The First Snowstorm and Skyler's Return!

Time to shovel - Great Job Mark!

Leaving for Church, he wasn't even nervous!

This week we had an Ice Storm, Snowstorm and Skyler came to visit after serving in the Sidney North, Australia Mission. We were very excited to see "little" Skyler, who isn't so little anymore. It's great to see how much he has grown (not physically) in the two years he was gone. He gave a great talk in Sacament and he used no notes, he just spoke about his experiences and his love for the people of Australia and the gospel. He gave a fireside that night for the youth which gave them an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the country. He again told us about his experiences which we really enjoyed. We love having him here and getting to hear about his misson. While there he saw kangaroos, and some very large spiders which he showed us a picture of in his flat. It would take lots of raid to kill this one, lucky it isn't deadly like many other spiders that are there. He met many nice people there and many different cultures that live there. He was able to teach many and bring them to the gospel. His experience was both challenging and rewarding and we are sure he wouldn't trade it for anything. We love the choices he has made and wish him well in his new adventures with school and work. He want's to be a pilot and we hope he works hard to make his goals a reality. We thank those who came to his homecoming and his friends and family that came to the house. It was a great time!
We also, had our first big snowstorm of the season. We've had little storms which left Ice and some snow, this one brought a White Christmas here. It's pretty to look at, but it is cold. We still love living here and yes, we look forward to Spring.

This Years Christmas Show-Glenn Beck

We always try to attend a Christmas show every year in Salt Lake. For the past years we have gone to Kurt Bestor - which is an awesome show and this year we wanted to try something different. We went to the Glenn Beck Christmas Show. It was well worth it! We went with friends which started out at McGraths Fish House in Layton(mark had steak of course- he is a land lover) and then travelled to West Valley to see the show. If you haven't heard of him, he has a radio and TV show which airs on CNN. He is a conservative similar to Sean Hannity, but more entertaining. He converted to the church about 10 years ago and after the show was over, he invited everyone to stay (about 8000) to do a taping of his conversion for the church. When it airs, don't miss it, I promise you it is worth watching. His show was fun, colorful stories about his family, it made you laugh, cry and most of all he ended with the real meaning of Christmas. (of course there was some poking fun at the liberal left during the show! with Happy RamaHanuKwanzMas)

If his show comes to your area next year, you won't be disapointed if you attend.

Merry Christmas to all!!

He really did help! Its a miracle!!

The Miracle on 7th South

The cat looks on while we decorate

The Cold Winter Sky-taken Thanksgiving Day
It's time for the tradition of putting up the holiday lights again. This year I even had help from the man! Here's the proof and as you can see, it was a warm day! This was just a few days ago which was good, now that it has turned really cold! We're just waiting for the first snowfall, yes the first shoveling of the driveway, the black ice, car sliding, more cold and yet it is so pretty when it snows. We will be posting the pictures of the first snowfall when it happens. So until then, have a great Thanksgiving and Christmas Holiday!

Welcome Cooper

Chuck and Shana are the proud parents of another boy! Cooper was born Nov 8th and has two older brothers. We have already booked a flight there in Feb to bless the new grandchild. We are excited to go and visit them in North Carolina. Mark served his mission there many decades ago and we will get to see some of the towns he was in. I'm glad were not going in the summer, the humidity can be a killer! On our way back we will have a layover in Chicago. We always try to fly into an airport we have never been. We once flew to Phoenix by way of San Francisco because Mark had never been there. We have fun! Kylan and Brayden we look forward to coming to see you, so be helpful to your Mom and Dad with the new baby. Cooper you will quickly get tough with Kylan and Brayden for Brothers! Chuck and Shana congrats and of course we look forward to seeing you to!!

trippin to Yellowstone

We took two days to go bear and wolf viewing in Yellowstone. Fall is a nice time to visit, no crowds to stand behind, not hot, and most of all no crowds! (or yes I already said that). The downside is a lot of the centers are closed which mean flushing toilets to. We stayed in Gardiner, MT just outside the north gate of Mammoth. The town is a deer zoo. There are deer all over, so be careful when you drive there, they walk right down the streets! Inside the park we saw several Bighorn Sheep, they were massive. Of course Mammoth was a Elk zoo there. We drove from Norris to Canyon and were lucky enough to see 5 wolves in the meadow right beside our car. Then we saw several vehicles about 1/2 mile down parked. So after the wolves crossed in front of us, we drove to see what the action was there. There were 4 more wolves feeding on a fresh kill, it was really awesome. We watched the 5 approach the Alpha male, a huge white wolf to get permission to feed. There were one black wolf, the white one and rest were grey and silver. We saw tons of Bison, they own the road and several coyotes and one squirrel! The bear stayed out of sight for us this trip. Which was strange, we heard of lots of sightings since they are feeding for hibernation. We heard lots of stories, but we saw none. We did see lots of "rock bear"! They were just rocks! We will go again next fall and invite anyone who wants to go, come, it's a great time to go. Oh yes, we did see Old Faithful. Who doesn't go and at least see that.

Pirate-we will miss him

Today was a sad day for us, Pirate our wonderful Aussie Healer had to be put to sleep. He was nearly blind and deaf and wouldn't eat the past 2 days. He just moped and had a hard time breathing and getting warm. We made him a warm bed in the lower bathroom with warmed blankets and that helped him feel more comfy, but he still was going downhill. We had him since the day he was born 16 years ago and he was a great dog. Shana & Kristy will remember that day!
He was always so obedient and protective of his family. He was a loving dog and loved to go for walks, rides and camping with us. He and Kim would get up before Mark and go for a walk when we went camping, he knew the routine and loved it. Camping won't be the same without him.
He will forever be missed along with our other beloved pets we have had. We lucky to of had the privledge of having them a long time and never have lost them to accidents. We now have Gypsy the "Cleo-cat-tra!" to help fill the void, but there is nothing like the fun of having a dog who enjoys going places with you. His lease will hang by the door until the day we get another pup.

Fall in the Rockies

It's once again Fall weather in Northern Utah. It's a nice change after a "it's too hot to sleep, eat or do anything" summer. This is now great sleeping weather! Of course with the cooler weather comes the apple pie making, raking leaves, the first snowfall , winterizing the camp trailer and the dreaded thinking about the holidays coming up.
Then it's the first of the year again and time to start the (oh I can't believe I'm even thinking this far ahead) the filing of the 07 tax season. :( . . . ugh..

Until then , we just have to enjoy the rest of 2007. We did have a snow teaser last weekend, with some snow, some rain and some really cold weather that day and yes It's nice enough to open windows still, only turn the heater on occasionally and yes still use the AC in the car.
In other words, for us northerners, it's beautiful. For the hot weather dwellers, if you come to visit, bring your jackets, cold weather gear and of course your warm jammies. I know you will think us nuts when we really aren't that cold yet.

Last week we winterized the shed by putting the summer stuff towards the back and bringing the winter stuff to the front. Ice melt, shovels, anything that might be needed for that cold snowy winter day yet to come. Until then, tomorrow I will bake a pie, shop for a much needed winter coat and enjoy the windows open before we go in winter hibernation!

The new child

A few weeks ago I was working in the yard when I heard a cat, I usually ignore them, however this time I had to acknowledge it. Our 2 cats we had both died within 2 years of each other and we have been cat free for nearly 2 years. It's been nice, no litter box, saving $ on cat feed (science diet isn't cheap), not to mention the dreaded furball hacking.
Anyway, this small, very malnourished, skin and bones kitten approached me, walked right up to Pirate our dog and rubbed all over him purring away. She was so sweet, and so friendly. I couldn't turn her away and Mark bought her some Tuna (its all we had for a cat). Yes, Mark has a soft spot for kittys - but I didn't tell you that. We decided that if she was still here after a week of camping we would keep her. My neighbour watched out for her and gave some kitten food Mark bought. After 5 days of camping we came home to a kitten who was starting to put some weight on and we opened the door and in she came! We got her spayed, she will be declawed soon and we are going to try to toilet train her. Yes, you heard correctly, no more litter box, the cost of litter has gone way high. She has been quite fun!

Our camping trip

We took 5 days off to camp up in Logan Canyon. We went to the Egan/Franklin Basin turnoff which is 11 miles off the highway. It was quite fun hauling such a large trailer down a narrow dirt road..... :o We found a great site that was somewhat isolated which made it really nice. We saw more Buck than Does this trip and found a great new trail. At one point we had a nice 4 point Buck running along side of us for about a 1/4 of a mile and about 15 feet to the side of our ATV's, it was really cool. The weather was nice with a little wind one evening as "Dean" moved in over the mountains. It was really hard to come home and look forward to our next trip!

playing on the piute trail

We spent a day playing and riding 126 miles of the Piute Trail. It was hot, dusty, long, and just a lot of fun!!! We are looking forward to going back next summer and spending more time on the hot, dusty trail. Live long, love life and ride, ride, ride!!! We saw lots of deer, bucks and does, gorgeous views, everything from the pinyon pine to aspen groves. The trails never seemed to end and one could spend weeks riding there.

We are staying in the Bear Valley!!

After a very long, hot, hot summer, we have decided not to sell the house!! We have decided to stay in the Bear River Valley for now. Mark has been gone working in St. George and is burnt out working down there. It is way too hot, way to stressful, way to expensive to live there. I was however, looking forward to the winters there. We will be keeping our snowshovel after all and will look forward to the county fair!! Fair time is a huge event here, lots of great food, hangin with friends, dancin, rodeo, entertainment and did I mention dancing!! Country style here!! We will also be spending a few days on the Piute trail, a week camping and enjoying the rest of our summer together.

can't believe we are moving!

We moved to Tremonton in 1996 and bought a new 4 level split home. Never thought we would move to another area. Always knew we would stay in Tremonton and possibly downsize to a smaller new home. Mark had been looking for something different and something to make more income. He has been looking, but I never really thought it would happen. We were suppose to attend the wedding of his oldest son which got cancelled, so we took the time to go visit fam in near St. George. There he interviewed for a job and we looked at homes with a realtor just to see what was available. We planned on spending a few days and never thought Mark would get offered a job so quick and leave after making an offer on a very cute home. N0w we have go get our house on the market and wait for the seller to hopefully accept our offer on the new home we want. This is totally crazy!!! We are headed home today and I really can't wait to get home to start packing.
I will really miss Tremonton, I really like it there and the ward we attend is really great. It will be very hard to leave and miss the county fair this year!
We both have loved living there and have met many wonderful people and will miss our friends a lot! But, we invite them to come visit when those winter snowy days are too much and St. George winters can be really nice!! Also we can ATV all year long now!!

PS: to the buyers of our home, we will glady leave you our snowshovel!

our life

We are Mark and Kim. We have been married for nearly 18 yrs and are best friends. We have 5 great kids and 3 grandchildren. We love our life and enjoy spending time with each other and our family. We love to travel, camp with our Toy Hauler RV and ride the mountain trails with our ATV's. We love to cook outdoors with our camp chef and enjoy the serenity of the outdoors.
We have lived in Calif where we had a little farm with all kinds of farm animals. We had a great time there and loved every minute. We rode our horses, enjoyed rodeos, team penning and ropings. Job change took us away to Utah where we traded the horses for ATV's. The winters were way too hard to keep horses. We love Utah and have made many great friends here. We loved raising our kids and now enjoy the empty nest which gives us freedom to enjoy a lot more than we could before. We enjoy visiting our kids and wish we could see them more. They live in different states and are in different stages of life. We will be here for them when they need us, but realize they have to find their way in this life and with their own families. We look forward to retirement someday and being able to travel and relax!