Montana and Katie Visit

Montana and Katie came to visit us during their break between semesters. We were so excited to have them here. It was Katie's first time here and it had been 16 months since Montana had been home! It was definitely time for a visit. 

They came late on Saturday night, after spending most of the weekend with Katie's family. (Her brother got married) We enjoyed a nice, peaceful Sunday together, with a little Strawberry shortcake to sweeten the day.

I LOVED this! The boys wanted me to get out all the family pictures so their wives could see how cute they were as kids. I loved that we all sat around and looked at pictures and reminisced. Perfect activity for my little T2 heart!

Everyone chowing down on strawberry shortcake...

It's a favorite springtime treat :)

On Monday we decided to play tourist and go to the Needles Overlook and then to Moab to the Rock Shop and lunch. The last time I was at the Needles I was incredibly nervous that one of my little guys would be running and slip and then slide right under the fence and off the edge. It was very nerve-wracking. This day we only had one little guy with us and he is now big enough to allow me to be a little less overwhelmed when we're out in nature. It was a beautiful day weather-wise and it was fun to show Katie some of the amazing places near our home. I think I need visitors more often so I can get out and enjoy them too.

Montana and Katie taking a selfie

James loved all the rocks and lizards and 'hiking' I had a hard time keeping up with him and Curtis 

         It's a long way off the edge….Here you can see the Abajo mountains in the background

We just circled around the point following the fence line and looking at the immensity of the desert below us

 Looking over the edge. It makes me dizzy, as its hard to tell where the ground is, 

since everything is the same color

We went on to Moab and ate lunch at the Branding Iron. It's become our favorite place to eat there. Then we went to the Moab Rock Shop and meandered around. It was my first time there and there is SO much to look at. I found a few beautiful rocks but didn't buy them because I had no idea what I'd do with them if I bought them. Montana bought a couple and James bought a crystal arrowhead. It's a great place for those who are enamored with rocks. 

My mom and Hugh were just coming back to Bluff from Price, so we stayed at the Rock Shop and met them there so they could say hi to Montana and Katie. We had had a plan to go to Bluff that morning, but then found out they weren't even there, so we headed north instead. And I'm glad we did. It was a great day.

Montana and Katie left to go back to Rexburg the next day. I am so thankful that they took the time and made the long drive to visit us. It was wonderful to have them here! Thanks for the visit!

Easter weekend 2016

Wendy's and Stacy's families came home for Easter. So Mom planned for us all to spend that Saturday together and also Hugh's son, Greg, was there with his family. We all gathered in Bluff for lunch, which was just a quick sandwich and chips, veggies, etc. Then we loaded up our cars and headed to Hovenweep.

the buffet line in Grandma's kitchen

I have not been to Hovenweep since I was in the 4th grade and went on a field trip there. I have almost 0 memories of the place. I was happy to take my kids to another cool place in San Juan Co. There really is so much to see and do here, if you're willing to drive.

What a crew!
Olivia, Tilly, Hannah, Cambria, Sadie, Laila, Zoe and Ane
All the Barton Grand-girls (except Aysha)

We stopped at the visitor center for a bit until we were all together, then we started down the trail. The trail was concrete and I wondered if the whole thing was going to be so 'citified' but the pavement ended at the first overlook. Then it was just a faint path, outlined with rocks over the sand and sandstone. We did not hike the entire loop, but went about a mile and a half. Some of the kids went a bit further. The trail just loops around the small canyon where all the towers are located.

My crew
top:Hannah, Cambria, Sadie
bottom: Me holding  James, Soren, Charlie

Poor Laila!
Laila, Olivia, Hannah, Tilly, Zoe, Sadie, Cambria, Ane

Charge!
Charlie, Soren, Ethan

The trial marked with rocks

It was a bit chilly still that day. There had been rain/snow earlier

The towers at Hovenweep are all in pretty close proximity and you can see almost all of them at once. They are built around the sides and in the bottom of a small canyon. No one really knows why they are there or what their purposes were, but they look to me like defensive structures. There are small openings in them. Are they for shooting arrows out of?

Square tower in canyon

Some are square, such as this one in the bottom of the canyon...

Defending their stronghold
Charlie, Ethan, Soren

Some are more rounded such as this one on the edge of the canyon...some are actually built into the cavity of the rocks. The foundations of the towers fit so closely to the rock they're built on you have to look closely to see where the rock ends and the foundation begins. Amazing!

Think I'll back off before they let me have it

James finally went on his own. He refuses to wear his coat and froze and whined. OY!

After we left Hovenweep, we came back to Bluff by way of Aneth and Montezuma Creek. Since we were on that road, we stopped and hiked into the cove to see the cliff flowers. They were in full bloom.

hiking into the Cove

Cliff flowers grow where the water seeps out of the layers of sandstone

So beautiful and delicate and they smell so good.

dainty little flowers. I imagine they're probably quite hardy.

Hannah, Cambria and Tilly

It was so much fun to have almost all of us together. (Karla wasn't feeling well, so didn't come) Curtis, Ford, Shiala and Kami came to Bluff later and we all had dinner together. It was nice to spend more time with Hugh's son and family and get to know them better. It was a bit strange to hear his kids call my mom 'Grandma' but some of those little girls have no memory of Hugh's first wife so Mom is the only Grandma they know. I'm happy she has been so welcoming to them. I love watching my kids enjoy being with their cousins and I love being with my sisters. Family is truly the best thing in the world!

Let's head home
Watch out for the prickly pear cactus

Sisters!

bumper sticker we saw on the way to Hovenweep. We all thought it was funny.

On Sunday, we had Ford and Shiala come over to do our traditional Easter Seder. This was their first time to do Easter with us, so it was a new thing for them. Kami had fun just walking around and eating everyone's food. We love this tradition. We still did baskets as well, but this is the highlight!

 Easter is the ultimate holiday. Without the reason for the celebration of Easter, there would be no need to celebrate Christmas. If Jesus had not done what he did, he would just be an obscure carpenter from Galilee who faded into history and no one would even know who he was. But because He did do what He did, He was who He said He was, we know of Him and celebrate His birth, life and Atonement. Because He died for us, was resurrected and LIVES, we have HOPE. We can expect him to fulfill all his words and we also will LIVE forever. What a blessing that knowledge is.

Spring Break Fun 2016 - Hiking

We did not have any big plans for Spring Break this year and it turned out that we scheduled a lot of dr and dental appointments during the week since no one would have to miss school for it. To balance out the practical part of our week, we decided that we better try to do a couple of fun things as well. 

The weather was perfect for doing some hiking so on Thursday, the 17th, we headed to Bluff to see Grandma and Hugh and hike the old Pioneer Dugway in Butler Wash. It's been a few years since we hiked that trail and now that the kids are bigger (boys especially) it would be a good day's hike. 

We bumped our way to the wash and parked on the top. Then we piled out and making sure we had our water, we headed to the trail. The weather could not have been better. It was a bit warmish in the sunshine and a bit nippy in the shadow of the canyon walls. You could get whatever you needed by moving a few feet. 

We ended up going further than we have gone before, down into the bottom along the creek. We hiked to a big cottonwood tree, rested a bit and then turned around. Some day I'd like to hike to the end where it meets the San Juan River. 

I was happy that Mom and Hugh could come with us. They are fun! 

I love where we live, there are so many amazing places to see. Like my dad used to say, "Why would I want to travel the world? I still haven't seen all of San Juan County!" 

The crew heading to the trail. 

I think I need some walking sticks like Hugh's

Hiking/playing on sandstone is so fun. 

This is an old wagon road the Bluff pioneers made to use rather than having to go up and down San Juan hill. Along the way you can see the cribbing they put in to create the road on the slopes of the hills. Hard to believe it's still there after all these years. 

Two of my favorite people!

There was a lot of water in the bottom of the wash.
Soren found a spot to sit and ponder

maybe he was just being a boy and throwing stuff in the water...

Some of them decided to try to find a way up different than the trail we came down on.
The boys were pretty determined to follow their dad up this sandy wash bank. Trying to make any headway climbing in sand is hard work!

Nice photobomb, Nina! (wearing the hat of Grandpa Karl's that she ended up with after he passed away.)

When we got back to the vehicles we spent some time rehydrating and visiting while the boys and girls picked up and threw rocks. Sadie was practicing her shot-put and discus techniques…

I managed to coerce some mom-child selfies...

Mom and Soren…


Mom and Charlie

Oh, and a selfie with my sweetie….

who are those old people??

Finding special rocks, (my boys LOVE rocks) Some of them had quite a collection but I told them they could not bring all of them home, so they chucked them.