SWIMMING LESSONS

We have indoor swimming lessons here. In some ways it's an advantage: no sunburns for any of us. But it gets pretty stuffy in there~ breathing in all the chlorine fumes.

Here is Princess P. She has learned not to be so afraid of the water getting on her face this year. SUCH an improvement!

Here is little C diving off the low dive. He isn't afraid of anything.

He is an amazing swimmer. He can do the butterfly like nobody's business. I STILL can't do the butterfly and I am a pretty good swimmer if I do say so myself. He cruised through level 4 like it was nothing! We're so proud of them both!

TOO DARK

Aunt P and I are back to plein air painting once a week. We did it last summer too. It's how I get my once a week quota of creating in. I love it! This week we just went to my sister-in-law's yard and this is the painting I did.

It isn't finished (I know I say that a lot, but it is true- maybe I'm never finished). I got really frustrated with it. The bottom right didn't go the way I wanted, so I was trying to paint over it and with watercolor, that is very rarely successful. I am waiting until I feel brave enough to go on. It got too dark which is always a problem I have that is impossible to fix with watercolor.

I also painted Saturday on our Joe's Valley trip. It is too dark as well and my husband says the big rock doesn't feel attached. Any feedback for me? Believe me, I am not sensitive, so be honest. Any input is great...

JOE'S VALLEY SUN

We go to Joe's Valley Reservoir as a family at least once a summer. My honey loves to kayak the outlet river (Cottonwood Creek) and then we take the kids back up to the lake and let them swim and do some cliff jumping. Today was that day...

Some of the crew getting Dad and S off down the river.

My honey doing a 'stern squirt' (that's rodeo kayak lingo).

Later on at the lake, the kids had fun jumping into the water from lots of different levels of rocks. It is really deep right now, so not too much danger involved.

I also painted, but that will have to wait until a later post...

GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER

We had the missionaries over for dinner tonight. We always have great experiences when the missionaries come. They bring such a strong spirit with them. We love having them in our home.

For dinner, I just did a taco bar and ice cream for dessert (very simple, but loved by my family). They are great guys and we really enjoyed visiting with them and getting to know them. One is from South Carolina and one is from Guatemala. They were wonderful examples to my boys.

These are the Spanish-speaking missionaries in our town. They are VERY musically talented and we talked them into performing for us. (I will add the video if I can get it to work).

Here we are with the Elders (minus S, who was on a date) . My family made fun of me for taking photos, but I just had to. It was a great experience.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

I got these questions from a friend's blog for something to do...

- Name something you think is ok to wear even though Lucky says it's out of style.

I didn't even know what Lucky was, so that really tells you something. Everything I wear is probably out of style.

-Name something a random stranger can do to ruin your day.

Butt in line in front of me or take a parking place that I am obviously waiting for. Really makes me want to send them back to kindergarten to relearn some manners.

-Name one food that makes you vomit in your mouth at just the thought of it.

Sardines (or any fish)

-What is one 'roll-up-the-windows-so-nobody-hears-me-listening-to-this-song' song of yours?

Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA"

-Name a very embarrassing thing you got caught doing.

My kids catch me singing and dancing all the time, but I'm not embarrassed, they are.

-Guess what, I'm coming to visit, where would you take me first in your town?

The mountains.

-Name a charity/organization you proudly support?

I give all my charity through our church and do it monthly.

-What's one thing you're looking forward to this week?

Sitting out in the hot sun watching my son play baseball. (just a little sarcasm there, not a lot).

-First concert you ever saw?

The Jacksons Victory Tour in Denver, CO (Just Beat It!)

-What was your childhood stuffed animal's name?

Berry, and he was a white bear stuffed animal/puppet.

DISENCHANTED- MY SHALLOWNESS REVEALED

Time is cruel to us all, but I think it is most cruel to movie stars. They never get away from the cameras and anyone is free go back in time to see their best and worst at a click of the mouse.

Case-in-point: Val Kilmer was definitely on my 'Hottie' list in the 80's (I guess we would have called it a 'Stud' list). You have to remember the fabulous volleyball scene in Top Gun and now look at the poor man. What a sad dose of reality for me!

Brenden Frasier is another example, but not quite so extreme. He is still cute in a 'Daddy' sort of way, but definitely not the man we knew from The Mummy, that's for sure.

I do have to admit I am very spoiled though, my husband gets better with age. He is as handsome as ever (probably more so than when I married him). HECK, he is 41 with a 6-pack! I do realize how lucky I am, I just feel bad for him. I weigh 30+ pounds more than when we got married and I've also had 5 children so you can imagine (hopefully not too vividly) what that did to my body. Thank goodness he loves me!

Oh well, we all get older, I just need to remember that the next time I see the totally unflattering photos of my old favorite hunks. Reality is tough to swallow sometimes...

SUMMER ART

I am setting my art goal again this summer. I am going to produce at least one painting or drawing per week and post them. For some reason it helps if I know I am going to post them.

This is painting is from Saturday. My honey went to kayak Cottonwood Creek in Straight Canyon again and I drove over with him so I could paint while he boated with his buddies. Not my favorite painting and it isn't finished, but I am at least working...

MAN GIFT

I am not being creative this year for Father's Day, so I was wondering what everyone else is doing. Anything fabulous? This is what I did:

I love the smell in Hollister. I walk in that store just to smell. That is why I keep buying the scents from there. SO YUMMY!

Here's a photo of my honey and I wearing our perfume and cologne... (he he)

TRIP TO THE METROPOLIS

Our summer is going well. We are enjoying being off our scheduled-to-the-minute regime and just doing what we want (most of the time). On Wednesday we went 'UP NORTH' (as we say here in Sanpete) to run some errands and have a bit of fun.

We stopped off to see the newest member of the family- my little niece (about 6 weeks old). Isn't she pretty? Excuse the cell phone photos- it's all I had.

Here is A holding her. She is such a sweet, calm baby (#6 in the family, so her mom is very grateful for that).

We also went to Target to shop and get a snack. Here are P and D wearing blue with their blue Icee's.

Other fun activities included:

• A trip to Costco (I love to go there, I am not sure why, it is just fun to see what they have).
• Went to Alice In Wonderland at the $1 theater. We liked it!
• Quick stop at Hollister to get my perfume. (Am I too old to wear perfume from there?)
• Picked up some agave from the health food store.
• And best of all- out to lunch with my sister (while my kids ate pizza at her house).

All in all, just a fun day spent with my kiddos!

WHAT'S FOR DINNER?

This is one of my favorite recipes right now. I make it almost once a week, especially since we have lots of fresh asparagus in the stores at the moment. It is healthy (even the oil) and very yummy!

ROASTED VEGETABLES

Spray a shallow baking sheet (I use my 13X9 since we have lots of people in my family) with non-fat cooking spray. Clean and chop the veggies of your choice. I have used:

• all colors of peppers
• fresh mushrooms
• potatoes (leave the skins on)
• carrots
• sweet potatoes (I peeled those)
• onion
• squash (zucchini esp.)
• asparagus
• fresh green beans

Spread them out evenly on the baking sheet and drizzle olive oil and 3 cloves of minced garlic over the top. Salt and pepper to taste. Bake at 450 f for 20-40 minutes (depending on your quantity). Toss every 10 minutes.

To make this into a main dish, just add sliced polska kielbasa (I use turkey) or another favorite sausage. Sooo goood!

NINETY-NINE

This is a 'BUCKET LIST' -type post. You are supposed to highlight all the things you have done on this list. (I got it from Jessica at Domesticated-Bliss).

1. started your own blog (umm... obviously)
2. slept under the stars
3. played in a band
4. visited hawaii
5. watched a meteor shower
6. given more to charity than you could afford to
7. been to disney
8. climbed a mountain
9. held a praying mantis
10. sung a solo
11. bungee jumped
12. visited paris
13. watched a thunder and lightning storm
14. taught yourself an art from scratch
15. adopted a child (I was adopted, does that count?)
16. had food poisoning
17. walked to the top of the statue of liberty
18. grown your own vegetables
19. seen the mona lisa in france (definitely a goal)
20. slept on an overnight train
21. had a pillow fight
22. hitch hiked
23. taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. built a snow fort
25. held a lamb
26. gone skinny dipping
27. run a marathon (this will never happen)
28. ridden in a gondola in venice
29. seen a total eclipse
30. watched a sunrise or sunset
31. hit a home run
32. been on a cruise
33. seen niagara falls in person
34. visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. seen an amish community
36. taught yourself a new language
37. had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. seen the leaning tower of pisa in person
39. gone rock climbing
40. seen michelangelo’s david in person (this is a SERIOUS goal for me)
41. sung karaoke
42. seen old faithful erupt
43. bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. visited africa
45. walked on a beach by moonlight
46. been transported in an ambulance
47. had your portrait painted- self portraits, lots.
48. gone deep sea fishing
49. seen the sistine chapel in person (another SERIOUS goal)
50. been to the top of the eiffel tower in paris
51. gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. kissed in the rain
53. played in the mud
54. gone to a drive-in theater
55. been in a movie
56. visited the great wall of china
57. started a business
58. taken a martial arts class
59. visited russia
60. served at a soup kitchen
61. sold girl scout cookies
62. gone whale watching
63. gotten flowers for no reason
64. donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. been sky diving
66. visited a concentration camp
67. bounced a check
68. flown in a helicopter
69. saved a favorite childhood toy
70. visited the lincoln memorial
71. eaten caviar
72. pieced a quilt
73. stood in times square
74. toured the everglades
75. been fired from a job
76. seen the changing of the guard in london
77. broken a bone
78. been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. seen the grand canyon in person
80. published a book
81. visited the vatican
82. bought a brand new car
83. walked in jerusalem
84. had your picture in the newspaper
85. kissed a stranger at midnight on new year’s eve
86. visited the white house
87. killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. had chickenpox
89. saved someone’s life
90. sat on a jury
91. met someone famous
92. joined a book club
93. gotten a tattoo (this will also NEVER happen)
94. had a baby (5)
95. seen the alamo in person
96. swam in the great salt lake
97. been involved in a law suit
98. owned a cell phone
99. been stung by a bee

54- I guess that's not too bad- more than half. I do know that some of those will never happen, but some I would really love to happen. I guess I still have 40+ more years to go- hopefully...

AN AMERICAN TRADITION

Little C is back on the field again playing baseball this summer. He has gotten to try some new positions this season too, like catcher. It has been a bit of an adjustment for him to hit off of the kid pitchers in this league, but he is getting the hang of it. Hey batta, batta! Sa-WING BATTA!

I SMELL A RAPID

This is my oldest and she is a River Addict. She has a secret super hero power: she can SMELL a rapid coming. Seriously. On this 4 day trip down the Green in Desolation/Gray Canyon, she would say... "I smell a rapid." And sure enough, the next moment I would start to hear the roar. She is amazing (yes, I say it all the time, but it is true).

This is the PUT IN at Sand Wash. It takes a lot of gear to take 20 people down a river for 4 days and it all has to be tied down in case you flip your boat.

Here are my two youngest in the inflatable kayak on the first day. Two of the cutest kids ever!

The first day we lashed all 5 of our rafts together and motored through 26 miles of flat water. It was a long, hot day and the water was FREEZING cold, so you couldn't swim.

There were 10 kids on the trip and they sure had a great time playing on the beaches in the evenings. We were SO thankful the mosquitos weren't out yet!

Occasionally my daughter would allow me to row the boat.

This was the biggest rapid and the most fun! It was called Joe Hutch, but we called it Big Jim (we renamed all the rapids for fun). It looked VERY intimidating, but was actually pretty straight forward. We hardly even got wet if you can believe it.

The biggest bummer of the trip is that our good friends didn't even get to come. They had heath issues and had to cancel at the last minute. It was a fun trip, but would have been 100 times better if they'd been there. We will definitely be doing another multi-day trip in the future.

PIONEERS

For our ward's Youth Conference this year, they took the youth to Martin's Cove, Wyoming for a Handcart Trek. I have never been there before, but I have heard it is a beautiful place and that the Spirit is very strong there. My sons enjoyed it very much and said it was an amazing experience. They were assigned to a 'family' group (with a Ma and Pa, brothers and sisters) made up of kids from our ward. Both of them loved it and were only a little sad they missed our river trip.

DESOLATION, HERE WE COME!

This canyon is called Desolation and we are going to be running it's river (the Green- I know, I know, it looks brown) for the next 5 days. We have never done more than a one-nighter as a family, so it will be an interesting trip. Our two older boys aren't coming (they have Youth Conference), but we are taking my oldest (to row- she's way better than I am) and my two youngest (ages 9 and 6). There are two other families coming with us, so it should be really fun and the weather is supposed to be hot (finally). Please pray for us that we don't get eaten by mosquitos too bad. I am very excited and so are the kids! My two sons are sad to be left behind, but that's life... See you when I'm TAN!

NEW

I cut and colored my hair today- okay, my sister-in-law cut my hair today. I actually love it! It is easy to do and that is always great! I really like the lighter highlights too. What is it about getting older that makes your hair go so dark and so dead-looking? (or is it just me). I have needed a change for a while, but just didn't know what to do with it. This is going to be nice for all of our river trips this summer too. I hope it stays fairly curly. I just can't get used to that. I have always had hair that was 'straight as a stick,' according to my mother, so I am not really used to the wave yet. 

But I love it so far! 

Joni, YOU ROCK!