Murder Mystery Party

Todd and Abby worked for two days to stage the upstairs for a murder. We all brought spooky food and came in character making it a fun experience. Todd was Stretch, the Butler, and kept us in stitches all night trying to keep his teeth in.
They turned the tv room into a spooky maze that Abby carefully took us through while Todd manned stations to scare us along the way. It reminded me of the wizard behind the curtain in Wizard of Oz operating the hands and sound. Very well done!

A few days later the Bedford Ward youth came to do this activity and it was fun to be in on the secrets. Abby geared down the program and Todd staffed the spook room with extra hands to scare with revved up power tools and grab ankles along the way. Some adults were looking around their shoulders and holding tightly to their youth ... so fun when you get the big kids!



Thanks Todd and Abby for the fun! xo

halloween highlights

Returning Home

I get giddy the last 30 minutes of the flight to get a birds-eye view of God's creations from above and look for the Y on the mountain and Ashley's house.

In a few short days the entire family will gather again to celebrate Thanksgiving and Candy's wedding to Russ. Can't wait!

Irish twins!
The boys were still riding in Moab so we hit the mountains - off to Sundance to enjoy the colors with Bobby and Ash!




The tail end of MotoAdventure came round to the opening of elk hunt. Andy had a tag and switched gears into hunt mode in an effort to bring home a prize. As always on opening day, snow comes in with a vengence (more like slush), so it was not optimal weather but Todd and Bobby decided to go help drive the elk to Andy's scope.

They started with new waterproof boots and returned cold and soaked to the bone! Marketing scam on waterproof!

After a week of Moto, it was a treat to see Chris and the kids! There is nothing like hugs from little people or holding little hands!

Back up to the fresh snow topped mountains to run out some wiggles and enjoy the colors.
EXACTLY how I feel about being in the mountains ... This is joy!

Park break with Ash and Bobby - look how long her hair is!

A special treat for all of us to catch Grandma Gloria in town visiting her friend. We learned some things about her when Ash needed an interview for a class assignment on how dating has changed through the years.

Grandma was a little flirt and shared some fun stories with the sailors in San Francisco proving dating habits sure are different!

The guilt of blog vacation is haunting me so will make an attempt to play catch up to journal the days in our lives. Be patient ... it's coming but this is VERY time consuming! xoxoxoxoxoxo

MotoAdventure 08

This year proved to be another Adventure and a year of firsts!
First time for the boys to suffer some unusual breakdowns testing their McGyver skills ... first time I've had to call Search and Rescue ... first time for Justin (oh, and first time for me, but I'm not really a part of the team ... yet!)

The anticipation and getting ready for MotoAdventure is as fun as the journey! My bike hasn't made it to the line up yet, but happy the boys voted it a spot on the trailer!
(Notice my pink pants added to the mix and ALL the gloves!)


The boys shared a harrowing experience that left them white knuckled and happy to return to tell the story. I've never seen them so humbled and know even tho we won't know the whole story, they will forever share a band of brotherhood.
Smiles of gratitude for happy endings!






Reflections - loved this early morning glimpse into eternal bliss! American Fork Canyon
We were on our way to Sqaw Peak from Springville and this hill beckoned to Todd and Justin. They are at the tippy top of this tiny trail that is much steeper on the downhill side than it looks. The mom in me was waving them to NOT go because there was no clear turn around, but the spirit of adventure and exploration prevails!


A perfect day ends with a face trophy full of dirt! (The rewards of being the slowest rider!)


Thanks boys for sharing a few riding days with me (albeit wimpy ones for you!) xo

take that economy.*

even though I have been spending my weekdays in an office for the last three years**, tomorrow marks my first day to bring my lunch.  

the recent fall days have found me running out for soup everyday, only to be disappointed that it lacks the homemade taste while carrying an absurdly high price tag. 

so, here I am, controlling my own destiny.  tomorrow morning, I will grab my single serving of my homemade soup, and take my place on the metro with the other brown-bag grown-ups.

what a milestone. *** 

*while this initiative was not driven by fiscal responsibility (very very few are), I am excited to reap the benefit.  expect new shoes. 

**I rounded up by 4 months--felt the need to clarify, because the calculation depressed me. 

***I don't anticipate this lasting long, but milestone nonetheless.