I Would Walk 3,000 Miles

Juan Bandito Rides Again

Many of you have probably heard that song: "I Wanna Be (500 Miles)" by the Proclaimers.  The chorus of the catchy song talks about walking 500 miles.  Well, last week, I got to drive 3,000 miles to get myself and my two oldest kids (R. and S.) to a family reunion up at Bear Lake, Utah.

Over the course of the past 8 days, I have driven nearly 3,000 miles (approx. 2,900 to be exact) which took 19 hours of drive time each way.  We got to spend the week with about 120 members of my family, including sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, and cousins (both near and distant)--including some I'd never met.  But by the time the week was over, I felt like I'd known these new-found cousins for years.

I've always felt like I've been blessed with a pretty awesome family and extended family.  That was confirmed this week over and over.  I have cousins who I practically grew up with (or watched them grow up) who feel more like siblings to me than cousins.  I sure am grateful for the love and support that I feel from them.

Here's a quick photo dump of a few of the highlights from the week:

R. and my brother SLD doing a little stand up paddleboarding...

Jordo and me

S. and I doing some tubing...It was S.'s first time ever on a boat.  I was proud of him for being so brave.

Later, I decided to try a trick that I saw one of my younger cousins doing.  It looked a lot easier when they were doing it!

"Hitchhiking" is jumping from one tube to the other while the boat is moving

Making sand castles with the cousins

Cousins...B-Man and S.

We also hiked a mountain....

R. contemplates the Universe

Hiking back down the mountain...the wildflowers were so incredibly beautiful

My family has given me a legacy of faith and I'm so grateful to be a part of our family tree!

Our (partial) family tree...

Some pics of my grandpa from his polar explorations

And then I was grateful to make it back and to see the rest of my kids...

I think it's impossible to get all four kids looking at the camera at the same moment!

It was a great week and a lot of fun to spend some time with my kids.  I hope that they will draw the same strength and comfort from our family tree that I have.  I think that this bunch is definitely worth driving 3,000 miles!

PS--The pic above is my kids with the lead actor in the play "Bandito Rides Again" which we saw at the Pickleville Playhouse on Thursday night.  The play was a complete riot and my kids were practically rolling in the aisles.  I'd definitely go see it again.

Naomi Peak

This is my view right now from the top of Naomi Peak. It's about a 2,000 foot climb along a 3.5 mile trail. It's been fun to have the boys with me on the hike. We've talked about all sorts of interesting things along the way, but the most important thing that I hope my kids remember is that they can do hard things if they don't give up. 

It's all downhill from here!

Bear Lake

This is my view right now. It's pretty relaxing. Bear Lake is known for being cold and having beautiful azure blue waters. This picture probably doesn't do it justice, but I love it's deep blue waters. 

I haven't actually gotten in yet, so I can't vouch for the temperature, but I'm sure it'll be nice and refreshing. Especially compared to the 110+ degree temps that I braved over the past two days on the drive here. 

This morning, as I walked along the beach of the lake, I was reminded of a quote that is prominently featured on my sister's blog:

"The cure for everything is salt water: sweat, tears, or the sea."

--Isak Dinesen

The quote is mostly true. Some problems can be worked through. I imagine that dime can be cried through--at least in part. But many may need healing. And salt water can heal both physical ailments as well as other ones. 

This morning, I watched the sandpipers race along the shore and listened to their shrill cries.  I enjoyed the sparkling light of the rising sun as it reflected off the gently rippling waters. 

The stress and tensions of my work and daily life seemed a million miles away. Perhaps that is because they are--given that I'm tucked away in this remote corner of the Rocky Mountains, where cl service and this little known thing called the "Internet" appear to be all but unknown. 

But perhaps it's also because these crystal blue waters--while they may not contain salt--may also have the capacity to heal.  

Snorkeling With The Sharks

Note the Hapari Boardshorts

My brother and I decided to celebrate the 4th by going snorkeling down at La Jolla Cove and La Jolla Shores.  It's been years since I'd been there, but it was amazing.  The water was warm and refreshing and visibility was pretty decent.  We saw scores of garibaldi, dozens of barracuda, leopard sharks, a school of soupfin sharks, sea lions, and even a cool looking Pacific Coast jelly fish.

Heading Out...Note how I've mastered diving hand signals even though I'm not scuba certified!

A large (6+ foot) soupfin shark

The sharks weren't as scary as I would have thought.  I spotted a young (2-3 foot) leopard shark and swam along him for a bit.  Then a bit later, my brother and I came across a school of soupfin sharks.  They were swimming probably about 10-15 feet below us and they kept on coming and coming from out of the slightly murky depths.  I counted at least 6--all 6+ feet in length.  My brother thinks that there may have been at least 10.  Here's a quick video which an idea of what it was like.

These barracuda looked like mini missiles in the water.  There were too many to count.

These sea lions were quick and unpredictable in the water.  Fortunately, they didn't seem too concerned with us around.  That was a good thing because I was actually more nervous around the sea lions than I was around the sharks.  They were fun to watch and I kept hoping that we'd see a sea lion catch a fish--but it was not to be.

A sea lion swims amidst the garibaldi.

We also saw a bat ray gliding along.

Heading for home...

(Great job to my brother for all of these cool pics!)

My Independence Day

Happy Independence Day!

As I contemplate the 4th of July (our nation's Independence Day) this year, I think back to my post that I did last year.  It had the exact same title which either proves that I totally lack creativity or that good ideas never go out of style.  ;-)

But I'm so glad that I jumped into that pool 3 years ago.  I feel like somehow that that was an important moment in my life.  Independence Day can be more than just a time when we (rightfully and importantly) celebrate the freedoms that we enjoy as Americans.  It can be a time when we celebrate our own freedoms as well--freedom from bad habits that need to be changed, the freedom to improve ourselves, and the freedom to seek search for happiness and joy in our lives.  I think that my decision to jump into that pool helped put me on the path to all of those things.

Freedom doesn't come easily.  Remember the children of Israel?  Moses led them out of Egypt in a dramatic, triumphant, and miraculous way that saw the complete destruction of the mighty army of Pharoah.  But soon thereafter, the people began to murmur and complain because they were hungry and wished that they were back in bondage, in Egypt, where they had their "flesh pots" and plenty of bread.  (Exodus 16:3).  A merciful Heavenly Father sent them manna from heaven to feed them.

Manna from heaven

The children of Israel had security and were not hungry--but they were also not free.  Once they received their freedom, they didn't always value it.  Being free isn't the same thing as being secure--at least in the short term.  In the long run, freedom does lead to stability and prosperity.  We need to exercise faith that when we do what is right we will be blessed--even if we don't know exactly how (or when) those blessings will come.  The children of Israel were better off with their freedom--even if they didn't realize it at the time.  But the Lord knew it and He helped them by (ultimately) leading them to the Promised Land, where they had freedom, security, and prosperity (as long as they were righteous).

Protestors in Cairo's Tahrir Square

I'm also inspired by people around the world that are desperately seeking the basic freedoms that we often don't even think about in this country.  For example, this very moment, the people of Egypt are demonstrating to demand the right to religious freedom in their country--to worship how they choose.  They are also seeking the freedom to have economic opportunity.  And they are seeking that freedom at potential great risk to themselves (and in defiance to current U.S. policy which inexplicably is apparently threatening to withdraw U.S. aid if they demonstrators are successful.)  I saw one Egyptian woman who was interviewed and told the camera that they U.S. could keep its money--the Egyptian people wanted their freedom.  They know that with freedom will ultimately come stability and prosperity.

I'm grateful today for the freedoms that I enjoy both as an American and (more importantly) as a child of God.  Like the children of Israel, I may not know the exact route that the Lord intends for me to travel, but I hope that I am always grateful for my freedoms.  We are expected to use those freedoms to make wise, good choices.  I made a good choice 3 years ago when I decided to basically learn how to swim so that I could do a triathlon.  I hope that I will continue to make good choices.

So that's what I'm thinking about this morning on Independence Day (and I'm also thinking that some good food would be nice too!).  What are you thinking about today?

Gratuitous photo of my "Rugrats" in action....

Walmart: Price Check on Aisle 4

Great Value?  One is a better "value" than the other...

I made a little trip to Walmart on Saturday evening because I needed some cleaning supplies for the shower. I love Walmart because they have such great prices, but I was a little perplexed when I came across these two products...

Take a close look...the labels are similar but not identical.  One product is labeled "Mold & Mildew Remover" and the label proclaims that it kills 99.9% of germs.  The other product is labeled "All Purpose Cleaner with Bleach."  One sticker claims that it kills the Flu Virus and the label also claims that it removes stains and disinfects.

Then look at the active ingredients--both have 2.0% sodium hypochlorite (household bleach).  Sounds like their pretty much the same right?

The back of the bottles...

So I flipped the bottles around and the back labels are nearly identical except for the bar code.  Both labels claim to the exact same household germs, including e. coli, salmonella, staph, strep, mildew, athlete's foot, and the H1N1 influenza virus.   An impressive list indeed.  But an identical list.

The only rational conclusion is that this is the exact same product--just different packaging.  So you might think that the price would be the same.  Au contraire mon frere!  The one on the right is $1.88 for 32 ounces.  The one on the left....$2.88 for 32 ounces.  That's $1.00 more (53%)!!!

So it just goes to show that it pays to read the label--even at Walmart.  Just because Walmart has great deals doesn't mean that all of its deals are created equal.

Primary Spotlight on S.

The spotlight was on S. yesterday in Primary...

In our church, the children's Sunday School is also known as the Primary.  They do a lot of fun stuff in the Primary to teach the kids about Heavenly Father and Jesus.  One of the things that they do is to do a "Spotlight" on a different child each week about that child's likes and other fun stuff that make them special.

Unbeknownst to me, S. had a spotlight moment yesterday.  I only know about it because I got the following fun email from one of our friends who was there yesterday.  (I wanted to post it here so that the grandparents and extended family could enjoy it):

Sister Blake: "S., where is your favorite place to eat?"
 S.: "I don't know... BUT I REALLY LOVE NOODLES!"
 (Haha! So cute! xo amy)

Thanks Amy R. for taking a moment to send the fun email and the cute pics. We love your family too!