Cedar Mountain Campout - a sticky situation!

 We knew we wanted to get out even though it had been or might again be raining.  We were deciding between Jacob Lake area or Cedar Mountain.  Jacob Lake is lower and might be warmish, even if it was raining.  Cedar Mountain - cooler, greener and oh so beautiful!  We went back and forth about it and then with a final weather report saying the rain wouldn't be there, we took the road to Cedar Mountain planning to go to a camp spot near Cedar Breaks where we had camped in the rain last summer and loved it.  When we got there the road was not looking good and the clouds were looking like rain.  Then the road got worse right as we were ready to turn to the parking spot to camp...and we weren't moving, were sloshing back and forth trying to get traction, putting sticks under the tires to try to move forward or backward, and then finally, one back tire of the truck was just too deep...stuck, stuck, stuck.  It was getting late, it was raining/hailing a little bit intermittently. We were tired and done, so we set up the camp trailer and went inside to stay the night and figure it out more in the morning.  We had a great dinner of homemade chicken soup, toasted sourdough bread, and pineapple/strawberry salad.  We had hot chocolate and toast for dessert.  It was delicious!  We played games and then it was bed time.  We put the big backseat floormat outside the trailer door so you didn't have to step in big mud puddle when you went outside.  (I actually peed in a container and didn't go outside all night).  Sorry, but it was raining hard for most of the night and I just couldn't get out there very well to get it done.  In the morning it was looking even more wet, but beautiful.  We put the trailer away, got all of the stuff we wanted to take home out of it, and hiked down the road to where we could get cellphone service...about 2.79 miles, pretty much all the way back to the main highway to Cedar Breaks.  We got hold of Bryan and he said he'd take us home but would have to have Brady come and get us while he was having a meeting for work.  Brady came and we rode back to the campsite, keeping a good distance from the sticking spot, and carried all the stuff that needed to go home to his truck.  Then we went down to Bryan's office and he brought us home.  So nice of them to mix up their day to help us out!!!  So grateful!!! That was Friday.  Today, Saturday, it was looking good on the weather report for no rain, so we got with Brady and took our BIG truck, lots of plywood, scaffold planks, tow rope and chain and picked him up and drove to the campsite.  There was still lots of mud/water everywhere, but Paul came up with a great plan and with the help of a big jack and smart thinking and driving by these two guys we got the truck out of the hole, the trailer hooked up and pulled them both out backward until we could hook them up frontwards and until it could be driven out!!!  We made it clear down Cedar Canyon and then suddenly one back tire on the trailer blew out!  Paul was pulling it with the big truck.  Thank goodness we had a spare...but the bolts holding it on were rusted and we couldn't get it off!!!  So we left it and drove the other truck to Lou and Bryan's house where Brady got it loose with some tool he had there.  Then we went back, picked up Bean, put the spare tire on, and then took Bean to a wonderful lunch at Park Place.  Then Paul and I drove the trucks home with NO MORE INCIDENTS ALONG THE WAY!!!  It was fun to visit with Bryan and Brady in the process of their rescuing us.  They are wonderful people and we love them even when they are not in the process of rescuing us!  It was still beautiful up there today, and it was looking like rain...and we wished that we were staying there to camp out!  

Low and high getting out!

 Paul and I took some KFC up to Pine Valley for a nice little get away on Friday evening.  We enjoyed a lovely walk to the lake afterwards.  It was a chance for both of us to get outside for a nice time without it being too difficult for Paul while he's recuperating from his knee surgery.  He's actually doing very well with his physical therapy and healing, but it's a big recovery.  A little bit at a time!  We stopped for ice cream after our walk.

Today, Saturday, we went up to see Bean in Cedar City and picked up sandwiches at Jimmy John's and took them up to eat a picnic at Cedar Breaks.  It was beautiful and very cool up there.  Snow patches were still around.  Ahhh...getting out to the mountains does a body and soul good!  

Pippin pops in...at our house!

 We are having a first this week...we are kitten sitting Pippin, the Weaver's new kitten, while they are at Lake Powell.  He's such a funny little thing.  He's always busy cat fighting with something...until he's all tired out and has to take a catnap.  We are having fun with him, but know that we are not ready for a pet again yet.  It's too hard find tenders for them when you want to leave town whenever you can.  

A little bit of vacation time getting started!

 With Paul's knee surgery we may be limited in some of our vacationing this summer.  I have to have a small surgery myself pretty soon too.  But we took a quick little get away that did us both good.  We have been seeing ants in the house, so Paul wanted to spray for bugs and then get out of the house for a day.  We were able to get a little cabin over at Jacob Lake and spend a night/day over there before Pippin came to stay.  It was so beautiful and cool! The food was delicious as always...especially the cookies!  I am still doing the driving, so I don't see quite as much scenery or get nearly as much rest, but I don't really mind.  It was a great little get away!  Happy Summer!  It has finally arrived for me! We were able to take a few short walks and took a nice drive on a forest road.  The mountains are calling... 

Memorial Day Picnic Fun!

 School's out, graduations are over and it's onward toward Summer vacation!  But, before we take off and get going we always enjoy the Memorial Day Picnic that has become a tradition now.  This year was better than others in some ways, and a little bit scary in other ways.  The Weavers usually have a Sheffield boat trip/picnic conflict which makes things hard for them, but this year the boat trip was scheduled just a bit later and that did away with the conflict.  Yea!  We had 31 people able to make it.  We missed quite a few, but we do what we can with who we have.  Jay and Brynn always come for that weekend and that's pretty much how we got the tradition started.  This year Paul was a bit down for it because of his recent knee replacement surgery.  We took a cot for him to lay down on and an ice chest full of ice to put on his knee.  He actually did pretty well.  And, it turned out that the cot was a good thing to have there for another reason...that was the scary part.  Moss brought along a hammock and he and Jay hung it up in a couple of trees.  It must have seemed solid, but not long after Moss lay down in it, it crashed to the ground dropping him on a chopped off stump which hit him in the back near his kidney area.  He sat rather dazed for a little bit afterward.  I know it hurt lots for him to do that.  Luckily he didn't land on his backbone on a big rock that was also below it.  Then he came over by the tables with Christie and suddenly he was turning pale and passing out from shock.  She and other people caught him before he hit the ground and managed to get him on the cot.  He was having a hard time staying conscious for a little bit and then Ferf stepped in to help with her skills and nursing bag.  She got his blood pressure and did other assessments.  Supe had 911 on the line just about to head our way when Moss seemed to come out of it so they didn't need to come.  They got him laid down and into the shade and calmed down and with Ferf's skills she found that nothing seemed broken or injured internally.  He did have some scratches on his back which she carefully took care of while keeping a close watch over him.  Christie was just about to lose it herself I think with worry for him.  So thankful that it wasn't worse than it was.  He's fine now.  It really showed me how much shock can do in a situation like that.  Moss is very able to do first aid on others, but this time it was his turn and there was nothing he could do to get past that shock without the help he got from others.  I don't think that he thought that it would hit him so hard. The rest of the day went well.  The weather was wonderfully cool.  Pine Valley is such a beautiful place.  The cousins and older peeps had fun visiting.  We had a great lunch of sloppy joes with lots of sides to go with it. Games were played, hikes were taken, people caught lizards and saw snakes (non-poisonous).  Juge and Lance brought their new kitten, Pippin, who was a real hit.  Supe and Beacher brought their dog, Auri, and she is much loved too.  Later we broke out the s'mores and had a good time roasting marshmallows for them and getting very sticky eating them.  It was just a wonderful, relaxing - except the incident with Moss - day!  I always want to stay longer, but the time came to leave so we could clean up and head home.  Jay and Brynn and girls went over to Moss and Christie's after we got home so their kids could swim in their neighborhood pool.  Paul and I stayed at the house because he needed to rest and get his knee up with ice.  It was a great day!  Happy Memorial Day! I remember Weed at this time when  people are visiting graves of military and other family members.  I don't remember Weed by visiting her grave usually, but that doesn't mean I don't remember her. So grateful for family members alive and those gone ahead.  And so thankful for those who gave so much for our freedoms.  I am thankful to live in the "home of the free because of  because of the brave."  

Eden - graduation from high school!!!

No more deets yet, but she's just about there!  Such cute pics of a darling granddaughter.  Just kind of scary thinking about the fact that now she's heading off for the future!  She's been a great student and has a scholarship to help her get started on whatever she's planning.  Go Eden!  We love you Eden, and hope your future will be a great place for you to continue to learn and grow and go forward in wonderful ways!  

                                                     Eden when she was just a wee one.  

The brown hair is some of her mom's hair tied on!  

She was never a brunette.  

The graduation took place on May 22, 2025, at the America First Events Center on the campus of SUU at 1 pm.  It was a very nice graduation program.  Afterwards we went back to the Weavers for yummy pizza, salad a a grand variety of delicious cookies.  Eden opened her presents.  She wasn't into the idea of the school graduation party and sleeping on the bus to Disneyland and then spend the day there and then do another night sleeping (or not) on the bus to come home.  She seemed content to spend the day at home.  She has some good plans for her "gap year".  She's going to do an internship in manicuring nails for a few months and enjoy some free time at the lake she hopes.  Then she will go to Mexico for several months and "teach English" in a program there.  Then in the fall she will start school at Utah Tech here in St. George with a scholarship that will help with her expenses and be able to do nails to help with it also.  She will be majoring in psychology.  Yeah Eden! Good luck in your future endeavors!

Mother's Day - 2025 & Torin the builder!

 

Had a lovely Mother's Day this year with calls, visits and sweet gifts to enjoy!  We had a nice little dinner with just Paul and I since he's still in recovery.  One of the gifts I wanted was a fondue set...and I got one!  We enjoyed using it for Mother's Day dinner!  

Right about the same time as this Torin came over to hang out one Saturday afternoon.  He and I (mostly him) built a new smoker table for Paul.  He couldn't actually help with his knee the way it is right now, but he read and interpreted the directions for us and gave us instruction on how it should be done and it came out perfectly!  Great work Torin!  It ended up being a fun and satisfying project.  Wish we had gotten some in progress pics.  

Jem boy graduates from Preschool!

 Jem did such a great job in his preschool graduation program!  Such a cute kid.  They learned about children all over the world and sang darling songs with actions and said their parts!  Loved being able to go and see him do this!  Happy graduation Jem!  Great job!  Love you!  

Tavin - Graduation | BYU | Graphic Design BFA

 Don't know much more than this other than he's going to move to NYC this summer to do an internship.  He's so talented and such a nice guy. Congratulations on a job well done...probably more like fantastically done.  He's been a TA and they (BYU Graphic Arts program) want him to stay and teach.  I haven't heard what he has decided about that yet.  May 2025. Tavin is a good man.  He has a great talent and has some hard decisions to make about where his future will take him professionally and personally.  God bless you Tavin.  We love you!  

Class of 2024-25 - Kindergarten

Another school year is coming to an end.  Today was crazy!  Our schedule has been rearranged to accommodate the older classes testing needs.  We are practicing for our end of year Kindergarten program, and most things are just a bit out of whack and the kids are feeling it and are very end of the year crazy!  And I ask myself, do I want to come back next year?  Our school, along with many others in town, have lost their Title One status.  The high cost of living in St. George has driven up the rents so much that many people of lower income have had to leave the area and that makes us lose the extra funding you get when you have low income/at risk kids attending your school.  So my job will take a hit.  It will either go away altogether, or next year I will be a shared para between two classes.  

A teacher takes a hand, opens a mind, touches a heart, and shapes a future!  

I have enjoyed being a partner in that process over the years.  It's so fun to see kids from past years and feel that connection with them. Then to see them completely grown up is also a real joy!