Glorious Day!

How I have longed for this day. School is out (for me anyway..ha ha) and it is the eve of a mini-vacation, the destination...Grand Gulch. 10 miles of hiking, checking out Indian ruins, sleeping in a tent under the wide open sky somewhere in the desert, no worries about bear attacks, AND getting to try out some of our new camping gear....what could be better? It is the best feeling ever, sorting through all of our gear, loading up the backpacks, and leaving the world behind, even if it is only for three days.

Mikes parents are in on this trip, and I hope by now they know what they are getting into when they go somewhere with Mike as tour guide. It should be a pretty laid back, mellow trip and from what I have heard, it is a truly amazing spot. One thing I really admire about my husband, is it's almost always exciting hanging out with him, because he possesses a special gift of turning pretty much anything into a memorable adventure!

I have to say that people are missing out...we don't know anyone who, besides Carl and Donna, are brave (or maybe it's just crazy) enough to drop in with us on some of the most amazing adventures.....any takers?

*Dan and Jonna we know you are definitely down, too bad you live a gazillion miles away;(

For those of you people that missed out on this one, I will post the amazing pictures that I am sure Mike will take.

We love you all!

MandK

Art

I am. I think. I will. My hands. My spirit. My sky. This earth of mine. What must I say besides? These are the words. This is the answer.

~Ayn Rand~

The Great Brain

One of my childhood heroes was Tom Fitzgerald, aka "The Great Brain". Tom was the main character in a series of children's books written about a family in turn-of-the-century southern Utah. This was a time when Utah wasn't just a place where Mormons lived, but also Indians, outlaws, miners and ranchers. This was a time when parts of Utah had the flavor of the real wild west.

Mom read these books to us when we were kids, and I have read them several times since. Kristen and I read them last year... so did Creighton.

So, I knew the books were fiction and based on true stories, but I have always wanted to know what was true and what was not. I started the research. It led to a cemetery in Price, Utah where Kristen and I found the grave of Tom and his parents. Wow! This was just down the street from where I started high school! In fact, Tom went to the same school, (Carbon High), decades before I did. He died in 1988. I will always wonder if I ever bumped into him while living in Price. Wish I would have known that he was real and we lived so close so I could have talked to him and heard the stories straight from the source.

More info is at: www.findingfitzgerald.com

Doomsday

March 20, 2010 (doomsday) came and went, and it really wasn't as horrifying as I had planned. You know the saying, "hope for the best, but expect the worst"... I'm talking about the Canyonlands Half Marathon, in Moab, that Mike and I signed up to run. Mike signed us up while we were in Hawaii, and things always sound better while on vacation, especially in Hawaii where it's easy to get out of touch with reality. Reality was not lost for long, as I started to train for what I felt was going to be the most grueling 13 miles of my life. Needless to say, I trained, I conquered, and I am still alive, AND it wasn't the monster I made it out to be, for Mike, it was a walk in the park. Thanks Mike for being my running buddy!
Our mini getaway went perfectly, the weather couldn't have been better, the scenery never ceases to amaze, we got a descent camping spot, best camping gear, and much needed break from the daily grind. I am glad that I have the experience of a Half Marathon under my belt, and I am especially glad I got to do it with my husband who is so supportive;) We also got to do some really fun detective work on the trip, on a subject which is a new passion of Mike's. He's going to write about it, so stay tuned!

Good Bye Garage

When we were in Hawaii in December, we were inspired by the ramp in Corban & Meg's carport. So, we built on of our own. It was more work than we anticipated. Wood was donated, pulled off job sites, and purchased for a total ramp cost of $187. Not bad.

No major injuries to date.