Surprise Roadtrip

I've mentioned before that I love to travel with my family.  Roadtrips tend to be our most frequent form of travel.   (You can read about a couple of them here and here.)  Even as newlyweds, the Bionic Man and I used to jump in the car and see how far we could get before it was time to turn around and head back to school.

Since we've had children, the Bionic Man and I don't get into spontaneous roadtrips like we used to.  Generally, we spend months preparing for our roadtrips:  researching routes and destinations, planning stops and activities, putting together detailed itineraries, making reservations.  Often, we depart for vacation with a thick binder that maps out all the details of our trip.

Our 2011 summer trips weren't going to be any different.  We'd been planning a family trip to see our Connecticut friends and East coast sites for weeks.  And Bionic Man had been prepping daily for a special backpacking adventure in Utah's Uintah mountain wilderness.

All that changed when we got the news that Bionic Man's grandmother had passed away.  We made a last-minute decision to change all our vacation plans for the summer.  Within 48 hours we were packed and on the road.

The Sandbox

The final installation of the Bionic Man's work of playscape art was completed earlier this summer.  The long-awaited sandbox is now part of the children's play area.

This is no ordinary sandbox.  For starters, it is part of the Bionic Man's playscape design.  Remember the playscape?

Lazy Summer?

I'm back!  Back to blogging, that is.  This summer has been full of surprises (mostly good) and opportunities.  I'll have to tell you all about it over the next few days.  Here's a picture preview:

I have a couple of good excuses for neglecting my blog.  First of all, school's out.  That means my kids are home during the day.  Guess what?  I love that.  And I've tried to stay off the computer as much as possible during our few days of summer vacation.

Second excuse?  My writing jobs.  If I'm going to spend time on the computer this summer, I might as well get paid for it.  So, the paid blogging gets priority.  Sorry.  By the way, did I tell you I have a new gig?  This July, I started writing for Infarrantly Creative.  I'm writing the weekly Five Ways column.  (Check out my latest, here.)  I'm still writing for The CSI Project, and my task list has grown there.  Admittedly, free-lance writing was easier and more fun when my children were at school.  Lately, it seems I'm putting in some late nights after they've gone to bed.  Oh well, we only have one Summer of 2011 to enjoy together.

Something Special Saturday - Garage Sale Edition

The kids and I hosted a garage sale this weekend.  Friday was very slow, but the weather was delightful.  Partly cloudy, not too hot.  Today we've done pretty good business, but it is miserably hot and humid.

We set up our garage sale at the last minute, after we saw the large signs posted at our subdivision entrance announcing a neighborhood yard sale.  Not sure why they don't give us any warning about these things....but it was a good excuse to quickly clear some things out of our house.  

If I'd had a little more notice, I might have been able to use some of the handy tips I found for having really successful garage sales.  Maybe you can use them sometime, instead.

The Yard Sale Queen offers a full page of tips for throwing a great yard sale.  She's got some great ideas for advertising and signs.  

The Nester offers additional tips for both yard sale buyers and sellers over at her Nesting Place.  She recommends a good, cleansing yard sale for ridding the house of unwanted clutter.  

Melissa at 320 Sycamore shares her yard sale wisdom (especially for buyers) in her Yard Sale 101 section.

First Week of Summer

It's the first week of summer, and Bionic Man has already had to go out of town twice.  That does not bode well, me thinks.

The good news is, over the last three days, the children and I have been extremely productive.  I'm totally taking advantage of their enthusiasm at being home for the summer, and working them like slaves in the salt mines.  It's such a change from school routines that they haven't complained yet.  Obviously, I have no time for blogging this week because I have to capitalize on enthusiasm like that while I can.

Something Special Saturday - 5/28/11

YAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY!  SCHOOL IS OUT!

In two more months, I might not say that with quite so much enthusiasm, but it sure is how I feel today!  As much as I appreciate the wonderful opportunities my children enjoy from our excellent local schools, I do a happy little dance at the thought of having them home to stay for a few months.  I love the simpler days of summer and the way it seems to free up our schedule.

That being said....I like to have a little structure to our days.  Flexible structure, but I like having a few ideas of what we're going to do each day.  This year, I have visions of craft projects to go along with the books we'll be reading.  I've been pinning lots of ideas on my Pinterest boards.  I'll be honest, I've selected the crafts before the books.  But hey---I'm an English major.  I'm all about finding layers of meaning in literature, right?  I bet I can find a layer or two in any book that goes along with the following fun art activities.

Painting with wax on rock from 5 Orange Potatoes.

Paint with marbles from The Mother Huddle.

How to Have a Family Reunion

You may have noticed I've been rehashing the events of our summertime road trip for the week.  The last day of our time in Utah was spent at the Kitchen Family Reunion.  The Kitchens are one side of the Bionic Man's family, and boy-oh-boy do they know how to reunite!

This is the first Kitchen reunion the Bionic Man and I have been able to attend in thirteen years.  The last reunion I went to was also my first.  I went along as the Bionic Man's girlfriend, and had so much fun that I decided I should marry into the family.  I think it is pretty impressive to be able to throw reunions that actually bring people into the family, not scare them off!

So, when we were able to attend this year, I took notes.  Happily, I am willing to share some of the things I learned.

1.  Location, location, location.  Don't stress about it.   Find a place that is close the majority of attendees that will fit the size of the crowd.  In this case, it is the church gym nearby Grandpa Kitchen's home.  The reunions used to be in Grandpa and Grandma's backyard, but that became hard on them as they grew older.  The church is free, air-conditioned, and has plenty of space and restrooms.  Everyone had a good time, despite the lack of a lake or roller coaster or resort.  The attendees packed a lot of fun into a few hours, which eliminated the need for planning sleeping arrangements and multiple meals.

2.  Plan Activities.  Despite the lack of lakes, roller coasters, or resort, there was plenty of fun to be had.  Much planning had obviously gone into creating activities for a wide variety of age groups.  There were activity stations set up around the gym that children and adults could participate in to earn "Kitchen Bucks."  (The bucks could be used later on at the auction.)  These activities included brain teasers, crafts, service projects (like tying baby blankets for needy families, here),

and just plain old fashioned fun.  One of the most popular game stations was this one, where kids could use shaving cream and craft sticks to give each other a "shave".

3.  Share family history.  It didn't take a long speech or slide show to offer a taste of family history.  There were several display tables set up so that we could take a look at pieces of our history.  Old family videos were playing continuously on a nearby television, so we could stop and enjoy those, too.

4.  Celebrate your family heritage.  One of my favorite things about this reunion was the way the entire Kitchen clan chose to celebrate the life of their matriarch, Grandma Kitchen.  Grandma died last spring, so this was the first reunion without her.  Instead of speaking of her in subdued voices, the Kitchens had fun remembering Grandma.  The aunts brought in all of Grandmas old clothes and wigs, including some of the things her daughters had worn that had been in storage at her house.

Anyone could have fun trying them on and posing for pictures.  Here are three of the granddaughters, dressed as Grandma at different stages of her life.  Everyone had a good laugh and enjoyed seeing how much they looked like Grandma.

Grandpa had also brought Grandma's stuffed animal collection to the reunion.  Each animal had a tag with a number on it, and the grandchildren and great grandchildren got to draw numbers and get their very own stuffed animal from the collection to take home with them.  You can imagine what a hit that was.

 

5.  Make and Keep Traditions.  The Kitchens have found a fun and memorable tradition for their family reunions.  Everyone who attends brings along a few things from their homes that they are ready to part with.  Grandpa had a number of things from his home, keepsake items that he was ready for others to enjoy.  These items were all "sold" for the Kitchen Bucks that we earned participating in the games and activities earlier in the day.  The miscellaneous items were sold at the Kitchen Store, and the big-ticket items were sold at an auction.  Let me tell you, the auction was hilarious.  Only fake money was involved, and all that could be earned right there at the reunion, via participation.

My children thought this was absolutely marvelous.  They were ready to buy out the store.  The Bionic Man and I had to keep trying to sneak things back into the store, because we really didn't have that much room to carry junk treasures back across the country with us.  I got into some trouble at the store, myself, when I saw several of boxes of vintage fabric and sewing patterns, like this one.

The Bionic Man would not let me take home a box of fabric.  So I just took half a box.  See those cute prints on top?  Anyone have any ideas for what I can make?

6.  Enjoy Being a Family.  It was delightful to catch up with the Bionic Man's aunts and uncles and cousins.  The activities were well planned, but there was plenty of time to visit and enjoy one another, too.  There is a wonderful spirit about the Kitchen Family.  I think it is so beautiful to see the good fruits born of seeds sown many years ago by a young couple who chose to be firm in their faith and family.  I am grateful to have joined the Kitchen Clan by marriage, and look forward to many more reunions.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation, Part 2

Fun with Family

Because I tend to get too busy having fun, and forget to take pictures, we don't have photographic records of spending time with all of our cousins and family members.  We let Aunt Kris handle that on the Bionic side of the family, and on my side of the family....well....we have lots of happy memories stored in our brains.  My side of the family is genetically incapable of remembering to take pictures at family events.  But the few good ones I got, I'm posting.

One of the things we love to do when we visit out west is make a trip or two to Uncle Boyd and Aunt Lena's farm.  This is the view from Boyd and Lena's front porch.

 They have horses, which my girls just love.

Better yet, they have an Aunt Lena who lets them ride those horses.  Aunt Lena trains and sells horses, and she's very good at that.  She's also good at helping kids learn to ride.  

Besides horses, Aunt Lena and Uncle Boyd have boys.  Four of 'em.  Justone likes them more than he likes the horses.

When you are a boy with no brothers who lives in the 'burbs, it is very, very, very exciting to visit your cousins who live in the country, because they introduce you to things like sand surfin'.

Justone was in heaven.

We like to visit our cousins that live in the city, too.  They don't have horses, but they do have Ikea.

 We had lots of fun at Ikea with them, and luckily didn't lose anyone for more than 15 minutes.

I've noticed over the last few years that Poppy and Grandma are quite wiley when it comes to avoiding photographs.  So I made a point of getting a few of them before we left.  Here's a fun one with Poppy and a couple cousins.

And some cute ones with Grandma, too.

Since our little Lily is buried in Utah, near where my parents live, we make several trips to the cemetery during our summertime visits.  My children love to put flowers and special rocks on Lily's grave, and explore the cemetery.  They consider it a vacation highlight when the sprinklers are on near Lily's headstone when we stop by, and they get to run through the sprinklers at the cemetery.  (The cemetery is not exactly a place of quiet contemplation when we are there.)  I realized I didn't have pictures of Lily's headstone, so I took some this time.

(The strange stripe on it is me trying to practice internet safety.  Thanks for understanding.)

The Bionic Man and I tried to take advantage of free and frequent babysitting while we were there.

Ha, ha, ha!  I just read that again and thought I should make a clarification.  We like to take advantage of the free and frequent babysitting we can get while we are in Utah visiting family, NOT while we are at the cemetery.  That would be a great story, though.  

By the way, if any of you thought that view from my brother's farm looks familiar, there is a good reason.  Here it is again:

 Now take a look at this:

And this:

Then go vote for Pedro

because prolly the awesomest  thing about Preston, Idaho (other than being the place where my brother and his family live) is that it was the location for Napoleon Dynamite.  (I threw that in just for Sarah, who will appreciate it.)

Hey, Napoleon. What did you do last summer again?
I told you! I spent it with my uncle in Alaska hunting wolverines! 

Did you shoot any?
Yes, like 50 of 'em! They kept trying to attack my cousins, what the heck would you do in a situation like that? 

What I Did on My Summer Vacation, Part 1

Like I said the other day, it sure doesn't feel very much like fall around these parts.  For the next couple days, I'm going to be posting some of my favorite pictures from our travels in the West, this summer.  (Mostly for the benefit of our relatives who are in the pictures!)

It has become a tradition for the Bionic Man and I to drive across the country each summer to spend time with our extended families.  Both of us grew up in Utah, and that is where the majority of our family members still live.  Our strategy is to drive out and back together, but the Bionic Man flies home to work for a couple of weeks while I stay behind to chaperone our children as they get spoiled by grandparents and play with their cousins.  (It's such a sacrifice for me, wink wink.)

While the Bionic Man is with us, we try to spend as much time in the mountains as possible.  After the drive across Wyoming, we spent some time in Idaho at our first family reunion.  We did some hiking there to get used to the altitude before going on the really big hike we had planned.

This shot of Justone, the Bionic Man, and his Bionic Father hiking together is one of my very favorites from the entire trip.

In our quest to gain altitude, we spent another day playing and hiking in the mountains near Snowbird, Utah.  We cheated by riding a tram most of the way to the top.

The day after we hit the not-so-snowy-slopes of Snowbird, we went on the hike that was the really big deal on this year's trip.  The Bionic Man had been planning this for months.  We climbed Mt. Timpanogos above American Fork, Utah.  Hiking Timp was one of the Bionic Man's favorite things to do when he was growing up.  We decided to leave Superkid safely behind with Grandmother for the day, but the Bionic Man was confident that Justone and Endeavor could make it.

We were joined in our ascent by the Bionic Father and Uncle Lance (who happens to be a seasoned mountaineer.)  Our friends The Hendys, who now live in Las Vegas, Nevada, joined us for the first mile or so and then wished us bon voyage.  They were so smart.

It was a lovely day for a hike.  For the first little while, I had a great time chatting and catching up with Heidi and Mike (center, in the green shirts)

and enjoying the interesting terrain.  We paused for a break at this waterfall, and the Hendys wished us well on the rest of our journey. 

 And then the real hiking began.  Oh. my. heck.  I cannot tell you how much I wanted to quit and go back within the first hour after that waterfall!

I could not for the life of me imagine how we were supposed to get up and OVER that cliff ahead of us.  And that wasn't even the top of Timp!  See what looks to be sheer cliffs ahead of us on that trail?  They are sheer cliffs!  Um, there were little skinny trails criss-crossing those cliffs that I had to climb up.  That my children had to climb up!  The Bionic Man mentioned that he hadn't realized how treacherous of an ascent it was the last time he climbed....when he wasn't a father.  Really?!?!  It should not surprise you that Endeavor and Justone were the youngest hikers on the trail, that day.

Justone!  Step away from the edge of that cliff!  Are you trying to give your poor mother a stroke?

I huffed and puffed and regretted every single crumb of junk food I have ever had to eat in my entire life.  But the scenery alone was worth every painful step.

I was so proud of Justone and Endeavor.  Justone was determined to be the first one to the top, and he hiked hard and without complaint.  I can't say Endeavor hiked without complaint, but she was a trooper to keep going and do something that she hadn't been too excited about to begin with.  She and I provided a lot of entertainment and encouragement for each other.

Wait--stop right there.  Could someone please, please try to explain to me why my hair looks that good after sweating my way up a dusty trail all morning?  Better yet, explain to me why no amount of primping, curling, and hairspray can make my hair look that shiny and voluminous before a)church b)family portraits and c)dinners with the Bionic Man's work colleagues.  It's like a Pantene commercial, right there on the trail.  I said the trail.  Where I can't get cell phone service, I'm covered in dust and sweat and sunscreen, yet I can have my best hair day ever.  I officially give up.

After about five hours of steep, upward climbing, we reached this valley

which had a beautiful lake in the middle of it.  Somehow I missed getting any pictures of Emerald Lake, so I'm borrowing a picture of it from flickriver.com so you can see.  I think I was just too tired to hold up the camera, at that point.

Sitting down for lunch by this icy, icy cold lake, our experienced guides pointed out the summit to Justone, Endeavor, and I. 

I announced that I felt incredibly fulfilled by my day on the mountain and also that I wanted to live to see my next birthday.  Endeavor and Justone felt the same way, THANK GOODNESS!  We made a pact to reach the summit next year or maybe even the year after that, and sent the Bionic Men on their way with our blessing.  (That would be my husband, his father, and his father's brother.  Truly bionic men, all of them.)

The children and I hiked down on our own.  Going downhill wasn't any easier than going uphill.  And it was scarier.  There were a few times when I wanted to click my ruby slippers and become one of these:

Yes, those are really mountain goats, which we really saw.

Thankfully, the children and I made it down safely.  And it was good that we let the Bionic Menfolk get to the summit....because on their way down, another hiker slipped and fell off the trail a few yards ahead of them, sliding thirty feet down to the edge of a dangerous cliff.  Uncle Lance had a rope and other special equipment, knew how to use them, and directed a rescue, assisted by the Bionic Man and his Bionic Father.  They were able to provide first aid treatment and get the hiker and her group safely down the mountain.  I still get chills when I think, "What if I had wimped out completely and made them climb down with the children and I?"  If even one of them had come with us, a life would have been lost that day on Mt. Timpanogos.  I'm also incredibly grateful that Endeavor, Justone, and I made it down without event.

Told you they were bionic.

If you would like to hike Mt. Timpanogos, don't let my scary story stop you.  Take an experienced mountaineer with you, wear sunscreen, carry LOTS of water, get yourself in shape well beforehand, be prepared, and learn more about it here or here.  I'll see you at the top next year!