Back To School 2013

Seth is kicking off 7th grade and Logan is headed into 3rd grade.

Back to school haircuts.  Logan loves his faux-hawk!

Backpacking to Fisherman's Group Camp

We set off on our first backpacking adventure!  It started as a misadventure-- Jim and I both forgot our wallets.  We discovered this about 2/3 of the way into our 2 hour drive.  No wallet = no money for gas or to rent a bear canister.  We finally convinced Chase bank to let us withdraw some cash.  Then driving up the mountain, the car (our beloved Sonata) kept having transmission issues.  After calling our mechanic friend, we decided that the transmission had just overheated and we pressed forward into the wilderness.

Unfortunately, these problems resulted in us hitting the trail much later than anticipated.  We enjoyed a lovely hike in and at about the halfway point, we switched out our hats for our headlamps.  We sang songs and hiked on in the dark.  When we were almost to camp the brush changed and got thick- we were nearing a creek- when we heard an unmistakable sound.  A very large rattlesnake was warning us to stay back.  We couldn't see the guy, but every time we took a step down the trail he let us know not to keep coming.  This was especially discouraging because we thought the campsite was before the creek, and when we went to look for another trail (besides the snake guarded main trail) we discovered that we were already at the creek.  So, here we were in the dark with no real idea of where camp is and a rattlesnake guarding the main trail.  Jim headed off to find a creek crossing and look for camp.  Logan said a prayer for safety and that we would find the campground. Thankfully, shortly after that, Jim returned with directions to the camp!  So, we crossed the creek and hiked up to the campground.

We explored the creek the next day and Logan spent a lot of time chasing lizards.  After two nights, our hike out was uneventful, hot, and tough climb we everyone made it!

More Family Visits

Uncle Matt brought Cannon and Chase out to San Diego for some summer fun.  There was time at the beach, Legoland, swimming, and just cousins hanging out!

Digging in the Sand

Seth loves to dig very deep holes when we go to the beach...

Julian Train and Gold Mine Adventure

Melissa and I took the kids out to a ranch in Julian that offers a train ride, a taste of pioneer life, and a visit into an old gold mine.  The kids also got to play on an obstacle course that was set up on the mountainside.  On the way home, Logan and Seth hopped out of the car to do a little geocaching for Seth's boy scout merit badge.

Geocaching!

Zion's Camp

The Boy Scouts of America celebrated their 100th anniversary with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and held a special LDS summer boy scout camp- Zion's Camp. Camp included devotionals and special speakers in addition to lots of interesting fun scouting activities. Seth earned multiple merit badges and had a great week!  Seth also earned a special award: Endure in Faith.  To achieve this pin he had to journal every day, read the Book of Mormon, attend all devotionals/firesides, participate in a service project (they fixed asphalt roads!), pray morning and evening, and meet with the bishop.  Jim made some great "Class B" uniform t-shirts for the boys and helped with the sailing activities for the high adventure scouts at camp.

More Beaver, Utah Fun

I headed back to Utah to pick up Logan.  On my way up, I stopped at the St. George temple for a little walk and picnic.  The weather and the temple were beautiful!  Back in Beaver, we went to Butch Cassidy Days.  The kids had fun playing on the bounce houses, eating snacks, and watching the wood carving.  Alyssa and Logan were brave enough to enter the pie eating contest!  After more fun in Utah, we decided to bring Aunt Melissa, Lindsey, Justin, and Noah back to California with us.