Turning Coloradoan

This week I did the most Coloradoan thing I have done since moving here, I camped then hiked two Fourteeners. I didn’t know what a Fourteener was until I moved here and someone told me Colorado has 53. Fourteeners are mountains with peaks above the elevation of 14,000 feet. A group decided to camp on Friday and hike two peaks on Saturday, so I figured I might as well give it a shot.

We headed up to Beuno Vista on Friday after work. It took about two and a half hours to get there, so I was very grateful for the group that had gotten there early to help set up camp. I roasted a few s’mores chatted and enjoyed the company. We headed to bed early because we planned to be hiking at 3:30 on Saturday morning.

Sitting around the campfire before bedtime.

It took me forever to fall asleep, so I probably only got a couple hours of sleep. I was grateful for what I could get. Micaela had a headlamp she let me borrow, and we headed out to the trail by 3:45. Esto decided not to come, he was too tired from the Fourteener they did on Friday before those who had to work got there. The trail was steep and even at the beginning I could feel this was going to be a tough hike. We started with a lot of switch backs, taking short breaks, but trudging on. Anna and Music fell behind the rest of the crew early on. We found out later they continued, but altitude sickness crept in and they turned around. We probably started our hike around 10,000 feet, but most of the hike was above the tree line. The shadows protected us from the morning sun that we desperately needed to warm us. As we continued up the never ending switchbacks, the breaks increased. My lungs felt tight and my heart was beating very fast, despite how slow we were climbing. Wind increased as we got higher and without the sun my hands became numb so I put on gloves and my windbreaker. Even with these, when summiting I was still frozen! My teeth were chattering and legs shaking. We summited Mt. Belford around 7:30, then continued over to Mt. Oxford.  

This was towards the beginning of the hike, when we were able to stop using headlamps. Looking up at Mt. Missouri. 

This was almost to the top of Belford, but a great view of the mountain ranges.

Annie, Sarah, and I resting before our final ascent to Mt. Belford.

 

Again working our way to the top in the early morning. 

On top of Belford, 14,203 feet, look at the views in the background. 

Some of the groupies, we're missing Kevin and Kenny. They already headed to Oxford.

We dropped elevation rather quickly on the saddle, and thankfully it got much warmer! It was an additional mile and a half to Mt. Oxford. Summiting Mt. Oxford seemed a little easier, although I still had to take several breaks along the switchbacks. Mt. Oxford was warmer, you can see I didn't have my gloves on anymore. The wind was still roaring, but we enjoyed the views, ate some snacks, then headed back to Belford around 9. I was so confused by the time, I felt like we summited Oxford around 11, but it was still early morning and many other people were just starting to hike as we headed back.

On top of Oxford, 14,160 feet.

The entire group on Oxford.

Some of us being silly.

Jumping for joy on Oxford with Belford in the background.

The views, I just can't get enough!

Smiles hurt himself while hiking up, so he was limping the rest of the way back and using trek poles to help support. He went much slower than usual, so I stayed behind him and kept an eye on Annie who is a very cautious downhill hiker. Climbing back to Belford was very difficult, we paused often. We did see a marmot, which was really awesome! I had never heard of it before but it looks like a combination of a beaver and a squirrel…not as big as a beaver though. It lives in the rocks, and it really liked staring at us. We summited Belford, ate some more food, and continued down the mountain. I moderated between Smiles, Annie, and Sarah…making sure they were all good to go. We determined it was best to get down the mountain and too the tree line for shade before waiting for Annie. She made it down safely and we continued on. We enjoyed taking pictures of a mountain goat, a really ugly one trying to shed its winter coat. We crossed a beautiful creek and enjoyed chatting our way down the mountain. We met up with the rest of the crew around 3 that afternoon at the trailhead. Almost 12 hours hiking, 33,500 steps, and 12 miles.

This is the saddle heading back to Belford. 

The shedding mountain goat, I tried to get a selfie but I haven't mastered that skill yet.

The pretty creek we passed.

What a great feeling it was to successfully summit those two mountains, and to do one twice! It is still a little hard to believe we made it! Above tree line, there were many beautiful flowers. I was impressed with the vegetation that could grow so high and add so much beauty. When I was up so high on a mountain, looking at the tops of other mountains below and all around, I realized how small I am. Nature is beautiful, with so much order and beauty. I was grateful I could be outside enjoying it! I am so grateful the Savior took time to create such a glorious place for us to live. 

I talked a little bit with Smiley about the metaphors that can be drawn from hiking. Many times as we hiked up, it was helpful to see the peak at the top and know it was our goal. Other times, we had to focus on the road straight in front of us in order to not be discouraged. In life, sometimes we are blessed to look into our future and see the blessings the Lord has in store by reading our patriarchal blessing. But, those magnificent promises can sometimes be a bit discouraging if we don’t feel like we are good enough or have self-doubts…this is when we must focus on the road right in front of us and take it at our own pace. Slowing down allows us to have the energy we need to continue to the summit and keep moving one switchback at a time. The road is often not easy, but when you are on the right path it will always be worth it in the end and you receive many blessings along the way.

Needless to say, we ate food, headed home, showered, and went to bed. We were exhausted! I am so grateful for the good group I was able to hike with and the friendships that grew.

Until next week.

-the tall girl

Happy 4th of July!!!

I needed a week to recover from my vacation, I was exhausted on Monday, even took a nap in my car to try to get ahead of the game. We played waterballoon volleyball, real volleyball, and Frisbee for FHE. The weather was perfect, and we had a lot of fun. Tuesday was another night of Frisbee…I was exhausted at the end of this one. I was driving to play when a hail storm started. While sitting at a stop light, I hear a thump on my windshield and a big scratch. I was terrified, I thought I’d been struck! After calming down, I realized my windshield wiper had come off! Of course, the light turned green so I turned and pulled off as soon as I could. I got pretty wet just from getting out of the car and fixing it, but continued the journey. Luckily, I haven’t had much of an issue since. We played after the rain calmed down. It was great to be outside!

Wednesday I was able to do a short sealing session with my roommates. Anna had some family names, so we went and it was a neat experience. We finished earlier than I expected, so did some intiatories as well. I was grateful to spend the evening in the temple.

Thursday we played volleyball after institute. Most of the time, it was my team of four verse the other team of six. I am not sure why we didn’t even it out, but my team did do well and we ended up winning.

I was grateful for my off-Friday and enjoyed sleeping in a bit. I played volleyball with Ray Ray, which was fun. I haven’t played tennis in a long time! He was insistent we play a match, so after warm up I reminded him of how to keep score and we played. I won 6-1, 6-2. He made me work for the wins, he was good at hitting it away from me. We had perfect weather and I am so glad we were outside enjoying it! I came home, cooked some crockpot zucchini lasagna and finished out the day reading a book. Our ward did baptisms at the temple that night, followed by ice cream at Bishop’s house. Ray Ray stopped Anna and I as we were leaving to see what we were up to…at this point it was 9:15 and we informed him we were going to bed. He wanted to watch Zootopia, so he went to the store, bought it, and brought it back to our apartment. He also bought us pizza because he felt bad for making us stay up late to watch it…unfortunately, both of us don’t eat gluten. That made the situation even funnier. The movie was actually pretty good, and I enjoyed having a relaxing evening.

Before cooking

After cooking

Saturday was filled with spring cleaning and reading. I loved it, I took time to clean then read then clean. When Anna got home from the temple we went on a small hike and then to the Columbine Memorial. I was reminded of the great blessing of life and how fragile it is. The memorial was amazing and I was impressed with the stories shared, most of the kids seemed to be somewhat prepared because of their faith. One scripture mentioned on a note about a student was 1 John 4:4, which reminded me of the divine nature we each have. Our spirit is divine and our spiritual DNA is perfect. If we allow Heavenly Father to help us, we can be lifted and become more than anything the world could ever try to make. We must trust and put our faith in Him.

Anna with some cool rocks.

Neat rock formations everywhere! 

Me and Anna

We did a little climbing.

Great view! 

Each student and the teacher killed had one of these. 

A little dark, but hopefully you can see the beautiful memorial.

July 4th is one of my favorite holidays! It's the only one during the summer and it always brings out the fun in people. I enjoyed an early hike with Anna's family at Lair o' the Bear. Towards the end, we got to play in the creek, which was so fun! Having Chacos was very beneficial. It's the first time I have really been able to use them in the water. We also got to climb trees, here's Anna in the big one. That afternoon, I went swimming with Caroline and enjoyed catching up on life with her. She's such a sweet lady. I went grocery shopping, baked some cookies and then it was time for the BBQ. A family in the ward hosted at their house, I provided cookies and everyone else provided the rest. SO YUMMY! I loved it, and it was so fun to eat outside and get to know some new people. We set off bottle rockets from the porch, later moving to the front yard. We never knew if the rockets were duds or not...for example, Zach lit one and it swirled around and flew right into the middle of us on the porch. We all scattered! Yikes!!! It popped and we moved back to our positions. Later, in the front yard, Zach's dad was lighting them and then throwing them to explode. He pretended to light one and tossed it in the tree that was right above all of us. We all ducked and ran our separate was squealing. He was dying with laughter, and we joined the giggles when we realized it was a prank. After we finished up there, we headed to the park to watch fireworks. We were surrounded by neighborhoods and people were shooting off the big ones everywhere! I didn't know where to look, there were so many happening. Finally, the real show started, which was also very good and impressive. When it finished, we determined it was time we all headed back to real life...It was a wonderful holiday and great to spend close to home and with friends. 

This little boy loved the water just like I did.

Chacos...

A beautiful wild flower.

Anna in the climbing tree.

Doing sparklers

Zach lighting a bottle rocket.

The crew at the park.

Some of the fireworks before the real show started.

Another great week in the books, and I am excited for the week ahead.

Peace out.

-the tall girl 

Family Reunion Time - June 23-26

I love Virginia, Idaho. It’s a place I feel like will always seem like home. Since moving to Colorado, I haven’t been…almost a year. I went frequently last summer, visiting Grandpa on the weekends and occasionally showing up without any notice. I always felt welcomed and enjoyed feeling the Spirit in his home. I cannot go without feeling a deep sense of longing from Grandma, I miss her daily. But, going to Virginia brings me a little closer to her and reminds of the wonderful times I shared with her there. We weren’t supposed to have the reunion in Virginia, but what a blessing it was to be there! I was so excited to go!

I drove to the airport on Wednesday night, parked, then shuttled in. I was teased for bringing a sleeping bag. The other person the shuttle worked for the same company, and asked if I was planning to sleep on my flight. Little did he know, I was just going to be picked up at the airport…not fly. Katey arrived about the same time I did, and we headed home. I enjoyed having some one on one sister time and we headed to be shortly after we got to her house.

Thursday I woke up early and started working, I needed to get some hours in before we took off on the journey. Jason and I were going to ride bikes to the library to work, when I noticed the van had a flat tire. I went back inside to continue working while Jason put on the spare and took it into the shop. When he got it all fixed, we headed out on our bikes. I have never biked to work before, it was a fun experience! I was grateful there was hardly any traffic. We worked our half day, headed home, packed up, and hit the road. I didn’t last too long before I was sleeping along with the girls. We were pretty hungry by the time we stopped for dinner, and it was my first time eating at Wendy’s gluten free. The best option I chose was fries, topped with a bacon cheese burger. The fries were the bun, and it was yummy! One hour after dinner, we arrived at the hotel! Kylee and Tia were so excited! They wanted to go swimming…so, we went down and “touched” the water before we sent everyone to bed. Tia had lots of fun stepping in and out of the water, and sticking her bum in it. Sleeping in a hotel room with two youngsters was an experience. It took them a while to fall asleep because one was always bugging the other, but eventually they crashed and so did the rest of us.

I was grateful he had a bike lock! 

And we were off like a dirty shirt!

Wendy's has figured it out! Families are forever.

Kylee enjoying the pool.

Friday we had a delicious breakfast then went swimming in the pool. The water was a bit chilly, but so relaxing. I loved it! We finally decided it was time to go, showered, and hit the road once again. It was about a two and a half hour drive, so we all got a little nap in before we stopped at baby Derek’s grave. The headstone had been placed a while ago, but we’ve only seen pictures. It turned out perfectly. We put up the windmills and they spun happily, just as happily I am sure Derek would be if he were here with us. I am excited to meet him someday and I was grateful we were able to visit his grave. We headed to the Brady Plant Ranch from there, where we got some yummy burgers and food. All the family was gathering outside, and how great it was to see everyone! You sometimes don’t realize how much you miss them until you see them again. We enjoyed chit-chatting and catching up on the lives of everyone.

Placing the pinwheels on Derek's grave.

Tia was LOVING the wind!

Soon, we headed to Grandpa’s to pitch tents and get the party started. We began with a rousing game of Eenie Aye Over. We had so many people playing, many of the younger kids had never played before, thank goodness we passed on the tradition. We are all a lot stronger and better at catching now, so it was difficult for either team to win. Eventually we called it game and switched to Red Light Green Light. We had a Winnie roast at the church, which was absolutely delicious! The wind started picking up, so we moved the party inside. We played minute-to-win it games and sang songs for Grandpa. We also learned some family history about my great grandparents. They leave an amazing heritage and I hope I can do the same for my family. The night wrapped up with all the kids coming back to Grandpa’s for night games. We played kick the can, then Ollie Ollie Oxen Free, followed by a quick game of No Bears Out Tonight. When playing with so many children, we had to come up with some new rules and be a little stricter. It was a difficult! I think we typically only played with 8 to 10 people, tops…usually more like 6 so it was a different story with the ages ranging from 5 to 31. We had a blast and enjoyed teaching the youngsters again the games I treasure from my childhood at Grandpa’s.

We sang songs to Grandpa for his birthday and Father's Day. Here he is with little baby Clara.

Everyone getting ready to throw cheetos at my head.

Good effort team, I think we got 9 to stick.

Saturday morning came early, but awaking to a delightful dutchoven breakfast and your loving family makes everything better. We started out the morning with our yearly talent show. Spencer juggled, Chris and his boys tumbled and did handstands, Stephen and Kaymi did a duet, Lisa and Nathan did a rhythm/drum show, Kylee sang Praise to the Man, Josh and Berlin did a fancy ABC song, Trevor showed off his legos, Jack and I sang The Miracle, Mom and Aunt Shara did a piano duet, Michelle sang, Mikey told jokes, Randy played the sax, Grandpa sang an old campfire song, Alexa played the piano, Kara made caramels, Seth read poetry, and Mom raffled off two of her quilts. All in all, I was very impressed with my family’s diverse skills! 

Spencer juggling.

Kylee singing.

Tia singing her song.

Alexa on the piano.

Seth is a poet, and we didn't even know it!

Chris and Weston doing drop kicks.

Colton tumbling over Trevor and Tucker.

The ABC's.

Aunt Gaylynn and Lisa doing a cool hand clap trick.

Kaymi and Steven dueting.

Michelle singing like an angel!

Mikey telling funny jokes.

The lego man.

Mom and Aunt Shara dueting.

Randy on the sax.

The Brady boys doing their head stands.

We played a rousing game of kickball, which turned out great because it allowed everyone to play. Katey and Jason made a great game of Wits and Wagers for us before we had lunch. They sent out surveys prior to the reunion asking all sorts of questions. Using the data, they crafted some fun questions. My team rocked it, we only lost by 2 points, it was a close call. Playing games like this reminds me of how competitive my family can be, which makes me laugh because I realize I inherited a lot of that competitiveness. Lunch was great, and I got to have some one on one time chatting with Kara. We played volleyball and basketball, had some concluding remarks from Grandpa and everything wrapped up. We continued some of the pleasure at Grandpa’s house with taking down tents and eating Casco bars on the carport.

The teams spread throughout the gym making guesses.

My team nailed it...Randy, Dad, Matthew, Kylee, and me.

A new adorable hooded towel from Oma.

Can't you see how please they are!

Grandpa was trying to clean out his house, one of the treasures was this hat from Russia. 

Sunday came and went by far too quickly. I was saddened to leave Virginia, more than I have been in a long time. I think most of my sadness came from not knowing when I would be coming back. Often, I usually have my next trip planned by the time I say goodbye, but not this time. I hope it is sooner than later because I know my moments with Grandpa and the memories I continue to make in his home are precious and without price. I was grateful when he told me I was a working girl and could just fly over anytime, he even said he’d pick me up from the airport. If you know Grandpa at all, that’s a big sacrifice for him. He hates driving there!

The view we all love and treasure. 

Reflecting on that wonderful weekend, I feel so blessed. Mom has three siblings, two have five children and one has four…totally 14 amazing cousins, and my four siblings. Each member of our family is active in the church, all the men have served honorable full-time missions, my only two girls cousins also served, each cousin has chosen to be married and sealed in the House of the Lord, and I have hope the remaining 3 boys will serve and the single cousins will all be blessed with temple marriages. A great heritage and high standard is set for my life and for the life of my children. We are so blessed, and I am humbled to be part of a family. It helps me realize the true purpose we come to earth, to learn to love and to serve…to be together forever as part of Heavenly Father’s family.