A Yearning Heart

A good woman knows that 

she does NOT have enough time, energy, or opportunity 

to take care of all of the people or 

do all of the worthy things 

her heart yearns to do.

Life is not calm for most women,

and each day seems to require the accomplishment of a million things,

most of which are important.

But with personal revelation,

she can prioritize correctly and

navigate this life confidently.

~~~ Julie B. Beck~~~

Time Flies

This past week in our house....

BJ---homeschool parent, taxi cab driver to Spanish Fork-Seminary-Orthondontist, extraordinaire breakfast maker, choir pianist, scout leader, exercise master, wife therapist

DJ---herder of little SpEd flies, daughter therapist & doctor, 5 choir rehearsals & 3 concerts, Kindergarten Transition meetings for 3 flies, driver for 2 SLC carpool days, lemon bar maker, visiting teacher, SpEd fly tester

JBJ---amazing seminary student, bike rider, Shakespeare student, lawn mower, reptile keeper, elbow bumper, old lady house cleaner, book reader, diligent scripture reader, scout

EJ---hair stylist, Shakespeare actress, teenage girl with new braces, boy lover, journal writer, piano student, book reader, avid "Anne of Green Gables" fan, neurotic house cleaner

Next week.....start over

*SIGH*

A Lesson in Time

instead of

equals

and 1 REALLY stinky house

and 4 VERY grateful people.

Three Ponds Trail

On our last day in St. George, we went into Snow Canyon State Park and hiked Three Ponds Trail...about 4 miles round trip.  This was Jeremy's last chance to find a critter.  He did not leave disappointed.  In fact, he found a "chuckwalla."  We are thinking we may need to call the park and report where and when we saw it because they are an endangered species.

Overall, our Spring Break trip was a success.  We got warmer weather, we had fun together, we relaxed, went hiking, swimming, watched movies, played board games, slept in, & did no work.

And the desert will blossom like a rose...

Looking for critters

the chuckwalla... trust me, it wasn't dead

the sand wash

one of the ponds at the end of the trail

 Jeremy and Brian had a contest to see who would end up with the most sand in their shoes after the hike.  The first picture is Jeremy.  The second picture is Brian.  Brian won.

The Red Crack

Our favorite hike of the day was "the red crack."   It's only about 145 feet long, but it's only about 12-18 inches wide.  We were looking forward to it all day, but seeing it up close & personal, created a different feeling.
Em headed in first and then panicked and had to back out.  So I headed in and after about 20 feet had to do the same.  We watched Bri and Jer complete it and decided we could do it too.  It turned out not to be as bad as we thought.  The tightest part was that first 20 feet and then it loosened up.  There was NO WAY you could turn around while you were hiking through. It was physically impossible to turn your body, however, there were some "rooms" as you kept going.  The fun part was being on top and looking down into the crack.  Bri and I hiked back through on the way down, but the kids wandered around the top back to the parking lot.

The Trailhead

Emily heading up the crack

Em just starting to panic

Right before I started to panic and made Jeremy go back so I could get out.

Brian heading up to brave the way

Jeremy following.  You can see Brian at the end of the crack.

Em and I trying again. She got mad because I stopped in the middle to take the picture and she didn't want to stop at all.

Standing over the crack, St. George behind us

Bri and I hiking back down.  Em zoomed up on us with the camera. We weren't this close to her.

We're still crawling through.  Even this is on zoom a little.

This gives you a good idea of the width of the canyon.

Cinder Cone

Our second stop was Cinder Cone, just outside of Snow Canyon State Park.
We've been to this park before, but this time we didn't actually go inside the State Park.  Cinder Cone is just barely outside the border of the park.  There is lava rock every where and you have to be careful as you walk the trail because much of it is loose gravel and lava rock.  Emily & Brian didn't actually go to the top of the cone, because the rock was too slippery and Em was a little fearful of the hike back down.  So Jer and I went.  The view was incredible.  Views of St. George city, Snow Canyon Park, the other cinder cone volcano.  It was a short, but steeper climb than we expected.  Perfect weather.

The Trailhead with the Cinder Cone behind (and one handsome guy!)

Time for a rest

Deb & Jer at the top

The gorgeous view, looking over at Snow Canyon State Park, which is across the street.   We've hiked the white rocks before.

Looking across the crater, you can barely make out Jeremy in the red shirt on the other side of the crater

Jeremy down in the crater, in the red shirt

close up pic of some of the lava

On the way back down, showing the steepness of the cone

Daddy holding his princess' hand to help her down the trail

Jeremy sitting on a batch of lava, looking at the mountains

Being strong on the lava!

Red Cliffs Trail

Our first destination was Red Cliffs Trail.  We only hiked as far as the Lower pool.  We didn't know there was another waterfall & pool beyond until we came home later that day.  We saw plenty of lizards which we discovered run REALLY fast.  We also saw some worms in large web-like nests in the trees and bushes.  The water was brain-numbing cold. And it was a perfect little hike... lots of shade & sun, fun red rocks, & plenty to keep your interest. 

Can you find Brian waving at us?

St. George Journey

 This week is Spring Break....YAY!  No work, No school...Our plan is to relax and enjoy being a family and have no schedule to keep.

Instead of implementing our plan in cold, wet, snowy, rainy Provo, we headed south to warm, balmy, sunny St. George, Utah.

Here are some brief facts & pictures about our Spring Break destination....

More updates to follow each evening.

St. George LDS Temple

Dinosaur footprint

Nice view of the red dirt cliffs in the area

View of the city, temple, & red cliff surroundings

St. George is a popular place for retired folks...many people winter here & summer elsewhere.

The summer temps are why these retired folks summer elsewhere.  Having been here during the summer, I can assure you it's NOT the place to be.