For the Beauty of the Earth and a little dog sledding...

“Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you.”

-Thornton Wilder

This quote was in my inbox the day before we left for Yellowstone this month.  We went down for our usual snowmobiling trip with Vision Source.  It was fun.  The weather was good, a little foggy to be able to go to Two Top, but we still had fun, were able to snowmobile a lot, and in a new twist, we both got stuck at different points in the day.  

This quote is from "Our Town", a play by Thornton Wilder.  I imagine Emily is saying it as she looks down on her town after she dies.  She realizes how great the earth is, what she had when she was there, and what she is missing now that she has passed on to the other side.

My first thought when I read this is how beautiful and wondrous the earth is.  I can't help but utter a prayer of Thanksgiving when I am out in Nature.  At times I am close to being overcome by the Earth and her MANY facets.  Each beautiful in its own way.  In fact, one of my favorite instagram accounts is usinterior!  Each day I get at least one amazing photo of this place we call Earth, and the diverse beauty of it.  One of the best examples of our gorgeous world is Yellowstone National Park.  Unfortunately, this year, I really didn't get any good pictures, so I stole from my archives for this post.  The great thing about that is the sights are still there, still breathtaking, and barring some volcano or other natural disaster, will be around for a long time.  

The Snow Giants

The falls of the Firehole River - Yellowstone National Park

One of the many geothermic features at Yellowstone National Park

So, yes Emily, Earth is to wonderful for us to realize...in so many ways!!  I'm grateful for a Heavenly Father who loves us so much, He sent His son to create this wonderful planet for us to live on.  Yes, it has its problems, (although, I'd say the majority of those are caused by the inhabitants, and not the planet itself) but, everyday, I am grateful to be here, in such a lovely place to live, to love, and to prove I am up to the challenge of living in such a way so I can return to that same Heavenly Father, whose daughter I am, someday.  That is what life is all about.

Now, on to less weighty matters...

The day after snowmobiling, we got to try dog sledding!  That was a great experience!  Definitely a new one!!  There were two rules.  1 - Hang on.  2 - Don't let go!   You have to hang on because the dogs LOVE to run!  They are bred to run.  As soon as they realize it is almost time to go, they bark, they jump, they whine, they can't contain themselves until they get down to the business of pulling the sled!  So, should the driver not be able to step on the brake, they will take off down the trail!

Well just let me say in my defense that it is really hard to steer the sled, and at one point, I leaned hard into the turn, and thought we were going over!!!  I broke rule #2.  Luckily, our guide, Moffet (is that the greatest name for a sled dog guide?) was in the front of the sled and jumped out, and stopped the sled.  Who knows where John would have ended up otherwise??  I ran fast to catch it, but would have been toast if not for Moffet.

John was a much better driver, to say the least.  I was happy to turn over the proverbial reins when we got back to the start, and he had another successful run with the dogs.  He did not break Rule #1 or Rule #2.  He is a good listener!!

At the helm of the dog sled.  (Do you hear the foreboding music???)

On the river

Way back when I first met John, he told me his family would go water skiing on the Snake River.  Now, I did not go water skiing that often when I was growing up, but the few times I did go, we went on a lake, or a reservoir, but never a river.  The river I was most familiar with was the Platte River, and it was no where near wide enough to ski on, at least not in Nebraska or Colorado where I saw it.
Fast forward a few (ahem) years, and here we are.  Spending our hot summer Fridays or Saturdays, doing just what I couldn't imagine - boating on the Snake River.  I guess technically we are jet skiing, but we have been on boats as well. 

We have a favorite spot to go, and are actually quite put out should someone already be there.  We almost feel like we have rights to the place.  :)  It is perfect for us, as we need a place to set up camp and get to our jet skiis easily when we need to switch drivers/riders/wake boarders/tubers.  Our little rocky beach on the island suits us just fine. 

Trev and Sam being teenage boys

We got a slow start this year, and this past Thursday was our first time this summer.  Kristin was at Girl's Camp, so we beefed up our numbers and invited Trev's friend, Sam who moved away last summer and is visting, to come with us.  Here they are doing funny, teenage boy stuff.  See our set up?  It works for us. We had a nice afternoon, and as it was really, really hot, it was a great way to pass the afternoon, even if it was a bit windier than we like.

Now, you may or may not know this, but our numbers need beefing up because there are fewer and fewer of us coming each year.  And let me tell you, it is weird to not have very many people.  In fact, the four of us have commented that it is very different, and I'm not sure we really like it, but we are making the best of it.

We headed out today, with a contigency plan if someone should (heaven forbid) be in our spot!!  We decided we would load up our stuff, climb on the jet skis and go across the river to one of the small beaches we have seen in years past.  When we got there, we did have to employ our plan, and headed across, found a spot and set up for the afternoon.  Since it was on the other side, it was SHADY!!!  That was great!!  It was also much BUGGIER, and that was not so great, but the bugs we thought were mosquitoes didn't eat us alive, so it was tolerable.  

It was a GREAT day!!  The kids got in some wake boarding, John and I realized we forgot to give the jet ski driving refresher lecture, our dinner was yummy, and we didn't roast in the 100 degree heat.

One of the best parts of the day came toward the end.  We were cruising the shoreline, scoping out other spots on the shady side of the river and we spied a bald eagle sitting on the shore.  He would dip his beak in the water every so often, but otherwise, just sat there taking it all in.  We kept our distance and watched him for a few minutes, wishing we had a camera, and trying to be close, but also staying far enough away that we didn't startle him.  We thought there might be a moment of drama when a few geese paddled by, but they kept their distance also, and the eagle just watched them pass by.  In all our years of being on the river, we have never seen a bald eagle!  A little less exciting, but novel, nonetheless, was seeing a pelican fly over us.  It happened twice today, so we don't know if it was one pelican flying over us twice, or two pelicans each flying over once.  I guess it doesn't matter, but we were happy to see that bird species today.

Trev showing his stuff

And Kristin also

Our two regulars these days

It would seem that dinner was a very solemn event

A Springtime Tragedy

A few weeks ago, on a beautiful Saturday, I spent most of the day weeding around our house.  At the back of the house, in one of the bushes, I spotted this nest.  4 sweet little eggs cozy and safe.  As I showed everyone else the eggs, I would occasionally scare the mama out of the nest, but couldn't figure out what bird would lay such tiny eggs.  Hummingbird was my best guess.  Fast forward about a week ago.  I quietly approached the nest, and there was the mama, sitting on her eggs.  It was a goldfinch.  I was happy to have the mystery solved.                                                    

Fast forward to today.  Another check on the nest brought unhappy news.  There was a hole in the side of it, and on the ground I found 2 eggs that were broken.  As you can see from the picture, they weren't remnants of a hatching.  Something got to the nest, and it didn't end well.  There is still at least one egg in the nest, but I can't imagine Mama coming back to it.  So not only are there at least two destroyed eggs, there is at least one that will languish because of neglect.  So Sad!!!

This reminds me of another Spring tragedy, about 12 years ago, give or take a year.  I discovered a bird's nest with bright blue eggs inside, they were robin's eggs, I was certain.  A few days later, Kristin and her friend, Cassidy were playing outside.  I don't remember how I discovered it, but sometime during their play date, they had found the nest and "moved" the eggs, and in the process broke at least one.  I was heart-broken!!  Of course, they were only about 3 or 4 years old, and in all their innocence told me what they had done.  I'm afraid I got more upset than I should have with them.  As I said, they were just little girls, and didn't mean to be malicious.  I think my sadness was for the mama.  My mother heart broke for the loss of her babies, because that is what would happen to my heart should I lose one of mine.

Of course, this is the way nature works, and there are little tragedies like this all the time.  I just don't like being reminded of that fact.

Yellowstone take 2

 In 2011, John and I went to Yellowstone National Park to snowmobile with the Vision Source group from Southern Idaho.  They have adopted us, and invite us each year, so we left Thursday and made our way to West Yellowstone, Montana to begin this year's adventure.  Here are a few pictures to document our weekend.  The weather was perfect the day we went snowmobiling.  It was also pretty nice the day we went into the park - not freezing but just cold enough to remind a person why there is still snow on the ground.

On top of the mountain.  When I saw this picture, I caught a glimpse of my little girl self in my face.  That was kind of a weird moment.

I love this picture of the snow giants.  See that brilliant blue sky?  Beautiful!!  When I see this picture, the phrase "I think to myself, what a wonderful world" immediately comes to mind.

This was the picture hanging above our bed in the hotel.  It cracked me up!  The caption reads, "Always willing to help".  I'm so glad I didn't have to wear hose and a hat to see the attractions of Yellowstone!!

We saw more than our share of bison.  It is really hard to believe they were so close to being wiped out at one point.  Its also hard to imagine them covering the plains prior to their near-extinction.  

This coyote had his chance to have goose for dinner, but seemed more interested in just exploring the land.  The geese were pretty worried though.

Our destination was Old Faithful.  We pulled into the parking lot of the visitor's center about 10 minutes before it was supposed to erupt.  It kept us guessing and was even a few minutes past its 10 minute +/- time frame.  I got a kick out of the snowmen welcoming us to the geyser.  I only thought of the "song" (you know which one I mean) for a few minutes and was grateful it didn't stick in my head.  

Our guide told us it usually tops out at about 135 feet, and the eruption we saw went up to 140 feet.  I guess that extra time helped build up the pressure.

I think my favorite part of the tour was seeing the geothermic features. Part of our tour included the Fountain Paint Pot tour.   This picture is of Silex Spring.  Its beautiful color is a result of the minerals found in the spring, namely Silica.

Red Spouter is a bubbling mud pot.  

The Fountain Paint Pots

The Firehole River Falls.  This was another favorite spot.  The river never freezes because of the hot water from the geothermal features that feed it.

John and I took advantage of a popular photo spot in front of the falls.  (Here is a funny thing.  As you can see from the other Yellowstone blog post John and I are wearing the same coats in it!  I guess we both really like our winter coats!!)

And because we seldom take a really good picture together, I included this one.  Not the best picture, but look how much fun we are having!!  ;)

In other family news, congrats to Kristin who qualified for Deca Nationals this weekend.  She has decided she won't go this year, but what a great thing to qualify your first year!  Congrats to her!!

Our Father's Love

It is cold here!  That is an understatement, and I know it is way colder other places, but today when I walked with my friend, it was around 10 deg.  BRRR!!  Tuesday, when I was walking with the same friend -who by the way is from Minnesota and has lived in Alaska, therefore can handle the cold - down by the river, we came across this lovely fellow.  Of course, I'm not sure he's a fellow, but I'm just going with to keep things simple.  We passed him heading one way, and my friend pointed him out to me, and when we were heading back, I told her I wanted a picture if he was still there, and amazingly, he still was.  We cracked up because his head is tucked so tightly into his shoulders.  You know there is a long neck all folded up in there.  He is all hunkered down to face the cold.  My friend pointed out that maybe its warmer on the ground than flying in the wind.  Who knows??  

I do know that I love moments like this when I come upon something in nature that is a bit of a surprise, as well as a little out of the ordinary, and I feel loved.  Being in nature reminds me of Heavenly Father's love for us.  He directed Jesus to create this world for us, to live in and to enjoy.  It is a beautiful world.  

Two other things this week have reminded me about how much He loves us.  

Our Relief Society lesson on Sunday was about Visiting Teaching.  That program which gives us a chance to minister to and serve our fellow sisters in the Gospel was instituted in the early days of the Church.  Although its methods have changed over the years (check out Chapter 7 of Daughters of My Kingdom), its purpose is the same.  This program gives us a chance to be the Lord's hands in His absence.  To minister and succor as He did when he was on the earth.

The third thing is the Atonement of Christ.  We have been reading this book,

in book club.  Wow!!!  We only read the first half because it is packed with so much information we had to break it up.  Chapter 15 is where we ended and it is titled, Infinite in Love.  Reading that chapter brought home to me how much Heavenly Father does love us.  His willingness to sacrifice His son, to let him suffer incomprehensible pain and suffering for us in mind-boggling.  As a mother, the thought of losing one of my children is unbearable to think about.  Knowing the love that both of them had - Heavenly Father to let it happen, and Christ to suffer and die for us - makes me want to be the best I can so it is not in vain.  Not taking advantage of the Atonement and repentance seems to be the greatest ingratitude I could show.  Now, having said that, I will continue to make stupid mistakes and be the human that I am, but I guess the test of how much I really believe in and am grateful for the Atonement is in the way I use repentance and make those changes to become better little by little, day by day.

Of course, there are other things that show me of His love, but in short, I am grateful for these 3 manifestations just in the last 3 days.

I feel loved!!

Post-Thanksgiving round up and a top ten

We are nothing if not predictable around here, so its no surprise that our Thanksgiving menu doesn't change much from year to year.  I did try Kate's Thanksgiving Turkey last year, and it was a keeper.  I think this year's turkey was even better, despite the fact that the Turkey Bags I always have in the pantry have somehow disappeared.  In the end I used Alton Brown's cooking method, and although it put our dinnertime about an hour later than we wanted, it was worth the wait.  So moist, and VERY flavorful.  Brining seems to be the way to go!  And as a former member of the "Buy the biggest turkey in the store" club, I have revoked that membership and joined the "Around 13 pounds is ideal" club.  

The partially carved turkey

Trev has found his Thanksgiving calling as the Dressing chef.  Notice his vigorous form in the picture below.  His dressing smells and tastes just like the dressing I grew up on, and it makes me smile to sniff or eat it.  YUM!!  The combination of onion, celery, basil, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, hamburger and Italian sausage is the perfect thing.  Not that I don't love other types of stuffing/dressing, but this is hands down my favorite.

Trev grinding the meat for the dressing.  The trusty Kitchen Aid is ever at the ready.  How does one pull off Thanksgiving without this most important tool on the counter??  

Mmm..the dressing is ready and waiting to be baked.  Notice the cranberries in the background.  I tried a new recipe with them this year also.  Thanks again, Kate at Our Best Bites.  Really yummy!!  Again, a new variation on an old theme.

 On the subject of cranberries - several years ago, I decided to try fresh cranberry sauce instead of the canned sort from years past.  Most of my immediate family doesn't really eat it, but for me, I will never go back.  We do have guests who are with us some Thanksgivings who like them from a can, so I can't give them the boot every year, but for the most part...fresh baby, all the way!!

We also managed to fit in a temple trip and a visit to Coeur d'Alene to visit with Chelsie and Dallin and the Dance clan.  It was great fun to spend a little time with the soon-to-be-new mom and dad!  Chelsie definitely has a baby bump, but not a very big one...

Here are my top ten photos of the day after Thanksgiving.  We did a little project and also participated in the 2nd annual Post-Thanksgiving Hike.  Good times!!

Here are our finished Symbols of Christmas!  We have a plan for them, but can't divulge it yet.  We all liked the candle best!  Oohh! Sparkly!

The kids can't pass up a chance to be a little weird!

Since we live in the land of Lewis and Clark, we had to have an impersonation.  I don't know who is Lewis or who is Clark, but I do know Trev is Seaman, the big, black Newfie who went on the journey.

It was fun to have our college freshman home for the weekend.  She was full of tales of life at BYU-I!  She spends A LOT of time studying, but still manages to have plenty of fun!!

Poor Trev!  Right in their sites!  Lucky for him, neither of them would know what to do with an actual gun if they had one in their hands.  Looking at Amber, I'd say she thought it was bow hunting season.

Stalking any unwary hikers.  Luckily, none came our way.  (Did I mention my kids like to be weird??)

Notice Amber's hat.  She has learned the importance of keeping her head covered now that she lives in Rexburg!  :)

Our hike took us to the river's edge.  Of course, that led to a rock skipping contest.  No winner was declared.

Amber had to prove she could balance on the rock and not get wet.  Kristin didn't fare so well.  She hiked back with one wet foot.

The happy hikers at the end of the trail.  It was a great hike!!

 One final note from this week.  Kristin missed school Monday because she had a vague unsettled pain in her stomach.  She rallied and went to school on Tuesday, but by that night, she was in pain, and if not for the lack of a fever, I was sure she had appendicitis.  I went to bed Tuesday night determined to call the Dr. the next morning if she was still not feeling well, fever or not!  It was all for naught, as she woke up Wednesday feeling much better, and she hasn't looked back!  Whew!!

Day 5 of GBE, and the end of the season...maybe

"Our spot"

 Summer is waning, and although I am excited for the crisp autumn air, the yummy fall food, and getting to wear my favorite clogs and cardigans, I do hate to see our time at the river draw to a close.  Today was possibly our last day at the river and it was a beaut!!!  
 This is "our" spot and today, although we had to share our rocky beach with a few other people, we were not disappointed.  The air was still, which means the water was smooth, which means the Trev and Amber enjoyed some quality time on the wakeboard.  

Trev making a sweet "dismount" (not sure what you call the end of a ride!)

Kristin is always happy to get her dose of Vitamin D!

Loading up at the end of a pretty close to perfect day!  (My kids have been incapable all summer of just smiling in pictures!!  Drive me crazy!!)

And today, in a break with tradition, all 5 of us mounted the jet skis and headed downriver for a ride.  It wasn't terribly far, and we stopped for a bit to let the kids swim, but it was nice to just ride and enjoy the rocky walls lining the river on one side, and the farmland on the other.  I feel gratitude for the beautiful earth we live on, and the safe and free country we live in!!

A Spring re-cap

We have had some beautiful mornings.  Look at that lovely pinkish cast on the  hills of the canyon.

 I love how the sun is illuminating part of the distant hills, and the trees in our yard.

Trev received his Star Scout rank at the last Court of Honor.  I love the tradition of the  saluting the mom with a kiss.  You can tell Trev loves it as well!  ;)

John celebrated his birthday last week.  Here he blows out the candles on his Sour Cream Blueberry Pie.

I finally caught Amber and her partner, Garrett, before their match.  They won!!

Trev talks strategy with his buddy, Sam, before their soccer game.  Whatever they talked about worked.  Trev scored 3 goals and they won, 6 - 0.

Decorating Easter Eggs, big kid style.  Trev and Kristin both tried their hands at blowing  out their eggs.
A big kid note, Amber declined to participate.  :(

Here is one of a couple of penguin eggs Kristin decorated.  She had a theme going.

And now we see the demo of Trev's homemade slingshot in action.  That is an egg in the  launch area.  Not seen - the egg ending up on the deck, Humpty Dumpty style.  Sometimes, your experiments just don't pan out.