In Case You Were Wondering....

Just in case you were wondering what $5,ooo can buy these days....it's straight teeth! Abby's finally free of a metal mouth after only 18 months! Now, if we can only get her to keep track of the retainer she has to wear....Metal Mouth
No More Metal Mouth!

FB Season #2

Jake has been playing football since late August and I have yet to post anything about it. This is his 2nd season and I think he's in love...he eats, drinks, and sleeps football right now. He's loved all those 90 degree afternoons at practice with sweaty head and stinky feet. He's loved getting munched under a pile of 4-5 other boys. He's loved getting pushed, shoved and tackled. I have loved that despite all the necessary roughness, he's been uninjured, thus far (knock on wood). He's had a great season and has even scored a few touchdowns. He finished up his regular season last night with a win and now we're entering the playoffs...just a few more weeks of rough and tumble and then it will be on to basketball....

Moving Right Along...

I've given up trying tp play "catch up" with the blogging...I've decided to just start posting again and NOT try to post about all the stuff we've done in the last couple of months that I've missed! Simplify, Simplfy, Simplify is my new motto for myself....this new way of thinking came about after hearing this talk given at General Conference a couple of weeks ago. I love President Uchtdorf! Not only is he easy on the eyes, but he always directs his talks directly at ME!

So, in light of my new way of thinking, here are our pictures from this last weekend. The kids were out of school for UEA weekend (fall break) and so we packed up the car on Wednesday night and drove to sunny St. George. We spent Thursday swimming and relaxing and drove out to Washington Fields to a crystal pit. The walls of the ravine were lined with bright, sparkly crystals. It was quite a sight to see and the kids had a fun time picking out a few to bring home. Hopefully, it's legal, because we didn't ask anyone! In our defense though, there was a guy who hauled off an entire BOX of them!

Friday, we joined up with Brenna, Chris and Halle and went to Zions National Park in Springdale, UT. We hiked to Emerald Pools, only about a 3 mile hike, but alot of uphill walking! The kids did great and the scenery was AMAZING. I loved every minute of it, despite the warm-ish weather and lots of sweating! We ate with family that night at Mike and April's...Mike is the KING of the BBQ and makes a MEAN brat!

Saturday, the girls and I hung out at the hotel, swam and shopped a little bit. Kim and Jake played golf and then we met up with family for a BBQ dinner of steak and shrimp...lots of yummy food. Sunday, we slept in and then finally packed up the car for the drive home. We found our apple tree shedding it's apples all over the ground and a little cooler weather than when we left.

We had a fabulous time and can't wait to hike in Zions again next year...I think it will be a tradition from now on!

**Our Group: Chris (and Halle on his back), Brenna, Erin, Kim, Paige,

Abby, Natalie, Emily, Jake and McKenna (kneeling)**

**Pausing for a break going up one of the steep caverns**

**Beautiful Mountains**

**Gorgeous Waterfalls**

**Breathtaking View of the Mountains**