Black Belts!

Mariana, Isaac and I completed our black belt test this past weekend.  Here are some pictures.  Check facebook for a video.

Our Idaho, Montana, Wyoming adventure

Anette and I planned a trip to Cody Wyoming over Memorial Day weekend. The only complications were that we had to squeeze in a wedding at the Billings Montana temple and Anette had to work until noon on Friday, which was the last day of school. I stayed home from work and got the car loaded and ready to go. So we left right on time.

Initially we planned to go east to Evanston and then through Rock Springs before turning north to Cody. But after some research into alternate routes, I decided we would go north through Idaho to West Yellowstone and cut through the park to get to Cody.

The Yellowstone route is actually the shortest, but not by much. The day before we left, I called Yellowstone Park and made certain all the roads were open.

We had a pleasant, uneventful drive even though it rained most of the way. We got to West Yellowstone at about 6, grabbed a quick dinner and started into the park We figured we’d be in Cody by about 9. At the entrance to the park, we told the ranger we were headed to Cody and asked about snow. They said all the roads were open.

We made it to Old Faithful about 7:20. Just past the campground, there was a gate across the road. We immediately called the park and learned that the road we wanted to take was closed at 7 p.m. The road to the east entrance of the park had also been closed.

They said the closure was for snow. We were still seeing only rain, but the temperature had dropped to about 39.

Our only recourse was to head back the way we had just passed. We tried to hurry, but we hit a traffic jam at Madison Junction—14 miles from West Yellowstone. There were bison on the road and they were not moving off. Those last 14 miles took two hours. We literally travelled the whole way at the speed of meandering bison.

We needed to be in Billings, Montana the next morning for the wedding. With the park closed, the closest route to Billings was north through Bozeman. We got to Billings about 1:30 and started looking for a motel for the night. By 2:30 we realized we were not going to find an empty room. So we went to Wal-Mart, bought a couple of blankets and spent the night in a parking area next to the temple. We didn’t sleep much. The seats in the Corvette don’t really recline.

In the morning we found a McDonald’s for breakfast and used the bathroom to get ready for the temple. The ceremony was nice and we went to a wedding luncheon afterward. Jake, Lindsay and their children met us in Billings and after the luncheon we followed them to Cody and to their new home. It is only about a 90-minute drive.

Jed and Cally were also their with their boys. Jed came and built a swingset for Jake and Lindsay. So we had a nice family gathering in Cody. The cousins really enjoyed playing together and Saturday night we celebrated Katie’s 5th birthday.

Their new home is nice and they have a great barn with a couple of acres in pasture. The scenery is beautiful. They are just a few miles from part of the Nez Perce trail. We saw all kinds of wildlife everywhere we drove. We found time for a long-range shooting session. We will have to make time for fishing in the future because the area has some of the best trout fishing in the country.

There was an abbreviated church session on Sunday morning. Anette and I didn’t make it because we were catching up on some needed rest and our Sunday clothes had been through a lot.

We didn’t get to stay nearly long enough because Anette and I both had to work Tuesday. We drove back via Riverton, Lander, Rock Springs and Evanston. It was a much shorter trip coming home and we did not have to sleep in the car.

Jed and Cally drove home through the park with their boys. They made it without incident. They also saw tons of wildlife, including a couple of grizzly bears.

Photos

I give up on waiting for Craig to download his photos. Here are a few from Lynette's camera. This is Rachel in her rhythmic gymnastics class. She's twirling a hula hoop on her arm. Eventually, she should twirl it on just her hand.
James' graduation. I hope Craig got better photos. The gown is purple, but it comes out rather blue in the photos. Which is fine with James. He wasn't crazy about wearing purple.


This is Lynette and Alex entering the arena for their team event. They placed fourth out of about eight teams. They are both on the advanced horses now. Lynette actually got thrown once. Her teacher told her she did a perfect "emergency dismount." She still loves to ride and talks about it a lot!

May 24 snow

I'm looking out my office window at about three inches of snow. There wasn't any here when I arrived, but there was an inch at home. So I'm afraid we might have three or four inches there. I hope it doesn't wipe out the tomatoes. I'm worried that it will break branches on the apricot trees because they are loaded with green apricots.

I'm not happy about it, but apparently I am not in charge.

We are traveling to Cody, Wyoming this weekend to see Jake and Lindsay. We will also be going to the Billings Montana temple for Anette's niece's wedding. We hope the weather improves dramatically before then.

Update: A snowplow just went by and I can hear people shoveling their office stairways. This is the latest date ever for measurable snowfall in Salt Lake City. The latest previous date was May 18.

Thank goodness for global warming. Otherwise I'd be concerned about the start of a new ice age.

James' Graduation!

We went to James' Graduation ceremony last night. Wow. It's hard to believe he's almost done. He still has to finish his high school hours, so he is in a government class for the next couple of weeks. Then we will head to the East Coast for our vacation. (This is the vacation that got postponed because of 9-11 back in '01. We are excited to finally be able to get to go!)
When we get back, James will look for a job and work until time to go on his mission.

My kids can't compete with Isaac, but Elaine did get recognized for her grades in Algebra. I think she must have been switched at birth, (or at least got Craig's brains!) because I certainly never did that well in Algebra!

I'll post some pictures as soon as I can get Craig to download them from his calendar.

Academic Banquet and Taekwondo demonstration

We all attended Isaac's Academic Awards banquet tonight.  Isaac came home with a pile of certificates from the Science Olympiad Team, the Spell Bowl, the Knowledge Master Open, and the Math Super Bowl.  He also got the Multi-Tasker Award for being able to do anything while reading a book, and his big award was the Science Olympiad Key Player award.

Last Night, Isaac, Mariana, and I participated in a taekwondo demonstration for my work charitable club.  These two pictures demonstrate what happens if you try to grab Mariana from behind.

Big moves completed

The past weekend was moving one for us. Jake, Lindsay and their children moved from Rawlins, WY to Cody, Wy. Brandon and Jenine moved from the home they were renting in Eagle Mountain back into our basement in Highland.

Jake and Lindsay bought a house in Cody that has two acres of land. It is all in pasture. They also have a nice barn and corrals for horses. They are about a half hour from the east entrance of Yellowstone. We hope to get up to visit them sometime in the next few weeks.

Brandon and Jenine's lease was up so they moved in with us until they move to Las Vegas in August so Brandon can begin dental school. Having Laila at our house is already making it hard for me to get my work done. She is so cute it is tempting just to hold her and watch her smile.

We get to talk to Creed on Sunday for mother's day. We are all very excited about that.