Antelope Island

Luke and I thought we would treat the kids to a trip out to Antelope Island. Things started off really great. Right when we got there, we saw a buffalo. He was huge, and Dylan was so excited. We got out the binoculars to check him out close up. Totally cool.

Then we walked over to the visitor's center and stopped to take a photo by this buffalo. The kids wanted us to hurry up and take the picture because it was hot and the sun was in their eyes. Not quite as cool.

Then, as we were walking toward the front door, Luke spotted this spider. When we got inside, we learned that it is an orb weaver, and they are all over the island. Very uncool.

We jumped in the car to drive around and spot some antelope. We wanted a photo of the kids with the buffalo in the background, so we asked them to stop and pose. Izzy was frantically looking around for more spiders, and it was obvious that she was already over it. Five minutes on Antelope Island and she was already done.

We didn't see any antelope while we drove, but we saw tons of buffalo, and a flock of pelicans. We stopped at the Garr Ranch to look at the old houses and equipment, and ended up seeing a great horned owl. Ok, that was pretty cool, but we still decided to call it a day. We headed back to the causeway, but made a quick pit-stop to walk down to the lake since we probably won't go back anytime soon. Dylan borrowed my shoes.

We had to walk through a fog of thousands of brine flies at the edge of the water, but once we got in, it was umm, nice. Izzy just wanted to know why it smelled like cabbage. Ok, point taken. Not. Cool.

Izzy and I walked back together, and I promised her ice cream for being a good sport. Luke took a picture of us right before a brine fly flew right into my eye. Good timing.

We stopped and got soft serve toppers at Artic Circle on the way home. I can't remember what got us giggling, but all four of us were sitting there eating ice cream, smelling like the Great Salt Lake (aka cabbage), laughing. Really hard. It was so funny, and made the day worth it. Spiders and all. Cool.

School Boy

Dylan started school this morning. No more preschool for this big guy--he's all about Kindergarten. He was a little nervous about being at the 'big school', but now that the first day is over, he is just fine. I think he's going to have a great year!

Happy Anniversary

Just nine short years ago today, Luke was signing his life away. (Yikes! Nine years?) It's been an adventure so far, and I'm looking forward to finding out what the future holds for us. Hopefully a fence and a bigger kitchen, but whatever happens, I'm glad we're in it together!

School Girl

Izzy started school today! We are thrilled with her new teacher; she is very organized and seems really excited about the upcoming year. She has a lot of fun and challenging things for the kids to look forward to, so here we go! Can you believe it's already here??

The Lake

The lake always seems to be good therapy. The cool, soft sand between my toes, the sun on my shoulders, looking out into the gorgeous blue water...it's got a calming effect. Isabelle and Dylan would live there if we could. They love the cabin, the beach, and of course, the raspberries! We need to spend more time there so I can watch Bucky throw sand:

And take pictures of Izzy when the sun gets in her pretty blue eyes:

Thanks mom and dad for a nice, relaxing weekend. It was just what we needed!

Thank You

Thursday didn't start out great, as you can clearly see from the photo of my car in the last post. I don't know which was a bigger pain, the window being shattered or my bag being stolen. I know better than to leave my purse in the car, so I have been kicking myself all weekend. I spent Thursday at the DMV, the bank, on the phone with the Social Security Administration, cancelling bank cards, etc. On top of that, Dylan had a fever (just over 103), so he was pretty cranky. Also, Izzy went to the doctor for a follow-up exam and we ended up scheduling tests at Primary Children's Hospital. To say the least, by the time I got home Thursday evening, I was pretty cranky myself. But, when I got the mail, guess what I found?
This:

My blogging friend, Kari, had sent me the most wonderful surprise. Not only did she make me a CD (I was the queen of mix-tapes), she wrote a little note about each song as well as her favorite line from each one. What a treasure! I love music, especially hearing a mix someone else has made. It's like taking a little peek into their soul. And Kari's mix is fabulous. I listened to it on my way to Logan Friday afternoon, and I found myself crying. It was exactly what I needed after a really bad day. The first song, "Heavenly Day" by Patty Griffin was beautiful. "Here Comes The Sun" by the Beatles started the waterworks, but "The Rainbow Connection" by Kermit T. Frog was the kicker. I cried and cried because how could Kari know that is my favorite song? In the universe!? That song is so special to me and my kids. It made me more convinced than ever that God works through each of us to make the world tick. He knows when we need a friend, and getting that gift in the mail was priceless to me. Kari, you truly made my day! Thank you so very much. I adore the CD, and more than that, I love the time you took to write about each song. I will treasure it always.