What do you do in the summer time?

Our life for the past few weeks has included about as much swimming as I can schedule in. To me summer means swimming daily. It is a little bit difficult to do here because there are hardly any public venues where I can pay to take the kids swimming. The two public venues I do know about have strict rules which include no floaties... my favorite floatational device for kids who do not know how to swim on their own. Instead I have been begging, bribing, and otherwise ingratiating myself with hosts who can allow us to swim at their places. During this time Ali has been in Arizona easily swimming in my sister's pool.

This past weekend we went to pick up Ali at Stacey's. It was a 115 degrees when we arrived to pick her up. We headed straight to the pool after unloading our car of everything that might melt inside it. We then lived in the pool most of the entire weekend.
Ali is getting pretty good at diving. She loves swimming and is pretty much an expert at it.



Annika wanted to try her had at the diving board. She enjoyed it as long as someone held her hand when she jumped.
This is Stacey's little boy... and Annika. He is sure he is not a dog since they give him people food, let him sit on the couch and take him in the shower with them when he needs a bath.
Annika has learned how to use the floaties quite well. She now can jump off things and keep her head from going under the water. She kicks her legs and paddles to where she wants to be.
This summer Ashling has become pretty good at swimming. At the beginning of the summer she had forgotten how to swim but on the trip she swam across the whole 39 feet of pool!

I guess this picture is so cute I put it in twice (on accident) and now I can't remove it!

The Camping Trip that wasn't to Big Pine

We wanted to go on a camping trip to Big Pine Canyon in the Sierras. Cameron got off work at about half way through the day and by 3:00 pm we were on our way. We made it to the canyon in good time after a brief stop to play at the park and eat dinner. As we drove up the canyon we hardly saw another soul and we were convinced that we would get a camping spot. I loved the first campground and really wanted a spot there but it was full. We drove to all the camping spots and there was nowhere to camp at all. So we abandoned our home of camping in Big Pine Canyon.

We next drove a little further up the road to Bishop Canyon. We looked through most of the campgrounds and the only spots we could find were in sage brush. I didn't want to camp in sage brush and so we kept looking. We finally found a spot at the Sabrina Campground that was up pretty high. By this time it was nearly dark and we set up the tent in the dark.

Our friends were about two hours behind us and so Cameron had to go back down the canyon to call them and tell them where we were camping. I was worried that they might wake up the kids setting up camp so late but they have the most quiet, polite kids who knew to be quiet.

We went to bed and it seemed cool but not really that cold. In the morning we were surprised to wake up to ice in the water bottles and frost everywhere. We all took turns walking down to this place where the water was flowing like a water fall. The water was so high from snow melt off. Then we decided to walk down to the water fall together.




The kids enjoyed the campsite where there were rocks and secret paths through the aspen trees.
The first day we fished around Lake Sabrina, visited North Lake and took a trip down to Kmart to get what we had forgotten. Our family also went swimming at the hot springs. (I decided that there will be swimming at each and every vacation I take from now on.) Then we came home and had hamburgers for dinner.

The second day we went fishing alone South Fork canyon (at least the guys did) and then Jessica, Annika and I came back and took naps while the others fished at South Lake. Here is a picture of us relaxing around camp in the shade. It was very cold at night and the sun made it very hot in the day. What a harsh environment.



We filled our tub up with water in the morning and let it sit in the sun all day long. Then we added a couple pots of boiling water and had a nice bathtub to get the kids clean. I really enjoyed the bath too!
We took Sierra with us and she was good at just relaxing around camp.
After dinner we set up a movie for the kids so they wouldn't get too dirty after they were cleaned up.
This is our view from our campground. Nice isn't it?
Our friends bought massive marshmellows to roast. The things were about three times the normal size. I will never buy again because when you are eating them they get everywhere but it was really fun!
On the third day our friends had to go home and we went for a long drive to the Ancient Bristlecone Forest. It is up a very lonely road on the other side of the valley from the Sierras. This is a picture of Temple crag that Cameron climbed last year from up in those mountains. It also has Mount Sill and North Palisade (which he also climbed a while ago.)
About 20 of the miles were on a rough dirt road through what looked like tundra. We drove up to 12,000 or 13,000 feet at the top of the road.



Here is our only picture of a tree and only the one in the background is alive. These trees are about 2-4 thousand years old.
After our long drive we stopped and went swimming again. We enjoyed getting clean and watching our girls. Ashling is getting to be very good at swimming. Annika is learning to swim with floaties on too. We decided against fireworks because it was too late for Annika and too hard to find a good spot so we had smores with kit kats and went to bed. (I know it was a little un-American but still fun.)

Monday we woke up early and packed up our camp quickly. We enjoyed a quick breakfast and then headed up to do some more fishing. The fishing didn't go well because nothing was biting except mosquitos. Annika and I enjoyed a nice walk after liberally applying cancer causing deet all over. We ate lunch by the river on picnic benches and then drove home. It was fun camping trip. The best part was the swimming!
This is the deer we saw right by the highway. It was fun to get a good long look at it.

An Ode to the ketchup covered taco

I know that I am not the only one who does this. I know of at least 4 other people in the world who do this and one is not family. But I love ketchup on my tacos. It goes perfectly and tastes wonderfully. I can add more spices to the meat, add more green salsa and then drown it in ketchup. I know most of you think I am disgusting and there was a period of time when I felt a little ashamed about this habit of mine, but now I am proclaiming it to the world. (One of things I like about being 30 is that I no longer care what others think, don't need to impress anyone and am comfortable in my own shoes.) I love ketchup covered tacos. Yes they are not authentic from Mexico but I like that they are authentic from Wyoming where some of my blood is from too.

I want you to try one... go ahead. No one ever takes me up on the challenge but you will like it if you do. Corn tortilla, hamburger, cheese, lettuce, tomato, green salsa and ketchup on top. Try it, try it, I dare you!

Ali

This summer Ali wanted to go and spend it with Grandma, Stacey and Tony. She left soon after school was out. We met Stacey in Blyth and she is visiting for a while during the summer. She is having fun swimming, watching tv, running on the treadmill, going to dinner with Stacey and Tony, working on art projects, visiting the library and doing whatever else she wants. We miss her but are glad she can be having fun there.

Annika at 17 months

Annika is now 17 months old. She runs everywhere and is pretty sure she knows everything there is to know in the world. She likes going outside, loves the park and when she sees it she gets so excited (even if we are really only going to the post office.) Now she climbs to the top of the big slide and goes down on her own as if she were a pro.

Annika is my daughter. She loves water which she calls, "Awa." She loves to play in the hose or splash in the bathtub. She likes to drink water and enjoys the beach and the way the water grab at her legs. She likes the pool and the way the water envelopes her body. She likes to kick in the water, splash on top of the water and even blow some bubbles in the water. She is learning to swim quite quickly in our pseudo-summer. (It still has hardly reaches 70 degrees but it feels warm enough to us.)

Annika is learning to talk quickly. Her vocabulary has expanded and doubled and then doubled again. She is getting to the point where she will try and say a lot of single words. Her new favorite word is "down." She says this word clearly enough that anyone who is listening understands that she does not want you to hold her. She also says "up" when she wants to be picked up. I think it is interesting that she understands this opposite so well.

Annika loves to give the biggest best hugs in the world. She will curl her little body all around you and hold tight. She waits and keeps the hug for longer than most others. Her hugs are the best. The other night for Father's Day she gave Pa Pa a hug and held on tight. She didn't want to get down from his arms even when it was time to go. She just kept giving his love. ( I wouldn't doubt if he has a new favorite granddaughter.)

The world is exciting for this 17 month old and she can't get enough of it. We are very happy to enjoy watching her.

Ashling's preschool end of the year ceremony

This is Ashling and Illeana. Illeana is Ashling's best friend that she went to preschool with all year. The last couple days of the year they got to spend a lot of time together since Illeana's house had a leak and had to have a major remodel.

These are the kids singing to us for Ashling's preschool end of the year program. It was great and they sang the songs really well.

They made a scrapbook with things for each letter and pictures of things we did.

Family Night

Last night felt a little like a scene from my favorite vacation. I wore long pants and my mountain hardware long sleeve shirt for protection from mosquitos that weren't really there. The air was warm but not hot. You could go swimming if you were from the mountains or perhaps need a sweatshirt if you were coming from down the hill. The sky was deep June blue. That is the only way I can describe the sky that seems to extend forever and then disappear into a brown haze that those who live below have to endure in June.

We put the dog and the backpack in the car and roll the windows down. Annika sticks her hand out the window and grins. She enjoys the air blowing in her face and smiles. The drive up Keller Peak is beautiful. Wildflowers adorn the mountains at each turn. Orange, Yellow, red, and an occasional bright purple iris fills my eyes while the story of Academy Princess fills my ears. I especially like the orange flowers that are everywhere.

We stop near the gate and head down the road past the gate. We want to look at some rocks for possible rock climbing later. We hike through the weeds and over small streams that never usually exist this time of the year. I enjoy the smell of fresh running water and wish it was always there. We hike up to a large rock formation and the girls looked for an easy way to the top. We crawl under and over boulders that lean against the big rock but find an easy way to the top.

We head off to another rock formation finding wild onions along our way by their smell. This time we pick our way up the tall rock formation. It reminds us of the Sierras. My girls are so big they don't need help anymore. Ali reaches her long legs and easily climbs over the cracks. Ashling is more mountain goat than human (like her Dad) and she leaps and jumps between rocks. She looks like a professional rock climber instead of a girl who is barely 5. Cameron's eyes dance in delight and I can see his imagination working as he imagines her with a rope and harness.

We finally top out at the top of the rock! The girls are happy. On top we can see forever. We can see Mount Baldy and the way the Los Angeles Mountains crest and then fall towards the ocean. We can see the brown haze making its way up the mountains but a long way down from our location. We can see Butler Peak and enjoy looking at Slide Peak where we ski in the winter. Running Springs is calm and still below us. The girls hop around the flat rock on top and jump the cracks.

Soon we realize that although the sun is still high in the Northern Sky we need to get home because it is already past bedtime and we still have school. We find our way down the rocks cross a marsh land and get on a dirt road. The girls wonder where it leads and I say, "All roads lead to Rome." So they think we are headed to Rome but really we find our car. The drive down is beautiful and relaxing.

I love where we live! I love summer with never ending sunlight and beautiful lasting twilight. I love the sound of frogs, the smell of growing plants and the sight of wildflowers. I love Family nights where we go out in it.