiting with the wonderful people in my ward.

Thursday I sent N to Lagoon with a friend. She's 11 now, and armed with a cell phone, she got to brave it without a parent. She refused to ride the Colossus and
Wicked, despite the fact that I said she couldn't have a ride home until she did. I was supposed to take M and H, too, but M stepped on the broken part of a radio antenna and gouged a good hole in her foot and she couldn't walk. She wasn't happy about missing out on Lagoon. I am going to try to take them on Monday next week, instead.

Yesterday was a Ford family party at Muellar Park Canyon. I hadn't been up there in over 20 years, I bet. Wow--I'm old! It hadn't changed much, happily. We had hot dogs, watermelon and s'mores and fun times with my family. We missed those who couldn't be there. My sister, Katie, was there. She's not doing well but I thought she looked really good. I guess because she's loosing weight. But she isn't the girl she was and it is hard to see. She is so unsteady on her feet. She can hardly communicate, her speech is so weak. She was so funny, trying to catch flies in a cup--they were just to fast for her but she kept at it.

After the picnic we "raced" home for a High School Musical 2 party. The kids had invited their friends to come over and watch it in the back yard on the side of the house. Unfortunately there had been an accident on I-15 in Farmington so it took more than an hour to get home. We had a yard full of kids here, waiting, when we got home at 8:30 last night. The skies looked threatening so Dilbert moved the party inside. Good thing, too, because half way through the show, it poured rain and lightening was everywhere. But it made for cramped quarters in the basement. We had probably 20 little girls and boys and even a few stalwart moms squished on the every pillow, couch, chair, bean bag and love sac we could find. Their giggles as Troy and Gabriella finally kissed made it all worth it. Now I have a bunch of spilled soda and cheese doodles to clean up but that's okay. They will always remember it, right? And carpet can be cleaned!

Bnlfan_1 got home from a wonderful EFY in Logan. She said her favorite class was taught by Brad Wilcox. She was sitting in the chapel, writing in her EFY journal, waiting for it to start when he came up behind her and gave her a huge hug. He was so excited to see her writing in her journal so he talked to her about it for a few minutes and then asked if he could write something in it. He wrote her a page of "inspirational fluff" and then signed his name. She hadn't heard of him before but when I told her how popular a speaker he is, she was way more flattered at his attention. I need to get her some of his tapes from Deseret Book, I guess.

So today I am off to get my hair cut this morning and then pack and leave for Yellowstone this afternoon. We will be back on Thursday.

My book

Everyone else is writing a book--why shouldn't I?!

M has been writing a book all summer long. I thought she would have tired of it by now, but she is still spending 5+ hours a day, typing away at it. And, of course, elle_cosette's book... But I have always steadfastly maintained that I was an editor, not a writer.

Then Sunday morning I woke up with an idea that has really caught my imagination. I have been doing research, mapping the plot, etc... It has totally consumed my mind and I am having a blast. I hope when it comes time to actually start writing words (today or tomorrow, maybe???), I will still be in love with the idea. It seems to be something very topical now but by the time it is done, will it be too late? Hmmmm....

And since I started this one, I have had an idea for another one that M gave thumbs up to, as well. Sheesh! Where did this come from?

I'm sure more on THE BOOK will follow.

bnlfan_1 Girl's Camp Talk

This past week was Girl’s Camp at Bear Lake. We had a great time hiking, swimming, boating and just hanging out, spending time with each other. We had a lot of opportunities to do things that challenged us to do things we hadn’t ever done before. On the first day we hiked to Lake Bloomington where there is a 30 foot rope swing. It took a lot of guts to take the leap but many of us, including Sister Loock and Sister Jensen, took the plunge. The next day was spent on Bear Lake, having fun, getting major sunburns (despite our leaders attempts to get us to put on sunscreen), boating, and building some of the most awesome sand castles I’ve seen. On Wednesday we went to the Minnetonka Cave.
We had a really cool experience in the cave. When we got to the end of the cave, the guide told us that one of the only two places in the world to achieve complete darkness was inside a cave. She told us to hold on to someone’s hand if we were scared (I automatically did; I pretty much knew I’d be scared no matter what was coming) and she turned off the surrounding lights. It was so relentlessly dark, I could not see my hand waving in front of my face. She then told us she was going to let us walk back through the passage to the next cavern with no lights on. With one arm hanging on to Tonya for dear life and the other clinging to the handrail, we began our little journey in total darkness. I concentrated on not falling down, and not letting go of the railing and especially not getting lost. The floor was uneven, so my steps were small and careful. I only relaxed when I could hear Sister Bills warning us about upcoming hazards. Almost as soon as we started walking, someone started singing, “Hold to the Rod.” It seemed like a long time before we could see a dim light ahead of us, showing us that we were almost out of the darkness. Finally, we could begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel- most literally.
It was easy to relate our experience in the cave to the gospel. The handrail in the cave was like the Iron Rod in Lehi’s dream. If we held on tight, we would find our way back to the light. If we let go, we could wander around, completely lost as to where we should go. I found great comfort as I listened to Sister Bills because she had walked the path before me and warned me of things to avoid. Likewise, if I listen to my parents and leaders that have gone before us and know the way, we can avoid some of the uneven bumps and trials they have experienced. I also see how important it is to choose the right friends and hold on tight to them. Their positive influence will make our paths that much easier to follow.
Camp this year was really, really amazing. We learned a lot, and had a fun time. The camp’s theme was the ‘Bear Necessities’, since we were Bear Lake. We focused a lot on testimonies, something that is absolutely a necessity. Being there really strengthened my testimony. I know that this church is true, and that Joseph Smith restored it to the earth. I know that Gordon B. Hinckley is a living prophet, and in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Girl's Camp

What a good time at Bear Lake! It is a beautiful place with the bluest water I've seen in ages.

We began camp by driving to the mouth of Logan Canyon. We stopped at a park there and ate lunch around the little pond. Then the girl's exchanged friendship beads. We had the girls bring beads that "represented" them. As the passed out their beads, they told us why they chose the beads they chose. It was really cute. Scout's beads were plastic gold beads with a crest on it. She chose them because the crest looked like the Slytherin crest from Harry Potter. But when she passed them out she said, " I chose these because they are pretty and plastic, just like me." I laughed so hard! bnlfan_1 chose her pearls because they reminded her of old, traditional things, which is totally her.

Then we drove to Bloomington Canyon in Idaho. We had planned a 3.7 mile hike to the glacier lake up there but our calculations were WAY off. We dropped the girls off and drove up to the lake, planning on walking down to meet them and finish the hike with them. HA! It was almost 6 miles to the .5 mile trail head to the lake. We hurried back down the mountain to pick them up and drive them to the trail head. It was a brutal hike with a 6% grade but they made it about 2.5 miles before we picked them up.

The lake was gorgeous. We saw a mama moose and her baby taking a drink--so cool! There was a 30 foot rope swing at the lake which looked so fun but was a bit dangerous. The first girl to try it let go too early and hit in about 2 feet of water, landing on jagged rocks. I wasn't there yet but was later told the men there thought they would have SERIOUS injuries to deal with. I am convinced it was Heavenly Father protecting her. I told myself I would have tried the swing if I hadn't needed to take the YCL's back to the lodge to set up for the rest of the camp's arrival. Yeah... right! But I will always believe that I would have tried it!

I took the YCL's back to the lodge and checked in. It was a very nice place with 8 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms so there was plenty of room for everyone. The YCL's were so excited to have first pick of the rooms and get cheers ready for the rest of the girls. They really stepped up to the plate when it came to being responsible.

That night the YCL's taught FHE on testimonies. They shared very sweet testimomies and then passed out the Testimony books we had prepared for the girls. The books had Pres. Hinkley's testimony, the Bishop's testimony and the YW's President's testimony printed in it, along with articles on what is a testimony, how to gain a testimony, places to put their testimonies and places for their parents to include their testimonies, thoughts, etc... They were awesome. The girl's went right to work writing in them.

Later that night one of the 4th years girls complained that her foot was hurting her and she couldn't walk on it or wiggle her toes. She is one who NEVER complains so it caused a bit of concern that we needed to take her for x-rays. We had the bishop give her a blessing. She almost immediately fell asleep. After limping for a while the next day, she was fine. Another instance of the Lord watching over us.

The next day was our boating day on Bear Lake. We had 25 girls and 2 boats so there was plenty of time to wake board, ski and tube. The shore was sandy beach so there were lots of sand castles and just mucking around. It was beautiful weather so lots of sunburns, too, despite our best efforts to remind the girls to put on sunscreen.

That night we did theater games (think Who's Line is it Anyway) instead of skits. I thought they were better than skits.

Wednesday morning was a trip to the Minnetonka Caves. They were really cool--literally--but the girls really enjoyed it. Lots of gospel principles were reinforced there. bnlfan_1 is sharing the experience in church today. I will post her talk.

Testimony meeting, the culmination of camp, was that night. It was so great because they "got it". Previous years' testimony meetings turned out more like AA meetings but this year they remembered what a testimony was. The spirit was strong and the girls were happy. I had them light candles and pass them around to illustrate how our testimony builds other's testimonies so we need to share them often.

The last day was clean up day and we were out the door on time and on our way home. No drama, no REAL emergencies, just a great time. YEAH!

Eclipse

I finished Eclipse this morning. I was not disappointed. It was much more satisfying than New Moon. It took me about 5 hours to read the 630-some-odd pages so it is a fast read... who wants to know if Bella gets bit....

I had to wait until 6 to start it because I had been at girl's camp all week. Dilbert picked it up at Barnes and Noble for me (can you believe he actually went to Barnes and Noble and BOUGHT it for me???) but he forgot and left it in his car when he went to work yesterday. I hurried home from camp to start it but had to wait until he got home from work. He was so paitent with me. I had been gone for 4 days and not worth much the week before, worrying about camp, but he still let me veg on the bed for 4 hours, ignoring him and dreaming about vampires...

So more about camp later. In the meantime, I think I am going to unpack...

The Princess and the Frog

Once upon a time

~~~~~~~~

in a land far away,

~~~~~~~~

a beautiful, independent,

self-assured princess

~~~~~~~~

happened upon a frog as she sat

contemplating ecological issues

on the shores of an unpolluted pond

in a verdant meadow near her castle.

~~~~~~~~

The frog hopped into the princess' lap

and said: " Elegant Lady,

I was once a handsome prince,

until an evil witch cast a spell upon me.

~~~~~~~~

One kiss from you, however,

and I will turn back

into the dapper, young prince that I am

~~~~~~~~

and then, my sweet, we can marry

~~~~~~~~

and set up housekeeping in your castle

~~~~~~~~

with my mother,

~~~~~~~~

where you can prepare my meals,

~~~~~~~~

clean my clothes, bear my children,

~~~~~~~~

and forever feel

grateful and happy doing so. "

~~~~~~~~

That night,

~~~~~~~~

as the princess dined sumptuously

~~~~~~~~

on lightly sautéed frog legs

~~~~~~~~

seasoned in a white wine

~~~~~~~

and onion cream sauce,

~~~~~~~~

she chuckled and thought to herself:

~~~~~~~~

I don't freakin think so.

HP Personality Test

Your Score: Nymphadora Tonks

You scored 41% Maturity, 67% Goodness, and 55% Abilities!

You're Tonks, you've got the ability to change your facial features at will, and you're part of the Order of the Phoenix. Even though you're one of the youngest in the Order you hold your own nicely, even if you did have some troubles passing parts of your Auror test.

Link: The In-Depth HP Personality Test written by lisshart on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test