Two-week check up and going strong

Paul went for his two-week check-up on Wednesday. He continues to go to rehab too. Both places say he is doing well. You know it's funny - in most places now, we are considered to be getting, well, old. But when he goes to rehab or to the doctor's, they think Paul is "young" to be there. Not the best thing in the world, but it is nice in some ways to hear someone speak of you as "young." With the doc's approval, we decided to head out and do the last camp before I get back into the school routine and for Paul to de-stress. After the doctor visit and rehab we packed it up in the big truck and took of to the Tuschar Mountains up above Beaver and spent a couple of days there away from the heat, the phone, the stress. It was so nice. We did have to make a little trip down to Richfield for a new airbed and some more hot chocolate. (Bed just wouldn't hold air and didn't know the hot chocolate can we packed had only two servings left.) We finished up some unfinished business in the process. We finally made it over the pass and down to Marysvale . We had been wanting to do that for several years, but either the snow and mud wouldn't allow it or we were too close on gas to be sure we would make it all the way. It was a beautiful drive. We stopped at the pass to see if we could see the mountain goats, but they were probably over the next mountain where we had seen them before and that wasn't the kind of hiking the doc approved for Paul as yet. We saw fat marmots on top and lots of beautiful wild flowers and greenness everywhere. We lunched on the tailgate by a pretty creek on the way down the other side. When we got to Marysvale we took the road up to Bouillon Canyon and then made the 2 mile plus hike up to Bouillon Falls. It was worth the hike. We did some pretty good 4-wheeling to drive up another little road to try to see the lower falls from the other side, but they are pretty hidden in all the trees and underbrush. Then we took care of more unfinished business by driving the Cottonwood Loop. It is a really rugged but beautiful drive, longer than we had imagined with old mining stuff here and there. We decided there aren't many good camp spots on any of these roads and will stick with our favorite in Round Flat meadow on the Beaver side of the pass. We slept in, walked morning and evening and just relaxed and enjoyed it all. On the way home on Friday we tried to take care of more unfinished business by going to the Meadow Hot Springs pools that we visited on the family camp a couple of years ago. We wanted to take a little swim. There happened to be people in two of the three pools and we opted not to join them. The third pool was a little too mossy for our taste, so we drove up Meadow Canyon road (to the very end) which is pretty rugged, where we were rewarded with a beautiful picnic spot by the creek. Someone had built a really interesting dam across the creek (it was not in too good shape now) to make a nice pool for chunky dunking. We decided it was a little too cold for our old blood and just had another tailgate lunch and took a nap in the bed of the truck and then headed for home. As soon as we got in range, the phone started ringing and we were back to reality, but very happy for the relaxing time we had enjoyed at our favorite camp spot and all the other beautiful places we got to visit during our little respite. (A dog joined us for a couple of meals up there. It was too tired to keep up with its 4-wheeling owners and just relaxed with the old people and hung out - didn't even beg for food.) Saturday we finished off the week with such a nice time with the local grand kids and joined by the rest of the gang later for a picnic and evening in Pine Valley. Ahhh...what a great combination...family and the mountains. The little boys, Zade, Koen and Brenden were so funny hanging around getting to know each other. Gaige kept me and Moss in stitches at dinner with his funny comments. He asked me something about when I was little like him and then I told him that was a very long time ago, when he was still in heaven. He asked, "What, was I dead?" (In his mind heaven is just where dead people are.) Another funny comment - I told him he'd better be finishing up his dinner if he wanted to roast marshmallows for dessert. He said something about how instead of finishing it couldn't he just "hide it" so that his mom would think he had finished it. What a funny kid. There were lots of funny faces eating the giant marshmallows for dessert. Today we relaxed yet again with Moss and Christie making Sunday dinner for us and Grandma K. and with Brenden providing the entertainment. What a great last fling before back to work. Thanks for the yummy dinner Moss and Christie. Thanks to all the family for joining us at Pine Valley and bringing most of the food! Looking forward to the family camp/sleep over in a month or so!