*This entry is going to be a bit different than the others. I am going to type up all the fun things from today then in the next blog post put all the pictures...much easier that way. I struggle with Blogger and getting pictures how I want them, easier to just put them in a separate post!
Today has been an amazing and EXHAUSTING day! I honestly didn't know that Twin Lakes was as much of a hike as it was.
I am seriously second guessing my love and desire to hike Lake Blanche for an over-nighter. They say Twin Lakes is easy on the hiking scale?!?!?
I think I would have to disagree! My body is more sore and achy than it was when we hiked Lake Mary, Martha and Catherine!
We started off this morning early. I was up at 7:15. I finally got Ben to tumble out of bed at 7:30. He started getting water filled in all the backpacks while I took on the task of getting girls up and running.
The girls did not like the early wake-up call. This summer they have been spoiled to sleep in. Lyse is awake usually no later than 7:45 but Katy...well she has slept until 10 on some days! Since she was up at 6:30 watching the sunrise yesterday (sweet story...she came and woke me up so that I wouldn't miss it either...than thanked ME for coming and seeing it. Such an AMAZING girl) I knew she was tired.
Once we had the girls ready, bags packed and breakfast ate, we met my parents out on 700 west and headed up Big Cottonwood Canyon. It was a beautiful ride and the ground squirrels were EVERY where. We thought for sure we hit some but my dad and mom (they were in the car behind us) told us that the squirrels just went to the middle of the car and ran as soon as the car passed over them. Pretty smart little critters!
We got to the Silver Lake and took the small walk to the trailhead. Now I had not previously read the Twin Lake Trailhead information and I didn't stop this time to read it either.
As we started up, the incline starts right away. After a bit I thought, "This can't be inclined that much longer". See I didn't know that in the short distance to Twin Lakes I would be hiking up 1000 feet in elevation. Lake Mary, Martha and Catherine was only like 1200 over 2 miles.
My parents were hiking with us and I started to worry about my dad. Seriously, I was needing rests and him with his heart - it had me concerned. It was nice stopping and resting and really taking in nature several times. The beauty up there is absolutely beautiful!!! Lyse did start to tell US that we needed to get going, she wanted to find the moose!
While hiking we did see SEVERAL moose and deer prints. At one point we saw moose prints and then we saw Mountain Lion prints and then we saw moose prints that were deeper and well...you could see the moose was RUNNING. It was interesting to be able to see and be able to envision what had taken place.
There were several places along the way that the Indian Paintbrush, Wild Roses, Blue Bells and other wild flowers were so plentiful it just took your breath away. I had wished a couple times we had the canon because the beauty was outstanding. When we would walk in the first meadow, Ben would quote Bambi about being careful in the meadow, that is where the hunters are. For the rest of the day, any meadow we walked in, there would be comments about the hunters getting us!
When we got to the Lake, the girls had a blast! This lake had a sandy beach with scattered boulders...perfect for some sitting and enjoying the beauties. We had some snacks and the wind rustled amazing. Seriously, it was amazing!
Katy found a piece of wood and turned it into a boat. She made a mast and held the mast up with mud. Katy got it ready and "sent it out to sea" in her words. It was marvelous! I was very impressed with how good of a job she did in making it into a boat.
Lyse found a piece of wood and called it her "fish". She threw it back in and found another one that was a tent. She made it the home for the ground squirrels. She filled it with nuts and raisins and then watched with joy as the squirrels visited the house and ate some food.
Grandma was feeding squirrels and they were coming up right behind her on the boulder. It was fun to watch them get so close to her.
The girls took off their shoes and enjoyed some wading in the water and then we started the descent back down. Instead of coming up the way we went down, we actually went down the maintenance road. It was fun seeing different scenery.
When we got to the bottom, we heard the bag pipes. A lady was practicing and it was fun to watch her play some and get a pictures with her and the girls. She was up there for a wedding for the day. That was a different experience!
Seriously that hike was AMAZING and it was a LOT harder than expected. Grandma, Grandpa, Lyse and Katy were troopers! I was amazed that for the first time Lyse did not whine at the first of the hike at all. Usually she whines the first 5 minutes or so and we threaten a couple times to turn around. I think having Grandma and Grandpa this time totally changed that for her so it was GREAT! It was a fun, happy hike!
After we finished the super fun hike with Grandpa and Grandma (aka my mom and dad), we headed towards Donut Falls and Jen Mabey's family cabin. Play group was there and we were late but luckily we got there in time for LOTS of fun still! They had a fun zip line and we all had a blast going down it at least 1 time! Katy was the only one in our family that rode it a couple times.
After an hour of fun filled play group entertainment, we headed to home. I was EXHAUSTED...I think we all were. I took a 2 1/2 hour nap. Ben napped for about 1 1/2 hours and the girls watched a movie - they had no interest in napping. When I got up it was almost 7:00 pm. I made some hamburgers and BBQ'd some hamburgers and zucchini - YUMMY! It was the perfect food and perfect end to a wonderful family and friend filled day!
Tomorrow is Katy's birthday party. Sure to be lots of adventures and fun with that!
Showing posts with label hobbies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hobbies. Show all posts
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Our Hikes Part 2
4th Hike of the Season
This was the biggest hike we have hiked to this point. We did it this last Saturday, July 10. It was fun and different because we hiked it with some friends, The Staker Family. It was a TON of fun!The hike we did was once again near Silver Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon...it was the Lake Mary, Martha and Catherin hike!
This hike was amazing. We started out the morning cleaning the church building then driving up the canyon and meeting the Stakers in the Brighton Ski Resort parking lot. This hike goes up under ski lifts for the first bit. You climb and change elevation over 1100 feetwhile doing this hike and it is WELL worth it! ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! I would have to say it was probably my favorite so far out of all the hikes.
Lyse struggled up the first bit of the mountain but once she knew we needed her to translate the birds she was much better. I wish I had the ability to put in words the awe, amazement and
wonder that is beheld going up to and at Lake Mary, Martha and Catherine. Serenity would be one good word but even that isn't enough.
We hiked through fields with flowers and trails still covered in snow. There was mud and streamlets crossing our path. Everything perfect for an outdoor adventure hike. Seriously, I LOVED it!
After hiking to Lake Catherine, we skipped some rocks than sat down near the lake and ate a fun picnic lunch. An ant crawled in Katy's pants and started to bite her so we then spent a few minutes locating and fixing our little ant problem. The entire time I kept saying, "Katy has ants in her pants and it is making her do the boogie dance"...she did NOT appreciate that one. Probably wasn't being the nicest mom but was trying to make her laugh and smile instead of cry.
There was a hill covered in snow that on the way up Ben had promised Lyse he would take her sledding down when we walked back. There was actually a LOT of hills covered in snow but when we reached that one, Ben fulfilled his promised. Katy at first didn't have the desire to go but once she saw Ben and Lyse up there she decided to join them. It did look like a LOT of fun. The blanket they rode down on even survived the sledding trip. Lyse and Katy want to hike there again just so they can go sledding again in July!
The hike down seemed to go so quickly. We did stop at Lake Mary long enough for the kids to throw in some rocks and then we did the "500 feet" detour to Dogg Lake - should say Dogg Swamp.
The hike took us about 4 1/2 hours, it was about 4 miles and as I said earlier you change elevation of over 1100 feet (a lot of it during the first bit). It was an AMAZING hike and a great day with great friends.
This hike you can backpack in and spend the night and you can also hike up to Albion basin and hike over into Little Cottonwood Canyon. To do that would be another mile or so. We are planning on doing that this year as well!
Tonight we did go up Little Cottonwood Canyon to see some Mountain Goats. We didn't see goats but we did however see a bull, cow and calf moose family all together! Now that was an amazing site and something that you don't see every day!!!! No real hiking occurred but we did walk the Quarry Trail at the base of the mountain.
So that is our Journeys up the mountains thus far. I am hoping we can add at least this many more gorgeous hiking trips before the summer is over!
This was the biggest hike we have hiked to this point. We did it this last Saturday, July 10. It was fun and different because we hiked it with some friends, The Staker Family. It was a TON of fun!The hike we did was once again near Silver Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon...it was the Lake Mary, Martha and Catherin hike!
This hike was amazing. We started out the morning cleaning the church building then driving up the canyon and meeting the Stakers in the Brighton Ski Resort parking lot. This hike goes up under ski lifts for the first bit. You climb and change elevation over 1100 feetwhile doing this hike and it is WELL worth it! ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! I would have to say it was probably my favorite so far out of all the hikes.
Lyse struggled up the first bit of the mountain but once she knew we needed her to translate the birds she was much better. I wish I had the ability to put in words the awe, amazement and
wonder that is beheld going up to and at Lake Mary, Martha and Catherine. Serenity would be one good word but even that isn't enough.
We hiked through fields with flowers and trails still covered in snow. There was mud and streamlets crossing our path. Everything perfect for an outdoor adventure hike. Seriously, I LOVED it!
After hiking to Lake Catherine, we skipped some rocks than sat down near the lake and ate a fun picnic lunch. An ant crawled in Katy's pants and started to bite her so we then spent a few minutes locating and fixing our little ant problem. The entire time I kept saying, "Katy has ants in her pants and it is making her do the boogie dance"...she did NOT appreciate that one. Probably wasn't being the nicest mom but was trying to make her laugh and smile instead of cry.
There was a hill covered in snow that on the way up Ben had promised Lyse he would take her sledding down when we walked back. There was actually a LOT of hills covered in snow but when we reached that one, Ben fulfilled his promised. Katy at first didn't have the desire to go but once she saw Ben and Lyse up there she decided to join them. It did look like a LOT of fun. The blanket they rode down on even survived the sledding trip. Lyse and Katy want to hike there again just so they can go sledding again in July!
The hike down seemed to go so quickly. We did stop at Lake Mary long enough for the kids to throw in some rocks and then we did the "500 feet" detour to Dogg Lake - should say Dogg Swamp.
The hike took us about 4 1/2 hours, it was about 4 miles and as I said earlier you change elevation of over 1100 feet (a lot of it during the first bit). It was an AMAZING hike and a great day with great friends.
This hike you can backpack in and spend the night and you can also hike up to Albion basin and hike over into Little Cottonwood Canyon. To do that would be another mile or so. We are planning on doing that this year as well!
Tonight we did go up Little Cottonwood Canyon to see some Mountain Goats. We didn't see goats but we did however see a bull, cow and calf moose family all together! Now that was an amazing site and something that you don't see every day!!!! No real hiking occurred but we did walk the Quarry Trail at the base of the mountain.
So that is our Journeys up the mountains thus far. I am hoping we can add at least this many more gorgeous hiking trips before the summer is over!
Our Hikes Part 1
I decided that I needed to write specifically about the fun hikes our family has went on and enjoyed recently.
1st Hike of the Season
We started out with Donut Falls in June. I can't remember if it was the 19th or 26th of June (I am leaning towards the 19th). We had to wait that long cause June was just soooo cold and wet in the beginning.
Donut falls was a blast. The kids loved it.
We loved it. As we were driving up, we saw a moose and her calf in the swamps off the side of the road. We pulled over and took some pictures. It was so fun and amazing to experience wildlife like that only 20 minutes from our home.
The hike to donut falls is not really a hike...it is a nice little saunter through the woods. The girls
The hike took us about 2 hours but most of that was playing in the water. The overall length was about 1.5 miles round trip.
2nd Hike of the Season
This hike was to Ensign Peak. We went on June 30. We decided to go up right before the sun set so we could watch the sunset from the peak. That was such a GREAT idea. It was VERY VERY windy but it was also warm so the wind was welcomed.
Although the hike to Ensign Peak is not long...the incline felt soooo steep! The round trip hike is only about 0.85 miles so it isn't far up...you just feel it in your legs!
Katy and Lyse both loved taking some pictures. It was so fun being up on top of the peak, watching the sunset as a family. We talked to the girls a little about what Ensign Peak was and why it was so important.
Personally, I enjoyed being able to kiss my sweetheart as we watched the sunset...something we don't do often enough.
It was beautiful and we THOROUGHLY enjoyed the family time!
On the way back down, Lyse was on the look out for bear and deer. She was hoping we could catch some...but WAY too busy yelling for us to be quiet! I love that little thing. She just cracks me up!
3rd Hike of the Season
For this one we got a bit more bold. We decided we wanted to do something over 2 miles. We decided we would hike the trails that are above Silver Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon. We had some subway points so we stopped and grabbed the footlong and headed up the canyon.
We ate our picnic lunch on some boulders just off the path,next to silver lake then headed up the trail. Each person had their own water and a couple little snack in their bags.
After headed up the path, we came to a fork in the path and hadto pick between Twin Lakes and Lake Solitude. Another hiker said with children if we wanted to do the loop around Twin Lakes and Lake Solitude, it was easiest to go up to Lake Solitude first. Not knowing or caring about the difference, we headed up towards Lake Solitude.
Katy was our TROOPER! Lyse 5 minutes in was saying her legs hurt and honestly Katy did not once say she was tired, needed to rest, etc.When we asked Lyse to be the line leader, she did much better.
Some parts of the hike were just absolutely amazing. I love nature. I LOVE hiking along trails that you have trees rustling around you and the smell of pine in the air. It is invigorating and relaxing all at once!
Lake Solitude was rather dull and there wasn't really anywhere you could sit and enjoy. As we hiked around the lake to find the trail that led down to the Twin Lakes,
Ben found a cave. He named it the
"Candy Mountain Cave" and him and the girls went in. I was too much of a whimp and stayed and and took pictures...and chastising Ben of the danger of it all :)
The South side of the Lake had some snow and the girls and Ben enjoyed some snowball throwing. That is always fun to do in July! :)
After searching for a bit, we realized we weren't going to find the other trail. Both girls were getting tired, so we decided to head down the trail.
On the way down the trail, Lyse informed us she could hear and interpret what the birds were saying. The birds told her that the bears were coming soon, so we needed to hurrying down the trail. As each bird would tweet and sing, she would interpret a fun little story.
As we reached the bottom of the trail I saw a Bull Moose get mad and start charging across Silver Lake. I yelled, "There's a moose" and we all ran to go see it. What an amazing way to finish the hike. The rangers informed us the moose was overall safe as long as we didn't provoke it because it wasn't mating season.
We walked along the boardwalks and walked RIGHT next to the Bull Moose! WOW!!! An experience of a lifetime and it seriously made for the perfect ending to the hike!
The overall hike took us about 3 hours (we hung out and played around Lake Solitude for a while) and we hiked about 3 miles that day.
1st Hike of the Season
We started out with Donut Falls in June. I can't remember if it was the 19th or 26th of June (I am leaning towards the 19th). We had to wait that long cause June was just soooo cold and wet in the beginning.
Donut falls was a blast. The kids loved it.
We loved it. As we were driving up, we saw a moose and her calf in the swamps off the side of the road. We pulled over and took some pictures. It was so fun and amazing to experience wildlife like that only 20 minutes from our home.
The hike to donut falls is not really a hike...it is a nice little saunter through the woods. The girls 
The hike took us about 2 hours but most of that was playing in the water. The overall length was about 1.5 miles round trip.
2nd Hike of the Season
This hike was to Ensign Peak. We went on June 30. We decided to go up right before the sun set so we could watch the sunset from the peak. That was such a GREAT idea. It was VERY VERY windy but it was also warm so the wind was welcomed.
Although the hike to Ensign Peak is not long...the incline felt soooo steep! The round trip hike is only about 0.85 miles so it isn't far up...you just feel it in your legs!
Katy and Lyse both loved taking some pictures. It was so fun being up on top of the peak, watching the sunset as a family. We talked to the girls a little about what Ensign Peak was and why it was so important.
Personally, I enjoyed being able to kiss my sweetheart as we watched the sunset...something we don't do often enough.
It was beautiful and we THOROUGHLY enjoyed the family time!
On the way back down, Lyse was on the look out for bear and deer. She was hoping we could catch some...but WAY too busy yelling for us to be quiet! I love that little thing. She just cracks me up!
3rd Hike of the Season
For this one we got a bit more bold. We decided we wanted to do something over 2 miles. We decided we would hike the trails that are above Silver Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon. We had some subway points so we stopped and grabbed the footlong and headed up the canyon.We ate our picnic lunch on some boulders just off the path,next to silver lake then headed up the trail. Each person had their own water and a couple little snack in their bags.
After headed up the path, we came to a fork in the path and hadto pick between Twin Lakes and Lake Solitude. Another hiker said with children if we wanted to do the loop around Twin Lakes and Lake Solitude, it was easiest to go up to Lake Solitude first. Not knowing or caring about the difference, we headed up towards Lake Solitude.
Katy was our TROOPER! Lyse 5 minutes in was saying her legs hurt and honestly Katy did not once say she was tired, needed to rest, etc.When we asked Lyse to be the line leader, she did much better.
Some parts of the hike were just absolutely amazing. I love nature. I LOVE hiking along trails that you have trees rustling around you and the smell of pine in the air. It is invigorating and relaxing all at once!Lake Solitude was rather dull and there wasn't really anywhere you could sit and enjoy. As we hiked around the lake to find the trail that led down to the Twin Lakes,
Ben found a cave. He named it the
"Candy Mountain Cave" and him and the girls went in. I was too much of a whimp and stayed and and took pictures...and chastising Ben of the danger of it all :)
The South side of the Lake had some snow and the girls and Ben enjoyed some snowball throwing. That is always fun to do in July! :)
After searching for a bit, we realized we weren't going to find the other trail. Both girls were getting tired, so we decided to head down the trail.
On the way down the trail, Lyse informed us she could hear and interpret what the birds were saying. The birds told her that the bears were coming soon, so we needed to hurrying down the trail. As each bird would tweet and sing, she would interpret a fun little story.As we reached the bottom of the trail I saw a Bull Moose get mad and start charging across Silver Lake. I yelled, "There's a moose" and we all ran to go see it. What an amazing way to finish the hike. The rangers informed us the moose was overall safe as long as we didn't provoke it because it wasn't mating season.
We walked along the boardwalks and walked RIGHT next to the Bull Moose! WOW!!! An experience of a lifetime and it seriously made for the perfect ending to the hike!
The overall hike took us about 3 hours (we hung out and played around Lake Solitude for a while) and we hiked about 3 miles that day.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Cricket Fun!
I am becoming a crafty woman! Ben always said he was scared of crafty women but as I do more and more, I think he actually likes it!
My parents gave me a cricket for Christmas. If you don't know what a cricket machine is...google it! They are amazing crafty machines that cut all sorts of fun things!! I have recently fallen in LOVE with my machine!
We have had FAMILY fun with it. The girls LOVE to pick out designs and have us cut them! The other day we made crowns for the boys and girls in Lyse's preschool. She was in heaven and the boys and girls each liked their crowns. The boys got "king" crowns and the girls got "Princess" ones. It was fun to make and they turned out super cute!is super de duper fun! Seriously...it is amazing!
Tonight we have been working on Thank you cards for Katy's and Lyse's teachers this year! It is so fun to be able to make fun, cute cards and envelopes for under $1 (about $0.50)!
The card says "Thanks" on the outside. There is the single pic of just that. The envelope says, "Many Thanks". There are several layers of glued paper on the envelope and the card to help create the total look.
Seriously, the pictures don't even do it justice! I am thinking of maybe starting a company selling these for $1.00 each. Takes me about 10-20 minutes to make them and with being only $0.50 to make them, I would be making $0.50 off each one! I haven't decided for sure but we shall see :)
My parents gave me a cricket for Christmas. If you don't know what a cricket machine is...google it! They are amazing crafty machines that cut all sorts of fun things!! I have recently fallen in LOVE with my machine!We have had FAMILY fun with it. The girls LOVE to pick out designs and have us cut them! The other day we made crowns for the boys and girls in Lyse's preschool. She was in heaven and the boys and girls each liked their crowns. The boys got "king" crowns and the girls got "Princess" ones. It was fun to make and they turned out super cute!is super de duper fun! Seriously...it is amazing!
Tonight we have been working on Thank you cards for Katy's and Lyse's teachers this year! It is so fun to be able to make fun, cute cards and envelopes for under $1 (about $0.50)!
The card says "Thanks" on the outside. There is the single pic of just that. The envelope says, "Many Thanks". There are several layers of glued paper on the envelope and the card to help create the total look.
Seriously, the pictures don't even do it justice! I am thinking of maybe starting a company selling these for $1.00 each. Takes me about 10-20 minutes to make them and with being only $0.50 to make them, I would be making $0.50 off each one! I haven't decided for sure but we shall see :)
Thursday, March 4, 2010
"I" built an in-wall bookcase
I came up with this AMAZING idea for the girls room.
They had a blank wall that no piece of furniture can be placed on it due to depth of furniture and location of the wall. I have hated it. In the past I have put furniture in this small place but in the end move it due to it making me feel claustrophobic.
My mind is always working on ideas and I finally came up with one that worked for that wall. An in-wall bookcase. It solved the problem of books with no place to put them as well as practicality of the wall space. Due to the bookcase being in the wall, the space taken is minimal.
I was so excited. So enthused. My husband not so much! I set to work and told him, "Don't worry love, I will do it all".
This is the pictures of me doing it:
Don't I look cute, worn out and tired from all that work?!?! I thought so too!!
Thanks for making this Love!!
They had a blank wall that no piece of furniture can be placed on it due to depth of furniture and location of the wall. I have hated it. In the past I have put furniture in this small place but in the end move it due to it making me feel claustrophobic.
My mind is always working on ideas and I finally came up with one that worked for that wall. An in-wall bookcase. It solved the problem of books with no place to put them as well as practicality of the wall space. Due to the bookcase being in the wall, the space taken is minimal.
I was so excited. So enthused. My husband not so much! I set to work and told him, "Don't worry love, I will do it all".
This is the pictures of me doing it:
Don't I look cute, worn out and tired from all that work?!?! I thought so too!!
Thanks for making this Love!!
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