Finally a family trip, after no summer vacations. September 2022

Salem Ponds on Labor Day

We enjoyed a day with my family at Salem Ponds. 

We are really enjoying going there for family time and holidays. 

A dragonfly landed on grandpa's fishing pole and it was really cool. 

Marshal came excitedly to show us the fish that he caught. 

When we saw the magot/worms in it's mouth and 

smelled the stench of death we told him he couldn't keep them. 😂

Plane Crash

at the Soccer Complex

One of the "joys" of living in West Jordan neat airport #2 

is the occasional planes that fall out of the sky. Thankfully

they are pretty good at bringing them down safely. 

It's crazy to realize that WiO is in their flightpath.

September Bear Lake Trip

This trip was very much needed, after a summer of no trips!

We reserved the same place, but the kitchen flooded a few day before.

Thankfully we were able to find another place just above it. 

The boys loved the arcades in the basement, but I missed the old place.

Oh and as usual I caught Kent being tired and sleeping on the couch.

  

So pretty! I love this view!

Sunrise over the mountains and on the lake.

Can I just live here?

Kent realized on the way up that the brakes were going out. 

He took Cheryl's car into Logan and got new brake pads. He sure knows how to have fun!

Erik and Cheryl bought the giant pizza again on Friday night. 

We had a picnic lunch with our own table at Bloomington Lake on Sunday.

It was a nice area to explore. 

More beautiful views!

Aaron was showing me his dinosaur sound. SO impressive. lol

And as usual we had a blast enjoying the sand and the lake.

Good thing Kent had a shovel for Jack!

I love watching them play in the sand.

We had a few interesting shots of the moon because of haze. 

It just beautiful up there!  

Bloomington Lake was so much fun! We saw dragonflies, a hawk perched,

Fish in the pond and I had to throw in the seagull from Bear Lake. lol

The plants in the water made such cool designs!

Beautiful area...

...and fun adventure!

Nothing like a school bus in the middle of nowhere and a trike on top of a tree! 😂

Truly a beautiful and unique area!

When I saw these rocks I had a thought that I shared with my boys. Each of these rocks look

very different. The difference is made by tiny minerals. Those tiny minerals reminded me that

my contribution even when it is very small can make mighty changes. We should never doubt the impact we make as we live our lives.

Lovely!

You gotta love a cow in the middle of the road.

We are so fancy! lol

Timpview High School 

Homecoming 2022

Braxton took Brinley North to her homecoming dance. They looked so good and it was so fun to be able to see them together. We love what Brinley adds to his life and we love when 

we get to spend time with her.

Who's Who in the Mall?

The activity is to have ward members in the mall and the youth has to find them. 

The trick is the ward members are in disguise...and apparently, 

there is usually more than on group in the mall so it's hard to tell if they are your own ward members.  

Top Left: Luke and Kristen Hickman. Top Left Middle: We found Brandon Broschinsky and Joe and Jen Richards. I was with Lori, Cort, Rose, Abella and Megan. Top Right Middle: Laura Benedict Top Right: Rachel Ferre Bottom Left: Kamryn Blackburn Bottom Left Middle: Bishop (Collin) Ferre Bottom Right Middle: Kristen showing off he punk moves. Bottom Right: Brandon Broschinsky when we found him.

Jupiter

Jupiter was super close to earth. Braxton and I tried to see it though the microscope, 

but we couldn't get it to work. It was still cool to see it though.

Fall Leaves Up Alpine Loop

We decided to go see the leaves. 

We found a campground while driving the Alpine Loop...

I loved how the leaves looked on this path. The boys were kind to take photos for me.

Selfies and squirrels. It was funny to find this little squirrel and take it's photo.

Afterward, I could have sworn that it was chewing me out for taking his photo. lol

A video blog of our trip through the canyon.

Love these boys

The evenings end was just as glamorous as the leaves.

Beautiful night!

Life in September

Top Left & Top Middle: One of the best parts of my morning is Marshal waving to me from the bus. I suppose that I treasure this because I know one day he won't be quite as eager to wave to his momma. Top Right & Bottom Right: Marshal was showing off Martha's "angel or devil" on her shoulder. Bottom Left & Bottom Left Middle & Bottom Right Middle: I shared a story with my boys about my Great Grandmother Lydia Pilch. The story says that she taught her granddaughter that if she sees dirt that she will clean it. I walked through the house with my boys to show them the dirt they were missing. I thought the lesson was valuable, but when Marshal showed me that he cleaned the soap dish without being asked a few days later I knew that the lesson had been received. The soap on the left was the one Marshal cleaned. The one on the left was similar to what the one on the right looked like before Marshal cleaned it.

Top Left: Braxton surprised me by asking if he could meet his female friend Sammie at West Jordan's homecoming dance. Top Left Middle: I love that I have learned new tools from the book, Leadership and Self Deception: Getting Out of the Box. It's pretty useful in working though parenting issues like Cort thinking Braxton isn't being fair to him. Top Right Middle: Sometimes it's nice to dress up. Top Right: Kent found a cool truck! Bottom Left: I taught Cort how to sew. It was fun to have a project with him. Bottom Left Middle & Bottom Right Middle: Cort made it onto the student council again. I love that he has the opportunity to develop his leadership skills. I wanted to also remember what I had written about Cort's ability to be on the student council. Bottom Right: Sometimes I get really excited about supporting local elections! Go Mike Lee!

Top Left: Sometimes the sky out my office window is amazing! Top Left Middle & Bottom Right Middle: Top Right Middle & Top Right & Center Right: I love that I have Braxton wearing this similar hat of Devin's from so many years ago. I posted this on Facebook and said, "A decade later and he's still pretty cool to me." Bottom Left: Marshal showing us his lantern. Bottom Left Middle: A nice reminder. Bottom Right: Showing off our pirate flag! Halloween is coming!

Top Left: Our good friend Randall Decker’s mom Judith passed away. When I read this plaque it resonated with me. I hopeI can do as good a job raising boys as she did. Top Left Middle: When these too play I will ALWAYS be a BYU fan without any hesitation. Top Middle & Bottom Left: My boys have fun wearing this mask but I can’t seem to get anyone to use it as a costume on Halloween. Top Right Middle: Top Right: Bottom Left Middle: I’m grateful for the knowledge gained from this book. If only I can learn to apply it in my life. Bottom Middle: Sometimes working in customer service can be hard. You’re expected to be nice while customers treat us so poorly. We had a few too many of those people this week.

I loved this thought, but my cousin Julie! When I read it I thought of my love and passion for family history. I'm not sure how else I share that than what I have been doing, but I will keep looking for that answer.

Beautiful September

"Don't wait for things to get better. Life will always be complicated.

Learn to be happy right now, otherwise you'll run out of time."

-Anonymous

"Strength doesn't come from what you can do. It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn't"

-Nikki Rogers

"Worship will get you through some of the toughest 

times in your life, because it shifts your focus 

from the problem to the problem solver."

-Anonymous

"You are part of a puzzle in someone else's life. You may never know where you fit. But, someone's life may never be complete without you in it."

-Bonnie Arbor

"If you are searching for that one person 

that will change your life, take a look in the mirror."

-Jesse Lyn Stoner 

"Bring love wherever you go. Shine light wherever it's dark. Leave blessings wherever you've been. 

Be kind wherever you are."

-Mary Davis

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted."

-Aesop

"I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become."

-C.G. Jung

"No one has ever become poor by giving."

-The Diary of Anne Frank