Our Vacation

This last week (over Pioneer Day weekend), we decided to take a trip. Mike actually had a couple of days that he could take off, so we headed down to Moab (a trip we've been wanting to take for a long time). We stopped first at Goblin Valley.

We spent the night in Green River, then continued on to Moab the next morning.

Day #2: Arches National Park. It was beautiful. We were able to see many of the famous sights, and we took several of the short hikes, too.

Day #3: Canyonlands National Park. This was also an amazing destination. We spent the afternoon on the Island in the Sky. We scrambled over slickrock up the trail to the Upheaval Dome overlook. We also drove through the park, taking in so many beautiful views of the canyons.

Day #4: Before checking out and heading home on our last day, Mike and Jonathan ran back to Arches National Park to hike up to the Delicate Arch. For them, this was the highlight of the trip!

Our Techie

Not to leave out Jonathan... Here he is at the cabin with his cousin Dubbie. They're concocting a blend of semi-creepy, semi-silly music (from his World of Warcraft game soundtrack) for their sisters' dancing presentation. (Not your typical ballet music, I agree... We work with what we have, right?)




The girls loved dancing to Jonathan's music...



This position (in front of the computer) is a familiar one. This summer, Jonathan has spent a lot of time on his computie, designing new pages for his website, doing all kinds of research on all kinds of topics, and, yes, entertaining his cousins.

p.s. Jonathan would like me to invite everyone to check out his website: http://grovecreekmill.com/jonathan

Mike visits Wisconsin!

Okay--I'm just trying to catch up on my blog, so this is a little out of order, but I HAVE to include this: In June, Mike was flown out to the Sub-Zero/Wolf headquarters in Madison, WI. He enjoyed a cool 2-day tour of their facilities, good training on the newest products, and AMAZING food in their kitchens. His favorite part of the trip, though, was a 4-hour tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's home, Taliesin!

The girls...

The very first babysitter we had here in PG, Jessica Francis, got married this week. She babysat Jonathan and Jen when they were just babies! Here's a picture of the girls (Jen and Jessie) at her wedding reception (this is at the Bungalow in Pleasant Grove).

Jer's Entrepreneurial Spirit

We've had a fun summer so far, filled with travels, swimming, and play. Some of my favorite adventures, though, have been the kids' spins on the traditional lemonade stands. To date, we've had gatorade sales, cookie sales, rock sales (inspired by the kids' cousin Haylie, who successfully sold $4.50 worth of rocks to her neighbors in St. George), chocolate milk sales, paper helicopter sales, and (my favorite) bug sales. Jer actually started the adventures in marketing research with his bug sale, and now the other kids have caught on, trying all manner of variations. Here's a picture of him on the first day. May I add that he was very successful, selling $1.50 worth of bugs!

Adventure Pics

I had trouble inserting photos in the last entry, so here are a few:

Niagara Falls:

Kirtland Temple:

Smith Family Log Home & The Sacred Grove:

Mike on the Hill Cumorah:

The Cabin at Completion: Wintertime at our Cabin:

Chicago (Robie House and Wright Home):

Our Adventures

Here's just a quick sampling of our adventures over the past year:

In August, Mike and I took a trip to upstate New York, Canada, and Ohio for our annual anniversary trip. We visited Buffalo, both sides of Niagra Falls, Kirtland, and Palmyra. We experienced the fun of Bed & Breakfasts for the first time, and we saw some amazing church historical sites. It was a wonderful trip!

In October, our cabin was completed. We spent quite a bit of October there, furnishing and decorating it. We had so much fun, because we got to play lots, too. We've discovered the joy of hiking and 4-wheeling as a family (as well as the joy of excusing our kids from school over and over again)!

Over the winter, we changed our focus from selling the cabin to managing it as a vacation rental. Because we've kept it, we've had many fun trips down there in the snow! (The snow is now very nearly gone...almost!) For pictures, take a peek at the link to the right...

April came, and Mike was invited to Chicago by Asko, the Swedish appliance manufacturer. He was a finalist in their annual kitchen design contest, so they flew us out for KBIS, the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show. They also treated us to a special party and tour at the Sears Tower and an amazing private dinner at the Ritz Carlton. While we were in Chicago, Mike and I rode the "L" and the busses all over town. We got to explore some cool territory and see some awesome architecture, but the highlight was a visit to a couple of Frank Lloyd Wright homes (the Robie House and Wright's own home and studio). They were incredible!

Well, there you have it. That's our year. Maybe I'll keep up a little better this year! Greetings to all!