Still more

More camping pictures

Mirror Quote

The quote on the pantry mirror reads, "Life is to be Enjoyed, not just Endured" --Gordon B. Hinckley. The full quote comes from the conclusion of a 1996 talk , "Stand True and Faithful" in a General Young Women meeting. After discussing the challenges of life and the need to repent and be better, he concludes, “And finally, in all of living have much of fun and laughter. Life is to be enjoyed, not just endured.” (Ensign May 1996, p.91)

We love the way the mirror fits, and matches, and I like the quote. The mirror was a Christmas gift from Becky's sister, Elizabeth Merrell, that she found used, before she knew we had been remodelling.

Camping for Spring Break

This week we spent camping Monday through Friday nights--Monday in Capitol Reef National Park, Tuesday at Goblin Valley State Park, and Wednesday through Friday night at the Jaycee Park campground just a few miles from the entrance of Arches National Park.  We hiked a total of more than 20 miles, saw some amazing scenery, and had some fun adventures.

A couple of friends joined us for Goblin Valley and Little Wild Horse Canyon, and Nathan, Molly, and Bob came for a couple of days and some great food at Arches.

I loved being completely out of cell phone and e-mail range for almost the entire trip, not using a watch or worrying about appointments, and just spending good time with the kids.  They had a blast climbing rocks and exploring, and were good helpers with the camp setup and fire-building.  Becky was  a trooper and did an impressive job planning and bringing enough food for the entire week.

I wish you could see all 400 of the pictures we took, but I'll have to just include a small sampling here.  

New Pantry-After photos

Here are a few photos of our pantry.  It's still not 100 percent finished-still need to do the grout in between the tiles, and perhaps hang a closet door--but we're enjoying using it, along with the remodeled bathroom with light switches where you'd expect them.

Kitchen remodel

At long last and after much shopping for the best possible deal, we finally replaced our counter tops.  Here are the photos of the job.  We've really enjoyed it.

There were five in a bed . . .

And the little one said, "Roll over. . . " And one fell off. . .

Often in the morning, we have Alaina and Timothy in bed with us by the time we wake up. Sometimes, like this morning, Wesley joins in, and we find creative ways to squeeze everyone in before Mom and Dad are actually ready to get up.

If you could see how cute they are when they want to snuggle, you'd know why we can't resist! Here's a photo after Becky and I got up and they squirmed around a bit.