Loved this Summer

This summer was one of the best ones I've had in decades. Fortunately, my workload was small enough that I wasn't at all stressed about deadlines or juggling everything.  We took a month long road trip all the way from Texas to Montana.  I tried to keep most of the driving on weekends and keep my day schedule flexible so that work would come first when needed.  We started with a stop in El Paso.  I got to spend time with a friend that I made while living in Qatar.  I haven't seen her since 1997.  If it wasn't for Facebook, I'm sure we would have lost touch forever.  Instead, our kids became friends.  They really hit it off quickly just like we did years ago.  Here is a picture below.  Don't let the sizes fool you.  My kids are tall and her's are short.  The one on the left is only a little less than a year younger than Jordan.  

  

Next, we headed to southern Utah for a family reunion with my mom's side of the family in Zion National Park.  Zion is an amazing place to hike and see nature.  We also got to see siblings, cousins, second cousins, and the kids even had third cousins there.  We've been having these reunions every two years and they are always a joy.  Here is a picture of my mom's grand-kids with all of the 6 year olds on the front row and 8 year olds in the back.

  

Next, we headed to central Utah.  I have a good friend, Annette, there.  I've known her since 7th grade.  I just love her.  We stayed with her & her family.  We got to enjoy hiking in the area and celebrate the 24th of July.  The 24th is a state holiday in Utah.  It is also called Pioneer Day to celebrate when the pioneers came into Salt Lake.  The state celebrates much like the 4th of July with fireworks, parades, and bbqs.  Here is a picture of Annette and me at the Spanish Fork Parade:

Our next stop was Butte, Montana.  My mom and step-father live there.  My brother, his wife, and 5 kids live in the next little town.  I have another brother that lives about 4 hours away also in Montana.  We got to spend time with all of them.  To be honest, I have mixed feelings about Montana.  I think it is a beautiful place to be in the summer.  I also find it sad how hard the economy has fallen since the mines shut down in the 1980s.  I have never been in a place that has such amazing architecture and infrastructure from 100 years ago contrasted by extremely poor and fairly backwards current residents.  It was quite depressing.  I always felt overdressed, especially in Butte.  I think the people of Walmart originated there, except maybe not as yucky/sexy/trashy more like constant sweat pants wearers.  At least, they are all friendly.  One of the things we loved was touring ghost towns.  It is amazing that people would build up a beautiful town with town halls and then pack up and leave overnight.  

kids with their cousins in a ghost town

with more cousins  

When we were done in Montana, we made our way back to Texas with a few stops in Utah.  We spent a few more nights with Annette before taking off.  We also stopped at Arches National Park one day to hike for an hour.

We only stayed in a hotel one night on the way back.  It was a lot of driving, but I realized that I was tired of being in the car and living out of a suitcase.  Sadly, once we entered Texas we were only a little more than half way home.  This is one HUGE state.  

It wasn't a perfect trip, but it was certainly great.  

Favorite Mountain

My favorite mountain of all time is located in Utah.  It is Mount Timpanogos.  At first glance, it may seem like an ordinary mountain, but it really is different.  First, there is a dead Indian Princess across the top (see diagram below).  I grew up hearing two different legends both ending in her death.  One was that she sacrificed herself to save her tribe. The other one had to do with being so sad that the love of her life was killed.  It is a fun story and makes the mountain easy to identify, but that isn't the only great thing about the mountain. 

The second thing I love is the Cave, which is a national park.  The formations throughout the cave are so interesting and the hike to it is great for all ages.  Seeing the mountain again has definitely been one of the highlights of this trip.  Perhaps, I'll have to come back in the summer so I can take the kids on the hike. 

Stuck in Utah

Friday night, I was driving back from a friend's house (who lives about 2 hours north) to the place where I am staying here in Utah when my car suddenly started beeping and warning me that it was overheating and that I should shut the engine off.  I managed to pull over to a gas station and pop open the hood.  There was definitely smoke or steam coming out of the engine and the plastic tank where the coolant/anti-freeze goes was empty.  Fortunately, I had lots of offers for help (one good thing about Utah).  I dragged the kids into the gas station and bought anti-freeze.  A few guys helped pour it in and one told me that I should be good to go. 

I set off again and didn't get very far before it happened again.  I pulled off to the side of the freeway to let it cool off and started making calls for help/advice.  Fortunately, a friend offered to come help even though I was about an hour south and it was freezing cold.  He found me on the side of the freeway.  He looked under the hood and the tank was empty again!   He filled it up and helped me get to the next gas station with multiple stops because of more overheating warnings.  Once there, he opened up the radiator and saw that it was completely dry.  He put anti-freeze directly into it.  He told me that it should take care of it.  Then, he said goodbye and to call him if I have ANY more problems.  I was able to drive all the way back to where we are staying without more overheating warnings thanks to him.  One good thing about Utah is the nice people.   I am sure he had better things to do on a Friday night than freeze his butt off with me.  

Anyway, the check engine light is still on so I do not want to head back to California until whatever else is going on with the vehicle is fixed.  Can you imagine being stuck in Death Valley with two little kids?  My car is being towed up to the Saturn Dealer in Salt Lake today.  Who knows when I'll get to go home?  Once again, I am very thankful my friend and her family here that have made me feel so welcome without any signs of being sick of our LONG vacation.  I was sure they'd want to kick us out by now.          

Freeeeeezing

We're in Utah and it is COLD!  (...For us anyway)  The highs are in the mid 30s and the lows in the 20s.  I think over a decade in warm climates has comletely ruined me for cold weather.  Plus, I have learned that winter gear and carseats don't mix at all.  Last night, I was thinking about how nice it will be to get back to California.  On the other hand, we are having a lot of fun and there is so much more that I want to do.  I haven't even started seeing all the people I wanted to catch up with.  I need to start packing our schedule.  That or stay a few more weeks...  nope just too cold.   

Not Ready to Leave

Our time in California is quickly coming to an end, and honestly, I am not ready to leave. I know I have been here for about 6 weeks, but it feels more like two. Time certainly flies when you are mostly having fun. I would probably stay longer, but there are some pressing issues I need to attend to in Texas. Besides, I am not sure that a working vacation is considered "real life." Then again, who wants to deal with the reality of life?

One of my friends from Texas called about 2 weeks ago to see how we are doing. She jokingly asked me if I plan to stay indefinitely, because she knows that I am not exactly the kind of person that establishes roots. I had to laugh. I really like Texas, besides I just can't imagine how people can afford to live in San Diego.

After talking to her, I decided to do some simple price checking. First, every item in the grocery store seems to be at least $1 more than it is in Texas. Also, gas is about $0.40 a gallon more. Now for the big things, a tiny studio apartment is slightly more than we pay for our mortgage, property taxes, and home owners association fees put together. There is also a little church on the corner by my mom's house that has a child care program. I checked out their website and discovered that sending one child there 2 half days a week costs the same a month as sending my two kids to 3 days from 9am to 2:30pm. That was a big shocker. I didn't look into anything else, but I am guessing that things like car insurance and utilties are substantially more too.

So, HATS off to the Californians for finding a way to make it all work. I know there is no way to put a price on some of the benefits like the beach, moderate weather all year, and of course the ability to go to SeaWorld every day for one low price. I will miss it all.

**Should I even mention that the thought of adding California to the list of states I've lived in seems exciting? Yes, I am crazy.

Spring BREAK

2009 is turning out to be one HELL of a year and I wish I meant that in a good way. Last week, I realized that I need a break. While looking at the calendar, I noticed that Lexi’s spring break is coming up. I figured that it was a good time to get out of here and take a breather.

This may sound strange, but I don’t remember ever going on a “spring break” before. I am guessing that when most people/college kids plan their spring breaks, their planning focuses on:

1. FUN
2. Proximity to water/the ocean
3. Price

My list is bit different. I had to choose a destination based on:

1. Taking my desk top computer, because getting out of work is not part of the much need break. Also, I don’t have a lap top. Buying a cheap one isn’t an option because of all the graphics software I need on it.
2. Help with the kids. I would like the kids to have fun during the times I have to get a little work done. It would also be nice not to have to do every little thing for them once in a while.
3. Price. I have cut back on a lot of expenses this year.

All things point to visiting my mom. Fortunately, for me, she lives in San Diego fairly close to the ocean so this trip covers both lists. As for help with the kids, besides my mom, my sister lives there and is only taking a couple of evening classes. She’ll get to help me entertain the kids during the day while my mom is at work. Other than the LONG drive, I am looking forward to Spring BREAK.

Back But Missing It

Our trip to the Grand Canyon started off rocky. Thank you Southwest Airlines for your rigid on time flights. Literally slamming the door in our faces after you asked us to go to the desk and get a tag for the stroller was a bit dramatic. Putting us on the next flight that had a 2 hour layover in Phoenix just made the vacation start off on the wrong foot. Because of the delay, the kids and I weren't able to ride to the Grand Canyon in my mom & step-dad's RV. We had to squish into the Jeep Liberty we rented for the 5 hour trek. It wasn't pleasant, but we made it and things got better immediately. Oh, except for the fact that Jordan was a bit fussier than usual & refused to eat. I noticed that he cut his first tooth. Who does that on the first day of vacation? That led to less sleep than normal.

My husband & FIL (yes he came to my family reunion) decided that everyone should make the effort to go to the Grand Canyon because there is no other place on Earth quite like it. They were blown away. While I always enjoy going there, I loved seeing cousins, second cousins, aunts, uncles, etc. that I hadn't seen in over a decade. I was really happy to see my favorite cousin, who even lived with me a while at BYU. We had some great times there, but I haven't seen her since I left. I wish we could have spent more time together, but kids and campsites that are not next to each other made it a bit difficult. Lexi and Jordan also got to mingle with my nieces and nephews, which is always a treat. We hadn't seen them for a year and a half. My brother has a new one that is only 2 days older than Jordan.

I had been warned that camping with kids is not something anyone should try. I can't complain though, which probably is because of the RV parked right next to our tent. My mom brought all the food and supplies. Steve helped cook over the campfire. It was a little cold at night (55 degrees). During the day, it got up to 85, which is quite cool for us. Evenings were spent with everyone around our campsite eating, talking, and my brother & step-dad playing instruments and singing.

Our last day at the Grand Canyon was quieter than the others. All of the extended family members were gone. My mom, step-dad, sister, brothers, brother's family, and my little family were the only ones left. It rained (drizzled) so we sat under the RV's awning and talked. It was a nice ending to the reunion.

Then, we headed for Vegas. This time, the kids & I got to ride in the RV through Zion’s National Park. We stopped for pictures, but Lexi was asleep so only Jordan got to be in a few. We grabbed lunch in St George and then met up with Steve in our hotel in Vegas. A four star hotel (Planet Hollywood) looks much better after spending time in a tent. We had a great time wandering around and talking to Steve's Aunt & Uncle who met up with us there. They got to see Jordan for the first time.

Now, we are back. I hate coming home from vacations. Why can't the fun continue? Ok, I know money plays a big part. Unfortunately, I am home and facing entirely too much work.