Boys Lake Powell Trip

  Shawn Nelson invited the boys to a few days out on his houseboat at Lake Powell. They were supposed to go during the summer but the houseboat became unavailable. This time in September popped up. The water was still nice in the Fall. Mark got to drive the houseboat. He said it was his favorite part.

Jack's favorite part was tubing.

Merril kept sunscreen on them and they had a great time!

Riding Motos

  I have a motorcycle license but let's be honest, I don't ride a motorcycle very often. I decided to go with Merril and Juliet and Mark. Merril purchased a new motorcycle, a Suzuki DR 200. It's supposed to be more chill for me and Juliet.  It's a nice little motorcycle. Juliet and I are liking it.

While riding, a storm rolled in. We packed up and got out of there before it got us. It was a nice little afternoon. *My hair looks goofy in this picture because the wind was blowing so hard. 😂

 

Mom's Offroad Recovery Again

Jack was hooning around in the hills by our house and was probably going too fast. In doing so, he got all sideways and high-centered. He needed my help getting free. It took a few tries and I had to come back with a different strap but we got him loose. 

I should start charging him. Maybe he wouldn't get stuck as often. Doubtful. I'm glad he wasn't hurt. Then the next week he ran a motorcycle out of gas. He called to see if I could bring him some. Luckily, there was some in the garage. I got the gas to him and he rode home. Silly kid. 😉

Richfield Mountain Bike Race

We are on our way to the Richfield mountain bike race!

Juliet, Jack and Merril left to preride the course. Juliet doesn't like how red her face gets after exercise so I took this picture but she'd only let me keep it if it was black and white. It was so hot!

The next day was race day! I volunteered early in the day and had to sneak out of the hotel room. I came back around 9:30 a.m. and they were all in bed together. 😆

Jack rode at 12:55 p.m. and it was hot! He did 2 laps in about 52 minutes.

Grandma and Gramps were there because Beau and Evan Campbell also ride for the Cedar Valley team. They get to see two sets of grandkids.

Jack's looking happy!

Juliet rode at 2:06 p.m. and she was supposed to ride 2 laps. The race officials started pulling kids off the track after 1 lap because of the heat. It was high 90s. 

When we were done, I was so hot and sweaty that I wanted to cool off any way possible. We found a field with the sprinklers going and ran through the sprinklers for a minute. I thought it was lovely!

I drank so much water and gatorade but still feel dehydrated. It was super dusty and my lungs feel gunky. We booked it home for showers and sleeping in our own beds. 😅 

Peach Days 2022

 I love Peach Days! It's one of my favorite things about our little town. Merril arranged for his band, Black Sabbatical, to play. It was super hot but it was still fun. 

I worked security so that I could score an awesome Peach Days shirt. 😎 It says Committee Member, which I feel like is maybe a stretch, but I'll take it.

Do you know that old ladies touch things way more than little children? It's true.

 

Maxine and Sister Winterbauer

This is Maxine and Sister Winterbauer! Maxine got transferred to a biking area. I keep praying that she doesn't fall off or get hit by a car! I'm sure it'll be fine. She's already said she needs Jack to come tune up her bike. She didn't have a bike when she came to the area and a sweet member bought her and Sister Winterbauer bikes! They were ordered off Amazon and the elders but them together. I'm constantly amazed at the people that are taking care of my girl. 💓

Maxine's been struggling a bit. It's so hard to listen to her and not be able to fix it. She's hit her halfway mark! WOW! She recommends a mission to everyone she can talk to but that doesn't make it easy. All I can do is keep praying and fasting for her!

 

Cedar City Mountain Bike Race

 The first mountain bike race of the season was Cedar City. This year Jack and Juliet are both on the mountain bike team and it's been fun for them to have a sport that they can do together.

Juliet has improved a bunch since she started. She wanted an extra curricular but most practice right after school. She teaches piano after school so things conflict. Mountain bike team practices early in the morning or in the evening so it's been great!

Cute pictures from Maxine

Maxine and Sister Storm were able to attend the baptism of a little girl in their ward. Also got invited to food afterwards and ate way too much.

Then just the random assortment of pictures she sends along. Her and Elder Wyness.

The Hermanas; Spanish-speaking sisters.

To The Rescue!

I was taking my parents to the airport when Merril called me. He asked what my afternoon was like. I said I was going to go grocery shopping and he asked if I might be able to stop by the auto parts store to grab a serpentine belt and bring it and some tools to Panguitch. The serpentine belt on his truck had come apart.

So I dropped off my parents and headed to Napa. Got the stuff and drove to Panguitch. Merril already had parts pulled off the engine so he only took 5 minutes to get the truck in running order again.

First Day of School 2022

Jack and Leighna are starting 11th grade.

Mark is going into 3rd grade.

Mikayla's last year at Coral Canyon as a 5th grader!

Juliet starting at the high school as a 10th grader.

Juliet hand embroidered a pair of converse and they are so cute! She did a nice job!

I keep thinking how dumb it sounds to have 2 kids in high school and 2 kids in elementary school but that's just the way it is. Planning was never my strong suit. We're starting strong! 

The Last Day of Summer

We wanted to squeeze in one last item on our summer bucket list. Rock climbing/rappelling is one of the last things we wanted to accomplish this summer.

Mark went right off the rock all by himself. Mikayla needed a little encouragement the first time down but could go down by herself after that.

Jack got Leighna to rappel once. I don't know why he has that face on.

On belay!

These are some summer pictures from Maxine on her mission.

Some former Elders took the missionaries to lunch. Maxine was one of them. She's getting so close to being halfway done with her mission. I can't believe it's been almost 9 months!

 

Motos in Idaho

Merril took the boys to Idaho to ride with the Phillipp family. Check out the beautiful St. Anthony sand dunes.

Mark and Archer.

Hunter and Jack.

This didn't happen in Idaho but our front yard. The monsoon season has been crazy this year. During a downpour, Mark and Jack decided to ride in the rain. Pretty sure Talon went too. Silly good times.

 

Temples and Swimming, No They Don't Go Together

Juliet really wanted to go to the temple before school started. She invited friends and told me I was driving. 😋 Jack was supposed to go and drive but he is on his way to Idaho with Merril and Mark. Dirt bike riding adventures with the Phillipp family to follow.

Nicole, Leighna and some other friends came.

Then later that day, Mikayla had scheduled to go to the pool with friends. She wanted to go back to the St. George City Pool with the hydrotube. I ran into Natalie Madsen and we chatted it up for a while.

Mikayla, Jesslynn, and Reese played until they kicked us out at 8 p.m. I was starving and we went to Little Caesars to get pizza.

Good summer days! I can feel school getting close.