Fire Station Fun!

The other night we went with our neighbors to the fire station for their annual open house. The girls loved checking out - and pretending to drive! - the fire trucks and ambulances. They got to be in a "Junior Fire Fighter Relay," where they tested their balance, their strength, and got to wear a real firefighter jacket and spray the big hose! They had a blast!

Trip to Southern Utah

850 miles traveled, 295 pictures taken, and 39 state license plates found (yes, we kept track) - and we're back from our little trip to Southern Utah!

A couple of months ago my mom came across a magazine article about Highway 12 in Southern Utah and asked me if I remembered going there with my parents right after I graduated from high school. Sure enough, I did remember parts of it, and the more I thought about it the more I wanted to go back. Quentin had never been to Bryce Canyon and we thought it would be fun to show the girls. And what perfect timing - the girls had a 4-day weekend because of UEA and Quentin also had taken the time off. And Southern Utah has perfect weather in October - and the leaves were simply glorious!

So we left Thursday morning and drove to Cedar City. Does this look like Cedar City?

Well, it is. And the girls thought it was so cool to see a lighthouse! Anyway, we got to Cedar City in the evening, went to dinner, took a drive up a gorgeous little canyon with amazing cabins, then let the girls swim in the hotel pool.

The next day, Friday, we checked out a couple of museums in Cedar City then headed a little further southeast toward Kanab, where we took a 90-minute tour at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. I first learned about this awesome place when I worked at Trolley Square and helped with "Strut Your Mutt," a fund-raiser for Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. The Sanctuary operates the largest NO-KILL sanctuary for animals in the NATION. Dogs, cats, birds, bunnies, horses, and even pigs that were slated to be euthanized can find peace here and either be adopted into loving homes or just enjoy the rest of their lives living in the 3800 acre area where volunteers come to feed, take care of and play with the animals. About 1700 animals can be found there. Amazing isn't it?! Seeing the Sanctuary was inspiring and something I've wanted to see for a long time! (P.S. This is just one of about 25 buildings on the property)


After our tour, we went back into Kanab City, where we saw "Hole in the Rock" museum, which is inside a cave!...


Kiera finally found a "K" on the mountainside...


And the girls got to "drive" a Flintstone-like car!


We spent Friday night in a motel in Panguitch, then set out the next morning for our drive along Highway 12. The magazine article said you can drive this 125-mile road in about 3 hours - but it dared its readers to try! There are so many beautiful things along the way! We browsed at an awesome gift shop (the girls all got "Indian ponytail holders" and candy rocks, which I used to love to tease my grandpa with), went on a few hikes, spent a few hours at Bryce Canyon, and drove on Highway 12. This area is simply amazing. Quentin and I were flabbergasted - we just kept laughing because we were thrilled to be able to see such breathtaking scenery. It kept changing around each corner - we'd see something totally different than the terrain we were in right before. It makes one seem small and insignificant in this huge world, yet at the same time we realize that we are an amazing and important part of what Heavenly Father has created. It's humbling and inspiring!













A few cheesy (but oh-so-cute!) pics near Ruby's Inn at Bryce Canyon....




We spent last night in Richfield, then drove 3 hours back home. Makenna was fascinated with the hotel's complimentary shower cap and wore it most of the way home. She cracks me up!

Three Little Monkeys

Most of you know how I love the Three Little Monkeys store in Fruit Heights (next to the Rock Loft - Secret Haven). Well, I was WAY excited to find out that they will be opening another store by Costco in Bountiful! Wahoo! Are you drooling yet? I know I am! Oh, and not only do they have a website, but they have a new blog too. Check it out:
http://3lmonkeys.blogspot.com

Car Pool

A couple of ladies in the ward and I decided to have a carpool for kindergarten pickup. It sure beats having to go to the school THREE TIMES A DAY!! So our neighbor picked up last week and Makenna was thrilled to be in a carpool and ride in Ella's car. This week is my turn and we arranged for Makenna's 2 friends to come home with us, have lunch and play for a couple of hours until I take them home. This morning I reminded Makenna that her carpool friends were coming over after school. She said, "Carpool? Car Pool? There's really not a pool in our car. You'd have to have a truck for that!"

Sleeping Beauties

I know the girls will one day hate me for posting pics of them in their undies, but I couldn't resist.... At least one of the girls likes to crawl in bed with me after Quentin leaves for work - and this morning I found all 3 of them scrunched up together on one half of the bed. So cute!

We Did It!

This summer, Centerville City has offered a cute little "Take a Hike" pin for participants who complete 5 specified trails. We've been working hard and we finally finished our last hike and got our pins! The girls have been so excited to work toward that goal - even Kasidee has been asking basically every day, "Hike? Daddy home?" It's been fun to get to know some trails that we haven't been on before - and we found one we definitely want to do again (Deuel Creek South Trail) - so fun!

Sleepover with Granny

For months, the girls have been begging us to let Granny sleepover at our house. They've enjoyed several sleepovers at her house, but she's never slept at our house. I'm not quite sure what they were expecting, but they loved having her over last night. She came for dinner, then we played the Wii and watched Singing in the Rain. When it was bedtime, Kiera and Makenna both wanted to sleep with Granny in the tiny twin guest bed. Kiera even snuck out after we tucked her in and wanted to cuddle with Granny in her bed! But once everyone was in their own beds and fast asleep, all was well. The girls bounded down the stairs this morning to see if Granny was up. We had waffles and played a "Punch Bug" game Granny brought. Granny's such a good sport for putting up with us and letting us enjoy her company!!

Farmington Canyon

Last Saturday we joined Quentin's brother's family on a spontaneous trip up Farmington Canyon. We drove to the base of the canyon then loaded all 6 kids in Corbin and Nikki's van. Quentin and I parked our van and drove our 4-wheeler up the canyon - 9 miles! I hadn't really ridden on the 4-wheeler since Quentin got it last Fall, so it was fun to be able to ride with Quentin! Once we all got to the top, we found a picnic area, had some lunch, and Quentin gave the kids rides on the 4-wheeler. We returned home dusty and tired - but with lots of fun memories!





THE GIRLS PLAYED "STORE" WITH ALL THE TREASURES THEY FOUND!

Just Call Me "Miss Kellie!"

Well, so everyone has had their first day of school - second grade and kindergarten. And yesterday it was my turn for MY first day! I began teaching at Kiera and Makenna's old preschool! As you may recall, just under a year ago when I was a monthly "parent helper" at Makenna's preschool, the teachers asked me if I would be interested in being a teacher for the optional Wednesday class this year. I jumped at the chance! So I have 10 4-year-old students and teach the "Mozart Math" program, which integrates music and math education. It is SO fun! The kids were great, and I'm excited for the opportunity to get out of the house once a week (just for 2 1/2 hours), make a little bit of extra cash, and especially get my feet wet for when my friend Jill and I will start Scootlebugs Preschool in my house next Fall! Yippee!

Impressive Weekend

Quentin has been in the Elders Quorum presidency for a couple of years - first as the secretary, then the second counselor and a little over a month ago he was called to be the first counselor. As part of the new presidency, the quorum members and their families went on a weekend retreat! One of the presidency members invited everyone to spend Friday and Saturday night at a cabin in Hobble Creek Canyon. Well, cabin is not quite the appropriate word - LODGE would be a better word. This 20,000 (yes, 4 zeros) square foot lodge used to be owned by one of their family members (to be used as their private residence!) and then was donated to BYU. BYU now rents it out and we were able to go for FREE! Incredible. It was overwhelmingly big and beautiful. There were 3 Great Rooms, an indoor basketball court (with womens and mens locker rooms!), an indoor treehouse and playground, a private stream and pond, 9 bedrooms with their own bathrooms, and enough beds to sleep 40 people! Absolutely incredible. After we wiped the drool from our chins, we spent the weekend with 3 incredibly amazing families - it was such a neat opportunity to get to know them even better and be able to hang out and enjoy each other's company. What a fun experience! (P.S. The pictures of the front don't even show the entire lodge. It was in a U-shape, so it was hard to get a picture of the whole building.)




PLAY AREA IN REC ROOM

TREEHOUSE IN REC ROOM

ONE OF THE "GREAT ROOMS"

WALL OF WINDOWS LOOKING OUT TO THE POND

HALLWAY WITH WINDOWS ON BOTH SIDES AND ARCHED FLOORING

KITCHEN

ENTRY WAY

THE LITTLE KIDS (MINUS KASIDEE AND BABY PENELOPE)

KIERA, GLORIA AND ELLA


THE WHOLE GANG

US!