Do you say crick or creek?

I just got back from a mini vacation to "The Canyon" as we call it. It is actually Little Cottonwood Canyon but if you say "The Canyon" to any of us we will know what you are talking about.

In the Wasatch Resort near the mouth of the canyon the pioneers cut granite to make the Salt Lake Temple. They built miners cabins to live in and my great-great grandfather George Ashton had a couple and his son my great-grandfather ,George Ashton, bought a couple also. My grandmothers family would live there all summer long to escape the heat of the city. We, following in our forefathers footsteps continue to spend time and suspend time in this wonderful place during the summer. 2x great George's cabin is "Bide a While Haven" and 1x great George's cabin is "My Blue Heaven".

Great-great Grandpa George!

You must know that these are not what my family calls "Uncle Grant Cabins" but they are quaint and wonderful and they have been updated with electricity and plumbing so we love it there. There are many things that we love about the cabin. 1. The Creek or Crick depending on how you pronounce it! It isn't very far from the cabins which causes young mothers some stress when the water is high, but at night, when the kids are tucked safely in bed, you lay with the windows open and you hear the rushing water and nothing is more relaxing and soothing. During the day, for rock-throwing, wading, picnics and even the occasional water-fight when the water is low, nothing could be more delightful and refreshing as the straight-from-the-glacier water that flows in the creek.
2. The Hikes. Since as far back as I can remember I can recall going on the same hikes that I now take with my little ones. Cool Water, The Water-Tower, Table Rock and Our Property are some of the old hikes. One new hike we discovered is the new trail that has been created called the Temple Quarry trail which has signs explaining all about the quarry and the history of the area. Those pioneers were quite ingenious and it is amazing to still see some of their handywork in the rocks surrounding the cabins. 3. The rocks. Oh my goodness, I love these old rocks. For 4 generations now we have climbed these rocks. They are gigantic and some scare me to death but they are heaven to climb and discover. Every generation has found them and named them. Ship Rock, Piano Rock, Elephant Rock, Slide Rock, Table Rock, Step Rock and the list goes on. My kids call them something else but after a brief description I will say "Oh you mean, Step Rock!" Then Grandma pipes up "That is called Grandpa Rock!" 4. The Swing. For 70+ years this swing has rested on the patio of "Bide a While Haven" Cabin. My mother played on it as a child as did I. I can remember the thrill and terror of flipping it over backwards as I watched my kids do this week! What amazes me is that I never taught them that! It just seems to be instincive! Smart kids (or not considering the landing for all falls is concrete of the hardest kind)

5. The Kitchen. All things cooked in this old kitchen (complete with unused old-fashioned stove) are delicious but the best thing in this kitchen is the water that comes from the tap. FREEZING cold and the best way to experience this water is in the antique metal cups that also become FREEZING cold! It totally takes me back to my childhood and arguing with my sister over which cool cup I got and which was hers!

6. The women. This used to be a man's domain. The miners, the grandfathers and the uncles (Uncle Mitch was, as a far as we were concerned, the King of the Canyon whom we all followed without question) but slowly it has been taken over by the women. My Great-grandmother sitting at her kitchen table reading. My grandmother sitting and telling family stories. My aunts doing handiwork and playing PIT until late into the night (at the top of our lungs). My mother leading the hikes and band-aiding the hurts (we went through 1 box and 1 first-aid kit worth of bandaids! this isn't a wimpy place!) My sisters (including inlaws) talking, laughing, cooking, cleaning, hiking, playing games. And now my sons.... It seems that it is going to have to include men again because these boys love this place and the forts and lizards and nightgames and rocks!

People I Love! June edition.

Besides Josh and Aaron whom I love and adore. There are a few others that I love that were born in this month. Let me introduce you!
Paul! My brother-in-law. I love Paul for many reasons. Let me tell you a few. I love how he laughs at everything. I love his sense of humor. I love how he is sensitive. I think it is funny that he denies that he is sensitive. I love that he likes to sing. Paul is a great listener. He is fun to tease. He is helpful, courteous, kind, brave... Ok maybe not brave but the others yes, he can be those.

Brad. My brother. I love Brad. Let me tell you why. I love Brad because he makes life a musical. He sings nonsense songs about doing the dishes or folding laundry. He makes me laugh. He has a good sense of humor and can even occasionally laugh at himself. I love how he is interested in many subjects and can discuss them on demand. I love that he can cry. I love to watch him playing with his kids and his nieces and nephews. I love his very official I-am-at-work phone voice. I love how he takes care of those around him.

I love brothers!

Oh they say when you're married in June... (name that musical)

I finally went to the doctor about my many ailments a few weeks back. (I was actually taking Joe in for his 2 year appointment and the peditrician heard me coughing and asked what I had been diagnosed with and I had to sheepishly admit I hadn't been to see anyone yet and she promptly sent me down the hall to see someone.) Turns out a little bronchitis and walking pnemonia won't go away on their own! Anyways, I am feeling a bit more up to snuff (what exactly does that mean?) and my brain is thinking about things again instead of being in a illness induced stupor of thought! Here is something I have been thinking about....

June being wedding month... I have been hearing a lot of funny funny stories about weddings and honeymoons and I wanted to share some and hopefully hear some more.


1) Honeymoon story #1: Couple checks into hotel and in their hurry to get in the room leave the key in the lock only to be terrified a few hours later by the bell boy pounding on the door to tell them to take their key inside.

2) Honeymoon story #2: Couple makes reservation at a darling little bed and breakfast but upon arrival find out that the bathroom is just open into the bedroom. No door just a little curtain separating the unfortunate person with an upset stomach from the room where their beloved is waiting. Good thing they had already said "Yes".

3) Honeymoon story #3: Couple checks into hotel and decides to fill up the bath for a luxurious soak but gets a bit distracted and the tub overflows and they get a call from the front desk that the room below them is getting wet and they spend the entire night with the clean up crews moving the giant fans around trying to dry up the water!


Have you got any funny stories to share?

My June Life So Far

What a great month!

This month has been packed with busy, chuck full of swamped, yes, a plethora of time consuming hecticity. (yes, I made that word up. but I like it.) Therefore, to save time we will go straight for the Cliff Notes version.

This exciting month starts out with a continuation of the last 2 months.

Baseball. Double, Triples, Outs, Strike Outs, Aaron hit by pitches 3 times while at bat (talk about flinch factor), Josh hit once while running bases (what are the odds), Jonathan and Conner on a beautiful pitcher to 1st base out and then the darling point-at-your-cousin move right after! Loved that.

Next we move smoothly into a delightful evening of hangin out with the gals (difficult for our heroine who has only boys in her house). These are the gals of Chi Theta Chi (XOX). In review Chi Theta Chi is an LDS sorority at the University of Utah. These fine girls were once officers together and in the 18 years since then have gotten together on a very regular to semi regular to not near enough basis! The evening was wonderful and it was so good to see all of them again. Look at all that 80's hair!

The story moves rapidly into the next chapter which was once again highlighted by a hangin with the gals evening. This time the gaggle of girls were some of the gals from the ward who used to serve in the YW together! Together we single handedly solved all the ward problems in one evening!

Wouldn't it be fun to create your own ward? Shannon Hale could be the YW President. Steve Young could do YM's. Mitt Romney for Stake President! What other suggestions can you think of? Hhhm..

Back to our story.

Not stopping for a moment after the gals nights the weekend had a few fun and amazing events. My Baby, Monkey #1 turned 12! Happy day! He was also ordained as a Deacon by his father, my amazing husband! What a blessing to have in our home 2 priesthood holders! Josh is a spiritual boy who recognizes the Spirit. He is happiest when he is doing anything sports related. He is super fast and really excited about being active. He enjoys reading and school but only after exhausting his body first! He is curious, scatter-brained and an amazing problem solver. He is also a big ham.

A few more baseball games. yada yada yada...

My Baby, Monkey #2 turned 10. Amazing. Aaron is my boy with the sensitive heart. He is amazing with kids and they love to be with him. He is wicked fast and wicked smart. He likes to be with people and make them laugh. He tries hard to make good decisions and he knows what to do when he makes mistakes.

Tonight we talked about the day he was born. He was especially fascinated by the other names we were thinking about naming him. Alex, Andrew, Logan, Adam. I was going to be Laura or Brad if I happened to be a boy. Dad came up with Kelli out of the blue. Weird. Were you going to be named anything else?

Well that wraps up June so far! Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion where... I may get some laundry done, but don't count on it.

People I Love May Edition...

Two birthdays for May!

Susan. Dave's sister. I love Susan because she is very supportive of all the family events. She comes to all the parties and is always fun when she is there. She is a thoughtful person also. I love how she manages to put up with her brothers and maybe even love them. I love how independent Susan is, she thinks of a project and does whatever it takes to finish it! You should see her wonderful, fun basement and her gorgeous backyard. She is amazing. I love how she interacts with her kids. She makes them and us laugh. I am sure that they can't have that much fun all the time but when they are with us they are funny! I enjoy looking through her scrapbooks though there is a lot of envy involved that she is so caught up. I am glad that she is in my family.
Allison. My little sister. I love Alli for many reasons. I love her because she is the most helpful person that I know. She comes to Utah and immediately starts helping many people with many projects. Brad and Sara were lucky to have her all to themselves for as long as they did. She is always thinking of others and how she could help them. I love Alli because she is brilliant. I love how she loves to learn and I think if she had millions she would be a lifelong student. She is amazing. I love Alli because she is fun to be with. She laughs easily and for a joke-teller nothing could be more wonderful! She is also funny in her own right! I love Alli because she loves beautiful things. We went to the beach with the Brad/Sara family and Alli when were visiting and while I saw cute kids getting wet and dirty and thought about how cold they would be and how to get them home being so messy Alli saw how beautiful the sunset was and took gorgeous pictures! She is quirky. You never know what Alli will be passionate about but when she gets that way watch out. She is a recycle Nazi. I love her quirks. I lucked out getting Alli in my family.