Loafer Mountain Hike

Reuben just loves Cub scouts and especially the day camp. Well, this year there was a scheduling mix up and he didn't get to go. I told him that instead of going to day camp, why don't we talk to Grandpa and see if he and a couple uncles want to go backpacking while we are in Utah. He got extremely excited about it. What turned out even cooler was the fact that Grandpa got on the phone with all of my brothers, turning it into a spontaneous family reunion. Jason and his family drove in from Texas, which was a real treat. Mark, and his family, are now living in Utah Valley, after being in New Zealand for 4+ years. So after 5 years we were all, once again, reunited. It made for an exciting week.
For the hike we decided it would be fun to hike the Loafer Mtn Trail, just like when we were kids. Unfortunately, Daniel decided to develop a medical condition which necessitated a shoulder surgery. He was unable to attend our overnight excursion, doctors orders.

Here are a multitude of pictures from the hike.

Reuben with his cousin Jonah, with Aunt Sherrie in the back. These three lead the pack the entire day. They did awesome. We all remembered the hike to be about 4 miles to the top of the mountain. It was, however, 7 miles. Ooops!

The views, all of the way up, were simply spectacular. This is Reuben, of course, with Mt. Nebo in the distance just off his left shoulder.

Grandpa and Reuben.

Objective one: Reach the saddle on the ridge (Grandpa is pointing to the saddle). Uggh! It was a climb straight up the mountain side. NO SWITCHBACKS.

Reuben, Mark, and Aunt Sherrie in one of the many mini breaks working our way up to the saddle.

Jason, Matt, and Devin bringing up the rear. It looks like they will just fall off the world. Still working our way to the saddle.

Yip still working toward the saddle. This push for the saddle is a whole lot longer than I remembered.

There were dozens of wildflower varieties in full bloom. It was gorgeous. This is one of the 2 short switch backs heading to the saddle.

Objective one: complete. Grandpa and his sister, Aunt Sherrie, posing in the saddle. Aunt Sherrie is trying to demonstrate her age, 60. She doesn't realize it is backwards to us. We won't confuse her. Grandpa turned 61 on the second day of the hike.

Objective 2: Reach the camp location. A saddle behind the top of the mountain. Reuben is pointing to the top in this picture. The saddle for camp is in the "V" right over his right shoulder.

Mark and his son, Jonah.

Reuben and Jonah. We took a long "packs off" break in the first saddle on the ridge.

The whole gang (minus one brother: Daniel).

Now we make a push for camp destination. We have to work our way along the ridge toward the top of the mountain.

This is where we say good-bye to Aunt Sherrie. It was great to have her along for the first part.

At this point we were starting to run dangerously low on water. There are frequently glaciers on the back side of the mountain and even the north side of the ridge. We, however had not seen any sign of snow to this point. We starting getting nervous that there may not be any. Luckily about 300 meters from the camp site we found a glacier which we were able to get some water from.

Jason.

Devin.

Uncle Matt brought a sling shot, which Jonah and Reuben just loved and shot every tree in site from the camp area.

Unfortunately this picture doesn't do this sight justice. We camped in a saddle just behind the top of the mountain. We had the most amazing view of the valley and other wilderness areas to the north. It was breathtaking, literally. The height of this saddle is approx. 10,000 feet above sea level.

Another view of our camp.

Mark and Jonah.

The overnight gang.

The top. This is, unfortunately, the closest we were able to get to the top. We had run out of time.

Going back down. Reuben and Jonah lead the charge.

Sego Lily: the Utah state flower. Just about the only place you can find it is in higher elevations. (Sorry for the blurry picture)

Today's Objective: get to the cars. Here Reuben points to where the cars are.

About an hour from reaching the cars, Aunt Sherrie met us with a gallon of orange juice. She said she ran out of water on her back the day before, and said all she could think about was how great it would be to have some orange juice. We all appreciated her thoughtfulness.
This was a very memorable trip which I will not soon forget. We had such a good time with my brothers, dad, aunt, and cousin. Not to mention the time Reuben and I got to spend together was priceless. I think Reuben is hooked on hiking, and I love it!! I have to give Reuben huge props. He carried his own pack with sleeping bag, water, clothes, ground cover the entire time without a single complaint. I'm so very proud of him.

Pinewood Derby

Reuben was so excited to participate in his first Pinewood Derby! He had fun working on his car with Ryan. They didn't get to spend as much time on it as they hoped since Ryan has been working more hours than any sane person should. But Reuben was happy with how his car turned out and is already planning his for next year.

We're Here

I haven't known what to post about... It is snowy and we've tried to stay home as much as possible. But here are a couple of photos to let you know we are still here :)

Lincoln found a great hiding spot when I took the contents that were in the cabinet out.

Reuben had to make a mask for a book report at school. He read star wars the clone wars, so here he is as Anakin.

Glasses

At the kids' school they did a vision test this year. Reuben was sent home with a letter that he might need glasses. So I made an appointment and sure enough he does need glasses. His prescription isn't super high but it definitely helps him. He also has a stigmatism in his right eye. We were able to get in on the buy one get one free at the glasses store. Here he is sporting his new look. The girls are a little envious, but being really good sports about it. I totally remember when I was younger and wished that I could get glasses and braces. I ended up needing both, and then they weren't as cool. Hopefully Reuben continues to love them because I think they are super cute!

My Boys

The last two weeks Ryan has worked A LOT which is really an understatement. One night last week I was getting ready to hop in bed after midnight, Ryan was back at the hospital because he had been paged, when I heard Reuben crying. I went in to see what was the matter, his legs were hurting him so bad. He said he couldn't even straighten them. Reuben couldn't come down his top bunk because he was in so much pain. So I carried him into my bed and told him that he was growing and that even though it hurt a lot it would go away. So I rubbed his legs till he fell asleep. In the morning Reuben hopped out of bed excited and announced that he definitely felt taller! He even wanted me to measure him because he was convinced he had grown. I had to smile! That night we went over to our good friends' house for dinner and Jackie asked Reuben if he had grown taller. He was so excited she had noticed and of course said YES!

The night that Reuben had the leg pain I had had a girl scout leaders meeting which I brought the kids to, because Ryan was still at work. The meeting lasted longer than normal and Ryan ended up coming home and getting the kids. Then he put them in bed while I was still at the meeting. The next morning I was excited with Reuben that he had grown taller :) and then Lincoln woke up... When I went to get him out of his crib I saw that he had gone to bed with gum in his mouth the night before! I just had to keep smiling because my poor husband has been SO tired and didn't even notice that Lincoln had had the gum in his mouth. Luckily the gum was all over his hands, chin, neck and shirt. But not in his hair or sheets! What a blessing! I just couldn't stop smiling about what an eventful morning it had been and it wasn't even 8 am yet!

(This picture is from a different day but you still can see Lincoln's mischievous side)

School Halloween Parade

On Friday the Elementary put on a parade around the streets surrounding the school. I love this yearly tradition to see all of the cute kids so excited and dressed up in their costumes.

When Eve woke up that morning she could hardly contain her excitement for the parade. She was convinced that she was going to be able to ride in a truck and wave to everyone and throw candy. (She has watched Kaitlyn and Reuben in our town's Memorial Day Parade for a couple of years and thought that this parade was the Memorial Day one.) It was pretty cute.

Eve wanted to be Ariel this year. I totally lucked out and found this costume at our local grocery store for $3.99! (I love a good deal!!) Reuben had a hard time making up his mind this year. He ended up being four different things, one costume for each party/event we went to. Luckily he used stuff we had at home because this had potential of getting pretty expensive. So, at school he dressed up as a spy (suit coat and Ryan's fedora). Reuben did such a good job blending in that I didn't get a good picture of him during the parade. This is the best I was able to get.

My Boys

I love my boys (and girls, of course)! When I came back in the house after taking Kaitlyn to the bus stop I found these two cute boys laying on the couch watching a show. Reuben had gotten Lincoln out of his crib for him.

First Day of School

School started this week at our house! One of the kids asked me if it was still summer even though they are going to school now. It is kinda confusing with the beautiful weather we've been having here. Growing up we always started school on the day after Labor Day and for some reason it felt like fall. Not in August though,it is definitely summer time still.

This year we have three kids going to school! It seems crazy that they are old enough to start.

Yes, my little Evie is in kindergarten now!!!! For some reason it just seems like she really is too little to be going to school all day now. It is so hard for Ryan and I to see these kids grow up!

Big brothers are the best! Eve asked Reuben to help her up the "Big Steps".

I didn't get to take a picture of this one... but Kaitlyn is in Middle School this year!! Am I really old enough to have a kid in middle school? Kates seems to be loving it. Some of her highlights are decorating her locker and switching classes.

Cub Scout Day Camp

This was Reuben's first year at day camp for cub scouts. He loved it! Being the youngest of three, I never had a sibling in cub scouts and never knew about all the fun stuff that cub scouts included. Reuben had so much fun with shooting BB guns and doing archery. Every day when I picked him up he would pull out his target to show me all of his awesome shots he made. He even received a patch for shooting his BB gun so well! He also had fun panning for gold, making crafts and lots of other things. It was a great experience and I think he is already looking forward to next year!

On the last day of camp there was a picnic for the scouts families to attend. Each den did a skit for everyone. Here are some pictures of Reuben's.

Reuben Gets Baptized

I can't believe Reuben is 8 already. It seems just yesterday he was riding his blue scooter at Wymount at full speed down the hills, bouncing of trees and rolling down the grass. While he still loves to do these things he is much bigger, faster and bold about it. He has an infectious smile which we all absolutely love. He is known in school for his playful attitude and wit.

Last week we had an incredibly fun and busy week. With all Grandparents in town and even Uncle Matt, we had Reuben's baptism.
The announcement picture was taken in front of the Kirtland Temple door.

This picture was used in his program. We took this picture in the School of the Prophets, within the Whitney store in Kirtland. Reuben was pretty excited that he sat on a stool that just recently President Monson sat in when visiting Kirtland.

I think these pictures of the baptism speak for themselves:





It was such a neat experience. I'm sure Reuben will always remember his baptism. He is very proud of the fact that he got baptized in roughly the same area, and the same way that some of the old saints were in the beginning of the church. We are so very proud of Reuben and his decision to be baptized.